The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1871-04-20
SERIOUS LAKE DISASTER.
A Tugboat Capsized and Three men
Drowned.
From the Chicago Tribune.

From the Chicago Tribune
At half-past II O. clock, Saturday fore
noon. the tugboat S. V. R. Watson was
engaged in towing out the schooner q. j.
Simmons, Of Kenosha, Captain Keller,
and, when about 200 feet south of the
| north pier, the vessel shot ahead, the
sails having been hoisted, the tow line
got clogged and could not be cast off,
and the vessel pulled the tug over on her
side. and she upset, filled and sunk.
There were Oh board Captain Frank
Green. aged SO years, who has wife
and four children, living at No. 90 Sedg
| wick street; L. 3. Johnson aged 81
! years, with wife and four children liv-
ing on Fourth Street, These two own
ed the boat. John Garritty, a deck
hand leaving wife and two children /;
William Lynch the fireman and Ed. Sta
| cy. the engineer, were also on board.
The three former went down, and never
came up. Lynch rose to the surface,
and got onto water butt, while Stacy,
managed to reach floating hatch. The
| tugboat Mary McLain, Captain McLain,
| which was towing outa vessel Immediate
ly be hind the schooner Simmons, saw
the accident, dropped her tow-line and
went to the rescue. When they ap-
| preached, Lynch seemed to be all right,
and as it was noticed that Stacy was be-
coming exhausted, they passed Lyncy
and picked up Stacy. AS soon as he
reached the deck he tainted from exhaus-
| ton, but soon recovered. Lynch was
then picked up. Both were kindly cared
for by the men on the McLain. The
yawl of the schooner Simmons was low
cred as soon as the tug capsized, but the
sea was SO heavy that as soon as she
struck the water she keeled over, and
the oars were lost. Nothing could be
done without them. The Simmons
swung around, after the tug went down,
| and struck the north pier with her bow.
She commenced to leak, and the Cap
tain fearing hole had been made, cast
| anchor almost Immediately, and made a
minute examination. The leak proved
to be trifing. After remaining several
hours al anchor, she left for her destina-
ton. The tug sank in the deep channel
and lay in such position that no heavily
loaded vessel could get in or leave the
hn of
were at once secured, but, owing TO the
roughness of the lake, nothing could be
done. As soon as the weather settles,
cables will be attached to the tug and
she will be drawn into shallow water and
raised. The pilot house and the deck
| house were washed away, but it is be-
| lieved the hull is not or will not be in
jured. Her machinery will, of course,
have to be overhauled, and it may re-
quire $4,000 to put her In running order
As soon as the news of the disaster
re ached the office of the tugboat associa-
ton, corner of Fifth avenue and South
Water street, number of tugmen start
ed for the place CT the disaster to render
assistance, if required. The brother of
Captain Green who commands the tug
Clifford, procured graphing irons and
endeavored to find the bodies of those
lost, but was unable to do so. The lake
was very boisteIous, and this, added to
the hig mud, rendered the search very
difficult
Captain Green was we'll known in Chi
cago, having been identified with tug
boat interests since 1860. He was Vice
President of the tugboat Association,
and was we'll liked by those gbo knew
him.
Il. Is. johnson was clerk in the mail
ing department Of the Evening Journal,
and, as he was a stakeholder in the
company which owned the Watson and
other tugs. he was probably on board
merely for the pleasure of the trip. A
singular co incidence in connection with
the melancholy catastrophe, is the fact
that Captain Green and Mr.. johnson
were doubly brothers-in-law, having
married sisters, who became wives on
the same day, and were made widows by
the same terrible occurrence.
The Watson was from Buffalo. Five
years ago she capsized in Chicago
harbor, while towing the propeller Foun-
tain City.
The search for the bodies yesterday.
was successful. The remains of John
Clarity, deck hand, were brought to tn e
surface IN the morning, aud those OF L.
b. johnson one of the owners Of the
boa, In the afternoon. The Coroner
held inquests in both cases, and, as
nothing was developed showing negli-
gence on the part Of any one, the jury
returned a verdict of accidental drown
ing.