The evening world., 1894-06-26
It WAS THE Nelson FAMILY.
Bodies Of Two Of the Five Persons
Drowned in GoVanuS Bay Have
Been Recovered.
THE RESCUED BABY Is ALL RIGHT.
Nelson Had Bought Boat and Took the
Others Out for . Sail, but the Graft
Capeized in q squall.


fortunate party of Ave who were
drowned in Gowanus Bay Sunday dur
ing the wind sauall that wrought so
much havoc In other places. The names
Of the persons drowned are:
NELSON, CHARLES. thlrty-two years old. OF
No Hl Columbia street Brooklyn.
NELSON. Mrs. CHARLES. thirty years old.
CHARLES. the three-ycar- old son of Mr.. and
Mrs Nelson
ANDERSON, NEIL. thirty years old. who
HIGGINS. KATE. a servant o, the Nelson's.
The bodies Of Mrs. Nelson and Ander-
son were recovered last night by Capt
william Custor. Of the yacht Null The
bodies were found about one hundred
feet off the foot of Fifty-second street,
Brooklyn. Their hands were clasped
They were positively identified at the
station-house by John Askew and Pat
rick Higgins. Search for the other bodies
will be continued to-day.
The sole survivor OF the boating party
Is the little baby, Ida, a year and half
old. Nelson, as he was sinking for the
last time, being pulled down by his
drowning wife, tossed the child to
rescuer who had put out in skiff but who
was moment too late to save any of
the others. 1t was through this child
that the identity Of the lost was fixed.
The first clue came from John Askew
He lives at No. 12l Walcott street and
knew the Nelson family well, and was
aware that Nelson was fond Of boating.
When he read in The World yesterday
morning about the Gowanus Bay trag-
edy. the description Of the people who
were drowned tailed so we'll with the
members Of the Nelson household that
he went at once around to No. 264 Column
bia street, where the Nelson's lived.
They occupied the second floor Of the
house and as they were the only tenants
main entrance. Askew found this en-
trance locked. and all he could learn in
the neighborhood vas that the entire
aa%a bad had eea Soy s the day before
Askew then went to the police station
at Forty-third street and Fourth avenue.
South Brooklyn, where he told his story
where the baby was taken after 1t was
rescued. The moment he saw 1t he
positively identified it as the Nelson
The baby herself was feeling well.
though she had slight cold. from her
bath. She called constantly for mann
Mrs. Martha Jansen. neighbor Of the
Nelson's. also called at the hospital and
identified the baby. The little girl is
very pretty WIFI tne ilSnI llaxen nalr
races; Nobody has claimed her yet. and
her destiny, so far as her next home is
concerned, is still undetermined.
Thu next person to clinch the identifl-
. Iftion was Thomas Fountain. of No. II
n 2kins place, Brooklyh. He had
S5sYto Charles Nelson, only last week.
the ramshackie old catboat which caused
the death Of the family. Nelson agreed
Fountain n on account. The latter
learned at the police station that the
boat had been recovered and was then
lying on the sands at the foot of Fifty
third ETH Get. He went there and identi-
fed 1t at sight. Its name is Banner"
1t Is a small sloop. nineteen feet long.
A new mast had been put in. and new
1t was fished out of the bottom of the
bay at the point where it sank by the
police boat Judge Moore.
In the cabin were found two straw
hats. a derby hat, blue cloth sailor
hat white summer shirt with black
stripes and a sailors canvas bag with
the initials "F. H." embroidered on 1t in
red worsted.
Nelson was a thrifty, well-to-do long
shoreman, employing several men, one Of
whom was Anderson.
The Nelson's have relatives living In
brooklyn and this city, but none Of
thNy, had been heard from yesterday.
Mrs. Nelson was formerly Miss Emma
johnson. and has two siste:s. one living
In Henry street, Brooklyn. Her brother
10 a coachman in Seventy-second street,
this city. Nelson has brother living in
Boston. The father of Kate Higgins
lives at No. 60 Fulton strea:. Anderson,
1t IL said has no relatives in this country.