1932 — Sep 9, Steamboat Observation boiler explosion, East River near Riker’s Isl. NY– 72
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 1-13-2025 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–72 Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 71.[1]
–72 NYT. “Ends Hunt…Boiler…Work Boat…River…Dragged…,” 9-23-1932, p. 13.
–72 NYT. “Boat Owner Indicted…Blast Fatal…72…Lax Inspection…” 10-1-1932.
–72 NYT. “On Trial…Ship Blast…Captain…Accused…Causing 72 Deaths…” 3-14-1933, p.18.
–72 NYT. “Three Tell of Blast on…Observation…Patch was not Reported…,” 3-16-1933, p.20.
–72 NYT. “Admit Hiding Facts after Ship Disaster: Welders…Conceal Patching…,” 3-18-1933.
–72 NYT. “Denies Ship Blast was due to Dynamite; Fireman on…Observation…,” 3-21-1933.
–72 NYT. “Observation Master Tells of Explosion…Denies he was Owner…,” 3-23-1933, 37.
–72 NYT. “Captain Cleared in Ship Explosion…” March 24, 1933, p. 13.
–72 NYT. “Calls Observation Old, Rotted Boat…City Denies any Liability…,” 3-7-1934, p. 7.
–72 NYT. “Deckhand Describes…Blast…Testifies Planks…were Rotten…” 3-9-1934, p. 10.
Narrative Information
Sep 10: “New York, Sept. 10 (AP).—The district attorney of the Bronx announced today that he will hold Alexander Forsythe, captain of the ill-fated steamer Observation, as a material witness to the explosion which yesterday caused the death of at least 39 men.
“Details of the disaster will be laid before a Bronx grand jury next Tuesday morning, the prosecutor said. Forsythe, now a patient in Fordham hospital, is expected to appear. Physicians said that his injuries are not serious.
“Eleven men are missing and police were grappling for their bodies today at the 138th Street dock in the East River where the 44-year-old steamer was blown to bits, by its boilers. Of the 63 injured 38 were still in hospitals.
“The investigation by the board of inspection of the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection of the Department of Commerce got under way today soon after the arrival from Washington of Dickinson N. Hoover, assistant director.
“The first witness was Howard C. Burgess, assistant inspector of boilers, who made the last survey of the Observation on April 28 last.
“Did you find the boilers in safe condition,” he was asked.
“I found them in very good condition,” he replied.
“A guard stood at the hospital cot of Forsythe, the captain. He was too seriously hurt to permit questioning. All he could say was:
“I cannot account for it. We were just backing out when the boiler blew.”
“That was the story, too, of other survivors of the Observation which sank in a minute and a half just as it pulled from its Bronx pier in the East River yesterday morning, carrying its load of workmen to Riker’s Island, where they were employed on the new penitentiary.
“There was a strong possibility, Marine police said, that the number of missing might be us high as 25. The one man who was in a position to know exactly how many were aboard—the man who collected the dime fares of the workmen—is missing.
“Floodlight played on the waters through the night, affording a view of grim drama to curious hundreds. They watched silently as five police boats moved slowly back and forth grappling for bodies.
“Half the interior of the dingy ferry house at 134th Street was blocked off as a morgue. Piled against one wall were nine rough coffins.
“There was no explanation of the explosion, but four investigations hunted its cause today. “It might have been dynamite for all we know about it yet,” said John Crane, supervising inspector of the U. S. Bureau’ of Navigation and Steamship Inspection.
“United States District Attorney Medalle, conducting a separate investigation, subpoenaed for questioning the inspectors who examined the boilers of the Observation last April and who reported them satisfactory.
“A third inquiry was being conducted jointly by police and fire departments and a fourth was in charge of District Attorney McLaughlin of the Bronx.
“The spot where the Observation went down is near that where the General Slocum burned and sank July 15, 1904, with the loss of 1,021 lives – the greatest boat disaster ever to occur in American waters….
“All of the dead were from New York City or vicinity.” (Syracuse Herald (NY). “Captain Held in Boat Blast Fatal to 39,” Sep 10, 1932, p. 1. col. 1, and p. 2. col. 7.)
Sep 18, NYT: “Test Proves Safety Valve of the Observation Was in Working Order and Not to Blame. BOILER SOUGHT IN RIVER Mine Sweepers Will Drag for It — Low Water Now Thought Likely Cause of the Explosion.
“Navy mine-sweepers will comb the bottom of the East River at 134th Street tomorrow in an effort to recover the boiler of the steamer Observation, which blew up on Sept. 9 with the loss of seventy-one lives. This announcement was made yesterday by District Attorney Charles B. McLoughlin of the Bronx, following a test which proved that the safety valve of the boiler was in good order.
“A hydrostatic test of the valve had proved inconclusive on Friday. Yesterday a new test was made with steam pressure in the plant of the United Electric Light and Power Company…The 200-pound valve, which had been blown 400 feet by the blast, passed the test satisfactorily, opening wide at a pressure of 142½ pounds, which is eight and one-half pounds less than had been certified for April 28 by the United States Steamboat Inspection Service.
“Assistant United States Attorney Thomas E. Dewey said that the authorities now had only one source left in seeking clues to the cause of the boiler explosion and that was the boiler. He said that ‘nine chances out of ten’ the cause was low water in the boiler. If the water had been low, he explained, and cold water poured in for replenishment, the result would be expansion with bursting force….” (New York Times. “Boat Blast Inquiry Hunts for New Clue.” 9-18-1932, p. 23.)
Oct 1, NYT: “New York Times. “Boat Owner Indicted in Blast Fatal to 72,” 10-1-1932, p. 1:
“Manslaughter Laid to Forsyth for Alleged Negligence in East River Explosion.
“LAX INSPECTION CHARGED
“Boiler Defects Overlooked by Federal Service, Grand Jury Tells Bronx Court.
“The Bronx grand jury returned an indictment for manslaughter, second degree, yesterday against Alexander Forsyth, part owner of the steamer Observation, which blew up on the East River on Sept. 9 with a loss of seventy-two lives. The grand Jury also submitted to Supreme Court Justice Edward S. Dora a presentment carrying strong inferences of neglect and inefficiency in the United States Steamboat Inspection Service and assailing its methods. It concluded that this service was ‘woefully undermanned’ in the New York area.
“The presentment was a ten-page summary of the evidence amassed in the last three weeks from the examination of more than sixty witnesses. It discussed in detail the condition of the Observation’s boiler, assigning an explosion within its allegedly ruptured shell as the cause of the disaster. It found likewise that Forsyth & Son had failed to carry public liability and workmen’s compensation insurance, as required in the contract chartering the steamer, and criticized the P. J. Carlin Construction Company, which has the contract for the city’s $9,000,000 penitentiary on Riker’s Island, for permitting such a violation of the agreement.
“The grand jury inquired into the Federal system of steamboat inspection and found, according to its report, that only sixteen inspectors are assigned to examine annually 5,000 boilers carried by 1,600 vessels in the Port of New York. It decided the inspection of the Observation’s boilers had been neither thorough nor complete and condemned the practice of waiving certain rules, regulations and statutes relating to steamboat inspections.
“In its conclusion the grand jury advocated that the Federal criminal laws be revised so that government inspectors may be punished for dereliction of duty in improper and inefficient inspection of boilers. It made similar recommendations for the punishment of owners and engineers operating vessels with defective boilers….
“At the District Attorney’s office it was said that the investigation had not been completed and that the grand jury still was subject to call. It was recalled also that William B. English, co-owner of the steamer with Alexander Forsyth, still was at large. Detectives have searched for him in vain as a material witness.
“Last evening Forsyth was arraigned before County Judge James M. Barrett on the indictment, which charged culpable negligence. He was taken from Fordham Hospital, where he had been held as a material witness while recovering from injuries suffered in the explosion. Assistant District Attorney Arthur Carney asked for $25,000 bail pending trial, the amount in which Forsyth previously had been held. William P. Thomas, Forsyth’s attorney, pleaded for bail of $7,500…”
Sep 23: NYT. “Ends Hunt for Boiler in Work Boat Blast.” Sep 23, 1932, p. 13:
“McLaughlin Says River Has Been Dragged Thoroughly — Co-Owner of Craft Not Yet Found.
“District Attorney McLaughlin of the Bronx announced yesterday that he had abandoned the search for the boiler of the steamer Observation, which he had hoped would reveal the cause of the explosion that wrecked the steamer on Sept. 9, bringing death to seventy-two men….Mr. McLaughlin said that to continue the search for the boiler would be futile. Craft of the Merritt-Chapman & Scott Company, the Police Department and the Department of Plant and Structures have dragged the bottom of the East River, off 134th Street, for several hundred feet in every direction from the spot where the hull lay. He explained that within 100 feet of the shore line fifteen feet of mud was on the river floor and beyond that the bed was hard, but swept by strong tides which would have carried off any large part of the boiler….” (New York Times. “Ends Hunt for Boiler in Work Boat Blast; McLaughlin Says River has been Dragged Thoroughly – Co-Owner of Craft not yet Found,” Sep 23, 1932, p. 13.)
March 13, 1933, NYT: “ON TRIAL FOR SHIP BLAST. Observation Captain Is Accused of Causing 72 Deaths by Laxity.
“A jury was selected and four witnesses were heard yesterday before Judge Barrett in the Bronx County Court at the trial of Alexander J. Forsyth, 24 years old, of West New Brighton, S.I. [Staten Island], on a charge of second degree manslaughter resulting from the death of seventy-two men in an explosion which wrecked the steamer Observation in the East River near Riker’s Island on Sept. 9, 1932. Sol Boneparth, assistant district attorney, said he would attempt to prove that Forsyth, as captain and part owner of the boat, had negligently allowed it to be operated with a patched and faulty boiler. Counsel for Mr. Forsyth said that he had nothing to do with the management of the vessel. The P. J. Carlin Construction Company had chartered the Observation to ferry workmen to Riker’s Island for the construction of the new prison there.” (New York Times. “On Trial for Ship Blast; Observation Captain is Accused of Causing 72 Deaths by Laxity,” 3-14-1933, p. 18.)
March 16, 1933, NYT: “Three Tell of Blast on the Observation…Patch was not Reported to Officials,” March 16, 1933, p. 20.
“Three witnesses testified yesterday at the trial of Alexander Forsyth for manslaughter in connection with the boiler explosion which wrecked the steamer Observation and killed seventy-two men on Sept. 9. Forsyth was part-owner of the vessel….
“Assistant District Attorney Sol Boneparth brought out that the work [patch on the boiler] was done by a concern which did not have the approval of the Federal inspection service. Mr. Boneparth read from a record of a Federal inquiry questions and answers indicating that a fireman named Lagerman warned Thompson to get the boiler repaired in June of ‘something would happen.’ Thompson said he did not remember the questions or making the answers.
“Other witnesses were Dr. Charles Hochman, assistant medical examiner, who said many of the thirty-six victims on whom he performed autopsies had burns which he believed were caused by steam rather than by fire, and Captain Robert Turnier of the ferryboat Greenwich Village, who said the explosion was not accompanied by flame. It is the contention of the defense that dynamite was responsible for the blast.” (New York Times. “Three Tell of Blast on the Observation; Sailor Denies Quitting Because Boiler was Faulty — Patch was not Reported to Officials,” 3-16-1933, p. 20.)
March 18, 1933: New York Times. “Admit Hiding Facts After Ship Disaster: Welders Testify They Tried to Conceal Patching of Boiler – Official’s Stories Conflict.” 3-18-1933.
“Two witnesses admitted yesterday that they tried to withhold information from the authorities after the steamer Observation was blown to bits with a loss of seventy-two lives last Sept. 9 and a Federal steam-boat inspector gave contradictory testimony concerning his report on the steamer’s boiler at the trial of Alexander Forsyth, part owner of the boat, who is charged with manslaughter, before Bronx County Judge Barrett.
“Alonzo Smith of 3,975 Carpenter Avenue and William Hurley of 1,230 Leland Avenue, both of the Bronx, welders employed by the Sound Welding Company, 905 East 134th Street, told of patching up the vessel’s boiler. Under questioning by Assistant District Attorney Boneparth, they admitted there had been an understanding between them and an official of their company not to mention the work on the boiler, but to say they merely had worked on the smokestack. When questioned soon after the explosion, they tried not to tell about their work, but finally did so, they testified. In the trial it has been brought out that the welding company did not have a certificate of approval from the United States Steamboat Inspection Service.
“Philip J. O’Reilly, a Federal inspector stationed at Kearny, N.J., testified he had not made the formal report required aby his department after he had inspected a patch on the steamer’s boiler, but said he had made a ‘letter report’ which he had shown to his superior officer. This report, in the possession of Mr. Boneparth, was made out about ten days after the patch was made, Mr. O’Reilly said. Mr. Boneparth, however, produced a statement written by a welder in Kearny concerning the work, which was dated Sept. 20, eleven days after the explosion. The prosecutor also produced grand jury minutes showing that O’Reilly wrote his ‘letter report’ also on Sept. 20, and the inspector then acknowledged he wrote his report when he received the welder’s statement.”
March 21, 1933: New York Times. “Denies Ship Blast was due to Dynamite; Fireman on Wrecked Steamer Observation Testifies Defense Theory is Untenable,” 3-21-1933, p. 35:
“John Auney of 333 Fifty-fourth Street, Brooklyn, fireman on the steamer Observation, testified yesterday that it was impossible for dynamite to have caused the explosion which wrecked the steamer and killed seventy-two men last Sept. 9….Auney said he had coaled up the firebox at Riker’s Island after the Observation had ferried workmen there, and it was not until a half-hour later, when the boat was again leaving the Bronx with another contingent of men, that the blast occurred. He said that if dynamite had gotten into the firebox an explosion would have resulted almost immediately. He also said that a leak showed in the boiler when it was cold, but not when it was heated. Auney further testified that he was on deck when the ship was blown apart, and was burned by steam.
“Assistant District Attorney Boneparth has charged that Forsyth’s negligence in operating with a faulty boiler was responsible for the blast, while the defense has contended that dynamite was the cause.
“Auney was one of three material witnesses who have been lodged in the County Jail ever since the blast. The others were Victor Michalson, fireman and sailor, and Otto Nelson, deckhand. Both testified yesterday that they had seen leaks in the boiler.
“Anthony F. Keogh, president of the Sound Welding Company, testified that his men had patched the Observation’s boiler on Jan. 17 and on May 12, 1932, although his firm does not have the required certificate of approval issued by the United States Steamboat Inspection Service….”
March 23, 1933: New York Times. “Observation Master Tells of Explosion; Forsyth, on Stand, Denies he was Owner of Boat or Knew Boiler Was Faulty,” 3-23-1933, p. 37:
“Alexander J. Forsyth, master of the steamer Observation, took the stand in his own defense yesterday in his trial before Bronx County Judge Barrett for manslaughter as a result of the explosion which wrecked the steamer and killed seventy-two workmen on Sept. 9….Forsyth said he really was part owner of the vessel for only half a day on July 24, 1930, and that that was merely paper ownership. He declared that his father was the real owner. Bills of sale in evidence showed that the elder Forsyth, George, sold half the boat to his son, a transaction which was recorded, and then had it deeded back, but without recording the second sale.
“Although he has held a master’s license for four years, young Forsyth testified that he did not know he was swearing he was master and owner of the vessel at the Custom House when he received enrolment papers on May 7, 1931. Assistant District Attorney Boneparth read from the enrolment, which bore Forsyth’s signature and his oath to the effect that he and William B. English were sole owners of the craft. English was not found by the police.
“At the time of the blast, Forsyth said, he was operating a coffee concession on the Observation, and steered the craft only when his father was away. He further said on last Labor Day he took his family and relatives for an excursion on the boat and showed the jury stitches in his right eyeball, an injury received in the disaster, to prove he did not know the steamer’s boiler was faulty….
“Lester Forsyth, a brother of the defendant, took the stand to show by business documents that his father was the real owner of the Observation, explaining that he had his son Alexander recorded as owner to avoid judgment debtors. The elder Forsyth was killed in the blast.”
March 24, 1933: New York Times. “Captain Cleared in Ship Explosion; Bronx Jury Finds Alexander Forsyth, 24, Not Guilty in Blast that Killed 72. Ownership is an Issue; Court’s Charge Directs Acquittal if Son of Owner was not Master ‘in Fact’.” 3-24-1933, p. 13:
“Alexander Forsyth, 24 years old, master of the steamer Observation, of West New Brighton, S.I., was absolved last evening of any criminal blame in connection with the explosion that wrecked the steamer last Sept. 9 on the East River, killing seventy-two men and injuring many others.
“During the charge, which required sixty-five minutes, Judge Barrett said there had been no direct testimony of low water or of injection of water in the boiler just before the explosion. He also said testimony and papers in evidence showed the defendant’s father, George I. Forsyth, killed in the blast, was the real owner of the vessel; that the P. J. Carlin Construction Company, which was building a new prison on Riker’s Island, had contracted with the elder Forsyth for ferrying workmen to the island and that two of the crew had testified they were hired and paid by George I. Forsyth. On the other hand, the court said, the State relied on records, such as monthly reports and the Custom House enrolment papers, to show that Forsyth was recorded as master and owner, and on witnesses who said they sometimes saw him steer the boat. Judge Barrett told the jury that if they found Forsyth was not master of the Observation in fact and charged with the responsibility of a captain, he must be acquitted….”
March 7, 1934: New York Times. “Calls Observation Old, Rotted Boat…City Denies Any Liability. Contractor Also Blames Federal Inspection Service in Blast Fatal to 72 Men.” 3-7-1934, p. 7:
“The steamer Observation was described yesterday as a rotted boat, ready to fall apart long before she blew up in the East River with a loss of seventy-two men on Sept. 9, 1932. This description was given in Bronx Supreme Court as attorneys made opening statements in the trial of a $575,000 damage suit brought by nine widows of victims….
“The defendants named in the suit are the P. J. Carlin Construction Company, the Edward V. McGovern Company, Charles H. Darmstadt, Inc.’ Erickson Equipment Company, Arc Electric Construction Company, Albee Godfrey Whale Creek Company, Inc., and the City of New York….
“Mr. Kuzmier [attorney for the claimants] said the contractors were liable because in their contracts with the city it was stipulated that they would have to furnish transportation for the men, who were working on the Riker’s Island prison. The city was also responsible, he said, because it had failed to appoint a general contractor.
“The Observation was built in 1888, Mr. Kuzmier said, adding that deckhands would testify that one side of the boat was so rotten that a rope had to be passed over the deck and fastened to the other side before she could be moored. The boiler leaked badly, he continued, and she had a bad list.
“His explanation of the explosion was that the workmen had gathered on one side of the Observation, causing it to list, with the result that the water in the boiler pipes rushed to one end. When the craft righted, he said, the water rushed back into the heated pipes and the boat was blown to pieces.
“William C. Chanler, Assistant Corporation Counsel, denied responsibility for the city. He and Everett W. Bovard, for the Carlin Company placed the blame on the United States Steamboat Inspection Service. Mr. Bovard also said that the owners of the boat, who have not been served in the suit, should be liable.”
March 9, 1934: New York Times. “Deckhand Describes Fatal Blast; Survivor Testifies Planks on Observation Were Rotten – Tells of Steamer’s Listing,” 3-9-1934, p. 10:
“Otto Nelson, a survivor, testified yesterday that planks on the steamer Observation were so rotten that one could pick off pieces. Then he described the scene when the Observation blew up “in about a thousand pieces,” resulting in the deaths of seventy-two men and injuries to many others. Nelson…had been a deckhand on the steamer….
“…the trial of a damage suit for $575,000 [was] brought by nine widows of victims against six contractors and the City of New York….”
Cudahy. Around Manhattan Island and Other Maritime Tales of New York, “Another Disaster at Hell Gate: the Loss of the Steamboat Observation”:
“….No indictments were handed down against any federal inspectors or officials. [p. 165]
Sources
Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. Boston: Mariners Press Inc., 1972.
Cudahy. Around Manhattan Island and Other Maritime Tales of New York, “Another Disaster at Hell Gate: the Loss of the Steamboat Observation.” NY: Fordham University Press, 1997. Google preview accessed 1-14-2025 at: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Around_Manhattan_Island_and_Other_Mariti/4RTxzui1OG4C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=steamboat+observation+explosion+september+9+1932&pg=PA157&printsec=frontcover
New York Times. “Admit Hiding Facts After Ship Disaster: Welders Testify They Tried to Conceal Patching of Boiler – Official’s Stories Conflict.” 3-18-1933. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20A14F73C5C16738DDDA10994DB405B838FF1D3&scp=19&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Boat Blast Inquiry Hunts for New Clue.” 9-18-1932, p. 23. Accessed at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10A17FC3A5516738DDDA10994D1405B828FF1D3&scp=11&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Boat Owner Indicted in Blast Fatal to 72,” 10-1-1932, p. 1. Accessed at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60E12FD3A5516738DDDA80894D8415B828FF1D3&scp=14&sq=steamer+Observation
New York Times. “Calls Observation Old, Rotted Boat…City Denies Any Liability. Contractor Also Blames Federal Inspection Service in Blast…” 3-7-1934, p. 7. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70A12FD385A107A93C5A91788D85F408385F9&scp=9&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Captain Cleared in Ship Explosion; Bronx Jury Finds Alexander Forsyth, 24, Not Guilty in Blast that Killed 72. Ownership is an Issue; Court’s Charge Directs Acquittal if Son of Owner was not Master ‘in Fact’.” 3-24-1933, p. 13. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00D12F8355E16738DDDAD0A94DB405B838FF1D3&scp=15&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Deckhand Describes Fatal Blast; Survivor Testifies Planks on Observation Were Rotten – Tells of Steamer’s Listing,” March 9, 1934, p. 10. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0816F73459177A93CBA91788D85F408385F9&scp=1&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Denies Ship Blast was due to Dynamite; Fireman on Wrecked Steamer Observation Testifies Defense Theory is Untenable,” 3-21-1933, p. 35. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00A17F83C5F1A7A93C3AB1788D85F478385F9&scp=2&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Ends Hunt for Boiler in Work Boat Blast; McLaughlin Says River has been Dragged Thoroughly – Co-Owner of Craft not yet Found,” Sep 23, 1932, p. 13. Accessed at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F7071FFD385513738DDDAA0A94D1405B828FF1D3&scp=17&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Observation Master Tells of Explosion; Forsyth, on Stand, Denies he was Owner of Boat or Knew Boiler Was Faulty,” 3-23-1933, p. 37. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70F13FF3F5C16738DDDAA0A94DB405B838FF1D3&scp=6&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “On Trial for Ship Blast; Observation Captain is Accused of Causing 72 Deaths by Laxity,” 3-14-1933, p. 18. Accessed 1-14-2025 at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70C17F6345F1A7A93C6A81788D85F478385F9&scp=23&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
New York Times. “Three Tell of Blast on the Observation; Sailor Denies Quitting Because Boiler was Faulty — Patch was not Reported to Officials,” March 16, 1933, p. 20. Accessed at: http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0811F6345F1A7A93C4A81788D85F478385F9&scp=10&sq=steamer+Observation&st=p
[1] Incorrectly listed as happening on September 7, 1932.