Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1871-11-02
An Awful Lake Disaster.
TIE WRECK OF THE STEAMER CoBURN IN
LAKE SUPERIOR UPWARD OF SIXTY
LIVES LOST.

| LANE SUPERIOR - UPWARD OF SIXTY
LIVES Loyr.
The Co5urn left Sault st. Marie, on
her way down from Duluth TO Buffalo,
on the morning of Saturday, the l4th
inst. Besides her officers, Gilbert De
mont Of Detroit being captain, she had
on board a crew Of about thirty per-
sons and about forty passengers, seven
OF whom were women, and three chill
dren. Her cargo consisted of about
10000 bushels of wheat aft. $500 bar.
rels of flour forward, taken on at Du.
luth for Buffalo, and 80 barrels OF silver
ore from Silver Islet Mine.
BY 10 O'Clock Saturday night it was
blowing a fierce gale, and there was no
staying on deck. The Coburn strug-
glcd gallantly against the Winds and
waves until about four o'clock Sunday
morning. when she unshipped her rud-
der and was henceforth entirely un-
manageable. She soon driited into
the trough of the sea, and though her
engines were kept going, she was una
bic 10 make any headway against the
wind or 10 hold her course across the
waves. Soon her smokestack blew
down and came crashing through the
roof of the cabin whether any per
sons were seriously wounded by the
accident is not known. Already the
women were paralv wed with fear, anil
remained IN their statc-rooms, praying
IN the agony Of despair The waillng,
and lamentations that went up from the
| cabin on that awful night will ring in
/ the ears Of the survivors to their dy-
/ ing day.
The barrels Of silver ore on the main
/ deck 70 led from sidc To side rs the
vessel rolled in the trough, and being
/ OF great weight, knocked holes in her
I buiwarks. She was loaded down very
/ deep, and the water rushed in at the
/ hpieN ~ her sides and poured down the
/ hrcinens sanIway, hlllng the hold.
Her ioun'ering is believed TO be large
Iy attributable 70 the shifting OF this
/ part Of her cargo.
Abont O'Clock on Sunday morning,
when about twenty or twenty-five miles
/ Oh Point aux Barques, it became evil
+ dent 10 Capt. Demont that the steamer
/ must he wrecked, and the order was
/ gwen 10 stand by the boats She car
/ rici five boats probably of sufficient
( capacity 10 take or all the people on
I board IN smooth sea but in such a
/ gale, which a staunch steamer could
/ not withstand, there was little hope for
/ irail yawl-boat. At that time io per-
son on the Inflated steamer expected to
escape alive. However, their only
/ hope was in the small boats, and one
Was immediately launched. None of
''''"" - "h'ltr"" ","ld h.. oo,
/ into il. as they would not leave tie
I cabin, and several Of them were in their
statcrooms aud seemed unable 10 yet
7 out IL wa. almost impossible to stay
I out on the deck, So iicrcclv was the
[ wind blowing NJ the time. Neverthe-
/ less the small boat was filled with pas.
sengers and was safely launched, and
\ drtted away toward the Canada shore
/ and was soon out OF sight
/ a second boat was launched and nll-
/ cd with passengers and crew. She
was picked up the same afternoon with
I all her occupants-ten in numbcr-hy
/ - Canadian schooner
\ Capt. Condon, who had charge of
/ one of the life boats. SAYS:
"On launching her she got half full
| Of water. but we ba:led her out. There
were nine men in the boat with me
! five co.orel men and four white men
I We hal all we could do To keep unr
boat ahoat, bailing all the time Nv
| self and another man steerei the boat
and it was all We could do to keep her
before the sea, IS the waves were run
ming mountain high. We saw the boat
that was first launched drifting away
| Ia the eastward. and watched her for
| sometime. There were nine persons
| in her, mostly passengers, and they
were provided with life-preservers. A
third boat, with fifteen persons in it.
was launched soon after we got Off
| We only saw her few minutes. A
| fonrth boat was upon tn. davits. filed
with people, and was about being
/ launched, when the Coburn gave a
lurch and Immediately sank out of
sight The small boat filled with peo-
was swamped, and we afterward saw
them in the water. When the Coburn
went down her upper cabin was burst
OIL, and we afterward saw her floating
away. covered with people. Before
the Coburn went down | saw Capt.
Demont standing on the starboard
arch, when q large wave struck him
| and threw him into the lake. When
he rose he caught barrel that was
floating near him but he soon sank
again and disappeared. All the wo-
men were i'll the cabin or staterooms,
drifted before the wind until about 3
o'clock Sunday afternoon, when we
were picked up by the Canadian bark,
Robert Gastin."
The names Of the survivors rescued
by the Gastin, so far as could be as
eertained, are as follows: Capt. John
Condor Thomas Derrin, of Buffalo,
deck hand John Bridgman, passen-
ger, of st. Mary's. Ont. Spencer
Churchwell, Henry Munford, and Jno.
Young. The three last mentioned are
colored men. Young was thrown a
distance Of about fifteen feet when the
deck burst up, and was picked up by
the boat.
1t is not positively known who was
lost, as it is possible many may have
been picked up from the other boats
and the wreck of the cabin by passing
vessels. Engineer Robinson kept his
engine going and stood by it until the
vessel went down, 50 that it is certain
that he was lost. The second mate,
whose name is unknown, is also sup
posed to have perished. The clerk,
Mr.. Major, is considered lost.
In one of the boats which got Off
there were known to be William Walk
er Of Cleveland, two gentlemen named
Rhodes Sf the Garrison House, Detroit,