From Disaster
Sprang Romance
Courtship
On A Raft
tty join THOM SPACII
The steamship Pulaski ", which sank south ot Cape
Lookout. N.C. atter a boiler e«plos<on in 1838. was
a large vessel lor Its time (687 tons). Illustration is
Irom " Early American Steamers." Volume I
Public attention wax attracted to the marriage of two survivors of the wreck
of the schooner Pride of Baltimore, which went down last year. The couple had
drifted for five days in rite Atlantic on a rubber raft and vowed to wed if they sur¬
vived. A very similar event took place off the North Carolina coast almost a century
and a half earlier, according to researcher John Thom Spach of Winston-Salem.
On June 14,
/838,
when forty-five miles south of Cape Lookout. N.C. . the star¬
board boiler of the side-wheeler steam packet Pulaski exploded and demolished
the starboard side amidships. The ship, broken into three parts, sank within forty
minutes. Of the 154 /uissengers and crew on board only fifty-nine lives were saved.
This is the story of two of the sun'ivors, as reported in a contemporary issue of
the Delaware Gazette from the archives of the Georgia Historical Society in
Savannah— Ed.
Many interesting as well as painful
incidents connected with the fate of the
Pulaski are related by those who have
seen and conversed with persons saved
from the wreck. Among others, the fol¬
lowing is told of a Mr. |John| Ridge,
from New Orleans, and a Miss |Pris-
cilla| Onslow, from one of the southern
states (North Carolina], two of the un¬
fortunates who were picked up on the
fifth day.
It is stated of the gentleman, that he
had been sitting on the deck alone, for
half an hour prior to the accident.
Another gentleman, who was walking
near him at the time of the explosion,
was thrown overboard, and himself was
precipitated nearly over the side of the
boat and stunned. He recovered im¬
mediately. as he supposed, when he
heard someone remark. "Get out the
boats, she is sinking." He was not ac¬
quainted with a solitary individual on
the boat. Under such circumstances, it
is natural to suppose that he would feel
quite as much concern for himself as
for anyone else.
Missed The l.ifehoat
He was consequently among the fore¬
most of those w ho sought the small boat
for safety, and was about to step into it.
when he discovered a young lady.
whom he recognized as one w hose ap¬
pearance had at sundry- times during the
passage, arrested his attention. Her pro¬
tector was the gentleman who was
walking on deck and blmvn overboard.
He sprang towards her to take her into
the small boat, hut in the crowd and
confusion, he lost sight of her. and sup¬
posed she was with some other friend.
During his fruitless search, the small
boat shoved off.
The wreck was fast sinking. The
night rang with prayers and shrieks of
the helpless and drowning. He turned
away in despair, and tumbled over a coil
of small rope. Hope, like the expiring
spark brightened again. He caught up
the rope— lashed together a couple of
settees— threw them upon a piece of old
sail and a small empty cask, and thus
equipped, launched upon the water. It
was all the work of a moment.
Л
Make-Shift Raft
He believed death inevitable, and he
was consoling himself w-ith his escape,
such as it was. while others were
perishing all around hint, when he dis-
r*ji!o\iun of the Steam Boiler on Board (lie Pulaski.
20
THE STATE, MABCM 1987
