1906 — July 29, capsize of gas sloop Nora (9) and gas launch Alva B. (1), Anglesea, NJ—10

Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 1-30-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

–10  U.S. Lifesaving Service. Annual Report…1907. 1908, p. 44. (All ten are named.)

Narrative Information

United States Lifesaving Service. Annual Report…1907. 1908 (pp 41-44):

“Capsize of the gasoline sloop Nora and the gasoline launch Alva B. July 29, 1906

“On Sunday, July 29, 1906…there occurred at Anglesea, New Jersey, two fatal boating accidents within two or three hours of each other, one of which involved the largest loss of life that took place during the year in connection with a single disaster within the field of life-saving operations.

“The Nora, the larger of the two vessels, was an 8-ton boat owned at Somers Point, New Jersey. The water off Anglesea is one of the favorite fishing places along the southern Jersey coast, and on Sundays hundreds of pleasure seekers from Philadelphia come by train to this point to spend the day fishing offshore, being carried out to the banks in sailboats, launches, etc., by the local fishermen.

“On the day mentioned the Nora, in charge of Captain Herbert M. Shivers and a crew of two, left the pier at Anglesea for the fishing grounds with 30 excursionists on board. At the time of their departure the sky was clear, there was little or no sea, and there was every indication that the weather could be ideal throughout the day. Many other boats, large and small, had also taken advantage of the fine weather and gone out, like the Nora, heavily loaded, with the prospect of a fine day’s sport.

Early in the afternoon a light breeze sprang up, and the masters of many of the smaller craft, foreseeing the danger of remaining outside in a blow, hoisted sail and started shoreward, the Nora among them. Before the Nora could make harbor, however, the wind had become almost a gale, and, the tide being at flood, the seas broke heavily over Hereford Bar, which was returning boats were compelled to cross to get in. There is nothing in the evidence to suggest that the disaster to the boat was chargeable to poor seamanship on the part of her crew, or that anything could have been done under the circumstances to avert it. It the words of a survivor describing the accident, the sloop while passing over the bar ‘suddenly veered, swung around, wallowed for a moment in the trough of the sea, then turned completely over, snapping off her mast like a pipe-stem.’

“In his testimony Captain Shivers states that the water on the bar was rough when he attempted to cross, but that he did not anticipate getting into trouble. According to his story, when he neared the bar he was caught up by a sharp sea and while being swept along broached to and went over. When the sea struck the boat the passengers became panic-stricken and scrambled to leeward, but whether their action precipitated the overturn is not stated.

“A number of the party were caught beneath the Nora following the capsize, and it was doubtless due to the heavy seas that so many of them thus trapped succeeded in escaping and getting to the surface, as the boat tossed violently about, thereby uncovering some of the victims struggling underneath and enabling them to release themselves from the tangle of ropes and fish lines. Several of those who were not caught under the launch managed to get back to it and find a place to hold on, while others, less fortunate, were swept clear out of reach of any object that might serve to keep them afloat. Three or four who were able to swim struck out for the shore as soon as they found themselves in the water, but it is doubtful whether any of the swimmers would have reached land of their own efforts, as they were nearly exhausted when picked up by the rescuing boats.

“Captain Shivers avers that he dived under the launch and hauled out 18 life-preservers, but that some of those to whom they were passed were too much excited to make use of them. His statement in this regard is borne out by the word of one of the rescuers who witnessed his conduct following the capsize – when everybody else involved in the disaster seems  to have lost his wits.

“As previously stated, this accident happened within the inactive season – June and July – at a time when no life-saving crews were on duty on the Atlantic coast. The keepers, however, of all stations are required to remain at their posts throughout the year, primarily to protect the station property, but also to keep a lookout for accidents to vessels within their respective jurisdictions and to assemble, if practicable, a boat’s crew for rescue or relief work upon the infrequent occasions when that necessity arises within the period named.

“It appears that the capsize of the Nora occurred about 1 o’clock in the afternoon. Keeper H. S. Ludlam, of the Hereford Inlet Station, was apprised of the disaster at 1:15…He at once left the party and quickly prepared to go to the rescue. The celerity with which he made everything ready may be judged by the fact that within ten minutes from the time he received word of the capsize he had the 26-foot, self-righting and self-bailing surfboat in the water and manned by a volunteer crew… On the way out they picked up the men who had undertaken to swim ashore. As the surfboat pulled up near the overturned launch three of the volunteers…jumped overboard and began to assist the imperiled persons to the surfboat. While swimming with one of them away from the Nora Redding [volunteer] found his progress arrested by something seemingly fast to the man he was supporting. On examination he found one of the man’s legs entangle in the sloop’s rigging, and to release him Redding had to use a knife, passed to him by his comrades.

“Two other boats reached the Nora about the same time the surfboat arrived – the power boat Violet, operated by Captain Lilly, and a bank skiff rowed by Captain Johnson. Captain Lilly succeeded in picking up 4 men and Captain Johnson 2, and as the power boat was considerably larger than the surfboat and capable of greater speed those that the surfboat had so far rescued – 10 persons – were on Keeper Ludlam’s suggestion transferred to the power boat with instructions to Captain Lilly to carry them all as quickly as possible to the station for treatment. Referring to what took place after the departure of the Violet, Captain Ludlam says:

Some of those still imperiled were fast in a mass of rope and fish lines, and three of our men went overboard with knives to cut them clear while the others stood by to haul them in. As some of them were too weak to help themselves it required the united efforts of those in the boat to lift them on board. The difficulty of our work was increased by the seas continually breaking over us. When we got close in to the Nora I could see ne man under water in the hollow of the sea, evidently held down by the rigging. Soon he washed clear and while he was still below the surface one of us caught him by the hair and drew him into the boat. We worked over him right away, but could not do much for him at the time, as there were so many others in the water equally bad off who had to be rescued quickly, or they would soon have expired. Some of them were unconscious as soon as we had them in the boat and had to be resuscitated on shore.

“On getting back to land Keeper Ludlam found 2 or 3 regular members of his station crew, a number of private citizens, 3 physicians, and several nurses caring for those he had sent on ahead by the power boat….After seeing that those whom he himself had brought ashore were receiving proper attention, Captain Ludlam and his volunteer crew again pulled out to the Nora to make doubly sure that no one had been left alive on the wreck. They found no more survivors, but picked up another body.

“About two hours after the capsize of the Nora, and while Keeper Ludlam was still looking after the needs of the victims of that accident, word came to the station that another boat had upset on the bar. He immediately manned the surfboat and started for the rescue…They made the best time possible, but reached the capsized boat – which proved to be the Alva B. – too late to be of any service. The power boat Israella, coming in a mile astern of the Alva B., went to her assistance, as did also the auxiliary sloop Fannie E. Moffat – the latter boat having put out from the shore – both boats reaching the disabled launch considerably ahead of the surfboat crew. The Fannie E. Moffat had a dory in tow, into which two men jumped when alongside the Alva B. and began taking off her party from the weather side while the Israella was likewise engaged to leeward.

“Many of the survivors left for their homes before their names could be taken, and considerable difficulty was therefore experienced in ascertaining the number and identity of those who perished. At the time of the investigation, held two or three days later, however, 7 bodies had been recovered and identified, and 3 persons who were known to have been involved in the disasters were still missing, a total of 10 persons – 9 from the Nora and 1 from the Alva B. The names addresses of the victims, as furnished by Keeper Ludlam, are as follows: From the Nora, Thomas Green, Gloucester City, New Jersey; Mathias Ried, Conshohocken, Pennsylvania; Herbert Hammel, Frederick R. Fisher, Edward Snyder, Samuel Moore, Carl Weaver, Griffith Williams, and George Howard, all of Philadelphia. Jeremiah Crosson was the name of the man lost from the Alva B. He also was a resident of Philadelphia…”

Newspaper

July 30: “Anglesea, N.J., July 30. – Two yachts coming in from the fishing banks, capsized on Hereford Inlet Bar, off here yesterday, and so far as can be ascertained, eight persons lost their lives. There were thirty-two persons on one yacht, of whom seven were lost, and twelve on the other, all but one of whom were saved. That nor more fell victims to the rough sea was due to the heroism of Captain Henry S. Ludlam, of the Hereford Inlet Lifesaving Station, and a crew of five men….the coroner last night said that he believed only eight were lost. His list is as follows:

“Bodies recovered:     (We break paragraph into single lines.)

            Donohue, Jerry, Philadelphia,

Fisher, Frederick, Sr., Philadelphia,

Fogarty, John, Haverford, Pa.,

Hammell, Herbert, Lansdale, Pa.,

Snyder, Walter, Philadelphia;

Starkey, J., Philadelphia,

Unknown man.

“Missing – Ladner, Samuel, Woodbury, N.J.

“….The two [boats] that got into trouble were the sloop yacht Nora, which had on board Captain Herbert Shivers, his mate and thirty passengers, and the sloop Alvin B., with a party of twelve. They were capsized by a sudden squall.”

Sources

Trenton Times, NJ. “Seventeen Drown; Day of Pleasure Turned to Grief. Eight Lives Lost at Anglesea When Squal Strikes Fishing Yachts.” 7-30-1906, p. 1, col. 2. Accessed 1-30-2024 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/trenton-times-jul-30-1906-p-1/

United States Lifesaving Service. Annual Report of the United States Life-Saving Service for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1907. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1908. Accessed 1-29-2024 at: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Annual_Report_of_the_United_States_Life/h-o9AQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=US+Lifesaving+service+annual+report+1907&pg=PA12&printsec=frontcover