Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1869-11-04
THE STEAMER STONEWALL
BURNED.
over Two Hundred Lives Lost.

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above Cairo, and that forty passengers and
three of the crew we're saved. The Stone
wall left here Tuesday for New Orleans,
with one hundred and sixty cabin and
deck passengers. and from the despatch
received it is inferred that all those above
the number mentioned are lost.
The last seen of Captain Scott he was
floating down the stream on log. The
people at Neely's saw the light, and
FASTENED to assist them. One man
rescued sixteen persons with skiff.
and had it not been for this help all would
have been lost. A gentleman from Pa
ducah, Ky, swan ashore With lady, and
at her cntreaty returned to save her child.
In swimming ashore he was grasped by
drowning man, and was compelled to shake
him off. One man was taken from the
wreck so badly burned that he died on
reaching the shore. Captain Doudy, Of
Shreveport, La, was saved. There were
thirty-nlne cabin passengers and the crew.
All the ladies on board were lost but one.
Fulkerson, the pilot, and the carpenter
were the only ones of the crew saved =
The boat was owned by Captain John
Shaw and Dennis Long latter in
Louisville, and was valued at S45 coo;
insured for $4,000. She had on
board 800 tons of freight, including 27O
head of horses and mules, which were in
sured. Captain Shaw had stopped off
this trip, and Captain Tom Scott was in
command
ST. LOUIS. October 29-Evening.-
Mr.. Phelps, a planter of Shreveport. La,
has arrived from the wreck of the Stoue-
wall, and furnishes the following brief
particulars of the terrible disaster to that
boat: The boat caught fire at $50. on
Wednesday evening, at point little
below Neely'A landing, l25 miles below
St. Louis, from candle which the deck
passengers had near some hay while play
ing cards.
The steamer was run on gravel bar
the pilot supposing that the passengers
could wade ashore. Unfortunately, at the
end of the bar was slough, and here it
vas that the larger number were drown
ed. The boat only ran on the bar two
feet, and none of the water about her was
less than five or six feet deep The boat
being loaded with hay burned very rapid
", and all efforts to check the flames were,
unavailing.
The Belle of Memphis came up at g. 80,
three hours after the accident, and rem
dered all the assistance possible Out Of
252 passengers and crew, only thirty are
known to be saved
CHICAGO, October ga special des-
patch from Carbonate. Ill.,, says the
steamer Stonewall, which left St. Louis on
Tuesday evening for New Orleans, heavi-
ly laden with passengers, horses, mules,
hay, and other freight, was lost last night,
near NeelYs Landing, being burned to
the waters edge. When the fire broke
out, every effort was made to land, but
the boat was so heavily laden that she
could not be brought nearer than one hun
dred yards Of the shore, and great con-
fusion and terror prevailed. There were
about two hundred cabin and deck passen
gers, large number of whom were
women and children. The flames spread
with great rapidity, and scores of men
jumped into the water and attempted to
reach the shore by swimming, but nearly
all of these were lost. The steamer Belle
of Memphis, on her way to St. Louis,
reached the scene during the progress of
the FIRE, and picked from the water all
but one of those known to be saved
The pilot, engineer, striker, carpenter,
and forty-four passengers are known to be
saved. The Captain, clerks and other
officers and many passengers were lost.
All the books and papers of the boat were
lost, as we're all the cattle and other
freight. Many persons died after reaching
the shore. from exposure. All the women
and children were lost, nearly. if not quite
all being burned to death. The conduct
of the passengers and officers is said to
have been heroic. Such an appalling
scene has not been witnessed on the
Mississippi for many years. The saved
were kindly cared for by the officers of
the Belle of Memphis, and were carried to
St. Louis.
An interview with the assistant en-
ginecr of the i'll -fatcd steamer, by tele-
graphic correspondent at Carbonate, gets
from him the following statement The
alarm was given at $50, and in ten
minutes the boat was in a sheet of flames.
and every person had deserted her. All
that were lost were drowned, and none
were burned. Ofeleven women on board,
but three were saved. But one yawl was
seen, and that was taken possession of by
some deck passengers. No other life
preservers were seen. The boat grounded
TWO hundred yards from the shore in
about six feet of water There were forty
cabin and one hundred and fifty deck
passengers, and crew of sixty, in all.
about two hundred and fifty-two souls,
about fifty only of whom were saved.
STILL LATER
ST. LOUIS, October 2S.-George W,
Ulton, chief engineer Of the Stonewall.
arrived here Oh the Belle of Memphis, and
gave some further particulars. Sixteen
persons were saved ly clinging to planks,
and sixteen more swan ashore. These
are ALL out $50 or 260 souls on board. of
whose positive safety there is any certainty.
One man, named Bennett, was picked up.
and brought ashore, but he died soon after
The only officers of the boat known to be
saved are George w. Fulton, chief en-
gineer Ed. Fulkerson, pilot, and E. P.
W atson, carpenter.
CUBA.
HAVANA, October 30.-Intelligence
from the central department is to the If.