Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-02-08
OVER ONE HUNDRED LOST.

OON9E-SlnktnK OF Cn0 SCOanlof C1Cy Oh
ColuMbus-Only twenty-five Saved Out
of One hundred and T~wenty-six Souls,
NEW BEDFORD, Mass, Jan. 19.-The
steamer City of Columbus, plying between
Boston and Savannah, while passing DEVILS
Bridge, off the coast Of Maltha's Vineyard,
struck a rock and sank. One hund red and
four lives were lost in the wreck. Only
twenty-five persons were saved. The
steamship left Boston at three o'clock
Thursday afternoon, carrying tifty-nine
frst-class and twenty-five steerage pas.
sengers and a crew of forty-fve.
At 3:35 Friday morning, while off Gay
Head light, bearing south, half east, the
vessel struck on the outside of Devils
Bridge buoy. The wind was blowing a gale
west by north. The vessel Immediately
filed and keeled over, the water breaking
in and flooding the portrside saloon. All
the passengers, excepting a few women and
children, came OH deck, nearly all wearing
life-preservers. All the boats were cleared
A majority of the passengers wero
washed overheard and drowned.
Seven left the vessel on a l~ife-rafJ
and about forty more took to the rigging.
At 10: a. m. the Gay Head life-boat put off
and took seven persons. Another life-boat
put oft between twelve and one o'clock.
The revenue cutter Dexter came along
about 1890 p. m.., and sent off two boats.
Twenty-one persons, one of whom is dead,
were placed aboard the Dexter, and, after
all persons had been taken from the vessel,
the Dexter proceeded to New Bedford.
Three persons died after going aboard the
revenue cutter.
The total number saved was twenty-three.
ES,,n x1oo1 lnliac yoon,-oraI nuI no
souls are unaccounted for. Seventeen of
the saved and four of the dead were brought
here, and six supposed to be living and one
dead are at Gay Head. Thu names OF those
at the latter place are unknown.
Captain Wright says she passed Cross
Rip light ship at twelve o'clock, and con-
tinued by east and west, with a strong
breeze west by southwest. CATER passing
Nobska, the course being west southwest"
he says, II stepped into my room to warm
myself, as it was very cold. Everything
was working well. After being below a
short time l heard the second mate, who
was in the pilot house with the mate, sing
out to the quartermaster to port helm. I
jumped out of my room, thinking we had
come across some vessel bound down the
not knowing but it was a vessel,
and in the moonlight l saw the
buoy on DEVILS bridge on the port,
about two points forward of the
beam and about three hundred yards dis
tant. The vessel Immediately struck. 1
ordered the engine reversed, and she backed
about twice her length. The steamer i'm
mediately stopped, and l ordered the jib
hoisted and endeavored to head her to the
north, but she filled forward and listed over
to port, so that her planks were about four
feet under water. l went aft and told the
passengers to keep cool and get life-pre-
servers. l next told the officers OH the
deck to get the boats ready. The
steamer settled down aft and righted.
1t was blowing Very hard, and
the port side, No. 6 boat, which Immediate
ly capsized. The sea was breaking over the
steamers deck, and her stern being entirely
under water, we were forced to go upon the
top house. l staid there awhile, but we
were finally obliged to take to the rigging.
"Tse mate, second mate, the chief engi-
neer and fourth engineer took to a raft. I
think the steamer struck Oh a lone rock"
The Captain is positive he struck outside
the buoy, and in backing drifted inside.
Officers of the cutter Dexter furnished the
following statement: About 1880 o'clock
we sighted a vessel ashore on a reef near
Gay Head. The wind was blowing a gale
and a terrible sea was running. AS we APP
preached we saw the vessel was a steamer
and that the waves were breaking over her.
We anchored oil her starboard quarter, two
or three hundred yards away. The cutters
boat was at once lowered and manned with
five men, in charge of Lieutenant Rhodes,
who brought off seven men. n return trip
was made and one man brought to the
vessel. Lieutenant Kennedy was then dis
patched in the gig, with four men, and took
off four or five men. Meanwhile the life
boat transferred several men to the cutter,
and at length the rigging was cleared Of
survivors. The vessel sank in about four
fathoms of water, and the railing on her
bow was the only portion of her hull visi-
bic. We found men in the tore and main
tops and rigging.
1t was impossible to row over to the rig
ging as the boats would have been pounded
to pieces. The men in the rigging were
forced to jump into the sea, and we caught
them as they arose to the surface and pulled
them into the boats. Some of them could
not swim, but nearly every one in the rigging
was saved.
Eugene McGarry jumped from the rig.
ging. Lieutenant Rhodes jumped for him,
but the boat was lifted fifteen feet on the
crest of a wave, and it was necessary to 90
to the starboard to avoid being crushed.
McGarfy was not seen afterward.
At nearly the same instant McGarry's
brother was pulled into the boat.
Captain Wright was among the last to
leave the ship. Two men were
frozen so stiff that they were unable
to relinquish their hold on the rigging.
They were at length the only persons re-
manning Oh the steamer except the Captain.
Lieutenant Rhodes asked him to jump, but
he shouted: "Save those men first"
"They are frozen" was the L%ieutenant's
answer. Th Captain then jumped, and,
although he could not swim a stroke, lie was
rescued by Lieutenant Kennedy.
The lodges on which the City of Columbus
struck are considered by mariners one of
the most dangerous points Oh the coast.
They consist of a formation Of submerged
rocks constituting a double ledge, the outer
strata OF which is called the Devils Back"
Both lodges are called the Devils Bridge"
The hedges are abreast of the Gay Head
light on the mainland, and extend a
little to the southwark of it. The outer
ledge of DEVILS back is about an eighth of a
mile from the mainland. On either side of
the outer ledge is deep water. The upper
part OF the ledge is formed like a gable.
house, so that vessels striking it diagonally
would naturally keel over onto their beam
ends The course of vessels is around CIV
INn ~---.