In the United States, the United States Coast Guard was created in 1915 by the merger of two other federal agencies. The first, the United States Revenue Cutter Service, was a maritime customs enforcement agency that also assumed a supporting role to the United States Navy in wartime. The second, the United States Life-Saving Service, was formed in 1848 and consisted of life saving crews stationed at points along the eastern seaboard. The Coast Guard later absorbed the United States Lighthouse Service and the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection.