Daily Kennebec journal., 1906-04-11
Relics of the Portland.
portland PreSSl

f,TtSS.D
Supposed relics of the lost steamer
Portland keep coming to light. The
other day it was brass chandelier,
iished up from a depth of 42O feet,
eighteen miles south southeast of
Eastern Point. Before that there had
been found such wreckage as a cabin
door. a sink bowl, bed springs, mat
trt9Ses, etc. And now the find is re-
ported of piece of copper wire. with
tubing. apparently Il piece of bell wire
such as used on the steamer. This
was hauled up by trawl on the north
ern part of Middle bank, in the vicinity
of where the other articles We're found
The suggestion is made that it would
pay some enterprising wrecker to
dredge in the place. 1t is rather deep
water, but if fishermen's travis bring
up these things the probability is that
systematic operations would be re-
warded. None of the recovered arti-
cles have been positively identified so
far. we believe. and it would be at
least a melancholy satisfaction to have
the place of the wreck identified.
The location is to be noted. The
chandelier was reported to have been
fOund about eighteen miles south
southeast of Eastern Point. Sea-far-
ing men and all familiar with the
massachusetts coast line do not need
to be told that Eastern Point is the
most aoutherly projection of Cape Ann.
forming one side of the entrance to
Gloucester harbor. being located seven
or eight miles to the southwest of
Cape Ann Lights of Thatcher's island
Eighteen miles from that point in the
direction stated would locate the wreck
about east of Boston and nearly half
way from Eastern Point tG Cape Cod
The Portland left Boston about p. NJ.
on that awful night of November o6,
1898. The storm had not then struck
A little later she was passed Off the
Graves by the steamer Mount Desert
Captain William A. ROiX. ROckland for
Boston. and Captain RoiX afterward
said he thought the captain must be
crazy to put out on such night. Still
later the Portland was sighted by the
schooner Maud s., about half way be-
tween Eastern Point and Thatchers
island. and presently she was observed
as she passed the lights on the latter
island. This was the last seen of her,
ai'' WIN u 'iS iitNt udy WTtthdSt anu
bodies from the steamer began to come
ashore on Cape Cod. the natural theory
was formed that she had foundcred in
that vicinity. This was reinforced by
the fact that early on the morning of
the Iuh the crew of the Cape Cod
lite-saVing station had heard the
whistle of steamer in distress. 1t
was supposed that either Captain
blanchard, finding the storm too much
for him. turned about and ran before
IT, attempting to make harbOr at
ProVincetown, and missed it. or the
steamer was disabled and drifted
across the bay. going down near the
cape But watches found on the
bodies had stopped at 10 O'clock-one
OF them at a17-indicating the prob
able time of the catastrophe and that
1t occurred not long after passing the
cape Ann lights. The finding of the
Wreckage cOrroborates this and indi-
Gates that the steamer drifted before
the gale eighteen or twenty miles and
went down less than half way to Cape
'od. The exact facts will never be
Known. but there 10 some comfort in
'hinkihg that the suspense and terror
OF The situation did not last long.