Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1859-02-04
The Burning of the North Carolina.


The Burning North Carolina.
Mr. Crapon Of the passengers on board the North
Carolina, who arrived here on Tuesday last, has
kindly furnished us with an extra slip from the office of
the Portsmouth Transcript, giving detailed account
of the circumstances attending the burning of the steam
ship North Carolina the morning of Saturday, the
29th ult Mr. Crapon has also added some matters not
in the slip referred to.
At about quarter after 2, the boat discovered
to be fire in the forward part of the upper saoon-
The fire is supposed to have caught from light carried
into the stewards by boy, from which the cur
tains caught and the fire rapidly spread The steamer
was on her way from Baltimore to Portsmouth, and five
miles south of Smiths Point Light House when the
fire was discovered The engines stopped the boats
lowered and all that possible done to save life, for
so rapidly did the flames spread that hope existed of
being able to save the boat Luckily, the number Of
passengers was very small The following is the list as
given by the Transcript:
MIR. Troupe and two daughters, of Ca. E. G. Clay
ton and lady, of n. c.; Mrs. OBrien, of Philadelphia
Peter Adams, Greensboro n c.; John A. Boyden,
Salisbury, n c.; R. II. Northrop Pioneer Mills Will
mir ton, n. c.; R. FL. Gregory, Goldsboro', n. O.;
John A. Green Baltimore John G. RiYes Edgecombe,
n. O.; Isaac Lurch, Wilmington, n. c.; David A.
Wickers, Raleigh n. c.; M. Crapon wife and child,
N.
Fitzgerald, of Norfolk, Va; S. T. Hart and M. w.
AyIWin of Portsmouth, VA and the Rev. Mr.. Curtis,
OF s. c., who was lost.
There 26 passengers and 40 persons attached to
the boat all of whom saved with the exception Of
Mr.. Curtis and a colored waiter Mr.. Crapon thinks
that there may have been another gentleman passan-
ger, who board at Baltimore, but whose uame
is not known, he himself recognized among the pas
sengers saved This is only conjecture.
In the hurry and excitement inseparabe from such
occasion most Of the passengers especially the ladies'
had Oarey time to escape from their in their night
clothes. Mr.. Crapon and his wife and child had to
cape from their room through window. He got a
boat lowered but it got full of waterhe dropped his
child into the water went after it and got it into the
boat, Mrs G. followed and drawn into the boat
Mrs. OBrien also jumped overheard, and Captain Fiz-
gerald seized hold of rope and went the side to
Mrs OBrien, but the rope somehow got loose from
the steamer Captain Fitzgerald then grasped the bow
of the boat in which Mr. Capon and his family had got
and then he and Mrs Bren drawn on board that
boat. After the boats had got distance from the
burning steamer, a small group discovered still on
board near the bow and taken off in of the eboats.
About 81 o'clock they got to the Smiths Point light
boat where they got all the accommodations that circum
stances would permit. AT o'clock Saturday morning,
the Parker Vein Steamer Locust Point came alongside,
and remained there account of the fog until Saturday
evenings o'clock when she carried the rescued party to
Hampton Roads, where they were taken off by the Bay
Steamer Georgia. and carried into orfok and Ports
mouth on Sunday morning.
There seems to have been no panic aboard although
of course there was excitement and confusion. Very
little of anything saved from the burned Steamer
All the baggage and freight, including that in charge Of
Adams Express Agent, was totally lost The Tran
script says the fire originated in small room in the
forward upper saloon used for the storage of bed cloth
ing, etc., in which candle may have been left burning
On the arrival Of the rescued party at Portsmouth
every effort was made to contribute to their comfort
and to enable the passengers to reach their respective
designations.
We learn from the Baltimore Sum-" that the boa
originally cost $l2OOO0 on which there was an insur
ance of $4,000. The boat was about eight years old
of l2O tons capacity The aggregate destruction O
property is about $15O,OO0.
Me- VIM. II. Prescott, the distinguished historian
died suddenly at Boston, Friday the 28th ut of a.
opIexy. He was in his 64th year.