The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-03-08
OHIO TRAGEDY.
The Cincinnati and New Or
leans Packet, Long
fellow, Wrecked
in a Fog.
AT LEAST EIGHT DROWNED
She Collided With a Bridge at
Cincinnati and just Went
to Pieces.
The Captain and Several of the
Crew Lost-Guess Work About
the Passengers.

CINCINNATI, O., March s, 1S95.-The
handsome Cincinnati and. New Orleans
packet Longfellow went to the bottom
of the Ohio River at O. clock this morn
ing. Eight or more lives went down
with her. She sank in thirty feet of
water opposite the Marmet Coal Landing
at the foot of Smith street. She struck
the channel span of the Chesapeake
Bridge and sank within three minutes.
According to the best information
eight persons were lost, but there We're
over one hundred people aboard the
boat when she struck. The pilot In charge
of the boat says the fog was so dense
when she struck that he was unable
to discern the pier in the mist and was
not aware of its proximity.
The steamer literally crunbled to pieces
Immediately following the collision, and
the bow of the boat sunk while the cabin
and stern hoated away. The body of
James Miller, the porter, has been found.
The missing are
Captain JOHN L. PORTER, Chief
Clerk of Newport. KY.
DAVID ALDRIDGE. a passenger,
Rome, n. Y.
GUS SCHEvEN, bar keeper. New Or
leans.
MIKE RUSSELL, deck hand, Cincin-
natl.
- REARDON. deck hand. Cincinnati.
Unknown woman, an invalid, from New
York.
DR. ANDERSON. her physician, also
of New York.
THE REAL CAUSE.
The real cause of the accident, it is
said, was the fact that the boat, like
the Inflated steamer State of Missouri,
was SO unwieidy that she became un
manageable and the pilots were powerless
to control her.
The beat was to have left here Tor
New Orleans last night but was prevented
from doing SO on account of the dense
iiie--y Rivermen say the fog was even
snt, eater this morning. and the boat should
svgr have left.
s-It was decided however. by the, owner
of the White Collar Line. which owns it,
to send the boat out. and the tow boat
Hercules Carre1 was sent out to aid her
in passing below the bridge.
The Carrel was secured to the stern
of the Longfellow. and both boats passed
down the river to a point about fifty
yards above the Chesapeake and Ohio
Bridge. where the Longfellow became
entirely unnanageable.
Watchers on the shore say that the
boats bow was pointed directly for the
Kentucky shore. and when fully fifty
yards distant it was seen that a col
nsion was inevitable.
The Carrel swung around. and the
strain almost caused the hawsers to part.
but they held fast for the time being.
and it was thought for moment that
the collision could be averted. but
4l,o :
she would strike.
SCENES OF. TERROR.
Many of the passengers were in their
staterooms engaged in sorting their bag
gage and preparing for the long trip.
The shriu blasts of the whistle on both
the Carol and the Longfellow were the
first warnings of any danger and the
doors of the staterooms were hurriedly
thrown open while the passengers gath
cred together on the front part of the
cabin deck.
The fog was so dense that they could
sec nothing. and few of them were aware
of the actual danger The officers were
cool and collected, and retained their
presence of mind for the most part even
in the face of imminent danger. The
crew were summoned in front of the
boiler deck and preparations were rap
idly made for removing the passengers,
many of whom were ladies. to the Car
rol, which was still moored alongside.
All this occupied but fraction of the
time between the moment when it was
first seen that the boat would strike
and the actual collision.
The sound, when the boat struck, could
be heard for several squares along the
river front, and sounded as IL the walls
of a great building had fallen. A mo-
ment later the river was black with
floating wreckage and freight The pass
engers had escaped to the Carol, and
when the collision occurred the hawsers
broke. while the Carrcl drifted to the
Kentucky side of the river.
The wreck sank quickly, and three
minutes later scarcely vestige remain
ed
ESTIMATING THE FATALITY.
The number of missing and dead SO
far as known at this time by the boats
agents is eight, but this number may be
increased when the floating wreckage
is overhauled. There were about forty
passengers on the boat. crew of fifty
two and about twenty laborers. None of
the latter are known, as they were only
shipped for the River and Transfer Com
pany, a short distance below the Chesa-
peake and Ohio bridge. Even the num-
ber of laborers is not known, and there
fore it is impossible to ascertain whether
or not any are missing.
The Longfealow's crew consisted of
John Carter Captain. Cincinnati: ]. L.
Carter, Chief Clerk. Newport KY: VIM.
Colbert, Second Clerk Newport; James
Hendley. Chief Engineer Cincinnati;
Wilson D. Hart Second Engineer. New
BORT: James Howard. Chief Mate. Evans
Vile, Ind; John Druffie. Steward. Gin
cinnatA; George Trunnelle and Oscar
Wlhftten. Pilots. Bellevue. Ky.
second Clerk Colbert and Wilson D.
vyand. Second Engineer each had foot
flashed. William Colbert, the Second
Clerk. was among the last to leave the