The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-11-29
A HUNDRED VESSELS LOST
AND SEVENTY SAILORS DEAD
Awful Results Of the Storm on the New England
Coast.
Big Steamer With Eighty People Board, Is Missing
Thirty Lives Lost In Boston HarbOr.

Boston, Nov. est is known definite
ly tonight that more than seventy
lives hay been lost in the wreck Of
tugs, schooners and coal barges during
the storm of Saturday night and Sun
day morning and if the steamer Port
land has also gone down, as now
seems possible, the list of casualties
viii rise to 40, with over 100 vessels of
all descriptions ashore, two score of
the to be total wrecks and an unknown
number probably beneath the waves of
Massachusetts bay.
There is scarcely a bay, harbor or
inlet, from the PenObscOt to New
London, that has not on it's shores the
bones of some staunch craft, while all
along Massachusetts bay, and especi-
ally Boston harbOr, the beaches are
piled high with the wreckage of
schooners and coal barges. The record,
although hourly lengthening, is still in
complete. for that ocean graveyard of
Cape Cod is still to be heard from
The annoyance and inconvenience of
the railroad and street car embargo,
covering the whole of southern New
England sunk into insignificance be-
fore the story of destruction wrought
by wind and wave, yet it win be many
a day before the full import of the
disaster is known or even realized.
The islands of Boston harbOr are
without exception strewn with wrecks
and wreckage; no less than twenty
nine vessels are ashore at Gloucester.
Over twenty in the supposed safe har-
Dor of Vineyard Haven parted their
anchor chains yesterday and are high
and dry on the beach. Nantasket
beach saw two schooners and a coal
barge dash to pieces on its sands, the
rocks of Cohasset claimed a staunch
fisherman; Seituate, a well known pilot
boat; Manchester, a down east lumber
man, while one tug and three barges
known to have been between Cape
Cod and Boston are unaccounted for
and probably lost.
The upper harbors of Boston, Ply
mouth, Salem, Portsmouth, Portland
and other places, where vessels were
supposed to be comparatively safe,
were the scenes of numerous collisions
between the ships and the wharves.
Every life-saving crew performed
deeds of heroism in rescuing crews
from stranded vessels, and tug boat
captains risked life and property in
their endeavor to save life.
BIG STEAMER MISSING.
The managers. of the Boston & Port
land steamship company stated to-
night that there are grave doubts as to
the safety of the steamer Portland.
which sailed from there Saturday
night Every harbOr between here and
Portland on the north shore has been
heard from and ore of the south shore
and in no case has the steamer been
seen. The only remaining harbor which
she could have reached is Province
town on Cape Cod and news from that
port is anxiousiy awaited, as it is still
impossible to reach that port by wire.
She carried siXty-fve passengers and
a crew of fifteen men.
The passenger list is aboard the Port
land and at present there is no means
of knowing the names of those on
board. The steamer had in all ninety
seven souls on board. The Portland is
comparatively new, a sidewheel steam
er. Her length is $50 feet and she is
valued at $3.50. 600.
Tugs returning to this city after a
/ tour of the harbor, report about
thirty-five vessels of all sizes ashore or
sunk in and near Boston harbor.
| Seven large schooners and two Balti-
more coal barges are completely
wrecked and it is estimated that be-
| tween twenty-five and thirty lives have
| been lost. Only one body has yet been
recovered. More than a dozen are re-
ported IN the surf at Hull and efforts
are being made to recover them.
The steamer Ohio of the Warren
line, is high and dry on Spectacle
island. It is very doubtful if she can
be floated until channel has been
dug The ocean going tug Tamqua is
on the rocks at Rainsford island and
! will be total wreck.
LOT oh n
havoc wrought by the storm in Boston
harbor and vicinity become apparent.
Not since 1852 has a storm caused such
| destruction Of property and loss of life
so near the city.
The tugs that started early today to
explore the harbor and offer assistance
where it was needed found a condi-
ton of affairs almost unprecedented in
| the history of Boston. On every shoal
and reef in the harbor was found sone
wrecked craft, over which a wild sea
still dashed, carrying the vessel higher
up on the shore or slowly grinding it
| to fragments.
Many wrecks were covered with ice.
and this and the fact that a terrific
sea was running, made it impossible to
| learn their names. The raging waters
also prevented any attempt to recover
| bodies known to be in some of the
wrecks, and it is probable that it will
be several days before a complete list
of those lost can be obtained.
At Hull Beach, where two barges and
two schooners went ashore, more than
a dozen bodies were visible in the surf,
but it was impossible to get at them.
! At Shag Rocks, between Boston light
and the Brewsters, where the schooner
| Calvin T. Barker was ashore, two
sailors were taken from the rigging by
| the life-savers, nearly exhausted, and
! the dead body of another was re-
! covered. Three others from this yes
sci were drowned, but their bodies could
not be found.
LIST OF VICTIMS.
The list Of dead, as far as reported,
! is as follows:
From the schooner Calvin F. Baker,
ashore near Boston light, three sailors
drowned, names unknown. Also stew
ard of this vessel, frozen in the rigging.
First and second mate saved.
From schooner Abel G. Babcock,
wrecked on Hull beach, entire crew
supposed to number nine men, lost;
names unknown.
From schooner Samuel w. Tilton
wrecked near the Babcock, all hands
lost. It is supposed that there were
| non on this veSSpI