NOAA's Office of Coast Survey, in conjunction with the NOAA Climate Database Modernization Program and the NOAA Central Library, is in the process of imaging the entire collection of historical Coast Pilots. The history of the United States Coast Pilot extends back many centuries, when Edmund March Blunt (1770-1862) published the American Coast Pilot in 1796. Blunt's Coast Pilot was not the first book of sailing directions, or even the first such book concerning American waters. However, it was the first book of American sailing directions published in the United States. In 1867 the copyright to Blunt's American Coast Pilot, while in its 21st edition, was sold to the United States. The Coast and Geodetic Survey, an early predecessor to NOAA, published its earliest version of the Coast Pilot, George Davidson's Directory for the Pacific Coast of the United States as an appendix in the 1858 Coast Survey Report.

The following images represent a significant portion of NOAA's Coast Pilot collection, and more volumes will be added in the future. These images are meant for historical research and are not for navigation.

They are in a .pdf format, and download time could be significant due to file size.

The American Coast Pilot, First Edition – 1796; Written by Capt. Lawrence Furlong; Published by Blunt and March - File size 13.5 MB

The American Coast Pilot, Third Edition – 1800; Written by Capt. Lawrence Furlong; Published by Edmund M. Blunt - File size 25.8 MB

Report, The Superintendent of the Coast Survey, 1858; Alexander Dallas Bache, Superintendent; Coast Survey Appendix by George Davidson; Published by the Government Printing Office - File size 33.0 MB

Notes on the Coast of the United States, 1861; Alexander Dallas Bache, Superintendent Coast Survey; Published by the Government Printing Office

Coast Pilot, Pacific Coast, - 1889; Written by George Davidson; Published by the Government Printing Office - File size 87.0  MB

Pre-Coast and Geodedic Survey