Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1901-05-25
Disaster Overtakes the Wood
Ell Steamer Baltimore On
/ Lake Huron.
TWELVE MEN DROWNED
A Terrific Norfheaster Sweeps the
Coast Involving Number Of YES
sells Some Seriously.
The Baltimore Went to Pieces and
But Two Of Her Crew Managed
to Escape.

East Tawas, Mich, May 25.-Ths
wooden steamer Baltimore foundered
Ia Lake Huron near Au- Sable yester
day and Il of her crew of II were
drowned. Two men were washed
about in the lake for several hours
lashed to piece of wreckage, and
We're finally picked up by the tug
Columbia and brought in here Geo
McGinnis, II deckhand, one of the res
cued. went crazy from his experience
The other survivor, Thomas Murphy
OF Milwaukee, second engineer, was
able TO tell the story OF the disaster.
The tug Columbia of Detroit, with
n government steam dredge and two
loaded lighters for the 500. was caught
in the storm. The lighters and dredge
We're lost parting their six-inch ca
bles. The crew of six men is missing.
While searching for her tow the Col
umbia picked up the two men from
the Baltimore on a raft. They were
almost dead and were taken to East
Tawas. another man was on the raft
but was lost despite the efforts to
save him.
The schooner Montmorency. which
went aground on the Charity Islands
several days ago. has gone to pieces.
Her crew left her Thursday. The
Tawas life-saving crew made trip
TO her and rowed 1s miles in the storm
and against the wind, but found no
one aboard The Columbia picked up
her dred-e last night. but the lighters
and the expensive machinery they car
ried and the six men are still missing
II was some time after the Columbia
had brought the shipwrecked sailors
into port before Murphy was revived
sufficiently to tell his story. I'VE We're
bound from Lorain to Sault Ste Ma
rie," said he, "and had In tow "a large
steam drill and seow. When off Thun-
der Bay Captain Place saw that the
steamer was making bad weather, for
the waves had smashed In the engi-
neer's quarters and the washrooms,
and the water was running into the
hold. Captain Place decided to turn
about and run for Tawas for shelter
Everything went all right until we
were. of Au Sable. when the steamer
struck heavily on the bottom. The
seas broke over her at the same time
and carried away the deckhouse, then
the after cabin, and finally the smoke
stack fell. Both rails forward broke
in two just aft the forward deckhouse,
and we knew II was only a few min
utes before the steamer went to
pieces.
at is every man for himself. now,'
shouted Captain Place. The look of
despair on Mrs. Places face was some
thing | shall never forget. 1t was
awful. We took the captains advice
and every man started TO save himself
rs best he could. Some of the boys
took 10 the rigging, but McGinnis and
l lashed ourselves 10 a ring-b bolt in II
piece of the after cabin. and we were
washed overheard shortly afterward.
THE strain was too much for Me
Ginnis. and he went crazy before we
had been i'm the water very long. He
tried 10 throw me off the wreckage.
but | talked to him and encouraged
him to hold on. Twice he tried TO
drown us both. but each time | sue
ceeded in calming him. | told him
boat WAS coming to take us off and
would then get him tied again. l am
afraid all of the rest of the crew We're
drowned. including Mrs. Place.
only wonder how 1t was that we lived
through IL all. our wreckage was big
enough To make a raft. but the raft
was small and the seas swept il con
stantly."