Copyright USGenNet Inc., 2015 All Rights Reserved USGenNet Data Repository Please read USGenNet Copyright Statement on this page: Transcribed and submitted by Linda Talbott for the USGenNet Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ ========================================================================= USGenNet Data Repository NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization. Non-commercial organizations desiring to use this material must obtain the consent of the transcriber prior to use. Individuals desiring to use this material in their own research may do so. =========================================================================== Formatted by USGenNet Data Repository Chief Archivist, Linda Talbott All of the above information must remain when copied or downloaded. =========================================================================== The Montreal Gazette Wednesday, November 12, 1913 VOL. CXLII., NO. 271 GREAT LAKES ARE GIVING UP THEIR DEAD -------------------------- Scores of Lives Were Lost and Property Loss Runs Into Millions. --------------------------- WEXFORD GOES TO BOTTOM ----------------------- Loss of Big Freighter With All Hands Plunges Collingwood In Grief -------- NORTHERN QUEEN ON ROCK -------- Capsized Vessel Was the Regina, of Toronto - Of Ten Bodies Washed Ashore Two Identified as Members of Her Crew ---------------------------- Chicago, November 11 - The shores of Lake Superior, Lake Huron and Lake Erie were strewn tonight with the wreckage of a three days' gale and snow storm which cost the lives of probably three- score persons, sent a $100,000 freighter to the bottom, turned bottom up in mid-lake a three-hundred foot vessel with its crew, wrecked or grounded numerous other craft, and caused a property loss as yet unestimated, but which will run into the millions. The details of the storm, which literally swept from the west- ern end of Lake Superior to the eastern shore of Lake Erie, became known only today, when survivors began arriving in various ports with tales of hardships and heroic rescues seldom equalled on the Lakes. On land the storm hit hardest at Cleveland, Ohio, where 21 inches of snow fell, five persons were killed and ten others lost, and where $2,000,000 damage was caused to property, chiefly tele- graph and telephone companies, thus keeping that city out of direct communication for two days. The death toll, with many towns un- reported, is thus told - Twenty-five, perhaps forty, men probably drowned in the over- turning of the REGINA found floating in Lake Huron. Five bodies washed ashore at St. Joseph on the Canadian side of Lake Huron (Four had belts marked "WEXFORD" and one wore a belt marked "LONDON.") Three bodies washed ashore on the west shore of Lake Huron. Two bodies washed ashore opposite the position of the overturned boat. Six members of a lightship drowned in Lake Erie, near Buffalo, N.Y. The escapes from death were numerous. After the storm about Friday midnight had blown away the forward part of the ship, Capt- ain J. W. Dussleston, of the steamer L. C. WALDO, navigated by a small, inaccurate compass, and the aid of a lantern held by a sailor. In this way he guided himself and crew to a reef where the crew on landing suffered intense cold and hunger until their rescue today. The crew of the TURRET CHIEF, when the ship struck the rocks in Lake Superior, were forced to go ashore scantily clad. They built a hut to protect them from the blizzard. It was impossible even to estimate the loss to vessels wrecked or damaged by grounding. Shippers in Detroit estimated the loss in Lake Huron and the Detroit and St. Clair rivers alone to be several hundred thousand dollars. Three of the wrecked steamers increase the loss by $500,000 while the scores of smaller craft driven ashore in Lake Superior and Lake Erie will send the total much higher. ------------------------------------------ ALL COLLINGWOOD MOURNS Loss of the Wexford Plunges Whole Town in Gloom Collingwood, Ont., November 11. - The news of the loss of the lake freighter WEXFORD, which was received here this afternoon, has shrouded the town in a sadness such as has not prevailed for many years. So many wives and families have been bereaved that the whole town mourns. Captain Bruce Cameron, who was master of the ill-fated steamer, belonged to a family of mariners. He was the son of the late Capt- ain A. C. Cameron, and was born in Collingwood and had sailed on the lakes for the past ten years. The captain was an enthusiastic hockey player, and on different occasions has participated in games for the Ontario championship. He leaves a widow, his mother and two brothers. Archibald Brooks, second officer of the WEXFORD, was a young man who had sailed for several seasons. James Scott, chief engineer, had also been on the lake steamers for several seasons. He was married and leaves a family. Richard Loughheed, assistant engineer, had also some years' ex- perience on the lakes. Orrin Cordon and Allan Dodson, watchmen, were also natives of this town. Both were unmarried. George Willmott, an Englishman who has been in Collingwood but a short time, was another of the crew. He had charge of the stew- ard's department. His wife was with him on the vessel. He, with Mrs. Wilmott, had contemplated returning to Bristol on the close of the season. On the trip down, while passing through the Soo, he mailed a letter to the local agent containing his deposit for a reservation which he intended taking up early in December. WEXFORD'S LOSS $200,000. Toronto, November 11. - At the Toronto offices of the Western Steamship Company it was stated that the monetary loss resulting from the sinking of the WEXFORD would be in the neighborhood of $200,000. The value of the freighter was given as $100,000, and that of the cargo about the same. The vessel carried 96,000 bush- els of grain, valued at a dollar a bushel. It was taken on at Fort William, and was consigned to Goderich. Mr. Albert E. Blackman, secretary-treasurer of the company, stated tonight that Captain W. J. Bassett, the managing director, had left on the evening train for the scene of the wreck. The captain will meet some sailors at Goderich, and will attempt to identify the bodies found floating near St. Joseph. ------------------------------ REGINA TURNED TURTLE Identity Now Established of Capsized Freighter Port Huron, Mich., Nov. 11. - According to the Port Huron Times- Herald, the capsized steamer, the identity of which has been hidden by the waters of Lake Huron since she was discovered last Monday afternoon, is the REGINA of Toronto. The vessel is owned by the Canadian Inter-Lake line, Limited, of Toronto. She is 249 feet in length and 43 beam. Ten bodies have been washed ashore on the Canadian side of the Lake above Sarnia. Of these, two were identified tonight as having been members of the REGINA'S crew. They were Wilson F. McInnes, about 22 years old, of Owen Sound, Ont., and Davis Lawson, of New Brunswick. A farmer who found the first body notified Coroner Clerke of Thedford, Ont., the nearest village, and a search was at once begun along the beach. Nine other bodies were found within a distance of five miles. Two of the bodies were in a lifeboat marked "REGINA," and two oars washed ashore also bore the steamer's name. A large amount of freight, identified as part of the REGINA'S cargo, also has drifted to the Canadian shore. The REGINA left Sarnia, Ont., early Sunday morning with a cargo of packing freight for Harbor Beach, Mich. ------------------------------- NORTHERN QUEEN LOST? Seven Bodies Washed Ashore and Vessel Going to Pieces. Port Huron, Mich., November 11. - According to messages re- ceived tonight in a roundabout way from the Canadian shore of Lake Huron seven bodies had been washed ashore at Kettle Point and a ship, grounded far out from the point, was being pounded to pieces by the waves. Seven other bodies, it was declared, could be seen rolling about the decks of the stranded vessel. Only a part of the boat's name could be made out, that being the word "QUEEN." The NORTHERN QUEEN, a steel freighter, 300 feet long, owned by the Mutual Tran- sit Company of Buffalo, has not been accounted for since she passed this port Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning, headed into Lake Huron. The owners of the NORTHERN QUEEN tonight telegraphed repre- sentatives at Port Huron that if any "QUEEN" is ashore, they believe it must be the NORTHERN QUEEN. How long the ship has been on the rocks no one on shore knows. She was first sighted late today. The message telling of her plight came from a railroad station agent several miles inland from Kettle Point. No help can be sent to the "QUEEN" as the nearest life-saving station is located here, and the seas are still too heavy to permit sending small boats so great a distance. There is no wire communication with Kettle Point. ---------------------------------------- GULL ROCK DISASTER Captain of the L. C. WALDO Relates His Experiences Calumet, Mich., Nov. 11. - Captain J. W. Duddleston, of the steamer L. C. WALDO, of the Bay Transportation Company of Detroit, which was broken in two at Gull Rock, Manitou Island, told of the wreck upon his arrival with his crew of twenty-five men and two women aboard the tug HEBARD at Houghton tonight. The WALDO was bound from Two Harbors for Erie with a cargo of iron ore. The storm struck her at 11:45 o'clock Friday night. The mountainous waves tore off the forward house and pilot house and all structures in the forward part of the ship. The compasses were lost and connections with the electric lighting system were broken. Captain Duddleston's only resort was a small, inaccurate, compass which he was enabled to follow with the aid of a lantern held by a member of the crew. After being tossed about for 18 hours, the boat finally struck the reef. Often the crew was in imminent danger of being washed overboard. When the boat hit the reef and the after house broke they were compelled to seek shelter in the windlass room. Until the arrival of the tug HEBARD carying (sic) the life- saving crew of the Portage Lake ship canal, shortly after seven o'clock this morning, the WALDO'S crew was without food. The WALDO is valued at $300,000. Captain Duddleston believes the boat is a total loss, but he will leave for the wreck tomorrow to ascertain the full extent of the damage. ---------------------------------------- SURVIVORS OF TURRET CHIEF Captain Paddington and crew of 16 of the steamer TURRET CHIEF, of the Merchant's Line of Ontario, which foundered six miles east of Copper Harbor, Keweenaw Point, at 4 o'clock Saturday morning, arrived in Calumet tonight. Frost-bitten, thinly clad and without food since Friday night, the crew reached Copper Harbor yesterday afternoon, being directed there by a trapper. Today they reached Mandan, Keweenaw County, and got into communication with civilization. Food and warm cloth- ing were provided for their comfort until they could reach Calumet. A few of the crew were asleep when the TURRET CHIEF drifted ashore. The men were thrown from their beds and had time to don but little clothing. A number of them were compelled to leave the boat barefoot, and several of these suffered frost-bitten feet. All suffered from exposure. The doom of the vessel was soon sealed, and with waves washing over the hulk, the crew picked their way to the mainland. A hut was hastily built, and in this way they found shelter from the blizzard until yesterday morning. Members of the crew believe that the TURRET CHIEF will be a total loss, as her position is such that she cannot be taken off before the waves pound her to pieces. The steamer was bound light from Midland, Ont., for Fort William, and was struck by the northeast gale while 110 miles northwest of Whitefish Point on Friday night. She drifted more than 100 miles with the waves washing over her decks. The TURRET CHIEF was a steel boat, valued at $100,000. ---------------------------------------- SIX PERISH ON LIGHTSHIP Buffalo, N.Y., Nov. 11 - Fragments of wreckage tossed ashore along many miles of Lake Erie today confirmed the fear that the storm which lashed Lake Erie on Sunday and Monday had claimed its toll of death. Six men perished when LIGHTSHIP NO. 82 was torn from her anchorage fifteen miles up the lake and either foundered or was shattered on the breakwall under cover of the blinding snow- storm on Monday. At Loraine, Ohio, the steamer G. J. GRAMMER, under command of Captain Burns, of Buffalo, is hard ashore and in a dangerous position. Life savers are standing by, but are unable to take off the crew because of the heavy seas. The crew lost with LIGHTSHIP NO. 82 consisted of six men as follows: Captain Hugh M. Williams, of Manistee, Mich. Andreaw Leahy, mate, Elyria, Ohio. Charles Butler, engineer, Buffalo. Cornelius Leahy, assistant engineer, Conneaut, Ohio. Peter Mackey, cook, Buffalo. William Jenson, seaman, Muskegon, Mich. The first news of possible disaster to the lightship was brought by the captain of the ore-carrier CHAMPLAIN, the first vessel to make port since Sunday. He informed Captain Fred. Herbert, of the Government tender CROCUS, who reported to Inspector Roscoe House, of the tenth lighthouse district, and at once started up the lake. Inspector House chartered a tug and joined Captain Herbert in the search. No trace of the lightship was found, however, and when, this afternoon, one of her lifeboats was picked up all hope was abandoned. In the lifeboat were three life preservers and a broken oar was still fastened to one of the rowlocks. The G. J. GRAMMER, ashore at Lorain, is a freighter 418 feet in length, 48 in breadth, and 28 feet deep. She was built in West Superior, Wis., in 1902. ---------------------------------------- HURONIC UNDAMAGED Port Arthur, Ont., Nov. 11. - The HURONIC got off the bar at Whitefish at 3 a.m. without damage. The ALBERTA left Whitefish to cross Lake Superior westbound at 9 a.m. "We have hopes of identifying the freighter tomorrow. We suc- ceeded today in having Washington order the revenue cutter MORRILL to the assistance of the derelict, instead of going to Lake Erie to search for missing LIGHTSHIP NO. 82. We understand the cutter will be permitted to stand by until the name of the freighter is known." The report received today from Alpena that the captain of the steamer ALPENA sighted a sunken lumber carrier in Lake Huron brought varied comments from marine men. It was generally believed that the boat sighted by the ALPENA and the unidentified freighter are the same. Three bodies were found on the west shore of Lake Huron today, two near Port Frank and one above Point Edward. The latter was probably a sailor. It was reported that a card bearing the name "J. M. Jenks," was found in his clothing. President Livingstone of the Lake Carriers' Association, said tonight that he investigated the report and learned that the card was not of the kind carried by seamen on lake carriers. ---------------------------------------- FEAR SEAFIELD (sic) IS LOST. Fort William, Ont., November 11. - Fears are expressed here for the LEAFIELD, which was reported ashore on Angus Island beyond Thunder Cape by officers of the HAMONIC. The tug J. T. HORNE, of the Canadian Towing and Wrecking Company fleet made two trips out to see if the boat could be found and to render any assistance but was unable to find any trace of her. Marine men fear that she has slid off the rocks and sank at once as she was loaded with steel rail. The officers of the HAMONIC state that they saw the boat aground and did not mistake the old wreck of the MONKSHAVEN for another vessel. The LEAFIELD was a steel boat of 2,000 tons capacity, built in 1892 and used in carrying steel rails from the Soo. The case of the THEANO, which sank at once in Thunder Bay with a cargo of steel and left no trace is cited as a similar instance. The LEAFIELD was four days overdue here and has never been reported since leaving the Soo. She carried a crew of 15 men. ---------------------------------------- McKINSTRY IN DISTRESS Kingston, Ont., November 11. - A message received her tonight states that the steamer McKINSTRY, Merchants' Mutual Line, Toronto, is aground in the cut about four miles from Brighton. The steamer CORNWALL, of the Calvin Company, left for the scene to help pull the vessel off. The McKINSTRY went on in Monday's gale. She was loaded with cement on her way from Port Anne to Fort William. The big storm abated here today, and for the first time since Saturday morning vessels were able to leave port. The steamers CITY OF OTTAWA and GLENMOUNT had a rough time on the lake, but stood the test without damage. A crowd of belated passengers, stormbound at Cape Vincent for two days arrived this afternoon. ---------------------------------------- SEVEN HUNTERS PERISH Sebewaing, Mich., November 11. - Seven hunters are believed to have perished Sunday in the hurricane which swept Saginaw Bay. The men were in duck boats on the "middle ground," a partly submerged rush-covered spot half a mile from the shore. J. Ruby, of this place, forced to leave the hunting grounds when his boat began to fill, saw eight men in the rushes as he passed. Of these, one is known to have escaped. Paul Emerich and Bert. Cornwell, of Detroit, were among the seven missing, but the names of the others are not known. Searching parties have been unable to find any trace of the men, but an empty boat was found tonight in the weeds. ---------------------------------------- NOTTINGHAM AGROUND Fort William, Ont., November 11. - A telegram was received by J. W. Wolvin, Manager of the Canadian Towing and Wrecking Company, stating that the steamer NOTTINGHAM was aground on Parisian Island, 20 miles from White Fish Bay. Her bottom was reported all gone and she was in need of lighters and air compressors. She is owned by the Great Lakes Transportation Company of Cleve- land, and was built in 1903. Her gross tonnage is 4.234 tons, and her length 380 feet, with a beam of fifty feet and a depth of 28 feet. ---------------------------------------- ACADIAN AGROUND Toronto, November 11. - Mr. Harry W. Cowan, Manager of the Merchants' Mutual Line, received a telegram today from the captain of the ACADIAN, stating that his boat had run aground on Thunder Bay Island, in Lake Huron, during the storm, but was not seriously damaged. Tugs and a lighter have been sent to relieve her, and it is expected she will be floated without difficulty. The ACADIAN was bound from Kingston to Port Arthur with a cargo of package freight, and it is thought that the loss will be slight. ---------------------------------------- D. O. MILLS FREED Harbor Beach, Mich., Nov. 11. - The steamer D. O. MILLS which was blown ashore near this port, freed herself today and has start- ed down Lake Huron. The HOWARD M. HANNA is still ashore at Pointe aux Barques. The boat is in no immediate danger and the crew is safe aboard. ---------------------------------------- G. J. GRAMMER REACHED Lorain, Ohio, Nov. 11. - After a battle with high waves on Lake Erie, the life saving crew late today reached the steamer G. J. GRAMMER, which went aground near this port during the storm. The life savers brought the wife of the steamers' steward ashore in the surf boat. The crew, said to number 24, is still aboard the boat. ---------------------------------------- OTTAWA NOTIFIED (Special to the Gazette) Ottawa, Nov. 10. - Official notification was received today by the Department of Marine and Fisheries of the wrecks which have taken place on the Great Lakes as a result of the storm which has been raging there for the past two days. A telegram received from the Marconi station at Midland through the department's agent at Parry Sound, Ont., reads as follows: "Steamer CHENANGO reported having passed large freighter which has completely turned turtle and is now listing exactly on the down bound course, eleven miles N.N.E. off Gratiot Lighthouse and seven miles off West shore. Steamer reported ashore this morning is H. B. HOWGOOD (sic Hawgood), of Cleveland. Another freighter aground off Corsican shore." Despite the damage done by the storm there will be no shortening of the season of navigation by the Marine Department. "We will maintain all lighthouses with the exception of eight or ten until navigation has ceased," said Mr. J. G. McPhail, commissioner of lights. "Our gas buoys will be kept out until the ice forces us to take them in. As to the date of closing navigation, in past years operations generally terminated on Lake Superior about December 14 and on the lower lakes a little later. We will have to take the keepers from some eight or ten lighthouses, however, about December 1, as it might be found impossible to do so later and they would perish during the winter. ===========================================================================