1852 — Jan 25, steamboat De Witt Clinton snags, sinks, MS Riv. below Memphis, TN –35-40

— 40 Elyria Courier, OH. “Steamboat Accidents in the U. States in 1852,” Aug 17, 1852, p. 2.
— 40 The Friend. “Steamboat Accidents in the United States in 1852.” V. 25, N49, 1852, 391.
— 36 Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 277.
— 36 Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters. 1856, 296.
— 36 Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours. 1977, p. 682.
— 36 Southern Press, Washington. “The Loss of the Steamer De Witt Clinton…” 1-29-1852, 1.
— 36 Way’s Packet Directory, 1848-1994: Passenger Steamboats… [MS Riv.] 1999, p. 127.
— 35 Daily Morning Post, Pittsburgh, PA. “The De Witt Clinton.” 2-3-1852, p. 3.
–25-30 NY Daily Times. “Sinking of the Steamer Dewitt Clinton—Loss of Thirty Lives.” 1-28-1852, 2.

Narrative Information

Lloyd: “De Witt Clinton. – The steamboat De Witt Clinton, on her way from New Orleans to Pittsburgh, January 25, 1852, struck a snag eight miles below Memphis, and sunk in 15 feet water. All on board were drowned, except one fireman and the officers of the boat. Thirty-six lives were lost.” (Lloyd 1856, 296.)

Way: DeWitt Clinton. Sidewheel wood-hull packet, built at Elizabethtown, PA in 1847, of 265 tons. “She was lost by snagging upbound from New Orleans to Pittsburgh at Dismal Point, opposite Presidents Island, below Memphis, Jan. 25, 1852. Thirty-six lives were reported lost, nine of them Negro deckhands.” (Way’s Packet Directory, 1848-1994: Passenger Steamboats of the Mississippi River System… 1848-1994. 1999, p. 127.)

Newspapers

Jan 26: “Memphis, Monday, Jan. 26. The steamer Dewitt Clinton from New Orleans, bound to Pittsburg, struck a snag eight miles below this city on the 25th inst. At about 4 o’clock P.M. and sunk within two minutes in two and a half fathoms [15 feet] of water. From twenty-five to thirty lives were lost, including all the firemen except one. The officers, crew and books and papers were all saved. The boat and cargo will prove an entire loss. Insured in Pittsburg.” (New York Daily Times. “Sinking of the Steamer Dewitt Clinton—Loss of Thirty Lives.” 1-28-1852, p. 2.)

Jan 28: “Memphis, Jan. 28. – The sinking of the steamer De Witt Clinton, by striking a snag 8 miles below this city, on Sunday [25th], has proved more disastrous than at first announced. Thirty-six bodies have already been recovered from the wreck, and it is feared that a still larger number perished.” (Southern Press Tri-Weekly, Washington City, DC. “The Loss of the Steamer De Witt Clinton – Recovery of Bodies.” 1-29-1852, p. 1.)

Jan 29: “Memphis, Jan 29. The names of the persons drowned in the ill-fated De Witt Clinton, are – [we breakout into single lines from paragraph form found in the original]

Luke Brown,
Michael Doran,
Michael Delany,
Patrick Connor,
Michael Brown,
Peter Haggerty and four children,
Sarah E. Havelin and child,
Katherine Connor,
Bridget Kowan and two daughters,
Martha A Griffin and child,
eight slaves belonging to Mr. Johnson,
eight [slaves] belong to Col. Harlston,
Wm. O. Smith, deck hand.

“Some of the officers and crew will leave for Pittsburgh in the morning, on the Falcon.” (Daily Morning Post, Pittsburgh, PA. “The De Witt Clinton.” 2-3-1852, p. 3.)

Sources

Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. Boston: Mariners Press Inc., 1972.

Daily Morning Post, Pittsburgh, PA. “The De Witt Clinton.” 2-3-1852, p. 3. Accessed 8-24-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/pittsburgh-daily-morning-post-feb-03-1852-p-3/

Elyria Courier, OH. “Steamboat Accidents in the U. States in 1852,” Aug 17, 1852, 2. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=29967442

Lloyd, James T. Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters. Cincinnati, Ohio: James T. Lloyd & Co., 1856. Digitized by Google. Accessed at: http://books.google.com/books?id=JlYqAAAAYAAJ

Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours – A Narrative Encyclopedia of Worldwide Disasters from Ancient Times to the Present. New York: Pocket Books, Wallaby, 1977, 792 pages.

New York Daily Times. “Sinking of the Steamer Dewitt Clinton—Loss of Thirty Lives.” 1-28-1852, p.2. Accessed 8-24-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/new-york-daily-times-jan-28-1852-p-2/

Southern Press Tri-Weekly, Washington City, DC. “The Loss of the Steamer De Witt Clinton – Recovery of Bodies.” 1-29-1852, p. 1. Accessed 8-24-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/the-southern-press-jan-29-1852-p-1/

The Friend (Religious and Literary Journal). “Steamboat Accidents in the United States in 1852.” Vol. 25, no. 49, 1852, 391. Digitized by Google at: http://books.google.com/books?id=JkQrAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

Way, Frederick Jr. (Author and Compiler), Joseph W. Rutter (contributor). Way’s Packet Directory, 1848-1994: Passenger Steamboats of the Mississippi River System Since the Advent of Photography in Mid-Continent America (Revised). Athens OH: Ohio University Press, 1999.