The Tiffin weekly tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1859-1868, 1868-04-02
nlistellouraus.
TERRIBLE DISASTER.
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EXPLoSI) ~ OF TIR STEAMER
MAGNOLIA.
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EIGHTY PBRSo Ns sUPPOsBD
TO BE LOST.

vi hdNUblh'
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EIGHTY PBRso Ns SUPPOSED
TO BE LOST.
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tFrom Cincinnati custo Thursday. March io.l
About noon yesterday the 6ne side
wheel steamer Magnolia, LIFT her
wharf at the foot Of Walnut street.
for Maysvillo. Her freight bills we're
heavy, aud her passenger list con
taiued the namos of about one hun
drcd persons, in addition to crew Of
nearly forty persons, a total Of l40
souls on boarl,
The passenger list was unusually
large, aud all wero in the best Of
spirits. On the boat were. families
homewlrd bound, merchants travel
ling on business, aud pleasure seek
erS.
The day being beautiful, q large
number of the passengers were on
deck and as,thc packet steamed up the
river, many were the handkerchief.
waved by the friends on shore, to
those upward bound.
Little did friends as they parted
with loved ones, who had taken pas
sage on the steamer, expect such a
dreadful disaster as wo are about TO
relate, aud scarcely coulu they real.
ize the truthfuness Of the dreadful
accident, as il came to this city by
piccomeal.
Her boilers were tested by Capt.
Fisher, United States Inspector, on
the llth OF December last, aud were
found to be in excellent condition. a
certificate of the same having been
given.
She was iu command ofCapt. J. II.
Prathcr, with o. +. Shaw, First Clerk
and Geo. Prather and Alex. Elliott
Assistant Clerks. She was tri.
weekly boat between here aud Mays
vile, and was exceedingly popular
among steamboat meu, as well as our
citizens generally.
THE EXPLOSION
and horrible disaster to life and prop.
orty, occurred nearly opposite the
town of California, about twelve miles
above tho city, AS is not generally
the case, the Magnolia had no passcn-
gers to put of at California, aud, con
sequcntly did not make landing,
Past the turn she steamed, passen
gers on board waving handkerchief
to those on shore.
A moment afterward a terrible ex.
plosion occurred, aud the Magnolia
with all its precious freight, was u
wreck. No one knows how the ex
ploson occurred, but those 10 the
vicinity say that the whole forward
part of the upper works Of the boat
were blown 10 atoms.
The scene was terrible in tho ex.
treme. Women crying to their hus
bands for help, aud children clinging
to their mothers for relief Those
not killed or blown .erboard by the
explosion, gathered around tho guards
on the afterpart Of the boat, but the
wreck having tAkea Gre; tho flames
spread with frightful rapidiiy, and
those passengers clinging to the after
part of tho boat, were forced to ac-
cept the alternative of jumning into
the cold waters, or being burned
alive.
Most Of them accepted the former
and madly jumped into the river; aud
those who could swim stald on board
and wero burned alive, aud those whC
could not, jumped overheard.
The explosion occurred just as tb'
frst dinDer table had been cleared
and the second being prepared
Most of the male passengers, who
had taken dinner at the FIRST table
were staudiug on the forward deck
and with them considerable mum
Der of ladies'. All Of these, with bul
one or two exceptions, were lost
Those on the alterpart Of the boat
who were not rescued by skiffs, We're
as we have already said, either drowDet
by jumping overheard or burned tC
death.
The citizens of California, will
some eight or rem skiffs, rallied to the
relief of the distressed persons, anC
succeeded in rescuing quite a mum :
Der Of persons.
The whole number OF persons lost
according to the best estimate, taking
into consideration the lumber OF
the boat, is 3d.
As the books, containing the
names Of all the passengers, were lost
it is probable that their names viii
not be aseertained for weeks 10 come,
snd gerhaps some of them never.