Picture taken after unveiling on August 7, 2008.

The North Carolina Maritime Museum was the recipient of an LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle and Personnel) or "Higgins Boat" on Wednesday, July 30 for restoration.

The restoration will take place in the museum's Watercraft Center and will be available for public viewing during the 6 - 8 month project. The vessel, which is owned by the First Division Museum in Wheaton, Illinois, is approximately 10 1/2 feet wide and 34 feet in length. The age is currently unknown but is believed to be from the 1940's. "Its condition is better than it will look once the cover comes off. It doesn't look like it, but structurally it is in very good condition," said Maritime Museum Curator Paul Fontenoy.

"More than 36,000 LCVPs were manufactured during WWII," Fontenoy said. "There are only four left in the United States." The craft could transport troops from larger vessels right onto a beach, making amphibious assaults possible. LCVP's carried the 1st Infantry Division ashore at North Africa, Sicily and Normandy. The World War II-vintage LCVP was purchased from Overlord Research, LLC, of Charleston, WV, who located it in Normandy, France.