The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-11-08
NINETEEN LIVES LOST
By the Wreck Of the Steamer Idaho
on Lake Erie.
ONLY TWO SAILORS WERE SAVED.
After Clinging to the Spar For Hours
They Are Picked Up by Passing
Steamer and Safely Landed in Buff
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falo-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 Blanker, 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
deck hand and the third 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 the
close of the encampment she was put
In commission again as freighter
When the steamer Mariposa arrived
in port Saturday midnight with news of
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 ! ever
experienced in all my years on the
lakes. l thought once or twice Of put
ting in somewhere until it blew over.
I'm glad l did not, for l fear that if l
had these two men who came down
with me would have gone to join their
mates.
1T was about 1890 Saturday after
noon when l first learned of the wreck
of the Idaho We sighted spar off to
the north with two men clinging to 1t.
We were running under good head Of
steam at the time, and l put on more
and headed for the spar.
"When l got near was puzzled how
to help the men off, for I could not low
er boat in such storm. Finally
circled about the spar until l 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
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,
a 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 ever
saw. When the first big breaker struck
us we We're tossed up in the air like
top, and a second later big roller
came over the port bow and rolled
down amidships foot deep.
"We moved slowly against the heavy
wind and sea, and when we were well
up the lake we found that the boat was
making water. It kept coming faster
and faster and the bige pumps We're
put to work, but the water gained, and
every minute the ship kept getting
less buoyant and the big combers con-
tinued breaking over her.
I'VE We're near Long Point at this
time, and the captain started to put in
there, with the intention of Bleaching
the ship. But the water gained SO
rapidly that it was too late She was
already laboring, and the two men at
the wheel could do nothing with her.
Two more men went to work with
them, and finally they brought her
around and headed her toward land.
1.-The water gained on the pumps and
the buckets, and soon the water put
the fires out. The only hope left us
was to run out the anchor and bring
her head up to the sea and let her ride
out the gale. But the sea was too
heavy, and instead of the anchor
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the ships head up to the storm with a
jerk it went too slow. and she simply
tumbled into the trough of the seas,
which broke over her in torrents. The
load was too much, and after moment
the ship keeled over to starboard and
went down, stern first.
What became of my mates I don't
know. I remember that the boats had
been loosened and that some Of the men
were ready to take them if the vessel
went under but no boat could have
lived for minute In that terrible sea.
and If any of them did get in the boats
1t was simply to be swamped as soon
as the first wave struck them. May be |
they did not leave the ship at all. l was
near the SPAR and when the stern of |
the vessel began to so under l went for |
the rigging and went up as fast as I |
could. Another man went with he--the |
second mate-and / thank the Lord
that he was with me- or / would have |
gone mad during all the long hours that
l was up there hanging on and trying |
to keep off the frightful cold that was |
slowly killing us both.
1.-THE hail and sleet was coming down |
in a cutting sheet, and we were covered |
with ice in a few minutes for though !
the top of the spar on which we were |
hanging was 25 feet above the water. |
the big-swaves struck us and broke |
over us and the hail cut us like shot.
Il knew that 1t was about 3 o'clock |
when we went down. and it seemed !
to me that daylight would never come.
For what seemed to be an age we hung |
on to the rigging, and we twisted our
arms about the spar and let them
freeze in position, for otherwise we
would have fallen into the fearful sea.
when daylight came we could not
see Il sail ..n, ., -. iu-Ar us, and The
sea WSs as bad as ever There did not
seem to be any chance of it going down.
Hour after hour we waited there, and
then we saw the Mariposa coming.
When she finally sighted us and we
saw her head for US tried to tell my
mate, but | could not, and he looked |
at me with happy look on his face
On the third trip around she ran right
alongside our spar and as she went
past dozen men reached for US. |
don't know who got the mate, but Mr.,