1837 — May 8, Steamer Ben Sherrod fire/explosions, MS River, Fort Adams, MS –120-175

–120-175 Blanchard estimated range.*

— 230 May 9. Bragg. Historic Names…Lower Mississippi River. “Fort Adams, MS,” 1977, 196.
— 200 May 9. Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 190.
— >200 Childs. A History of the U.S. In Chronological Order…1492…to…1885. 1886, p. 108.
— 200 May 9. Ellms, Charles. The Tragedy of the Seas. 1841, p. 353.
— >200 Gould. Fifty Years on the Miss.; or, Gould’s History of River Navigation 1889, p.454.
— >200 Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine 1888. “Every Day’s Record,” May, p. 789.
— >200 May 9. Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters. 1856, 99.
— 200 Nash, Jay Robert. Darkest Hours. 1977, p. 679.
— 200 Wiard, Norman. The Cause of Boiler Explosions, etc. 1868, p. 10.
— 175 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 395.
— 175 Howland. Steamboat Disasters and Railroad Accidents in the United States. 1843, 91
— >150 Hunter. Steamboats on the Western Rivers.1994, p. 281.
— 150 Nelson. “Terror aboard the Ben Sherrod.” Concordia Sentinel, LA. 12-9-2015.
— <150 Sandukas. Gently Down the Stream: How Exploding Steamboat Boilers. 2002, p. 23. --120-150 Republican Compiler, Gettysburg, PA. “Dreadful Occurrence!” May 23, 1837, p. 3. -- 140 Twaintimes. A Time Line of Events in the Life of Samuel Langhorne Clemens… -- 137 Vogel. ‘It Wasn’t the Money Boat’…Western River Steamboats in the [US]. 2017, 10. -- 130 Marryat, Capt. Second Series of a Diary in America. 1840, p. 15 -- 130 Sparks. American Almanac and Repository of Useful Knowledge…1840, Vol. 11, 119. -- 130 Preble. A Chronological History…of Steam Navigation 1543-1882. 1883, p. 153. -- 120 Morrison, John Harrison. History of American Steam Navigation. 1908, p. 221. -- >120 True American, New Orleans, in The Recorder, Milledgeville, GA. 5-16-1837, p. 6.
— ~100 The Recorder, Milledgeville, GA. “Horrid Accident,” 5-16-1837, p. 6.
— 72 May 8. Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 158.

* One can read the excerpts from narratives we have included below and decide for oneself what the death toll might have been. We choose to follow Howland, writing just several years after the disaster, that there were something like 235 people onboard. As we note in our footnote to Bragg, if this is close to correct and if the survivors numbered in the dozens, then 235 could not have died. The same would be true of the notations of 200 deaths, which has the added disability of being a “nice round number” which we generally treat with skepticism. We choose to use the number of 120 deaths as the low end of the death toll range in that the Republican Compiler did so at the time, as does Morrison in 1908. We could use 72-230 as the death toll range since this is the range reflected in the variety of sources noted, but this would be like throwing up one’s hands and giving up any attempt to determine a more realistic range.

Narrative Information

Berman: “Ben Sherrod; Steamer; 393 tons; built 1836; lost May 8, 1837 to fire at Black Hawk, La., 72 lives lost.” (Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 158)

Berman: “Sherrod…May 9, 1837. Burned. Mississippi River. 200 lives lost.” (Berman, Bruce D. Encyclopedia of American Shipwrecks. 1972, p. 190.)

Bragg: “Fort Adams, Mississippi. Mile 311.9 AHP….The river in front of the town of Fort Adams was the scene of a spectacular steamboat explosion on May 9, 1837. The steamer Ben Sherrod was the boat involved, and the explosion that sank her shook the country for miles around. It was a long, long blast. First the boiler blew up; then some kegs of whiskey and brandy; and then a cargo of gunpowder that the boat was carrying.

“P. R. Bohlen was one of the passengers on board the Ben Sherrod. He had been down to Baton Rouge with a flatboat load of coal and ice. The sale of his cargo had brought him $2,000 in gold coins, which he carried with him when he embarked on the steamboat for the trip back up the river. Awakened by the first explosion, he had hurried out on deck. Carrying the box that contained his gold coins, he leaped overboard and clung to the burning hull of the boat until hot coals began to fall on his head. Then he dropped his box, and swam for the shore. He was luckier than most of the passengers, for he made it to safety. Of the 300 people on board, it was later estimated that only 70 had escaped with their lives.

“In addition to Bohlen’s box of coins, a shipment of money destined for a Tennessee bank and $18,000 belonging to another passenger, went to the bottom with the Ben Sherrod.

“The usual horror stories were told about the accident. It was said that the boat had been engaged in a race, that the crew were all drunk, and that the engineer had deserted his post without stopping the engines. It was also reported that a southbound boat had passed and had run over some of the people who were struggling to stay afloat and had then gone on its way, refusing to stop and assist in rescue work.

“The explosion of the Ben Sherrod was one of the major tragedies that led to the passage of the Steamboat Act of 1838, a well-intentioned but ineffectual effort to protect the lives of steamboat passengers.” (Bragg. Historic Names…Places…Lower MS River. “Fort Adams, MS,” 1977, 196.)

Cornell: “Ben Sherrod, Mississippi River, May 9, 1837: The steam packet Ben Sherrod burned in the river below Natchez, Mississippi with the loss of 175 lives.” (Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982, p. 395.)

Ellms: “On Sunday morning, the 6th of May, 1837, the steam¬boat Ben Sherrod, under the command of Captain Castle¬man, was preparing to leave the levee at New Orleans….she was what is technically called a Tennessee cotton boat….

“The Ben’s finish and accommodation of the cabin were by no means such as would begin to compare with the regu¬lar passenger boats. It being late in the season, and but few large steamers being in port, in consequence of the severity of the times, the Ben Sherrod got an undue number of passengers; otherwise she would have been avoided, for her accommodations were not enticing. She had a heavy freight on board, and several horses and carriages on the forecastle. The build of the Ben Sherrod was heavy, her timbers being of the largest size.

About 10 o’clock, A. M., the ill-fated steamer pushed off upon the turbid current of the Mississippi, as a swan upon the waters. In a few minutes, she was under way, tossing high in air bright and snowy clouds of steam at every half revolution of her en¬gine….

“On Tuesday evening, the 9th of May, 1837, the steam¬boat Prairie, on her way to St. Louis, bore hard upon the Sherrod. It was necessary for the latter to stop at Fort Adams, during which the Prairie passed her. Great vexa¬tion was manifested by some of the passengers, that the Prairie should get to Natchez first. This subject formed the theme of conversation for two or three hours, the cap¬tain assuring them that he would beat her anyhow. The Prairie is a very fast boat, and under equal chances could have beaten the Sherrod. So soon as the business was transacted at Fort Adams, for which she stopped, orders were given to the men to keep up their fires to the extent. It was now a little after 11, P. M. The captain retired to his berth, with his clothes on, and left the deck in charge of an officer. During the evening, a barrel of whisky had been turned out, and permission given to the hands to do as they pleased. As may be supposed, they drew upon the barrel quite liberally. It is the custom on all boats to furnish the firemen with liquor, though a difference exists as to the mode….

“As the Sherrod passed on above Fort Adams, towards the mouth of the Homochitta, the wood piled up in the front of the furnaces several times caught fire, and was once or twice imperfectly extinguished by the drunken hands. It must be understood by those of my readers who have never seen a western steamboat, that the boilers are entirely above the first deck, and that, when the fires are well kept up for any length of time, the heat is almost insupportable. Were it not for the draft occasioned by the speed of the boat, it would be very difficult to attend the fires. As the boat was booming along through the water close in shore, — for, in ascending the river, boats go as close as they can to avoid the current, — a negro on the beach called out to the fireman that the wood was on fire. The reply was, ‘Go to h—l, and mind your own business,’ from some half-intoxicated hand. ‘0 truism,’ answered the negro, ‘if you don’t take care, you will be in h-l before I will.’

“On, on, on went the boat, at a tremendous rate, quivering and trembling in all her length at every revolution of the wheels. The steam was created so fast, that it continued to escape through the safety-valve, and, by its sharp singing, told a tale that every prudent captain would have understood. As the vessel rounded the bar that makes off from the Homochitta, being compelled to stand out into the middle of the river in consequence, the fire was discovered. It was about one o’clock in the morn¬ing. A passenger had got up previously, and was standing on the boiler deck, when, to his astonishment the fire broke out from the pile of wood. A little presence of mind, and a set of men unintoxicated, could have saved the boat. The passenger seized a bucket, and was about to plunge it over¬board for water, when he found it locked. An instant more, and the fire increased in volumes. The captain was now awaked. He saw that the fire had seized the deck. He ran aft, and announced the ill tidings. No sooner were the words out of his mouth, than the shrieks of mothers, sisters, and babes, resounded through the hitherto silent cabin in the wildest confusion. Men were aroused from their dreaming cots to experience the hot air of the approaching fire. The pilot, being elevated on the hurricane deck, at the instant of perceiving the flames, put the head of the boat shoreward. She had scarcely got under good way in that direction, than the tiller-ropes were burnt asunder. Two miles, at least, from the land, the vessel took a sheer, and, borne upon by the current, made several revolutions, until she struck off across the river. A bar brought her up for the moment.

“The flames had now extended fore and aft. At the first alarm, several deck passengers had got into the yawl that hung suspended by the davits. A cabin passenger, endowed with some degree of courage and presence of mind, expostulated with them, and did all he could to save the boats for the ladies. Twas useless. One took out his knife and cut away the forward tackle. The next instant and they were all, to the number of twenty or more, launched into the angry waters. They were seen no more.

“The boat, being lowered from the other end, filled, and was useless. Now came the trying moment. Hundreds leaped from the burning wreck into the waters. Mothers were seen standing on the guards with hair disheveled, praying for help. The dear little innocents clung to the side of their mothers, and with their tiny hands beat away the burning flames. Sisters calling out to their brothers in unearthly voices—’Save me, 0, save me, brother!’ — wives crying to their husbands to save their children, in total forgetfulness of themselves, — every second or two a desperate plunge of some poor victim falling on the appalled ear, — the dashing to and fro of the horses on the forecastle, groaning audibly from pain of the devouring element, — the continued puffing of the engine, for it still continued to go, — the screaming mother who had leaped overboard in the desperation of the moment with her only child, — the flames mounting to the sky with the rapidity of lightning, — shall I ever forget that scene — that hour of horror and alarm? Never, were I to live till the memory should forget all else that ever came to the senses. The short half hour that separated and plunged into eternity two hundred human beings has been so burnt into the memory, that even now I think of it more than half the day.

“I was swimming to the shore with all my might; endeav¬oring to sustain a mother and her child. She sank twice, and yet I bore her on. My strength failed me. The babe was nothing — a mere cork. ‘Go, go,’ said the brave mother;’ save my child, save my — ‘ and she sank to rise no more. Nerved by the resolution of that woman, I reached the shore in safety. The babe I saved. Ere I had reached the beach, the Sherrod had swung off’ the bar, and was floating down, the engine having ceased running. In every direction heads dotted the surface of the river. The burning wreck now wore a new and still more awful appear¬ance. Mothers were seen clinging, with the last hope, to the blazing timbers, and dropping off one by one. The screams had ceased. A sullen silence rested over the devoted vessel. The flames became tired of their destructive work.

“While I sat dripping and overcome upon the beach, a steamboat, the Columbus, came in sight, and bore for the wreck. It seemed like one last ray of hope gleaming across the dead gloom of that night. Several wretches were saved. And still another, the Statesman, came in sight. More, more were saved.

“A moment to me had only elapsed, when high in the heavens the cinders flew, and the country was lighted all round. Still another boat came booming on. I was happy that more help had come. After an exchange of words with the Columbus, the captain continued on his way under full steam. 0, how my heart sank within me! The waves created by his boat sent many a poor mortal to his long, long home. A being by the name of Dougherty was the captain of that merciless boat. Long may he be remem¬bered!

“My hands were burnt, and now I began to experience severe pain. The scene before me — the loss of my two sisters and brother, whom I had missed in the confusion, — all had steeled my heart. I could not weep — I could not sigh. The cries of the babe at my side were nothing to me.

“Again — another explosion! and the waters closed slowly and sullenly over the scene of disaster and death. Darkness resumed her sway, and the stillness was only interrupted by the distant efforts of the Columbus and Statesman in their laudable exertions to save human life.

“Captain Castleman lost, I believe, a father and child. Some argue, this is punishment enough. No, it is not. He had the lives of hundreds under his charge. He was care¬less of his trust; he was guilty of a crime that nothing will ever wipe out. The bodies of two hundred victims are cry¬ing out from the depth of the father of waters for vengeance. Neither society nor law will give it. His punishment is yet to come. May I never meet him!

“I could tell of scenes of horror that would rouse the indignation of a Stoic; but I have done. As to myself, I could tell you much to excite your interest. It was more than three weeks after the occurrence before I ever shed a tear. All the fountains of sympathy had been dried up, and my heart was as stone. As I lay on my bed the twenty-fourth day after, tears, salt tears, came to my relief. and I felt the loss of my sisters and brother more deeply than ever. Peace be to their spirits! they found a watery grave.

“In the course of all human events, scenes of misery will occur. But where they rise from sheer carelessness, it requires more than Christian fortitude to forgive the being who is in fault. I repeat, may I never meet Captain Castle¬man or Captain Dougherty!” (Ellms 1841, The Tragedy, “The Burning of the Ben Sherrod [Told] By A Passenger,” 348-353.)

Howland: “Destruction of the Ben Sherod by fire and explosion, on the Mississippi River, May 8, 1837, — with the loss of nearly 200 lives.

“The steamer Ben Sherod, Capt. Castleman, left New Orleans on Sunday morning, May 7, bound to Louisville, and on the night of the 8th, when about thirty miles below Natchez, she was discovered to be on fire, and in a few minutes after, the whole boat was enveloped in flames.

“Being in the stream, and her wheel-ropes burnt off, it was impossible to run her ashore; and no alternative was left to the persons on board, but to jump into the water and attempt to save themselves by swimming, or floating on such articles as they could find, or to perish in the flames….

“So rapid was the spread of the fire, and so destitute were those on board of all means of escape, that nothing could be saved, not even the register of the boat; thus rendering it impossible to state with certainty how many were lost, or what were their names.

“The fire is believed to have originated from the fuel being piled up near the boiler…. [p. 94]

“There was some powder on board, — in what quantities was not known, — but the knowledge that it was there, seemed to have paralyzed the efforts of the crew, and its explosion added to the deep horrors of he scene. There were nine ladies on board, only two of whom were rescued…. [p. 97]

“There were 235 persons on board, of whom not more than 60 escaped – leaving 175 drowned and burned…. [p. 98]

(Howland, Southworth Allen. “Destruction of the Ben Sherod.” Pp. 94-111 in Steamboat Disasters and Railroad Accidents in the United States (Revised and Improved). Worcester: Warren Lazell. 1843.

Lloyd: “On the 8th of May, 1837, the large Louisville and New Orleans packet, the Ben Sherrod, caught fire on her upward trip, while she was engaged in an exciting race with the steamer Prairie. It was one o’clock at night, and the boat was about fourteen miles above Fort Adams, ploughing her way up the Mississippi with great velocity. The Prairie was just ahead of her, in sight, and the crew of the Ben Sherrod were determined, if possible, to go by her. The firemen were shoving in the pine knots, and sprinkling rosin over the coal, and doing their best to raise more steam. They had a barrel of whisky before them, from which they drank often and freely until they were beastly drunk. The boilers became so hot that they set fire to sixty cords of wood on board. and the Ben Sherrod was soon completely enveloped in flames.

“The passengers, three hundred in number, were sound asleep, not thinking of the awful doom that awaited them. When the deck hands discovered the fire, they basely left their posts and ran for the yawl, without giving the alarm to the passengers. Capt. Castleman attempted for a time to allay the excitement and confusion, by telling them the fire was extinguished. Twice he forbade the lowering of the yawl, which was attempted. The shrieks of nearly three hundred and fifty persons now on board, rose wild and dreadful, which might have been heard at a distance of several miles. The cry was, ” To the shore ! to the shore !” and the boat made for the starboard shore, but did not gain it, as the wheel ropes soon burnt. The steam was not let off, and the boat kept on up the river. The scene of horror now beggared all de¬scription. The yawl, which had been filled with the crew, had sunk, drowning nearly all who were in it; and the passengers had no other alternative than to jump overboard, without even taking time to dress. There were ten ladies who all went overboard without uttering a single scream; some drowned instantly, and others clung to planks; two of the number were all that were saved. Several passengers were burnt alive. One man by the name of Ray, from Louisville, Kentucky, jumped overboard, and hung to a rope at the bow of the boat, until rescued by the yawl of the steamer Columbus, which arrived at the scene half an hour after the boat took fire….

“The steamboat Alton arrived half an hour after the Columbus, but from the carelessness or indiscretion of those on her, was the means of drowning many persons who were floating in the water. She came down under full headway among the exhausted sufferers, who were too weak to make any further exertion, and by the commotion occasioned by her wheels drowned a large number….

“It was said by some of the passengers, that the captain of the Alton did not hear the cries of those who implored him for assistance as he passed, it being midnight; but there can be no excuse for the monster who commanded the Prairie, for leaving a boat in flames without turn-ing around and affording the sufferers relief. He reported her on fire at Natchez and Vicksburg.

“A man in a canoe near the scene of the disaster refused to save any who were floating in the water, unless they promised to pay him hand¬somely for his services.

“So rapid were the flames that not even the register of the boat was saved; hence it was impossible to get a full list of the lost. One of the officers of the boat informed us that out of seventy-eight deck passengers not more than six were saved. This was one of the most serious calamities that ever occurred on the Mississippi river, there being at least one hundred and seventy families deprived by it of some dear and beloved member, and over two hundred souls being harried by it out of time into eternity, with scarce a moment’s warning.

“During the burning of the Ben Sherrod eight different explosions oc¬curred; first, barrels of whiskey, brandy, Sm.; then the boilers blew up with a fearful explosion, and lastly, forty barrels of gunpowder ex¬ploded, which made a noise that was heard many miles distant, scattering fragments of the wreck in all directions, and producing the grandest sight ever seen. Immediately after, the wreck sunk out of sight just above Fort Adams. A large quantity of specie, which was on its way to the Tennessee Banks, was lost….” (Lloyd’s Steamboat Directory and Disasters. 1856, pp. 95.99.)

Sandukas: “Seven months later, in the face of mounting tragedies, President Martin Van Buren took a page from his predecessor and called for action in his State of the Union address:

The distressing casualties in steamboats, which have so frequently happened during the year, seem to evince the necessity of attempting to prevent them, by means of severe provisions connected with their custom-house papers. This subject… will doubtless receive that early and careful consideration which its pressing importance appears to require.

“Van Buren became the latest politician, in the face of the Court’s confusing signals regarding the commerce clause, to rally behind the licensing power of Congress as a constitutional proxy for steamboat regulation. Despite his belief that “the less government interferes with private pursuits the better for the general prosperity,” the safety of the public and, more significantly, his electorate, were under siege. It is no coincidence, then, that his political ally, Senator Felix Grundy (Tennessee), opened the new session of Congress the very next day by proposing a piece of legislation entitled, “A bill to provide for the better security of the lives of passengers on board of vessels propelled in whole or in part by steam.” The bill contained thirteen provisions, six of which were identical to those in the 1833 bill advocated by Webster. 101 It called for mandatory licensing and the appointment of inspectors of hulls and machinery by district court judges. Boilers were to be hydrostatically tested at three times their working pressure. The engine was to be kept running and safety valves kept open at stops, and each boat was to have lifeboats, a fire hose, and lights. Monetary penalties supporting these provisions were to be recovered in federal court with half going to the informer, and misconduct, negligence, or inattention by the crew resulting in death was grounds for guilt of manslaughter.

“When the select committee reported the bill out for consideration by the full Senate, it had removed several provisions, most notably those for hydrostatic testing and keeping the engine running when stopped. The first of these was arguably the most important provision that could have been passed, having been recommended by the Franklin Institute as the most effective means of ensuring boiler quality and strength. The latter was also crucial as it seemingly would have prevented a majority of the explosions that had occurred up to that time. Yet the committee saw fit to delete them, in large part due to the concerted protestations of steamboat owners that hydrostatic testing at three times working pressure would ruin low-pressure boilers and weaken those of high-pressure, and that it would be extremely difficult and impractical to stop at landings with the engine kept running….”

“[An]…amended bill was passed on January 24, 1838, and proceeded to the House of Representatives for its consideration in June.” (Sandukas 2002, pp. 23-25)

Wiard: “By the burning of the Ben Sherrod, on the Mississippi River, May 8, 1837, 200 lives were lost. ‘The fire originated near the boiler.’ She was racing with the Prairie, and one account states, ‘She took fire from the great heat of the boilers.’ ‘During the conflagration the boilers burst, adding to the horrors of the occasion.’ The fire began about one o’clock in the morning. A passenger who had left his state-room, and was standing on deck over the boilers, ‘was astonished to see the fire burst forth under his feet’.” (Wiard. The Cause of Boiler Explosions, etc. 1868, 10.)

Newspapers

May 11: “New-Orleans, May 11. HORRID ACCIDENT.

“On the night of the 8th instant, about 1 o’clock, A.M. a fire broke out on board the steamer ‘Ben Sherrod,’ about 30 miles below Natchez, bound to Louisville, with about 160 passengers, and crew on board. The fire originated from the wood, which was of a very combustible nature, and spread with such alarming rapidity as to place it out of the power of those on board to quench it, and the entire boat was enveloped in a few minutes in one mass of flame.

“Just as the passengers were making every effort to escape from on board, throwing over cotton bales and other materials, to keep themselves from sinking, the steamer Columbus, Capt. Jones, came to their assistance, and by his timely aid, succeeded in rescuing from a watery grave about 60 of the number. – Bulletin.” (The Recorder, Milledgeville, GA. “Horrid Accident,” 5-16-1837, p. 6.)

May 23, The Recorder: “A slip from the office of the True American [New Orleans] thus alludes to the calamitous occurrence:

The destruction of the steamboat Ben. Sherrod by fire, while ascending the river on her way to Louisville, is truly heart-rending. Seldom have we been called on to record a disaster in which the sacrifice of human life has been so great. While she was wending her way just above Fort Adams about 1 o’clock on the morning of the 8th May, a small pile of wood in front of the furnaces, caught fire. In a few moments the flames spread in every direction. The Columbus, at that moment descending the river, rounded to and saved several of the passengers. But with all the assistance that she could render, more than 120 persons perished. There were two distinct explosions – one supposed to be the boilers, and the other to be from a quantity of powder on board. A passenger on board the Columbus describes the scene as the most awful he ever witnessed. The screams of men, women, and children, pierced the air for miles round, while in the bright light that went up from the waters, the hanging forms of the poor wretches as they clung convulsively to the burning sides of the boat, struck the deepest anguish into the heart of the spectator. Among those saved, are Capt. Castleman and lady, six officers, 23 of the crew, 9 deck, and the following cabin passengers: James Smith, lady and son, Thomas Cook, Wm. H. M’Cloud, Wm. Beattie, Thomas Larmer, Samuel Ray, Lister Sexton, Mr. Gambel and son, Amos Brundle, and four others, names not known.”

(The Recorder, Milledgeville, GA. “Horrid Accident,” 5-16-1837, p. 6.)

May 23, Republican Compiler: “About one o’clock on the morning of the 8th inst. The steam-boat Ben Sherrod took fire and was destroyed while ascending the Mississippi river, just above Fort Adams.—From 120 to 150 persons perished. Between 50 and 60 were saved by the boats Columbus and Alton, which passed the place soon after. There were two explosions—one by the boilers and the other by a quantity of gunpowder.” (Republican Compiler, Gettysburg, PA. “Dreadful Occurrence!” May 23, 1837, p. 3.)

Sources

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Bragg, Marion. Historic Names and Places on the Lower Mississippi River. Vicksburg, MS: Mississippi River Commission, 1977. Accessed at: http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/history/MRnames/MissRiverNames.htm > Also at:
http://www.mvd.usace.army.mil/Portals/52/docs/MRC/MRnames%28Intro-end_final2%29.pdf

Childs, Emery E. A History of the United States In Chronological Order From the Discovery of America in 1492 to the Year 1885. NY: Baker & Taylor, 1886. Google digitized. Accessed 9-4-2017: http://books.google.com/books?id=XLYbAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

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Ellms, Charles. The Tragedy of the Seas or, Sorrow on the Ocean, Lake, and River, from Shipwreck, Plague, Fire, and Famine. Philadelphia: Carey & Hart, 1841. Digitized by Google: http://books.google.com/books?id=R6xS3DM_qVAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+tragedy+of+the+seas&cd=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false

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Marryat, Capt. Second Series of a Diary in America. Philadelphia: T. K. & P. G. Collins, 1840. Accessed 7-7-2020 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=HzhWAAAAcAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

Morrison, John Harrison. History of American Steam Navigation. New York: W. F. Sametz & Co., Inc., 1908, 653 pages. Digitized by Google. Accessed at: http://books.google.com/books?id=Q5tDAAAAIAAJ&printsec=toc&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false

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.

Nelson, Stanley. “Terror aboard the Ben Sherrod.” Concordia Sentinel, LA. 12-9-2015. Accessed 7-7-2020 at: https://www.hannapub.com/concordiasentinel/stanley-nelson-terror-aboard-the-ben-sherrod/article_290d5214-9ea6-11e5-99ef-23447ababa88.html

Preble, Geo. Henry (Rear-Admiral (USN). A Chronological History of the Origin and Development of Steam Navigation 1543-1882. Philadelphia: L.R. Hamersly & Co., 1883. At: http://www.archive.org/stream/chronologicalhis00prebrich/chronologicalhis00prebrich_djvu.txt

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