II.

History

Organized efforts in developing lifesaving techniques began on the Swiss lakes in the early 1700s. The first publication containing instructions for the treatment of the apparently drowned was printed at Lille, France in 1755. In 1762 the Maatschappij tot Redding van Drenkelingen (Society for Saving Drowning Persons) was created at Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This was followed in 1774 by the organization of the Royal Humane Society in England. In the United States, the Massachusetts Humane Society was organized in 1785. All of these societies directed their initial efforts toward the development and application of various forms of artificial respiration and other resuscitative measures for victims of drowning.

As early as 1816, methods for rescuing drowning persons were described in a book on swimming by an author named Jack Frost. It is probable that several forms of rescue by swimming were in use long before this date. It was not until 1891, however, that methods and techniques employed in rescue were standardized and the first society was organized for the purpose of saving lives in the water. This was the Royal Life Saving Service, which was formed in England in 1891.

In America, the first effort began in 1870 with the organization of the United States Volunteer Life Saving Corps, which at first was concerned with rescuing shipwrecked mariners. In the early 1900s it began to develop methods of rescue and resuscitation similar to those employed by the Royal Life Saving Service. In 1909 the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) began its program of instruction in swimming and lifesaving; and in 1914, at the request of the YMCA and the Boy Scouts of America, the American Red Cross undertook a national program of lifesaving and water safety.