December 3 1855 Between the hours of 12 and 1 AM this date a fire broke out on board the steam packet George Collier, which had landed at the foot of Adams. A small fire had been discovered in a closet under some stairs but the crew was unable to control it and within 5 minutes the boat was on fire. The warf boat the Mary Hunt was on one side and the steamer the May Flower on the other side and within 5 more minutes both were burning. The register of passengers was lost, it was approximated that 48 including a 8 man crew were on board and it is known the 12 perished. Most of the deceased were Collier crewmen. The Collier had just arrived from New Orleans fully loaded with valuable cargo. All Volunteer Fire Companies responded several streams were thrown on the fire. Water was drawn from the Mississippi River. The George Collier was valued at $35,000; the Mayflower at $100,000, and the wharf boat at $15,000. The whole loss by this conflagration is estimated at $250,000.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 16:10:46 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015