The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1897-11-08
NIND7EEN LIVES LOST
By the Wreck Of the Steamer Idaho
on Lake Erie.
ONLY TwOsAILoRs WE'RE SAVED.

AAAAA 0AAAaAhA ~ 49,
They Are Picked Up by "A Passing
steamer and Safely Landed In Buff
nIo-A Survivors, story.
Buffalo, Nov. s.-The following are
the names of 16 of the 10 men who lost
their lives on the steamer Idaho, which
sank during the gale on Saturday
morning above Long Point, on Lake
Erie: Alexander Gillies, captain;
George Gibson. first mate; william
Clancy, chief engineer; John D. Tay-
lor. steward; Nelson Skinner, first as
sistant engineer; Louis Gilmore, watch
man; Richard Mclean, wheelman;
Robert williams, wheelman; A. j.
Richard, lookout; Henry Thompson,
lookout; Conrad Banker, fireman;
william Gregory, fireman; John Healy
assistant steward; Frederick Miffort,
oiler; Edward Smith, deck hand; NJ.
Bell, deck hand.
The names of three Of the men
drowned are unknown to the steamship
company. one was a fireman, another
q deck hand and the third a porter.
The two men saved are Louis La
force, Jr., second mate, and William
Gill, a deck hand.
The Idaho went out Of commission
three or four years ago, but this sum
mer she was thoroughly ~overhauled.
After overhauling she was placed at
the disposal of the Naval Veterans
association and by that organization
used as the flagship during the G. A.
r. encampment in August. At h
close of the encampment she was put
in commission again as a freighter.
When the steamer Mariposa arrived
in port Saturday midnight with newsof
the disaster to the Idaho, having on
board the two surviving members of
the crew, Captain Root had this to say
regarding the storm on the lake and
the rescue of the two men:
1T was one Of the worst gales 1 yer
experienced in all my years on the
lakes. 1 thought once or twice of put
ting in somewhere until it blew over.
I'm glad 1 did not, for l fear that if /
had these two men who came down
with me would have gone to join their
mates.
1T was about 1890 Saturday after
noon when 1 first learned of the wreck
of the Idaho. We sighted a spar off to
the north with two men clinging to it.
We were running under a good head of
steam at the time, n l put on more
n headed Tor the Spar.
when 1 got near 1 was puzzled how
to help the men off, for 1 could not low
err a BOAT in such a storm. Finally 1
clrcled about the spar until 1 ran along
side, when my men picked the poor fell
lows off. They had to drag them away
from the spar by force, for the men had
been there so long that their arms had
become numb and were twisted about
I NHa v,agf on1 o1Y,,gf frCvan fagf fn a.
When we got them on board we put
them in hunks and gave them some
warm food and soups, and had them
feeling pretty good physically when we
reached harbor."
William Gill, the rescued deck hand,
q swarthy, well built man % years old.
has sailed the lakes since he was a
youth. He is more intelligent than
the average %seafaring man, and his
story of the disaster is a thrilling one
I'VE left here Friday night, bound
for Chicago, with a cargo of general
merchandise said he, Everything
seemed all right until we got outside
the breakwater, and then we were
struck by the worst storm that I eve
saw. When the first big breaker STRUCK
us we were tossed up in the air like
a top, and a second later a big roller
came over the port bow and rolled
down amidships a foot deep.
I'VE moved slowly against the heavy
wind and sea, and when we were wei
up the lake we found that the BOAT waI
making water. 1t kept coming taste
and faster, and the bilge pumps weru
put to work, but the water gained, an
every minute the ship kept gettinl
less buoyant n the big cOmbers con
tinued breaking over her.
1--WE were near Long Point at thi
time, and the captain started to put II
there, with the intention of bleaching
the ship. But the water gained 81
rapidly that 1t was too late. She wa.
already laboring, and the two men a
the wheel could do nothing with her
Two more men went to work will
them, and finally they brought he
around and headed her toward land.
"The water gained on the pumps ant
the buckets, and soon the water pu
the fires out. The only hope left u
was to run out the anchor and brinl
her head up to the sea and let her rid
out the gale. But the sea was to,
heavy, and Instead of the ancho
catching with a firm grip and bringing
the ships head up to the storm with
jerk IT went too slow, n she Simpl,
tumbled into the trough of the seas
which broke over her in torrents. TIL
load was too much, and after a momen
the ship keeled over to s~tarboard an
went down, stern first.
what became Of my mates 1 don
know. l remember that the boats haO
been loosened and that some of the me
were ready to take them If the vesse
went under, but no boat could hav
lived for a minute in that terrible sea
and If any of them did get in the boat
1t was simply to be swamped as 500
as the first wave struck them. May b
they did not leave the ship at all. 1 wa
neal the spar, and when the stern @
the vessel began to go under 1 went fo
the rigging and went up as fast as
could. Another man went with he-th
second mate-and 1 thank the Lor
that he was with me, or I would hav
gone mad during all the long hours tha
/ was up there hanging on and tryin
to keep off the frightful cold that wa
slowly killing US both.
1.-THE hail and sleet was coming dow
In a cutting sheet, and we were covere
with ice in a few minutes, for thong
the top Of the spar on which we wei
hanging was rs feet above the waite
the big waves struck us and brok