THE JENNIE GILCHRIST
PART III
THE AFTERMATH CONTINUED
Researched and Transcribed by
By Sue
Rekkas
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, November 2, 1881, page 4.
THE GILCHRIST DISASTER
Very
cheerfully does The Gazette present to its readers the letter from
Capt. Sam Van Sant, in relation to the Jennie Gilchrist, printed in
another column this morning. Still more pleasing it is to be
assured, on such excellent authority, that the ill-fated boat was
well built and strongly equipped. Should the inquiry of the
Coroner, or that of the steamboat Inspector, or both, also establish
the fact that the Gazette has erred in its statement as to the
manner in which steamboat owners now comply with the law, and
that the inspection is now very rigid, none will be more
grateful than will be the writer of the article referred to by our
correspondent. None the less certain it is, however, that the
Gazette can prove, by sworn statements, that when this journal
opened upon the inspection the fire of its criticisms two or three
years ago and long after, the work of inspection was shamefully
negligent. Still, however, the question remains. Was the engine of
the Jennie Gilchrist in proper working condition, and were the
officers of the boat at the time of the breaking of the cam rod,
exercising due diligence.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, November 2, 1881, page 4.
THE JENNIE GILCHRIST.
____________
Facts as to Her Construction and as to Steamboat Inspection.
____________
Davenport,
November 1, 1881.
EDITOR OF THE GAZETTE:--One would judge from reading the
newspaper account of the terrible disaster last Thursday night,
caused by the sinking of the Jennie Gilchrist that said boat was old
and worthless and should have been long ago condemned. These
accounts have misled the public and have done quite injustice to the
owners of the boat. It is to present the matter in its true light
that I avail myself of a little space in your columns.
The
Jennie Gilchrist was a new boat. She was built at LeClaire in1877,
and has been docked and thoroughly repaired every winter since, with
a single exception. Her machinery was first-class in every
particular, and no boat could boast of a better pair of boilers.
They were built last year of the best steel, and were allowed
pressure sufficient to do any and all kinds of work without any
violation of law. I am willing to risk my reputation as a
steamboatman that no more perfect little craft ever navigated these
waters this same boat. No pains or money have been spared to make
her just such a craft. Any boat, new or old, big or little,
disabled and coming in contact with the bridge during this extreme
high water, would be totally wrecked. It is easy to blame men for
dereliction of duty in times of great excitement and danger. To me
it is almost miraculous that so many were saved, when it is known
that a steamboat in the dead hours of the night goes under a bridge,
driven by the swift current with such force against the piers as to
throw the boilers overboard, thus adding to the other dangers that
of being scalded and blinded by steam. Such a scene can better be
imaged that described. Consternation must have reigned supreme.
But as you say, let the matter be thoroughly investigated, and the
blame, if any, placed where it rightfully belongs.
Now, Mr. Editor, let me call your attention to a certain statement
in your issue of yesterday, in which you are greatly in error.
In speaking of this same disaster, you say that there is not a
single boat afloat on the stream which does not carry a greater
pressure of steam than is allowed by the license. That is a
base slander on our steamboat owners, and licensed officers of the
Mississippi river. You cannot furnish proof of any such a
state of affairs. If you can it is your duty to do so and you
will be liberally rewarded and at the same time do the public the
greatest service.
Our
inspection has never been as thorough and complete as now. Boilers
are tested with the utmost minuteness and gauged annually and steam
pressure allowed accordingly. Excuse this little digression for it
is very seldom that a steamboat man says anything in his own
defense.
Respectfully,
SAM VANSANT.
Davenport November 1, 1881.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Davenport, Friday, November 4, 1881, page 4.
THE JENNIE GILCHRIST.
________
A Wonder Some Terrible Accident Did
Not Occur to Her Before.
________
She Had No Life Boat, No Life
Preservers, No Anchor, No Licensed Mate or Master and Always Ran
With More Steam Than She Was Legally Allowed to Carry.
LeClaire, Nov. 3,
1881.
Editor
Democrat:
In
view of the excuses now being offered in behalf of the crew and
owners of the ill fated vessel whose wrecking caused such sorrow in
our midst, it seems met that the blame ought to be located, for it
belongs somewhere. With a view to finding out something in regard
to the manner the Jennie was run, the undersigned interviewed a
number of men of this place who have been aboard the boat in the
last month and during the summer. There are today dozens of
men—good honest men, whose word is always good anywhere, who say
that the boat in question never carried less than from 190 to 210
pounds of steam when she was towing. It has been a notorious fact
well-known to rivermen and citizens hereabouts that the boat was run
with more steam than she was allowed. It is true, as has been said
by a correspondent of the Gazette, himself a riverman of experience,
that the boat had good steel boilers and was a good little boat, but
she never was able to do the work she has been doing since the high
water came. Then, too, it is not generally known that there was not
a little rivalry between the Jennie and the Evansville; each stove
to make time and get all the freight possible. It is a safe
statement to make, that the Jennie Gilchrist never came over the
Moline chain with her legal allowance of steam.
With
the tow barges she had in tow on the fatal night, had she been
content with the legal allowance of steam, she could not have made
LeClaire in less than five or six hours.
Then,
again, as to the management of the boat, let it be known that Mr. Maines, the engineer of the boat, was also captain in fact,
although he did not carry master’s papers. This is a direct
violation of law. It is said that there was no licensed mate on the
boat. There was not a suitable anchor ready for use. Had there
been a licensed mate on board, as is provided by law, on every boat
that carries passengers, and had he been sober, and had there been
an anchor of legal size ready for any emergency, said anchor could
have been cast and the boat held until the damage was repaired. It
is said there was an anchor aboard. It was a little bit of toy
concern that would not hold an empty flat, and was kept on board to
comply with the letter of the law alone. The master and pilot of
the boat, Dana Dorrance, told the undersigned that when the wheel
stopped he hallowed down the trumpet to the engineer to find out the
trouble, but there was no response. He hollowed again and again,
but got no reply. The pilot left his post only when it became a
matter of self-preservation.
Then,
as to the matter of life saving appliances, the boat, I am informed,
had very few life preservers on board. A few days previous a man
fell overboard, and nearly all the preservers were thrown to him.
There are now a stack of life preservers at the landing made for
Jennie, because she lost hers and was without. Then,
too, the law makes it necessary for passenger boats to carry a life
boat. The Jennie had an ordinary skiff on the roof, turned
upside down. When the boat was drifting helplessly down to ruin
with her precious cargo of human beings, there was no body in
authority to tell them where to go or what to do. What right had
some roustabouts to assume command of a boat, and why would
passengers follow their directions? Is it to be wondered at that
this boat, so overtaxed, should give up sometimes? She had no
buckets nor axes as is provided by law, in case of fire. She had no
anchor, no life boat, no life preservers, and no licensed mate, in
effect no captain and the wonder is how she ever obtained permission
to carry passengers at all.
Your
morning contemporary of the 2nd inst. contains a letter
from a well-known riverman. He speaks in glowing terms of the power
and so forth of the Jennie. All that he says with reference to the
goodness of the boat is true. If she had not been she would have
sunk or blown up long ago. The truth of the matter is that the
Jennie was made to do more than she could stand. As a natural
consequence she gave out and that at a time when there was danger
ahead. But the worst phase of the case is that the owner, as well
as engineer, knew that she was doing more than she could stand. A
few points not touched upon will form another letter.
Citizen.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
The
Daily Union, Thursday, November 3, 1881, page 4.
TRUTH OR FALSEHOOD
________________
The Accusations Against the Jennie
Gilchrist and the Apparent Facts.
As
there is to be a thorough investigation of all the facts connected
with the disaster of the Jennie Gilchrist it is well to know
something of the reports that have been sent broadcast over the land
by means of the telegraph, and the comments made upon these reports
by the press. There are definite accusations against the boat and
its management which our investigations on the night of the accident
led us to pass over as groundless and unjust, the result of
excitement upon imaginations trained to conceive and believe the
worst of any probable or possible situation. The long and wholly
unreliable dispatch which appears in the New York papers of Saturday
contains this paragraph:
There
were seventeen persons in all lost. The steamer had in tow one
barge and on flat boat. The latter was being pushed at the bow of
the steamer, while the barge was fastened to the port side. There
seems to be no doubt that the steamer was totally unfit for the
work. She was heavily laden, and most of the crew were drunk.
Furthermore she was merely a freight boat, and not licensed to carry
passengers. The accident was entirely due to carelessness and
liquor. There was a great deal of whisky in the cargo, and some of
it was tapped before the steamer left the wharf.
The
New York Sun, in commenting upon the dispatch, which it seems to
have accepted as truthful, says editorially:
While
the terrible disaster to the steamboat Jennie Gilchrist, near Rock
Island, in the Mississippi, on Thursday night, was no doubt
intensified by the swollen state of the river, which made the
current unusually strong, yet this fact cannot be brought in to
shield the guilty. The machinery was unquestionably defective; and
as the state of the river was well known, it should have prompted
unusual vigilance in inspecting and strengthening the steamer and
its motive power. As if it were not enough to put a defective
steamer on the river when the floods had made it difficult to
navigate, it is alleged that the boat was a freight boat, not
licensed to carry passengers, and also that most of the crew were in
liquor. A disaster under such circumstances cannot be ascribed to
the state of the river. It is certain that a drunken crew and
thoroughly incompetent and terror-stricken officers helped to bring
it about. In this story the traditional and almost romantic
Mississippi pilot sinks into ignoble obscurity, and the prosaic
steamboat clerk becomes a hero.
These
are exceedingly grave allegations to make, and to have published all
over the land. The Coroner’s jury cannot do otherwise than direct
its inquiry in such a way as to make clear and beyond dispute or
cavil the whole truth. For our part, and without pretending that
our information is conclusive, or that there may not be some basis
for the reports set afloat and persistently reiterated, we believe
that it can be readily shown:
1.
That the boat was inspected last spring, and pronounced in good
condition, and licensed to carry both passengers and freight.
2.
That the machinery was, so far as known, in good condition, and the
equipment up to the requirements of law.
3.
That the boat was under the control of an experienced and licensed
pilot and engineer, thoroughly competent, familiar with the river,
and perfectly sober.
4.
That the crew had been drinking but were not intoxicated, and that
they did not interfere in any way with the management and
navigation
of the boat, or did anything to which the disaster can be remotely
traced.
5.
That the accident was caused by the breaking of a cam-rod by which
the starboard engine was disabled and that the vessel became
wholly uncontrollable.
6.
That the accident happened 200 yards above the government bridge
at a time of exceeding high water and rapid current, and that there
was not time to apply the only remedy, unship the connection with
the starboard engine and run with the larboard engine alone, before
the boat was dashed against the bridge, less than five minutes
elapsing between the break and the collision.
7.
That an attempt was promptly and coolly made to apply the only
remedy, pointed out above, which failed only for lack of time.
If
these statements are true, as we believe them to be, the managers
and operators of the Jennie Gilchrist should be exonerated from all
blame, and the accident should be pronounced unavoidable by its very
nature. If, on the contrary, these statements are untrue, and there
was culpable negligence in any essential respect, the sacrifice of
life, and the future safety of passengers on the river, demand a
full and clear statement of the actual facts and the visitation of
the severest censure where censure belongs.
The
coroner’s inquest did not begin its work yesterday, owing to the
absence of one of the jurymen, Mr. John Aster. The inquiry will
begin this morning in Justice Hawse’s office and Coroner Morris has
already announced his intention to make it as thorough as the great
importance of the case requires it should be.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Review
Dispatch, November 4, 1881.
Providential.
There
were some narrow escapes from being on the ill-fated steamer Jennie
Gilchrist, Thursday evening. Messrs. Schillinger & Trumble, were
telegraphed Thursday, to send some men to Rapids City to do some
repairing. They stared three men from their shop, who were to go up
on the Jennie Gilchrist; but instead of going to Rock Island take
the boat, they went up to the Moline landing, thereby escaping what
might have been a watery grave.
A son
of David Reese, was going to some point up the river, but for some
reason was delayed. Benjamin Quick, a hardware merchant, and Mr.
James, the railroad agent, accompanied by a couple of young ladies
of Albany, came down on the Gilchrist, intending to go back on her,
but did not reach the landing until the boat was out in the stream.
They watched until she reached the bridge with emotions that only
four young people who get left can feel, then returned to the hotel
to make the best of a disagreeable situation. But they have
thankful hearts today, for their providential escape.
The
inquest for Mrs. Camp called by Coroner Bawden was held in
Davenport, the account of which follows.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Davenport Democrat, Friday, November 4, 1881, page 1.
ITEMS IN BRIEF.
Yesterday afternoon, Coroner Bawden took up and concluded the
inquest as to the cause of the death of Mrs. Van Camp, of this city,
one of the Jennie Gilchrist victims. The mate, P. A. Hire, who was
second pilot, also, on the steamer, testified that he was not on
duty when the machinery broke down after the steamer had made the
draw, but he saw the engineer trying to get the engine to work, and
saw, also, that the boat was floating down steam; he ran through
the engine-room calling for everybody to get on the barge, [ the
so-called “cabin” was a part of the engine-room], and when he leaped
from the boat to the barge, the water was up to his knees. He knew
that the steamer had an anchor, three axes, 36 life preservers and a
good hauser, but the anchor was not attached to the hauser and it
was useless. The Jury, Messrs. J. G. Shorey, T. H. Kemmerer and
Geo. W. Ashton, returned a verdict that “Mary Jane Camp came to her
death on the night of the 27th day of October, at 10:30
p.m., 1881, by being drowned by wrecking of the steamer Jennie
Gilchrist against the government bridge, and the jury further find
that no effort was made after the disabling of her machinery to
anchor the boat, and are of the opinion that such an effort should
have been made.”
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Friday Morning, November 4, 1881.
THE JENNIE GILCHRIST DISASTER.
_________________
No Effort Made to Anchor the Helpless
Boat—Result of the Coroner’s Inquest.
_________________
As
has been stated, Coroner Bawden summoned a jury on the finding of
Mrs. Camp’s body last Saturday, and the jurors viewed the remains.
Yesterday the jury was called together and a verdict reached. Form
the mass of evidence presented we give the following as the most
important, it not yet having been offered at either of
investigations on the other side:
THE MATE’S STORY.
The
principal witness was P. A. Hire, who testified essentially as
follows: He was second pilot and mate on the Jennie Gilchrist, and
has been on her since Oct. 20, 1881. Up to the night of October 27th
no accident occurred. He was not on duty that night, but the boat
left Davenport about 6 p.m., and Rock Island about 10. The boat
went through the draw all right and when about two hundred yards
above the bridge began floating down. On going to the engine room
Mr. H saw Engineer Mean (Maines) trying to get the engine to work.
He went to help turn the wheel, but seeing the boat drifting into
the bridge ran back through the engine room and called for everybody
to get out. He kicked out the side door leading to the guards, at
the same time calling for God’s sake to get on the barge, but as the
witness reached the forecastle the boat struck the bridge. The
water was up to his knees when he jumped from the boat to the
barge. He heard two splashes and knew that two persons had fallen
into the water. The witness recites the fact that there were twelve
on the barge when they were picked up by the Evansville. He says
the Gilchrist had a good life boat in which he had carried twelve
people. She also had an anchor, three axes, three dozen life
preservers, and a good hawser on the boiler deck. The anchor was
not attached to the hawser. No one took command of the boat after
the engine stopped. There was no order given to drop anchor.
Witness did not think any of the officers took liquor. He assisted
Mrs. Camp into the boat and saw her in the cabin.
THE VERDICT.
The
verdict is rendered in these words:
“The
said jurors on oath do say that Mary Jane Camp came to her death on
the night of the 27th day of October, at 10:30 p.m. 1881,
by being drowned by wrecking of the steamer Jennie Gilchrist against
the government bridge, and the jury further find that no effort was
made after the disabling of her machinery to anchor the boat, and
are of the opinion that such an effort should have been made.
J. G. Shorey
T.
H. Kemmerer,
Geo. W. Ashton.
Of
course, as the reader of this report will at once understand, the
inquest thus was conducted simply to legally establish the fact of
the death of Mrs. Camp by drowning, as a result of the wrecking of
the Jennie Gilchrist. As to the cause of that disaster no real
investigation was had. That is left to the inquest being conducted
by Coroner Morris, in Rock Island. It is expected, on all hands,
that thorough work will be made by that inquiry. Still, it would
have been well could Iowa have done its work, as to the death of one
of its citizens, no less but even more exhaustively. Particularly
so, since it is to the Coroner’s jury alone that the public must
look for light on the real cause of the catastrophe. As to the
examination of the Government Inspectors of Steamboats, little need
be expected. These gentlemen—Messrs. Girdon and Scott—are, in fact,
making an inquiry where they are themselves, possibly, blameworthy.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, November 9th, 1881, page 4.
NEWS FROM THE CORRESPONDENTS
________________
As Furnished to The Gazette by
Reliable Authority.
________________
LeClaire—Widows and Orphans of the
Gilchrist Horror.
________________
LeClaire, November 8,
1881.
James
Sanford, fireman of the Jennie Gilchrist, and lost at the wreck of
that boat, was for some fifteen years a resident of LeClaire, and
leaves a wife and three helpless children in destitute
circumstances. John McCabe, a passenger and lost at the same time,
was also a resident of LeClaire, was a blacksmith by trade, and
worked for a number of our shops during the past season. He leaves
a wife and two children dependant on the charities of the generous
public.
Wythe.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
The
Daily Union, Thursday, November 10, 1881, page 4.
THE GILCHRIST DISASTER.
______________
What the Evidence Has Shown.
The
long and thorough examination into the condition of the steamboat
Jennie Gilchrist and the nature of the accident, though not
concluded yet, has thrown about all the light on the subject that
can be expected. When we think of the circumstances we feel
surprised that so many persons escaped rather than that so many were
lost. The testimony showed 14 employees of the boat, 12 passengers
who paid fare and Mr. Gilchrist, who was not enumerated with either
class making 27 in all, or two less than our first estimate. If
these two were on board—and we think one of them was—they escaped
the vigilance of the clerk on his round making collections. That 18
were saved we know, and the number of the drowned is not less than 9
nor more than 11. The swiftness of the current is illustrated by
the fact that the boat lost the distance it had taken half an hour
to gain going up stream above the bridge, in from three to five
minutes. In that brief interval the engineer notified the pilot of
the nature of the accident but did not make himself heard, and being
compelled to try to rearrange the machinery connections he could
only leave a man at the trumpet, and even he had to be called away
in half a minute to try to turn the wheel, which there was not time
to do. Thus when the pilot felt the loss of headway there was no
one to tell him, at the trumpet below, what was the matter. He
could not leave his post any more that the engineer could neglect
trying that which want of time alone prevented him from
accomplishing. Hire the mate certainly gave warming of the danger
ahead by calling loudly to everybody to get on the barge, but
whether in his excitement he uttered his cry in the cabin is not
clear. Certain it is that the passengers had as early warning as
anyone else, from Skelton and Schaechter, and that if their
understanding, had not been paralyzed they could have escaped more
readily than the crew is shown by the fact that the barge lines had
been cut by one of the crew to save it from the danger of being
drawn down with the sinking steamer. With the collision the great
escape of steam added to the horrors of the water and the darkness,
and those who thought to jump upon the barge jumped into the river
instead, some to be rescued, others to find a watery grave. In the
whole picture as presented by witness after witness before the
Coroner’s jury there are a succession of untoward circumstances,
each of which contributed to the fullness of the disaster, but every
man did his part as best he could, and there is no room for censure
or blame. The boat was properly equipped, the machinery in good
order till the camrod
broke, and the responsible officers did their duty fully, but the
current was too swift and the time too short for human effort to
avoid the collision. There may be several witnesses yet examined
when the jury reconvenes, but it is not likely that anything will be
offered that will put a different phase on the situation as already
graphically described by fourteen participants and three experts.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Saturday Morning, November 12, 1881, page 4.
At
last something is being done, or rather, going to be done, about the
wreck of the Gilchrist. Last evening a barge was loaded and made
ready to take to the scene of action, preparatory to the beginning
of operations. On it were placed ropes, anchors and other necessary
things, and also the pilot house of the Jennie, all fitted up with
windows. There are two barges necessary to the raising of the boat,
but the other is not brought out. And we should say it is high time
that something was done. It has been now fifteen days since the
boat was sunk, and she has by lying within easy reach of both times
during the whole of that time, containing, as we have every reason
to believe, besides her machinery the bodies of some of the victims
of that awful disaster, and still not one move of any kind has been
made toward the recovery of either wreck or bodies. When we had
here a man who makes it his business to work under water, with
plenty of flatboats and steamers to convey them to the scene, and
plenty of assistance ready at any and all times, and still nothing
done to ascertain whether any bodies were there, the conviction is
forced upon us that the bodies are not wanted. The only way for the
parties interested to do is to proceed forthwith upon the
investigation and have the matter settled; and we hope that course
will be entered upon in earnest very shortly.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Monday Morning, November 14, 1881, page 4.
Capt. Dorrance, of the late Jennie Gilchrist, took two flat boats down to
the wreck yesterday, and anchored them with the intention of raising
it this afternoon. The wreck lies in the middle of the river, about
opposite Western Avenue.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Monday Morning, November 14, 1881, page 4.
ROCK ISLAND
________
THE WRECK
________
The Examination Commenced—What Was
Done.
________
Yesterday the two barges are to be used in raising the hull of the
Jennie Gilchrist were moved down and placed in position for work.
They lie pretty well across the current, one each side of the hull
and parallel with it. On one in the pilot house of the Jennie,
fitted up with windows and a stove, for the convenience of the
operators; and each is fitted out with plenty of rope and other
paraphernalia necessary for the work.
Toward evening Jim Osborn made a series of soundings, and concluded
that he deck is perfectly clear, machinery and everything being
gone. The bow lies pretty well down stream and the hull lies very
much tipped in the water, one side being only four feet under the
surface, while the other is much further under.
The
diver did not enter the water, as it was too late before all
arrangements were complete, but he will go down today and make a
thorough examination. If the machinery and boilers, etc, are all
gone, and the deck clear, as is supposed, it cannot be possible that
any bodies are in the wreck. But where or when the machinery left
the hull cannot be told as yet. It is certain that it does not lie
up by the bridge, as all the evidence brought forward in the inquest
tends to show that it still remained on board. And even
the boilers were thought by Mr. Hastie, one of the passengers,
contrary to the general opinion, to be still on the wreck after it
passed the bridge. So it will take time and much searching to find
the different parts of the machinery. Today will tell, probably, if
the weather permits, whether the whole thing is together or nearly
so; and if it is as Mr. Osborn supposes, the balance will have to be
hunted up before the coroner’s inquest can go on, in order that he
jury may view the broken rod.
We are glad that the work has commenced. The rough weather for
the past few days is sufficient excuse for not working during that
time, but does not explain the long inaction of the previous ten
days. Even
the boilers were thought by Mr. Hastie, one of the passengers,
contrary to the general opinion, to be still on the wreck after it
passed the bridge. So it will take time and much searching to find
the different parts of the machinery. Today will tell, probably, if
the weather permits, whether the whole thing is together or nearly
so; and if it is as Mr. Osborn supposes, the balance will have to be
hunted up before the coroner’s inquest can go on, in order that he
jury may view the broken rod.
We are glad that the work has commenced. The rough weather for
the past few days is sufficient excuse for not working during that
time, but does not explain the long inaction of the previous ten
days.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, November 16, 1881, page 4.
The
examination of the Jennie Gilchrist hull commenced, yesterday
morning, but not a great deal was done. Capt. Wall went down, and,
although the water was dirty and prevented him from seeing very
much, and was so cold as to nearly freeze him up, he found things
pretty much as was stated in Monday morning’s Gazette. Cables were
placed in position or raising the wreck, and the work will probably
be pushed rapidly, today, in hopes of finishing the job. The hull,
when raised, if that desirable result is ever attained, will be
towed to the boat yard for repairs. Whether there really are any
bodies in the wreck will be ascertained today, if the weather
allows. They probably are not there; but where they are is
difficult to say. IT is queer that none have appeared on the
surface yet, as it has been already nineteen days since the accident
occurred. In such cold weather the usual allowance of time for
bodies to remain under water is nine days; and now those bodies have
employed the other ten days is a question not easily answered.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Davenport Democrat, Wednesday, November 16, 1881, page 1.
The
work of raising the sunken hull of the Jennie Gilchrist is
progressing. It is thought that the hull is upside down, and if
such is the case it is probable that some of the bodies of those
drowned may be found beneath the hull. A chair was taken from
beneath the wreck this morning.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Argus, Thursday, November 17, 1881, page 4.
It
looks rather funny to see the pilot house of the Gilchrist fitted up
with glass and a stove, being used to work in while raising the hull
it used to ride on. But such is life. One day we are up and the
next down.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Argus, Thursday, November 17, 1881, page 4.
THE RIVER.
_______
Work on the Wreck of the Jennie
Gilchrist.
______
Another Body Found and Fully
Identified.
______
Yesterday the wreck of the Jennie Gilchrist was raised to the
surface but before the chains could be adapted to the changed
position, the current carried the hull and the two barges down the
river some three hundred yards when the anchors again caught and the
barges became stationary.
It
was learned for the first time, at a late hour yesterday afternoon
that the hull was completely overturned, as when raised the
underside of the hull was first presented, and the deck and a
portion of the cabin were upon the bottom of the river.
THE DIVER
Captain
Wall, found it impossible to do any effective work at the bottom of
the river owning to the swiftness of the current. In going down the
current would carry him below the wreck, and it became impossible
for him to make any headway against the running water. He states
that the current at the surface between the two barges was
sufficiently swift to carry him off the ladder and downstream
although loaded with all the extra weights that his suit would
allow. The current at the bottom of the river was even more rapid
than that above, and it became impossible for him to work to any
advantage. Chains were dropped under the wreck and the bow was thus
lifted above the water. The bow was lowered again and chains were
placed under the stern. A third chain was placed about amidships
and the hull was raised to the surface. When this was accomplished,
the men ascertained for the first time that the boat had capsized at
the bridge on the night of the accident and had remained bottom side
up in the middle of the river from that until the present time.
BODY FOUND
As
soon as the wreck was raised, the body of Henry Thomas, one of the
passengers on the ill-fated steamer, was liberated and immediately
came to the surface. It was taken on board one of the barges, and
shortly afterwards the deputy coroner was notified. In the clothing
upon the deceased were found his watch, $3.35 in money and some
memoranda. The remains were identified by relatives, and, after
being viewed by the coroner’s jury already engaged in the work of
investigating the cause of the death of W. Wendt, the body was taken
to the establishment of Undertaker Knox. This morning the remains
were sent to Hampton, where the funeral will occur during the day.
It is thought that the deceased, in attempting to leave the cabin on
the night of the accident, was overcome by the water coming in as
the boat careened, and before he could extricate himself from the
steamer he was drowned. His body was caught between the cabin
wall and the hull, and remained so until the boat was righted
yesterday afternoon.
There
were probably more bodies in the wreck, which may have floated away,
and it is not certain that any more will be found.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Thursday, November 17, 1881, page 4.
ROCK ISLAND.
____
AT LAST.
____
The Body of Henry F. Thomas, After
Lying for Twenty Days in the Water Rises to the Surface and Is
Recovered—Needless Barbarity in Leaving It as Long in Such Place—The
Wrecked Steamer.
____
When
the hull of the Jennie Gilchrist had reached nearly the surface of
the water, which was at about 4:20 p.m. yesterday, a body was seen
to rise to the surface, seemingly floating on a board. It was
perfectly evident that the body had come from beneath the wreck, and
that it had been there all the time, coming up now only when the
weight and obstructions that had held it for so long had been
removed. The body was covered with mud that had settled upon it
from the dirty water in which it had been confined. It was
recovered and placed upon one of the barges used in the operations,
and awaited an opportunity to be removed to this city.
Toward evening, Capt. Cameron, of the ferry boat, sent John Reimer
and another man with a skiff to bring the body ashore. It was
about 7 o’clock when it was landed at the foot of Twelfth Street,
where Undertaker Knox and the brother of the unfortunate man took
charge of it and conveyed it to the undertaking rooms. There
was no difficulty in identifying it as the body of Henry F. Thomas,
of Moline, who was known to have been upon the ill-fated steamer
when she met with the horrible accident. Coroner Morris was
notified, and will hold an inquest over the remains at 9 o’clock
this morning.
The work on the hull will continue until it is raised, and will then
be towed down to the boat yards for repairs. At present, the
wreck lies bottom upward, the stern up stream. A change
occurred at about dark last night, the current being so strong, that
the barges dragged their six anchors some hundred feet, and swung
completely around. The hull is raised so that it is just
discernable under the surface of the water, and it was because it
had left the bottom and thus increased the strain of the current
that the change was caused last night. The boat will probably
be entirely raised today, and if there are more bodies there, they
will now be recovered, to as, each, one more chapter to the horrible
record already made in the Jennie Gilchrist affair.
The
same idea seems to have entered other heads of all our people, and
that is that it was entirely unnecessary and inexcusable for the
managers of the operations, subsequent to the accident, to allow the
boat to lie so long, within easy reach, without making an effort to
recover any bodies that might, and were firmly believed to be in the
wreck. An explanation is in order.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Davenport Democrat, Thursday, November 17, 1881, page 1.
ROCK ISLAND.
__________
BODY FOUND
__________
The Body of Joseph Henry Thomas, One
of the Victims of the Jennie Gilchrist Disaster Found—the Coroner’s
Jury, etc.
__________
The
remains of Joseph Henry Thomas, one of the victims of the Jennie
Gilchrist disaster were found at 5 p.m. yesterday. The hull had
been raised a short distance when the body which had evidently been
fastened beneath the wreck raised to the surface of the water. The
body was taken in a skiff and conveyed to shore and then to the
undertaking rooms of O. B. Knox, where the coroner’s jury in the
Gilchrist matter—consisting of John Barge, foreman, David Hawes,
John Reitiker, Albert Warren, John Aster and Robert Coyne, assembled
and after being sworn by Coroner Morris, viewed the remains and
adjourned to 9 a.m. today. At the appointed time the jury assembled
at the office of Justice Hawes, but immediately adjourned to 1 p.m.,
as coroner Morris had been called to hold an inquest upon a suicide
at Milan.
The
remains of Joseph Henry Thomas have been confined beneath the hull
of the wrecked steamer for twenty days, and his face had turned
black as an African. His hair and whiskers came out at the
slightest touch. In his pockets were found a $5 legal tender bill
and $3.31 in silver and nickels, an open faced silver watch which
had stopped at 11 o’clock; a gold tooth pick, and several note books
and letters. Everything in his pockets and his clothes were
completely filled with sand.
The
remains were taken to Hampton, the deceased former home, by a
brother, this morning, where the funeral occurred this afternoon.
Expressions of contempt at the action of the owners of the ill-fated
steamer, in not raising the hull the day after the disaster, when,
it is believed, many bodies might have been found, are very
generally heard.
There
appears to have been a drag in the whole business—someone waiting
for someone else, until public demand became so imperative that the
owners of the wreck concluded at last to at least make a move in the
direction in which they should have long since moved.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Argus, Friday, November 18, 1881, page 4.
FUNERALS.
______
At 10
o’clock this morning the funeral of Henry Thomas of Hampton, was
held at that place. It will be remembered that Thomas was one of
the passengers on the steamer Jennie Gilchrist and was drowned in
the accident to that craft. His body was found in the wreck, and in
raising the hull the body was liberated. The deceased was a member
of the United Workmen, and his funeral was conducted by that
society. The religious ceremony was pronounced by the Rev. A.
Harper of Port Byron. The funeral was largely attended.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
The
Davenport Democrat, Friday, November 18, 1881, page 1.
The
hull was raised last night and conveyed to the boat-yard of Kahlke
Bros., where it will undergo repairs. The coroner’s jury will
probably meet tomorrow and examine the wreck, after which they will
render their verdict.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Monday Morning, November 21, 1881, page 4.
Nothing more has been done with the wreck of the Jennie Gilchrist,
since it was towed to the neighborhood of the boat yard. Ice will
soon take charge of it, and put an effective damper on any further
work.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Tuesday Morning, November 22, 1881, page 4.
Work
has begun on the righting of the wreck of the Jennie Gilchrist,
yesterday, at the boat yards. Cables were placed so as to produce
the desired result, and the hull was partly turned over. It still
lies, however, nearly bottom upward, and some little distance out
from the shore, being still swung between the barges. It is hoped
and expected that more bodies will be found in it when it is so
arranged as to allow examination. There are so many ways in which
the victims of the accident might have been caught and held there,
that it cannot be certain until the whole thing is taken to pieces
that no more bodies are there. One thing gives the idea that they
must be confined there yet, and that is the fact that none have been
found floating; whereas, if they were free to float about, surely
some of them, if not all, must have appeared at the surface before
now. If the weather allows of a continuation of the work for a few
days, we shall probably know as to the truth of the theory.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, November 28, 1881, page 4.
ROCK ISLAND.
________
THE GILCHRIST WRECK
________
Work
on righting and landing the remains of the Gilchrist was carried on
yesterday, down at the boat yard; and it is so far advanced that the
larboard half of the hull, with the engines and machinery thereon,
was raised above the surface. To allow of this move the whole thing
had to be moved further out into the river to find depth enough of
water. Strong cables are attached, and the power comes from the
machinery of the Whitney, which boat is kept at the place in
readiness to do anything required. These cables are wound around
the steamer’s capstan and the power applied thus.
It is
morally certain, nothing serious coming up to interfere, that the
operations will be finished by noon today, and the wreck sat right
side up. Then it will, as soon as possible, be hoisted upon the
ways and the repairing begun. What the developments of today will
be in regard to the finding of more bodies, cannot be told until the
whole thing is done. The cabin is entirely gone and the machinery
somewhat broken. It is still thought possible, however, that some
bodies may be caught somewhere in the machinery.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Friday Morning, December 2, 1881, page 4.
The
hull of the Jennie Gilchrist is now high and dry upon the ways at
the boat yard. A thorough examination failed to discover any more
bodies in the wreck, and now the conundrum is, where are they? It
is probable that, after all this time has elapsed since the
disaster, no more of the bodies will ever be found. The hull
sustained no injury, being sunk by filing from above. The repairing
will now be commenced, probably. The boilers have not yet been
recovered, nor even looked for. If they were new, as was
represented, they ought to worth a search.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Monday Morning, December 5, 1881, page 4.
DAVENPORT BRIEFS
On
Friday the Lone Star made an unsuccessful trial to find the boilers
of the wrecked Jennie Gilchrist. On Saturday Capt. Dana Dorrance
made a trial with a skiff and succeeded. The boilers lie about 100
yards west of pier No. 4, from the Iowa shore. A buoy was left to
mark the spot, and today an effort will be made to raise them.
Being of steel, their value is about $1,400.
At Kahike Brothers’ Boat yard the men are at work repairing the wreck
of the Jennie Gilchrist. The work goes on slowly, but will be
finished sometime, when all the parts, so widely scattered at
present, are gathered up and collected together once more.
The
hard wind storm of last evening……It was feared that the barges,
anchored at the spot in the river where the Jennie Gilchrist boilers
are, would drag their anchors and float off. It was a wild old
night.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Friday Morning, December 9, 1881, page 4.
The
ferry boat yesterday towed the Jennie Gilchrist’s boilers down to
the Rock Island boat ways. They were brought to the surface of the
water from their sunken position through the means of barges and
then taken below.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Wednesday Morning, December 7, 1881, page 4.
DAVENPORT BRIEFS
The
Evansville brought down two flat-boats from LeClaire yesterday, and
they were anchored over the Jennie Gilchrist’s boilers, the work of
raising them having commenced.
Same
page.
ROCK ISLAND BREVITIES.
At Kahike Bro’s. boat yard the men are at work repairing the wreck of
the Gilchrist The work goes on slowly, but will be finished
sometime, when all the parts, so widely scattered at present, are
gathered up and collected together once more.
~ ~ ~ *** ~ ~ ~
Daily
Gazette, Sat Morning, December 17, 1881, page 4
ROCK ISLAND.
_________
The
Jennie Gilchrist.
Messrs. Kahlke Bros. have been at work lately in making a
steamboat from what was left of the Jennie Gilchrist after the
wreck. The hull and the engines which stuck in their places were
hauled out of the water and placed right side up on the ways, and
the work of rebuilding commenced; and it has proceeded so far as to
make the thing look something like a steamer once more. The upper
works have mostly been replaced, and are surmounted by the old pilot
house from the original boat.
The machinery, so much of it as has been recovered, is in a badly
demoralized condition. Having been first dragged along the river
bed as the wreck first lodged, and then stained by the chains used
in hauling it up on the ways, it is most of it badly bent and
broken. One of the engines is intact, but the other, the starboard
one, is badly out of shape. The engine used to run the capstan was
bent up also, but has been straightened out and placed in position
once more. The boilers, which have only recently been fished out of
the creek, are once more in position upon the deck, but are not
connected with any other part of the works. The greater part of the
machinery still lies at the bottom of the river a little below the
bridge, in the same place where the boilers were found, but no one
has yet undertaken to bring them to the surface.
The wheel of the boat looks worse than any other part of the wreck,
being almost all gone. Only the shaft and a few ribs and a bucket
remain. The work goes on steadily and before a great while, if the
owner ever shows any interest in the matter, the Jennie Gilchrist
will be ready for another season’s work. It is to be hoped that she
will be so fixed as to run no risk of another catastrophe.
