Marshall County independent. (Plymouth, Marshall County, Ind.) 1894-1895, 1895-01-25
New Orleans Packet State of
Missouri Goes Down.
BOAT STRIKES 4 ROCK
Thirty Of the Passengers and
Crew Are Drowned.
Panic-Striclzcn People Tramp1e Each
Other TO Death in Their Frantic
Efforts to Escape-One of the YawIs
OycrcrOwded and Sunk.
Die in Si.llt of Shore.

The great Cincinnati and New Orleans
steamer State Of Missouri went to the hot
tom of the Ohio River ut Wolf Creek sew
enty miles below Louisville, Ky, at 6
clock Saturday night and it is reported
that thirty people met death. The steam
boat was one Of the largest steamers be-
longing to the Cincinnati and Memphis
Packet Company. and WAS Il new boat
worth SGe,09G. She left Louisville, Ky,
at 10 O'Clock Saturday morning. bound for
New Orleans, with twenty-three passen-
gers and a crew, making seycnty-eight
people. She had about half Il cargo of
furniture, nails, acids. etc. and ran
smoothly until her dreadful accident that
sent many souls to eternity.
The trip was uncycntful until the dread
ed T.int known rs the horseshoe bend,
near Alton, Ind. was req ched. Here the
pilot slowed down. as the current was
very swift, and turned his wheel 50 as to
avoid an obstruction known is Bullock
rock. The rudders failed to respond 10
the wheel and there WAS grinding.
crashing sound. The boat soon filed ana
sunk.
The shock was terrific and the boat
tremblcd from bow To stern. Constcrna-
ton seized upon the passengers and in a
moment they were frantic. Without re-
gard to consequences they rushed to the
upper decks in the hope of delaying the in
evitahlc, as the boat was rapidly sinking.
Women and children were trampled upon,
but If is believed al got ont of the cabin.
Then the scramble for seats in the yawis
began. 1t was Il fight fer life in which
many combatants are believed TO have
gone to their death. The first yawl
launched was sunk within twenty feet of
where it struck the water. 1t is believed
everyone in it WAS drowned in sight of the
aifrighted people hudtiled together on the
sinking steamer. \ second yawl was then
pushed off. 1t contained four women.
This is believed to have reached shore.
Just when there seemed some hope that
by means of this yawl the passengers
could be saved, the steamer gave another
terrific lurch and literally broke into
pieces. and in ten minutes from the mo-
ment the rock was struck nothing bat the
hull remained. The cabin. texas and
rilot-house foated away, dragging down
into the water everyone upon it. The
lighter freight was washed from the main
deck, and on this men. women and chill
drcn clung as best they could. many. how
ever. only to fall back into deaths icy en-
brace. Several succeeded By this means
in getting into the willows and trees and
were rescued 10y farmers and passing
steamers.
In less than ten minutes from the time
the boat struck she had gone down. At
Rockport and 0Wensb0ro. as we'll as ~
all intermediate points, the bank is lined
with skifls picking zap pieces of furniture
and watching for dead bodies. bat the eur
rent is too swift FOR small craft to get
cut far. -Four passengers were saved by
clinging to Il mule which swan ashore
The passengers were all tickelc,l-throu-h
to New Orleans.
The State Of Missouri was built 1T Mad
ison. ind. i'll 1890, by the Kansas City
syndicate. for the Missouri River trade.
at Il cost of SIC. 0G9. She WAS one Of a
trio of fine steamers built hy the same
company-the State of Kansas and the
4. l.. Mason being the others. She was
30 feet long. with = forty-four foot beam
and six foot hold. She was never launch
ed on the Missouri, but placed on the
Ohio and Mississippi. plying between
Cincinnati and New Orleans, with occa-
sioHal trips to st. Louis.