The Sinking of the Sultana: America's Greatest Maritime Disaster

 On April 27, 1865, America experienced its greatest maritime disaster. More people died in the boiler explosion of the Cincinnati-built steamer “Sultana” than were killed in the sinking of the “Titanic” in 1912.

Most of those who died were paroled Union soldiers who had been imprisoned for months and sometimes years at Andersonville and Cahaba. At war's end these weak, sick, emaciated prisoners – most from Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee, Indiana and Kentucky, were bound for Cairo, Illinois, and then home to their families. At Vicksburg, they were herded onto the “Sultana,” a vessel built to carry 376 passengers. But Captain J. Cass Mason encouraged the Army to cram on as many soldiers as possible as he stood to gain as much as $10,000 from the government. With the more than 2300 soldiers were some 100 civilian passengers, a crew of 85, and 100 head of cattle!

                                  "Sultana" before Departure from Vicksburg

Courtesy of  Library of Congress

Shortly before departure, the “Sultana's” leaking boilers were quickly repaired. It wasn't until midnight that the massively overloaded ship headed out into the swollen waters of the Mississippi. She fought strong currents all the way to Memphis. About 2 a. m., in the dark of night and a few miles north of Memphis, the boilers exploded. The force hurled many of the sleeping passengers into the cold water. Most were scalded and suffering from burns caused by flames and showering hot coals. Screams echoed into the night air. Many, weakened and desperately injured, quickly slid below the surface. Others could not or did not have the strength to swim. Some clung to trees along the shoreline and the lucky ones floated on the “Sultana's” debris.

Rescue operations continued through the night and all the following day. Because of the Army's poor records at Vicksburg, it is estimated that only seven to eight hundred survived. As many as 300 of those died later from burns and exposure. Only 18 of the crew and passengers survived. As the weeks and months passed, bodies were still found in the Mississippi - some well beyond Vicksburg.

Ironically, most of the families who were anxiously awaiting their loved ones' return, did not learn of their fate until several weeks later. The disaster was overshadowed the events surrounding the end of the war and President Lincoln's assassination. Most of America's prominent newspapers, located in the East, gave scant coverage to the disaster.

Abraham Hoofnagle killed aboard the Sultana

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museums

                                                                     

While this list may not be complete, the following soldiers who either lived in Sandusky County, Ohio  or enlisted from the county were aboard the “Sultana.” The asterisk indicates those who were believed killed in the explosion: Morris Aubrey*, Jacob Brandt*, Ira Crane*, William Duke, Samuel Hague*, William H. Kirk*, Byron E.* and William McIntyre,* Michael Statler*, Alexander Shoemaker, Emanuel Shoe*, Thomas Flinn*, Austin Fisher, Charles Tearne and William Trimmer – all of the 72^nd Ohio; Abraham Hoofnagle*(pictured above) , John Donmire*, Adam Dilling*, and John Fleagle* 100^th Ohio; Adam Dilling* 101^st Ohio; and John Hudson*65^th Ohio.

While the Army and the nation wanted to put death and the war behind them, survivors never forgot. A strong bond developed among them. They gathered together experiences and created lists of the lost. The first reunion was held in Fostoria, Ohio, on the 20^th anniversary of the destruction. From that date forward the Sultana Association held reunions nearly every April at Fremont, Upper Sandusky, Toledo, Sandusky and in Coldwater and Hillsdale, Michigan. Veterans from Kentucky and Tennessee held reunions in the South as well. Their efforts for government pensions, medical care, and a memorial proved futile.

To learn more about the "Sultana" tragedy, please read 

Loss of the Sultana and Reminiscences of Survivors by Rev. Chester D. Berry, 1892

The Sultana Tragedy: America's Greatest Maritime Disaster by Jerry O. Potter, 1992

Disaster on the Mississippi: The Sultana Explosion, April 27, 1865 by Gene Eric Salecker, 1996

A version of the article appeared in Lifestyles 2000.

H2Oh! Making Waves: National Museum of the Great Lakes Fundraiser Auction

National Museum of the Great Lakes
1701 Front Street
Toledo, Ohio 43605

 

After nearly six years of planning, the Great Lakes Historical Society, in collaboration with the city of Toledo, the state of Ohio, and a number of generous donors, is in the final stages of preparation for opening its new National Museum of the Great Lakes, slated for spring of 2014.

 

On December 14 from 6:30 to 10, the museum will play host to its annual fundraiser, H2Oh! Making Waves. It will be the first time the public will have an opportunity to see inside the new museum located at Maritime Plaza on Front Street.

 

The evening features a selection of Great Lakes cuisine from aboard Great Lakes freighters prepared locally by Chef Marcel and assisted by culinary students from Penta Career Center.

 

Guests will be able to bid live for items such as a Kentucky Derby trip via a private Lear jet; a sail aboard an award-winning luxury sailboat; a wedding package aboard the "James M. Schoonmaker."  A dozen themed baskets valued at $500 each will be raffled. And, of course there will be the drawing of the "Luck of the Lakes" Raffle, $100 per ticket with prizes valued at more than $35,000, including cash prizes as high as $10,000. Tickets for "Luck of the Lakes" are on sale and will be limited to 1,500. "Luck of the Lakes" tickets can be purchased by attending the auction, calling 440-967-3467, or visiting inlandseas.org

The new museum is unique among traditional maritime museums. It will offer a blend of original Great Lakes artifacts  coordinated with interactive hands-on exhibits, bringing both entertainment and education to a diverse audience.

 

 

 

Toledo Antique & Classic Boat Show: August 27 and 28, 2011

On August 27th and 28th, Toledo, Ohio's annual Antique and Classic Boat Show takes place at Toledo's Maritime Center at 1701 Front Street on the banks of the Maumee. It's a treat! You'll see some of those great vintage  boats from the 1920s to the 1960s that were so much a part of summer recreation on the Great Lakes. 

This year, the focus will be on the DART BOAT. From 1928 to 1932, Admiral Webb C. Hayes II, grandson of President Rutherford B. Hayes, headed a group of investors who built the famed Dart (first built at Indian Lake Boat Company in Lima, Ohio.) The Dart was offered in four models – an 18 ½-foot; 22 ½-foot; 26-foot and 30-foot, ranging in price from $1,500 to $5,000. There were three-cockpit, split-cockpit, open and sedan models to choose from. The queen of the fleet was the 30-foot Gold Dart with its 125 horsepower Chrysler Imperial engine. You can read more about the Dart on our earlier post by clicking on this link. You will also enjoy the displays of books, postcards, and artifacts of the Great Lakes as well food, music, and antique autos! It's a great way to spend the weekend!

King Charles Gifts Facsimile of 1879 Resolute Desk Plans

Resolute Desk

Courtesy White House Historical Association

 

King Charles III on his recent visit to the United States presented President Donald J. Trump with a framed facsimile of the design plans of the Resolute Desk, a partner desk, constructed by Master Carpenter William Evenden from the white oak and mahogany timbers that were once part of the HMS Resolute ship. The original plans, are held by the Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London.

King Charles III during U.S. Visit

Courtesy of United Kingdom

The HMS Resolute was part of an arctic expedition in search of Sir John Franklin, who along with his crew had disappeared during an expedition in search of the Northwest Passage. The Resolute and several other ships became locked in the ice. The officers and crew made it back to England after a harrowing trip over the ice. 

 

HMS Resolute 

Courtesy of United Kingdom

In 1855, the HMS Resolute was discovered by an American whaler. She was adrift in open waters after the summer  thaw. She was some 1200 miles from where she had been abandoned. Congress appropriated the funds to refit the ship and return her to England.  She was given as a gift of friendship to Queen Victoria. 

In 1879, the HMS Resolute was decommissioned. Queen Victoria requested a desk be made from her timbers and presented to President Rutherford B. Hayes. He placed it in his second floor personal study. It is topped with embossed leather and features heavily carved panels. A plaque details its history and creation.

JFK and John Jr, at the Resolute Desk

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

When the Oval Office was constructed, U.S. Presidents, with few exceptions, have used the desk. President Donald J. Trump had it removed temporarily for refurbishing in February 2025 

A replica of the desk can be viewed at the Hayes Presidential Library and Museums and at other presidential libraries.

Jim Robenalt Donates Replica of U.S.S. Michigan to the Hayes Presidential Center

Jim Robenalt of Tiffin, Ohio views his replica of the U.S.S. Michigan now on display as part of the Hayes Presidential Center's new exhibit, Privy to History: Civil War Prison Life Unearthed
Photograph by Julie Mayle

 

The U.S.S. Michigan was the United States Navy's first iron-hulled vessel. She was laid down in 1842 and launched the following year. She operated on the Great Lakes. During the Civil War, she was armed with a 30-pounder Parrott rife, five 20-pounder Parrotts, six 24-pounder smoothbores, and two 12-pounder howitzers. The U.S.S. Michigan provided a level of security against possible invasion by Confederates from the Canadian shores.

Tiffin, Ohio resident built a replica of the U.S.S. Michigan to enhance the Hayes Presidential Center's current exhibit, Privy to History: Civil War Prison Life Unearthed. Through artifacts, documents, letters, diaries, and photographs, the exhibit tells the war time experience of the Confederate officers imprisoned on Lake Erie's Johnson's Island.

 

March 1864, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles ordered the Michigan to "prepare for active service as soon as the ice will permit." That fall John Yates Beall and 20 Confederates launched their secret plan to free Confederate officers incarcerated at the Union prison on Johnson's Island. The Confederates seized the Philo Parsons and captured and burned the Island Queen, but Commander Carter discovered the plot before Beall could reach Johnson's Island on the Philo Parsons. Beall reluctantly gave up the plan to free the prisoners and fled to Windsor, Ontario where he stripped and burned the vessel.

 

In 1905, the Michigan's name was changed to the U.S.S. Wolverine.  She was turned over to the Pennsylvania Naval Militia, which she served for 11 years making training cruises in the summer for the Naval Reserve. It was the Wolverine who towed the brig USS Niagara from port to port during the 1913 centennial celebration of Perry's Victory on Lake Erie during the War of 1812. In 1927, the Wolverine was pushed up on  Misery Bay at the Presque Isle State Park. After fundraising for her preservation failed, she was sold for scrap. However, her prow was donated and today, after restoration, she resides at the Erie Maritime Museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Arrow: Lake Erie's Steam Passenger Vessel

Arrow
Charles E. Frohman Collection

The “Arrow” was built in 1895 by the Detroit Dry Dock Co. of Wyandotte, Michigan. She was built for the Sandusky & Island Steamboat Co. of Cleveland, Ohio, who maintained ownership for nearly 30 years. The steel passenger steamer was lighted with electricity and accommodated 900 passengers. She made trips to many locations on Lake Erie: Kelleys Island, Put-In-Bay, Lakeside, Sandusky, Middle and North Bass Islands, Marblehead, Cleveland, Detroit, Toledo, and Port Clinton.                                                                       Arrow, with full load of passengers Charles E. Frohman Collection Ownership transferred various times over her approximately fifty-year lifespan. In 1923, the North Shore Steamboat Co. of Chicago, Illinois took ownership and rebuilt the vessel. She burned on the Chicago River in April 1932, however the company maintained possession until 1934.                                                                    Arrow's crew on Lake Erie Charles E. Frohman Collection Two years later Chester W. Armentrout of Monroe, Michigan purchased her.  He converted the "Arrow" to a barge in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin in 1936. Benjamin O. Colonna of Norfolk, Virginia bought her in 1938. For the next five years, she operated on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterways between Norfolk and Savannah, Georgia. In the midst of World War II, H. G. Williams of Jacksonville, Florida, bought her and converted the "Arrow" into a cargo vessel. Her name was also changed to “H-165” in that same year. She served continuously during the war, carrying cargo and assisting the U.S. Maritime Commission in salvage operations. Finally, McCormick Shipping Corporation of Panama bought her and used her as a cargo vessel in the banana trade. The "Arrow" met her demise on August 9, 1948 when she wrecked on the Barrier Reef near Hunting Cay Light, Honduras.