Morning journal and courier., 1883-05-19
The Burning of The Granite
 State.

ing forty-one miles below Hartford, on the way to that city. She was coming into the | dock when fire broke out forward, and the flames spread so rapidly that nothing was saved Three lives are known to have been lost two by burning and one by drowning The drowned person was Mrs. Clifford Main, of New Haven, wife of MT. Main, clerk at Frisbie & Hart's market on State street in
 this city. She with her husband jumped overheard into the river. Her husband reached the shore. An effort was made by
 the steamer to reach the dock, but the fire
 spread with such rapidity that it was found
 impracticabIe. Her stern was swung in,
 however, and most of the crew and passen-
 gers jumped from the burning steamer to
 the wharf, while some jumped into the river
 and swan ashore. It is not known how the fire
 originated The bodies of the persons burned
 cannot all be identified. One body, however,
 has been already recognized as that of the
 second cook, named Jackson. Two bodies
 are supposed to be emigrant passengers
 Nine horses were also burned. Adams Ex-
 press company owned one of the horses. The
 cargo was mostly freight billed to Hartford,
 which is total loss.
 The steamers hull foated down the river
 about half mile below the landing. Noth-
 ing is visible above water but her gallows
 frame and walking-beam.
 The Granite State is owned in Hartford by
 the Hartford and New York Transportation company. She cost the company originally $25, ,oOO, but has since been thoroughly over I hauled and repaired at 8 cost of $30,OOO, | making her whole co st S55, ,OOO; insured for | $40, ,OOO.
 The fire was caused by hanging kerosene | lamp, which ignited the woodwork.
 Mrs c. L. Main was Ida, aged 20, the ! daughter of Henry Mead of Derby avenue, a driver for the Crystal Ice company, and niece of MT. Solomon Mead of Derby ave- | nue. MT. and Mrs. Main were married
 Wednesday evening and went to New York | on their bridal trip. Thursday night they started for Hartford in continuance of their pleasure tour. MT. Main, 25 years of age yesterday, is son of Postmaster Main, of | West Haven, and employed clerk at Frisbie & Hart's. He has two brothers in | Hartford, M. V. Main, the ice man, and Elias B. Main, blacksmith. On Wednesday | night he was married to Miss Ida B.. Mead, | of New Haven, and was on his wedding tour. | He had been to New York and was going to l Hartford to visit relatives there. In
 reply to questions by a reporter
 Mir. Main said: My wife and 1 occupied stateroom No. 50 on the port | side of the steamer, well forward. We re- ! tired about 10 o'clock and as near as l can now judge I was awakened at about o clock | by the presence of smoke in the stateroom. l I jumped out of the berth and threw open | the window, but the smoke poured in and l nearly overpowered me. told my wife to [ get up and we partially dressed ourselves l Then together we went into the saloon of the boat The smoke was terribly oppressive,
 but we were able to grope our way out to l the forward deck. By this time the boat
 had swung around into the stream, and saw | that our only safety was in jumping over board. Together we took the leap and after
 sinking beneath the water seized my wife l in my arms. We sank together three times. l As I rose the last time to the surface my | head struck a piece of timber and l lost hold of my wife. l am un- | able to swim Seizing the timber, which proved to be paddle wheel blade, I | climbed into the wheel and after the boat had 1 foated a considerable distance down the l stream I was taken off in 8 small boat and
 brought to the shore. My wife did not see l after I lost hold of her."
 Soon after o'clock the body of Mrs. Main | was recovered by the men who were drag l ging the river. It was found short dis | tance below the steamboat dock and brought l to the shore.
 It is not probable that the loss of life is ss
 large as at first anticipated. Had the disaster occurred between any two landings in the l river or in the Sound the loss of life would
 have been terrible. AS far as known l only Mrs. Main, Jackson, the colored man, l and possibly the companion spoken of by the German, were lost It is not thought that | anyone was burned in the steamer.
 | There were eleven horses on board, ten of
 which belonged to Jesse Kingsley, of Deep River, and were on their way to Hartford. | At the dock one of these jumped into the
 stream and swam ashore in safety. Another 1 horse, the property of John A. Warren, of
 Haddam, jumped overheard about quarter l of mile below the landing and was saved. | The other nine, valued at $2, 200, were | burned in the steamer. Captain Dibble, | Clerk Silloway and the other officers left the | Granite in @ quarter boat just above where 1 she stranded and came ashore. AS she drift l ed out into the stream the steamer burned l like finder and the scene was superb one Goedspeed's s Landing, where the passen- I gers were put ashore, is well known to | travellers up and down the river, from the l fine dock and warehouses built there by the | late William Goodspeed, formerly the active
 manager of the Hartford and New York 1 steamboat company, which after his death l formed the nucleus for the present line. The l GeIston House is situated but short distance | back of the wharf and in this and at the store | the passengers were cared for until taken to l Hartford by the morning train on the Valley passenger but it is estimated that there were fifty eight passengers and about fifty in the crew The Granite State lies stranded at the head of Lords Island. Only the blaekened hull and the paddle boxes of the steamer are visi ble and volumes of smoke are still issuing from the hulk. She will doubtless prove a total loss.
 Mrs and Miss Hunt who were on board were rescued from the water and Mrs. Good speed took them to her house aud provided them with clothing to proceed to Hartford, their garments having been thoroughly soak ed and torn bybeing knocked about among the
 wreckage. Miss Maggie Hunt was taken into
 boat which oapsized, picked up by another
 boat which in turn capsized and sank twice before she was finally rescued. Both ladies lost all their personal effects except the jew elry they had upon their persons.
 The most accurate description of the ap- pearance of the burning vessel and the land ing of the passengers was narrated by Charles l.. Peck dock master at Goodspeeds Land ing He said: 'I was called to the dock at
 about o'clock this morning by the warming
 whistles of the Granite. The signals were the same as are always used when landing is to be made and thought nothing of them, but prepared to take the bow and mid dle gangway lines when they should be thrown ashore and to make them fast. The lines were thrown out as usual and threw them. over the posts. As soon as had made the middle gangway line fast I looked at the steamer 1 and perceived smoke issuing from her 1 around the smoke pipe. I also noticed that I the pilot bells did not sound, and the boat went little past the dock, so that the plank from the middle gangway could not be placed
 in the receptacle prepared for it, but rested upon the bulwarks of the dock. Most of the passengers came to the side of the boat in an orderly manner, although there was some pushing, and came down the plank in safety. None of them had their baggage and many
 were but partially dressed. From various
 parts of the boat men jumped into the water.
 should say there were fifteen or twenty who escaped in this way. It was broad daylight and they could be seen distinctly. Two small rowboats were lowered into the 1 river, but were quickly swamped. The ferry boat which plies across the point was then fired up and the men in the water picked up. I saw Mir. Main and his wife jump from the forward part of the beat. As far as I can ascertain only Mrs. Main and Jack son, the second cook, were lost although 8 l German man said that somebody who had been with him was missing. Within three 1 minutes after the Granite State reached the dock the flames burst out furiously and