The Sun.
London, England, 1829-07-04 00:00:00

DREADFUL EXPLOSION OF THE AM
RICAN STEAM FRIGATE FULTON.

(From the New York Commercial Advertiser, June
Our city was astounded last evening by the a
palling intelligence of the destruction of the stew
frigate Fu/ton, at the Navy Yard, Brooklyn, al
the killing and wounding of a great number of me
by the explosion of the powder magazine.
The Fulton has ever since the war been occupit
as a receiving ship, and was moored within 2C
yards of the shore. The magazine was in the bo
of the ship, and contained at the time of the expli
sion but three barrels of damaged powder. The el
plosion was not louder than that produced by ti
discharge of a single cannon ; and many person
in the Navy Yard supposed the report to have pet
ceeded from such a source, until they saw the in
mense column of smoke arising from the verse
Others about the yard saw the masts rising int
the air. before the explosion, and immediately after
the air was filled with fragments of the vessel. 1
is not a little remarkable, that a Midshipman, will
was, at the time of the accident, asleep on board'p
the frigate United States, within 200 yards of thi
frigate, was not at all disturbed by the report o
the explosion, and was not aware of the occurrence
until he was told of it after he awoke.
The Fulton is a complete wreck, the bow heieP
destroyed nearly to the water, and the whole of thi6
immense vessel, Whose sides were more than foul
feet thick, arid all other parts of corresponding
strength—is now lying an entire heap of ruins, burst
a•under in all parts, and aground at the spot where
she was moored. Although she was but 200 yards
from the Navy Yard, and many vessels near her, not
one of them received the last damage ; nor was the
bridge which led from the shore to the Fulton at
all injured. The sentinel upon the bridge receive!d
no wound whatever, and continued to perform his.
duty after the accident, as unconcerned as though
nothing had happened. The sentinel on board the
ship was less fortunate, and escaped with merely (11
slight accident on such occasion) a broken leg.
There were attached to the Fulton, by the roll 6f
the ship, 143 persons; and at the time of the ex-
plosion there were supposed to have been on board-
the vessel about GO persons.
The bodies of the following persons have been
brought on shore, and placed in coffins :-
11.brrt M. Peck, marine; William Kemp, seaman ;
Alexander Cameron, marine; Franklia Uly, do., purser's
steward ; Henry Legan, do., corporal ; John M`Keever,
do. ; Charles Williamson, do. ; Otto E. Fergustine, do ;'•
Sylvestt. Olialoran, do. ; James Livingstone, ordinary
sea-nan. from Ireland ; Thomas Walton, seaman ; Jobs
Pierce, first seaman ; Thom is D. Burgen, do. ; Jacob
%ire, landsman, New York : William A. Lehman, do. ;
Peter Gillen, do. ; T. Williams, gunner; John pass
Rayes, barber, of Mexico; Joseph Brown, seaman, acting
cook ; Harman Vete!, a boatman, of New York ; 'tWin.
Brown, a boy ; Mrs. Brown, a mulatto; Mrs. Stockwell,
of New York ; Mrs. Neilson, a Swede, whose husband
was a seaman, and died a few days since.
WOUNDED.
Lieutenant Charles T. Platt, severely; Lieut. S. M.
Brackenridge, since dead ; Lieutenant Alex. M. Mull,
slightly ; Jolla Montgomery, sergeant of marines, do. ;
Win. Butter, Captain's steward, do. ; Sailing Master
John Clough, severely.
Midshipmen—Robert E. Johnston, severely; David
APDongel, do. ; Robert P. Welsh, do. ; Mr. Eckford (a
son of Henry Rickford, Esq. of this city), thigh broken.
Rohert Kilpatrick, Marine, severely; Patrick Gilligan,
do., slightly ; John Driscoll, do., do. ; Nicholas D.
Farrell, do., severely ; Jacob De Hart, do., do. ; Thomas
M‘Cullough, cook, slightly; Charles Scott, seaman, se-
ver,ly ; Zvi). Robertson, do., du. ; Joseph Moore, dta•
slightly; Thomas Newbova, du., do.; William Brows,
musician, severely; Stephen Decatur, a boy, do.
This accident was occasioned by the gunner's
going into the magazine to procure powder to fire
the evening gun. He was charged by one of the
officers, previously to his going below, to be careful,
and soon after the explosion took place. We under-
stand that he was a man between fifty and sixty
years of •age, and had just been appointed to that
office, the old gunner having been discharged the
day before. He was desired by Lieutenant Bracken-
ridge to . be cautious with the light, and to place it-
in
the location invariably provided for it on such
occasions—viz., behind behind a reflecting• glass in the par-
tition, through which the rays of light are thrown.
It is supposed he had been careless in this particular,
and that having carried the candle into the maga-
zine, some of its sparks were communicated to the
powder; but as he is among the dead, nothing cer-
tain upon this point can ever be known. Lieutenant
Mull states that the necessary precautions had been
taken for opening the magazine, and a sentinel
placed at the hatch before he left the deck, and that
after being in the ward-room some twenty minutes,
the explosion took place.

At the time of the explosion, the officers were

.lining in the ward room. The lady of Lieutenant
Btackenridge, and the son of Lieutenant Platt, a
lad of about nine years old, were guests, and one ac-
count says both were slightly wounded. Another
account says Lieutenant Mull, who was sitting next
to the son of Lieutenant Platt, with great presence
of mind, caught hold of him, and placed him in one
of the port holes, by which means he escaped unin-
jured. Lieutenant Platt had returned only yester-
day morning, having been absent one month on
leave. Corn. Chauncey, with the Commander of
the frigate, Captain Newton, left her only a few
minutes before the explosion, the former having been
on board on a visit of inspection.
The escape of Midshipman Eckford seems to have
been almost miraculous. When Commodore Chaun-
cey (who was one of the first to reach the vessel) got
on board, the first object he saw was young Eckford
hanging by one of his legs between the gun-deck,
whither he had been forced by the explosion. A
jack-screw was immediately procured, by means of
%%inch the deck was raised, and he was extricated
from his perilous situation.
The room in which the officers were dining was
situated about midships. The whole company at
the table were forced, by the concussion, against the
transom, with such violence as to break their limbs,
and otherwise cut and bruise them in a shocking
manner.
The magazine was situated in the bows of the
vessel. This part of the ship, as may well be ima-
gined, is completely demolished. Indeed the ship
remains as complete a wreck as probably was ever
beheld. The timbers throughout appear to have
been perfectly rotten. Many of the guns were
thrown overboard, and some of them (of large di.
mension) now lung as it were by a hair.
The bodies of the dead and wounded were
brought on shore as soon as circumstances would.
permit. The former, after being recognized, were
put into coffins. The latter were taken to the hos- .
pital of the Navy-yard, and every attention paid to
them. The bodies of the dead were shockingly
mangled, their features distorted, and so much
blackened that it was difficult to recognize them.
MI the physcialis of Brooklyn, and several from this
city, proffered their services, which proved very
acceptable.
As soon as the intelligence reached the city, thou-
sands of persons visited the wreck of the Fulton.
The steam-boats on their pavage up the river stop-
ped to learn the particulars, and hundreds .of small
boats proceeded to the spot. The Navy yard was
also filled with persons making inquiries after their
relations or friends, and expressing much anxiety
to see the bodies, for the purpose of ascertaining
whether they were among the dead or wounded.
'We are pained to learn that Mrs. Brackenridge
is not slightly, but very severely wounded ; and the
injury of Lieut. Platt is so serious, that but a faint
hope is indulged of his recovery.
What is a very remarkable circumstance, although
several of the persons at dinner in the ward-room
escaped with their lives, and some of them unin-
jured, not a vestige of the table, chairs, or any of
the furniture of the room, remains. Every thing
was blown to atoms.

Sir RICHARD KEANE is about to offer him-
self for the representation of the county Waterford, where
he has come into possession of a large estate by the death
of his father.— Tipperary Free Prate.