Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-10-31
TEN LIVES LOST.

..-ribIc Disaster on Lake Michigan.
y. chicago, During the Late Gale
NeM Laborers Washed Into The S..
NV, piline situated q Mile from the
r' . Five Survivors Left to Tell
sad Story-Gallant Service of the
Eife. saving Crew.
c,,cAGo. Oct. OFF %Cheitenham beach
,,,,dc Park, a mile out in the stormy lake.
W., men awoke in the'dusk of yesterda,
'.ainr to find that they were encompassed
ioath. OF this band only five reached
!. shore alive. The rest were drowned.
:. BOARD Of Trustees of the village Of
sac Park have been engaged in construct
new water system for the last two
ss This summer a tunnel one mile ont
a., the lake was finished. Three weeks
~ huge wooden tower to be used as
,,rt of the crib was lowed to the month
,na tunnel and sunk. Hean g. Corbyn. of
rity. were the contractors, and Gener-
william Sooy Smith was the engineer.
y contractors erected spiles about the
Pten tower, built thereon a shanty, and
n n gang of men went to work. The
,%tractors, with their men, lived in the
u"ty and slept there. The lateness of the
sm, made speedy work a necessity. It
[n,trd in the death of the contractors and
Fnt Of their workmen. At $3.50 o'clock
E,arday morning Robert Hawkins. chief
rineer of the Hyde Park Water
erks. noticing that the lake was very
,sh, assembled to the tower and looked
over the lake. The shanty was still
Lre. but spray was breaking over it. Halt
hour later Mr.. Hawkins again looked
on the lake. The shanty was gone. It
4 been washed away. He at once gave
alarm. With the aid of his feld-glass
saw nine men hanging to the spiles and
myers about the wreck. Every wave
Ike over them. Word was at
Ee sent to the Vessel-Owners' Tow
Company, asking for a tug.
answer finally came that the lake
too rough, and that there were too
my shoals of Cheltenham beach. 1t was
hit o'clock when word finally reached
lifc-saving station. The boat was atioat
! minutes afterward and started on a
|rney of V miles, with a heavy sea
gale blowing.
they arrived about eleven o'clock, and
en- they were within throwing distance
ne was made fast by the almost drown.
mel to the timbers and made tight
the boat. Then each shivering man
h uncertain grasp clutched the rope and
I'd over hand worked his way toward the
bt through the surf. Out of eight men
0 made the attempt only four lived to
the tale of the terrible hours that they
spent on the spars.
EARLY in the morning when the shanty
gone to pieces Henry klaussen secured
blank and decided to take his chances of
NJ carried ashore by the wind and waves.
was cast OH the beach at South Chicago
npletely exhausted, but still alive. The
Of lost is as follows:
h. II. Hean, contractor, thirty-eight years
married, leaves Il wife, Chicago; Knowl-
Is. Corbyn, contractor, forty-one years
leaves Il wife and sixteen-year-old daugh.
Chicago; David Schmidt, twenty-five years
Jason, South Chicago;. Charles Falk, thirty
lrs ole. unmarried, South Chicago; Will.
Roswoski, fifty years old, married, South
lrago: Otto Roswoski, twenty-five years
forty-two years Old, wife and four'chil.
n; Andrew A~insworth, Manchester. En-
End; Z. Il. Austcr, thirty ears old, Hamil-
!, Ont.
Tle cook, Peter Thies, who was least az
ied by the intense cold and exposure,
d the following graphic story:
lhis morning about five o'clock got up to
breakfast for the fourteen men who con-
'nted the party. After the meal was pre-
red we sat down to eat. Before this l no.
Id the sea was running at a terrible rate,
none OF us dreamed of the terrible
3: ME meal finished went into q back
IAN washing dishes. 1t was then about
FEN o'clock. l had finished my work and
just about to go out when / heard Il loud
kck. and in a moment the building in which
(ood careened and j was in the water, sur
lnded by my companions, who struggled 20
e themselves from the timbers. l climbed
on one OF the StringerS and helped to get
(eral others out. Then began q scene which
hope never to see again. Every wave
came struck us with such force that The
\ was torn from our hands, and we saw
power and loose their hold. When we
reached the water Bosses nean and
Fbyn grasped a large timber Il were
shed away. They may have
fne1 the shore in safety. When
h on the timbers hung on until the line
$ thrown and we tried our luck reaching
boat. Only four of us were successful,
a man more thankful for his life than
self can not be found"
Tie men who were rescued say that the
ucture was not considered safe and that
Y had protested against staying there
T night, but they had been assured that
was perfectly secure and that the water
Pud never reach it.