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Jump to a specific ship.... Did you know....BIRTH AND DEATHS ON THE HIGH SEAS When a birth or death occurs during international travel, whether on an airplane or on a ship, the location of the record is determined by the direction of travel. If out-bound or if the vessel is docked at a foreign port, the Department of State, 1425 K Street, N.W., Washington, D. C. has the data. When the event occurs while the craft was in-bound and the port of entry was in the United States, check the registration in the city where the landing took place. The Coast Guard facility in the port of entry should be contacted if the craft was registered in the United States. (From SGS NEWSLETTER, January 1995.) 
MUSKEGON REPORTER June 9, 1859 Submitted by Kay Deuster Probable Loss of the Schooner North Carolina, With All on Board. The schooner North Carolina left Black Lake, in this county, on the evening on the 26TH ult., which our readers will remember, was the evening preceding the late violent gale on Lake Michigan, bound for Milwaukee. Aaron Ingraham, Esq. George Wheeler, and two other passengers, whose names we did not learn, and a crew of seven men were on board. The principal part of her freight was rail road ties. She has not since been heard of, and we understand from Capt. Johnsen, of the Kitty Grant, that on Sunday last he saw a large quantity of rail road ties floating in Lake Michigan, about twenty miles from Black Lake, some of which were picked up by his men, but they were unable to find any marks or other means of identifying them. Mr. Ingraham was last year the Supervisor of township of Norton, was part owner of the steam mill at Black Lake, known as the Ingraham mill, and was a man universally respected.
The Minerva From MCHS minutes of June 14th, 1962
Mrs. Cecil Witmer, her grandfather was captain of the ‘Minerva” 1880 Early Water Transportation on Muskegon and Area Lakes Water transportation is a topic that I have been brought up on and has been a topic of conversation in our family as far back as I can remember, since my grandfather was one of the early captains in Muskegon and my mother was always telling us stories about his boats. In considering water transportation in the early days around Muskegon, or what is now Muskegon, we must first consider the earliest means- the Indian canoe and other boats used by early traders and explorers. The Indians had developed the canoe, a boat having the qualities of strength, lightness, buoyancy and stability and the explorers were not long in adopting it. The canoes, however, were much larger than those we see today, usually being 36 to 40 feet long , about 4 ft. wide and 2 1/2 ft. deep. These were made of birch and cedar, sewed or fastened together with some sort of root an the seams were gummed. These large canoes could hold 10 or 12 men and their baggage. Light enough to be carried easily by two men at the portages, and speedy and safe in the water, this craft was an ideal one for general purposes. Another type of canoe long used was the “ dug-out”, which the Indians made by digging out or burning out the center of a log. Traders used what they called the “bateaux” a vessel with a capacity of 2 to 4 tons. The “bateaux” was a light, flat-bottomed boat made of pieces of wood hewed or sawed from red cedar logs. It was propelled by oar but was also equipped with square sails which could be spread if the winds were favorable. Still another type of boat was the Mackinaw barge. This was heavier than the ““bateaux”, having blunt ends like a modern scow and being flat-bottomed. It was awkward and had to be poled or towed. It was used very little after 1830. These primitive boats were replaced by the sailing vessel. The first sailing vessel on the Great Lakes was the famous “Griffin.” This was never heard of again after September, 1679. It was the sailing vessel that figured in the early lumbering days in this area. My grandfather, Captain William Smith, was captain of several of these. He was skipper of the Minerva, owned by the Ryerson-Hills Company, the William Smith, his own boat which was wrecked at the mouth of Holland, under control of the first mate, because my grandfather was at home when his youngest son was born. He also ran the Len Higby, owned by my uncle, D. A. Boelkens. These boats carried loads each way from Chicago to Muskegon, lumber from Muskegon to Chicago and grain from Chicago. I know he also brought other foodstuff as we have a letter which he wrote about a load of potatoes for my uncle’s store, which was on Third Street, where the Automotive Supply Company is now. Muskegon got its start as the “Port City” more than a hundred years ago. Cheap transportation by water to the markets of the middle west and of the world proved an important factor in the city’s growth. Although the channel between Muskegon lake and Lake Michigan was not improved until 1863, many vessels made their way to this port before that. The first vessels stopping here after the fur trading day were the schooners Wave and Victor. In 1848 the schooner Muskegon was built in Milwaukee for Theodore Newell to carry lumber from Muskegon to Kenosha and other ports. The G. R. Roberts and the Knickerbocker made this port regularly, while the Illinois, N. C. Walter, Honest John and New Hampshire, owned in Grand Haven, stopped here occasionally. All large boats tied up at the Foss dock, located near the site of the Continental Motors Corp. I can recall, as a little girl, my aunt, Mrs. Boelkens, taking her grandson and me down to a dock near the Continental to see a sailing vessel which had sunk there and only the top of the mast was visible. Large numbers of boats came into Muskegon harbor. A newspaper of 1859 carried an item to the effect that 15 vessels had arrived in the port in one morning. In 1860 it was reported that 17 had come in here during a single night. The shipping business grew with the lumbering industry but at an early date Muskegon people were enjoying the clatter of paddle wheels and the sight of stately vessels with their white wings spread wide to catch the breeze. Shipping at Muskegon was seriously impeded until improvements were made at the Lake Michigan channel. Often the water was less than six feet deep over the bar and vessels often had to wait until the depth was increased before attempting to enter the harbor. There was no well-defined channel from Muskegon lake into Lake Michigan and the outlet meandered and shifted at will. As early as 1861 Muskegon business men were considering ways of bettering the harbor entrance. In that year the state legislature passed a law permitting local group to organize for the purpose of improving their ports. Taking advantage of the law, a committee of interested Muskegon citizens advertised a special township meeting to be held in the basement of the Methodist church May 21, 1861 to raise $3,400 for improvement of the channel at Lake Michigan. There is no record of the outcome. In 1862 another such movement was started. This time an organization was effected and books were opened July 1, 1862. During 1863 the Muskegon Harbor company began operations and built slab piers on each side of the channel. Even building piers failed to solve the problem of deepening the channel. In April, 1864 it was reported the entrance to the harbor was blocked for 12 days with only 4 feet of water and kept 32 loaded vessels from sailing. This time they hired the propeller “Caldwell” to bore her way through the sand. With a double boring, it was successful in keeping the channel open even in the coldest weather. The Muskegon Harbor Company spend $40,000, all donated. Soon after they completed their work, Congress appropriated money for the improvement of the harbor. The first made March 2, 1867 was $58,450. In 1871 $15,000 more was granted and in 1872 $10,000. In 1873, government workers completed the task of converting the old slab piers into pile piers, 350 feet on the south side and 250 feet on the north side. Since that time, improvements have continued until today Muskegon possesses one of the finest harbors on the Great Lakes. In the sixties Muskegon lake was a fascinating place with increasing number of sailing vessels, tugs, steamers and ferry boats. 23 cargoes, amounting to 2,000,000 feet of lumber cleared the harbor in one day. One Monday in 1862 the arrival of the schooners Little Belle, Telegraph, Maine, Oden, Robert Campbell, and S. Bates and the scow Hunter, was announced. In 1860 three steamers were plying between Muskegon and Chicago, the Ottawa, the Foss and the Comet. In 1861 the steamer Huron, commanded by Capt. Cole was scheduled to leave for Chicago on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and return on alternate days. In 1862 there was a new steamer the Sunbeam under Capt. Morgan. In 1863 A. E. Goodrich purchased the Seabird to run between Muskegon and Chicago. About 1862 the Daniel Ball made trips from Muskegon to Grand Haven and up the river to Grand Rapids. Efforts soon were made to establish regular ferry boat service between the settlements on both sides of Muskegon lake. As early as 1860 permits were given to three men to run ferry boats on Muskegon lake. Alfred Cain was to run on White Lake and John B. Lemieuz and O. W. Califf were to operate ferries on Muskegon lake. Another interesting phase of navigation in Muskegon was the establishment of shipyards here. The Booming company was the first to have a shipyard here. The Booming company was the first to have a shipyard. It was a small one, situated on the shore of the lake not far from the Pere Marquettte yards on Ottawa street, and intended as a place to repair boats and built tugs and dredges. Captain P. J. Arnold went to work there about 1868. In the eighties, Muskegon harbor presented a sight never to be forgotten. Booming company tugs were towing vast rafts of logs, while the sorting pens and coupling grounds were swarming with men, and schooners lined every dock. A report in 1881 that 23 sailing vessels had cleared from this port within an hour and a half was not at all unusual. During the navigation season of 1881 there were more than 2,800 arrivals in port. In June there were 469 arrivals and 470 clearances. Schooners carried millions of feet of Muskegon made lumber to the markets of the world. Many Muskegon mills maintained fleets of vessels on which their products were transported. John Torrent owned the schooner H. B. Moore, steam barges R. McDonald and Nellie Torrent and the tug North Muskegon. The Farr Lumber company had the schooner Westchester and tug John Torrent and at one time the ferries Minter and Centennial. Charles Hackley owned the schooner Rouse Simmons, Kate Lyons, and H. C. Albrecht in addition to tugs such as the MacGordon. The schooner Minerva was for a time the property of Ryerson, Hills & Company. The Lyman Davis was built for the Mason Lumber Company. This was the fleetest of all the sailing vessels owned in Muskegon and was build here in 1873. The schooner was named for a son of Charles S. Davis, a member of the firm. The Davis was built like a racer with a 124 ft. Keel. Although it carried a small cargo, it proved it could easily make two trips to one of the Minerva, a sailing vessel constructed on heavier lines but able to carry a larger load. When the lumbering era ended, she was sold to a Canadian company in 1913 and was burned as a feature of a celebration there in 1934. For 76 years the Goodrich Transit Company carried freight and passengers between Muskegon, Grand Haven and Chicago. This company was established in 1856 by Capt. A. E. Goodrich. The Huron was the first steamer used on this line. A steamer Wabash Valley was wrecked here in 1860. In 1867 Capt. Goodrich bought from J. T. Ryerson of Whitehall the steamers Truesdell and Ottawa, which Ryerson had been operating on a combined lumber and passenger service to Chicago. In the following decade the boats serving Muskegon were the Alpena, Orion, Navarion, Muskegon and Menominee. By 1880, Goodrich steamers were so popular, they could not carry all who wished to patronize them. In 1880 occurred the sinking of the steamer, Alpena, a tragedy considered by Muskegon people the greatest marine disaster in the history of the city. The Alpena had been built in 1856 and was purchased to replace the Seabird, which had burned off Waukegan. The boat was valued at $75,000 and at the time it went down, was carrying 75 to 80 passengers and a crew of 26 men. Friday evening Oct. 15, 1880, the Alpena left Grand Haven. The lake was calm and everything indicated a quiet passage. Soon a terrific storm came up. Even in Muskegon the force of the wind was felt; people could hardly walk and many were seen clinging to lamp posts to keep from blowing away. Smoke stacks and church steeples toppled and wooden sidewalks and billboards sailed through the air. The first real evidence of the sinking of the Alpena was obtained when a ladder and a pail marked “Alpena” were found on the beach near Holland. Other wreckage kept drifting ashore, among which were two life boats, one with the oars still tied down as though no attempt had been made to use it. Someone picked up a bottle containing insurance papers thrown overboard by two victims. Another person found the bottom of a grape basket on which was written that the Alpena was fast going to pieces and all on board knew they were doomed. A similar message scratched on a shingle by the captain was likewise discovered. However, there was never any account of the details of the tragedy. My mother had a ticket from a previous trip on the Alpena which I gave to the Museum on the anniversary of the sinking, October 15, 1939, along with some cork from the life jacket that was around the stewardess when she was washed on the shore. The Alpena carried a load of 8 carloads of apples and two carloads of shavings, intended for stuffing of mattresses. After the wreck the shoreline was strewn with apples for miles. During that storm, 87 vessels were wrecked on Lake Erie, Huron and Michigan. In the days of heavy lumber traffic, tugs were almost indispensable. In addition to booming company tugs harbor tugs, employed solely in towing lumber schooners. A sailing vessel with a skillful crew and favorable wind might be able to tack into the harbor, but most of them required the service of a tug. In the spring of 1881, Muskegon harbor had 22 such boats, 15 for towing and 7 for ferries. When idle, harbor tugs lay between the piers at the harbor entrance watching closely for a light or flag on the mast of an approaching vessel in need of a tow. Occasionally a tug would go out into the lake in the path of anticipated ships and come in pulling several. The McGordon is reported to have towed as many as seven schooner through the channel at one time. It was common to see two or three tugs racing toward an incoming vessel. Often they raced long distances, consuming so much fuel, they used up all the profit that might be made. The usual charge to $10 to $25, depending on the distance. Competition was ruinous to all tug men and their plight was made worse by the increasing number of steam barges, which forced the sailing vessels out of business. Steam barges were able to carry larger loads than the schooners and were not dependent on favorable winds. For a time tug men thought of combining with schooner owners and towing sailing vessels from port to port but as lumber shipments decreased, all types of boats were sold and removed from Muskegon and activity in the harbor declined at an alarming rate. Lake Harbor also had its place in the sun in the early days. The harbor was much larger than we know it now and even schooners were able to enter the channel there. There were three Mills on that lake. I recall seeing slabs and logs sticking out of the water near my uncle’s property, Boelkens’ Point, or now known as Harbor Point. In the days of the Lake Harbor Hotel there were two small boats used as ferries to carry passengers from the head of the lake, leaving the hotel and head of the lake simultaneously and passing mid-lake. I have a small picture of the “Florence” but we cannot recall the name of the other boat. They would stop at any of the docks along the way to pick up passengers when signaled. I recall going to a picnic with my family at Recreation Park when I was a little girl and some from the picnic decided to take a boat ride to the Lake Harbor Hotel and I went along with my sister, Nelle. I was about 6 years old. The boat we took was not the regular passenger boat but was a good-sized launch. We got to the hotel without incident but on the way home, something happened and we hit one of the piers of the float bridge, knocking a couple of men into the water, injuring the arm of one woman and breaking my parasol, which I had taken along. I started to cry about that and they took up a collection of about 50 cents to help me get another one. We were hauled up to the top of the bridge and I don’t recall how we got back to Recreation Park - possibly by another boat. It was quite an adventure for me. For some reason, I have been unable to find much about the Crosby line and its history. These boats ran between Muskegon and Milwaukee. Most of us remember the wreck of the City of Muskegon at the Muskegon Harbor so I wont go into that, except to mention it in passing. After advent of the automobile, boat traffic declined and the large steamers were sold or scrapped. With the construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway, the marine traffic in the Muskegon area is coming into a new day when shipping is again taking a prominent place with foreign boats, flying flags of various nations coming into Muskegon lake. Also pleasure boating is a new interest. I read in one place that there were 558,000 pleasure boats in Michigan alone in 1960, and the construction of these is a million dollar industry. Muskegon Lake, Lake Michigan and other area lakes are one of our biggest assets and we should take care of them, preventing pollution and exploitation, or the ghosts of past boats and their skippers will haunt us.
The Alpena 
The News and Reporter
Wednesday Oct. 20th, 1880 The Steamer Alpena Has Gone Down With All On Board The steamer Alpena, of the Goodrich line, which sailed from Muskegon for Chicago Friday afternoon, was last seen early Saturday morning off Kenosha and Waukegan, Wis., well out in the lake, and standing on her course, but apparently making no headway. We give the following information with time and place fully establishing the real and terrible facts that the steamer Alpena has gone down with all on board:- Oct. 19, 11 a. m. -- P. Pfanspicbl telegraphs from Holland that a piano marked “Weber, maker, New York,” and part of the forward deck of a have come ashore at that place; also portions of the inside partitions of a steamer, an oval stairway, some deck stools, and one bucket marked “Str. Alpena.” Parties here having been passengers on the Alpena claim positively that the piano was hers. Nothing but the bucket was marked. Sailors say that the Alpena leaving Grand Haven at 9 o’clock Friday night, would certainly be driven in this direction by the furious gale which reached here Saturday morning early. Grand Haven, Mich., Oct. 19, 12m -. The U. S. tug Col. Graham, arrived here at 11 o’clock this morning, and the captain says that the upper works of the Alpena are ashore near Holland. There can be no doubt that this wreckage is from the Alpena, as the numerous articles of freight and furniture which are known to have been on the Alpena, are in the lot. The whole of the fantail, pails, fish boxes and other things marked “Grand Haven” or “Alpena,” are strewn all along the shore. Two stepladders painted white, the ornamental work of a pilot house, and pieces of the wreck with enough separate letters on them to make out the words “Goodrich line” have been found. Oct. 19, 9:45 p. m. - The body of Mrs. Vandercar of Chicago, not Mrs. Bradley of Santa Fe, New Mexico, who was one of the passengers on the steamer Alpena, was cast up by the waves on the shore south of Holland this evening. Mrs. W. was a sister of John Dibble of this city. The only garment she had on was a nightdress. There is a heavy under-current to the northward now and bodies will undoubtedly come ashore near this port before morning. A lookout is being kept. Her living freight is believed to have consisted of at least 70 souls, but as no duplicates of the passenger lists were kept by the agents, there is no way of knowing who was on board, except from the observation of friends and acquaintances. So far as known the following is the list: Capt. Nelson W. Napier, of St. Joseph; Mate J. H. Kelly; Engineers R. W. Johnson and Robert Patton; Steward John Bowen; Clerk A. E. Hayes or Haynes; J. Falls, fireman; Maggie Mockes, stewardess. Others, such as deck-hands, cooks, wheelsmen, etc., numbered about 30, ordinarily, but at least two cabin boys are believed to have staid ashore.T he passengers known are believed to have been on board are the following: Mrs. S. D. Cole sister of F. H. Holbrook of Muskegon; Christopher Kusterer, Fred Spaeth, George Hottinger, Grand Rapids; Heber Squires, jr.; Mrs. F. B. Curtis; M. Crossmad; W. S. Benham and wife, Grand Haven; Mrs. Newton Bradley and two daughters, Lou and Kate, of Santa Fe, N. M; N. A. McGilvary, of St. Joseph; H. L. St. Clair and W. C. Pettibone, Chicago; L. D. Peyton, N. Y.; John J. Bowen, L. D. Peyton, Kentucky; L. Landreth, John Osborn, late engineer of Swan, White & Smith’s mill, with wife, four children and a brother-in-law, Muskegon; Locke, of N. Y.; ----Rider, of Syracuse; Farrell Hart and wife of Chicago; Timothy Lynch a cabin boy and the chambermaid also hail from Grand Haven. The Alpena was built at Marine City in 1866 and was valued at $40,000. She was rated at A2, and owned by the Goodrich Transportation company and used on the line between Muskegon and Chicago. She was insured for $20,000 in the Union of Philadelphia, St. Paul, Manhattan and Phoenix.
The News and Reporter Saturday, Oct, 23rd, 1880 The Steamer Alpena NOT A LIFE SAVED--UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE TIME & PLACE OF HER LOSS HOW SHE WENT DOWN- The Number of Those Abroad Still a Mystery-- Only Seven Bodies Recovered--Other Disasters. The Gale on the Lakes. The gale signaled nearly twenty-four hours in advance on Saturday last broke with terrible fury upon the lakes, and precipitated a series of appalling disasters. Never, perhaps, has a short-lived clemental commotion been productive of such wide spread destruction. In some degree there has been reason to attach blame to commanders of crafts who put out in defiance of the warning of the impending storm, but in most instances the vessels were caught while en route. One of the most heartrending disasters in the history of lake navigation was the loss of the steamer Alpena, with every soul on board, in Lake Michigan. She carried down with her many gallant souls. Although two tugs with life-boats have been out all day yesterday, and many men, seeking after the bodies of friends, have patrolled the beach between Grand River and Holland, only one body, that of an unknown man, evidently a deck hand has been found. Although the tugs are out again today, and the beach continues to be patrolled, there is but little hope of finding any bodies. It is considered doubtful if the greater part of them are ever found. It is the generally accepted theory that, if the Alpena went down in mid-lake, the water is probably so deep that the bodies will never come to the surface. Seven bodies in all have been recovered up to today. A. Blanchard of Huntley, Ills; Frank Pope, St. Johns, Mich.; E. A. Angel, Lamont, Mich.; Mrs. Sarah M. Bragg, Chicago; Andrew Murdock, Philadelphia, and H. L. Sinclair of Lawndale, Ill., were added to the list of passengers already published. The body of Mrs. S. B. Cole, one of the passengers on the Alpena, was brought to this city (Muskegon) Thursday, from Grand Haven by her husband and brother, F. H. Holbrook. It was forwarded to Hastings yesterday for burial. Among the reports brought by the steamer Menominee was the statement of Capt. Dan Miller of the schooner Hannah who claims that on his trip down from Chicago in midlake he ran into part of a hulk, and supposed it was part of the Alpena. Capt. Holmes reported that on the fatal Saturday near midlake, he lay to the leeward of the Alpena, saw that she was lying on her side and heard her blow her whistle for help, but could render no assistance. The watch found on the person of Mr. Crossman had stopped at the hour of 10:50. It is supposed from this that the vessel went down at that time on Saturday morning. She was seen by the Levi Grant and the J. A. Holmes between the hours of 10 and 11 on Saturday morning, about twenty miles off Racine, laboring heavily in the seas, and it may be assumed as a fact that she did not live long after. The Statement was made, when the Holmes passed her she was in distress and blowing her whistles for help, which could not be given her. Crossman’s watch, supported by the testimony of the witnesses on the Holmes, disposes of the theory that the Alpena went down off the port when at the threshold of deliverance. Theories of the Horror From the facts gleamed in the course of the search, a plausible theory is built up regarding the time and manner of the disaster. From the location of a large number of the wrecked pieces, the officers of the Goodrich steamer Menominee conclude that the Alpena foundered about midway across the lake, between Milwaukee and Grand Haven. It is evident from a number of circumstances that the dread event occurred in the night probably before midnight. A watch was found upon the person of Mr. Crossman, the hands of which had stopped at 10:50. The passengers were waked from their sleep, or at any rate many of them had retired to rest. The body of Tommy Osboen had on only a shirt. Mrs. Cole, it was evident from the fact that her corset was not laced up and her dress only partially buttoned, had not had time to dress. The body of the woman supposed to be Mrs. McConnell had on only a night dress, showing that she must of been aroused from her sleep. In view of these facts and the circumstances that the steamer was seen as late as Saturday noon, it is probable that the wreck took place sometime on Saturday night. Had the Alpena possessed a mast and sail, there is little doubt, seamen say, that she could have lifted herself out of the trough of the sea in which she was laboring, and all on board have been saved. The Mary Groh, which was given up as lost at first, succeeded by this means in weathering the storm, and there is no reason why the Alpena could not have come out all right had the same agencies been employed. Capt. A. E. Goodrich was asked to give his theory of the fate of the Alpena, and replied: “I thought first that she might have broken her engines and been lost in that way. I am satisfied that she did not. She had very powerful engines. Vessels saw her up to the middle of Saturday, and her engines were working then. One vessel reports that she saw the Alpena listed down so that one wheel was out of the water and the other in the trough of the sea and her engines were then at work. My own opinion is this: Captain Napier was a man full of courage. There was no such thing as cowardice about him. He had that bulldog, hang-to activeness that would not give up as long as there was a fighting chance. The Alpena was last seen about thirty miles off Chicago. Instead of squaring off for Milwaukee, as he might have done had he commenced in time, he fought the storm until the sea got so big that when she dropped into the trough of the sea her freight shifted to the leeward, pitching one wheel out of the water, and he was not able to right her. She probably remained in that position until the sea knocked her to pieces, which was probably a good many hours. I think she rode out the storm. She probably did not go to pieces until the wind shifted to the northwest. That was Sunday night. I don’t think she went to pieces until that time because of the stuff going ashore at Holland. If she had broke up previously, when the wind was from the southwest, portions of the wreck would have drifted in the neighborhood of the Sauble. But the stuff struck the beach so much further south it would look as if the wind had shifted to northwest before she went to pieces. I think she lasted a long time after she dropped into the trough of the sea. She must have gone to pieces somewhere between Racine and the east shore, some time Saturday night or early Sunday morning. I don’t think any small boat could have lived in that storm. I suppose all must have perished. If my theory is correct the bodies of the passengers and crew will probably come ashore between Grand Haven and Holland. We have men there patrolling the reach, and as soon as a body is found we will be informed of the fact by telegraph.” EDITOR’S NOTE The News and Reporter of Wednesday, October 27, 1880, also contains an article about the wreck of the Alpena and includes an eye witness report of the storm from a letter written by Richard Smith of Muskegon and his niece, Miss May Towler. They were on Lake Michigan traveling from Collingwood, Ont., to Chicago during the storm. The following are extracts from the article that contain names of lost passengers or crew members. “The following named Swedes left Muskegon on the steamer Alpena and must be among the lost: John Holmquist--Came from Sweden in June last and had been at work in the mills here. E. Forsman--Had been at work in the mills here. Has a brother who came from Sweden this past summer to Kansas and from there went to Minnesota. P. I. Quist--Blacksmith; had been at work in the machine shop here. All had been boarding here with John E. Strohm. They were going to Chicago to visit the Exposition and friends there. It is thought neither had any relatives in this country except the brother of Forman’s.” “The following have been inquired for, and are supposed to be victims of the Alpena disaster: R. E. Heth, Grand Rapids, Mich., J. D. Carr, Detroit, A. Blanchard, Huntley Grove, Ill., Frank Pope, St. Johns, Mich., Mrs. Sarah M. Bragg, Chicago, E. A. Angell, Chicago, Andrew Murdock.”
The News and Reporter Saturday, Nov. 6th, 1880 The Alpena The expedition of Captain Edward Napier, son of Captain Nelson Napier, returned to Chicago yesterday. It consisted of the powerful tugs O. B. Green (Captain Edward’s boat) and Ransom. Drags, hawsers, etc., were on board, and Mr. Hill, the well-known diver, accompanied the expedition. Ever since the disaster the several sons of the Alpena’s brave master have been untiring in their efforts to recover the remains of the father. Along the east shore they aided Superintendent Butlin, of the Goodrich line very materially in his search, and were the finders of two or more of the few bodies that were recovered. Of the last expedition, one of the tugs arrived yesterday, and the other later in the afternoon. In a conversation with Caption Ed. Napier and Mr. Hill, the diver, the reporter of the Inter-Ocean learned that the expedition had been wholly unsuccessful. Two days had been spent in this last search, but all to no avail. One of the Alpena’s life-preservers was found north of South Haven, where the wreck is supposed to lie sunk. The wreck had been searched and dragged for but could not be found.
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Muskegon County
