1882 — Aug 7, Steamer Gold Dust boiler explosion/fire, Miss. River near Hickman, KY–>24

–>24 Blanchard estimate.*

— 31 dead/missing. St. Landry Democrat, Opelousas, LA. “Another Steamboat Disaster.” 8-19-1882, 4.
— 24 Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Another Horror….The Very Latest…” 8-8-1882, p. 1.
— 24 New York Times. “The Gold Dust Disaster,” August 9, 1882, p. 1.
— 24 The Locomotive. “Boiler Explosions…August, 1882.” Hartford: Vol. IV, N2, Feb 1883, 41.
— 21 Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. 8-11-1882. Notes another death at Hickman and 4 on City of Alton.
— 20 US Office Supervising IG of Steamboats. Annual Report of… FY 6-30-1883, p. 14.
— 17 Bragg. Historic Names and Places on the Lower Mississippi River. 1977, p. 55.
— 17 Chappell. “Missouri River Steamboats.” 1906, p. 190.
— 17 Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Another Horror. Seventeen Lives Lost…” 8-8-1882, p. 1.
— 17 Way’s Packet Directory, 1848-1994: Passenger Steamboats…[MS Riv. Sys.]… 1999, 190.
— 14 Cincinnati Commercial, OH. “Gold Dust Disaster.” 8-9-1882, p. 5.
— 13 AP. “Fatal Explosion on the Steamer Gold Dust.” Titusville Herald, PA. 8-9-1882, p. 1.

* Blanchard on fatalities: Our listing of fatalities at the end of the “Narrative Information” section shows twenty-eight fatalities. Four of these, however, were reported (as it seemed to us) as having taken place on the City of Alton as it was taking wounded upriver to St. Louis. In that we have but one source on this and in that it is possible we misunderstood the sentence or that it was not clearly written, we choose not to include these four possible fatalities in our death toll. That would bring the death toll to twenty-four, which three sources note as the death toll.

In our opinion, however, even not including the four unclear “deaths” on the City of Alton after leaving Cairo, there quite possibly were more than twenty-four deaths. A number of sources indicate a large number of missing. The number ranged from twenty-two reported missing in the Memphis Appeal of Aug 7 to twenty reported as still unaccounted for in the Cairo Bulletin of Aug 9. The explosion threw a number of people into the river who were rescued. It is quite possible that the explosion threw others into the river who did not survive and sank in the river (the body of one such person was found several days later and reported in a paper we could access). Additionally, we have been unable to find information on several people who were reported as badly scalded, and we do not know the fate of over a dozen injured who were taken to cities other than Cairo. Thus we think that at least twenty-four people died at the time or later from injuries, and perhaps more.

Narrative Information

Bragg: “About three months after Twain’s trip on the Gold Dust, the old steamer exploded her boilers near Hickman, Kentucky, killing 17 persons outright and injuring about 50 more….” (Bragg 1977, 55)

Chappell: “Gold Dust…Came out in Louisville-New Orleans trade…Soon went to St. Louis-New Orleans trade…She was under the management of the Anchor Line when she exploded boilers near Hickman, Ky., Aug 7, 1882, with loss of 17 lives…Mark Twain rode this boat while preparing manuscript for Life on the Mississippi.” (Chappell 1906, p. 190.)

U.S. Steamboat Inspection Service: August 7. – The steamer ‘Gold Dust’ exploded her boiler, or boilers, near Hickman, Ky., setting fire to the vessel, which burned to the water’s edge and sank. In this disaster there is supposed to have been twenty lives lost.” (Sixth District. p. 14.)

Way: Gold Dust. Sidewheel wood-hull packet, built in Jeffersonville, IN, in 1877, measuring 245 x 40 x 7. “Four boilers. Came out in Louisville-New Orleans trade, Capt. R. H. Woolfolk, with E. W. Gould, Jr., clerk. Soon went to St. Louis-New Orleans trade, Capt. E. W. Gould. She was under the management of the Anchor Line when she exploded boilers near Hickman, Ky., Aug 7, 1882, with loss of 17 lives. Capt. John McCord was master. Mark Twain rode this boat while preparing manuscript for Life On the Mississippi.” (Way’s Packet Directory, 1848-1994: Passenger Steamboats…[MS Riv. Sys.]… 1999, p. 190.)

Newspapers

Aug 7, Memphis Daily Appeal: “Cairo, Ill., August 7. – The steamer Gold Dust blew up, burned to the water’s edge, and sank 200 yards north of Hickman, Ky. Seventeen were killed and forty-seven injured. The captain was wounded slightly. A tug with physicians left here at 8 o’clock p.m. for the scene of the disaster….

Third Dispatch.

“St. Louis, August 7….Wm. Ingram, third clerk, was scalded to death….

The Latest.

“Nashville, August 7. – The American’s Hickman (Ky.) special says: ‘The steamer Gold Dust exploded her boiler at 3 o’clock, just after leaving Hickman. Forty-seven persons were scalded and seventeen are missing. The boat was landed just above town, and through the exertions of the citizens the cabin passengers, officers and part of the crew and deck passengers were taken ashore and removed to hotels and residences. Two of the injured were lying in Halcomb’s dry goods store, where they received every attention before being removed to more comfortable places….

“…Ten deck passengers and Mrs. Thompson, cabin passenger, are severely scalded. D. Dunham, second mate; P. Dietrich, freight clerk; James Monahan, sailor-man; James Nicholas Baker, third cook; Mrs. Baker; then one cabin passenger, one deck passenger, one fireman, two coal-passers, eight roustabouts, four cabin-boys, and James Lawson, first cook, are missing. The boat was run to the shore, made fast, took fire and burned to the water’s edge. The books and safe and baggage were lost. Bill Ingram, William Travis, Pat, the cabin watchman, H. P. Coleman, deck passenger, and John Joy, roustabout, have died.

The Very Latest.

“Hickman, Ky., August 7. – The exact number of killed and wounded are not known, but it is estimated that twenty-four are killed and forty-eight wounded. The names of the missing are not known, as the books are lost….” (Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Another Horror. Seventeen Lives Lost…by the Explosion of the Steamer Gold Dust, near Hickman, Ky…” 8-8-1882, p. 1.)

Aug 8, NYT: “Hickman, Aug. 8. — The exact number of killed and wounded by the explosion of the boiler of the steamer Gold Dust last evening is not yet known, but is estimated at 24 killed and 18 wounded….In addition…18 missing….The names of the missing are not yet known, as the books were lost….

“Cairo, Ill. Aug. 8.—The steamer City of Alton, of the Now Orleans Anchor Line, arrived here at noon to-day from Hickman, Ky., with the wounded persons from the steamer Gold Dust. She arrived at Hickman at 12:30 last night, and remained there until 7 o’clock this morning. Capts. Able and Shields are doing everything possible to relieve the suffering as representatives of the Anchor Line Company. Up to the time of leaving Hickman 13 persons had died….Twelve wounded persons were left at Hickman, as they could not be removed at present….

“The Gold Dust at the time of the disaster had 100 people on board, which includes passenger, officers, and crew. There are 18 missing, who are supposed to have gone down in the wreck…

“St. Louis, Aug. 8.—Capt. Shields, Superintendent of the Anchor Line at Cairo, who went down to Hickman last night to look after the dead and wounded by the disaster, telegraphs President Scudder from Hickman that Capt. Scudder is unable to account for the explosion. He says the Gold Dust was a good boat and in first-class condition, and that this is the first accident of the kind that has occurred to the company during the 23 years of its existence. There were 106 persons on the Gold Dust. Of those 61 are on-board the City of Alton, 13 are dead, 12 are badly burned and left at Hickman. And 17 are missing.

“Engineer Powers, of the steamer, states that at the time of the explosion he had just looked at the steam-gauge, which registered 140 pounds. The boat was allowed 166 [? Not totally legible] pounds. He had just tried the water gauge. The water was flush with the upper cock. He was in the blacksmith shop and intended to blow out the mud drum. There were two explosions in quick succession. One boiler remained in its place, one went off and stuck end up through the cabin floor, and the third stopped in the engine room lay with one end on each engine.

“The Gold Dust was built in 1878 by Capt. E. W. Gould at a cost of $59,000…was purchased a year later by…Anchor Line…valued at the time of the disaster at $35.000. The company carried no insurance and she is therefore a total loss.” (NYT. “The Gold Dust Disaster,” 8-9-1882, 1.)

Aug 8: “Cairo, Ill., August 8. – The City of Alton up, at noon, had a portion of the survivors from the wreck of the Gold Dust. Seventeen were left at Hickman, where they are well cared for. Among those are Clerk John Langlois, who is not dangerously hurt. Twelve out of the seventeen will hardly recover. Four wounded were left here, and one dead, the latter name is Thomas Jefferson, colored roustabout. Eleven dead were left at Hickman and two bodies brought up. One was that of Clerk Ingram, which was taken to St. Louis. The total number of people on board was one hundred and six, and the number of dead so far fourteen; wounded, forty-nine; unhurt, twenty-five; missing, fifteen. Many of the missing are known to be killed by the explosion and burned in the wreck.

“Zeeke Gardiner, undertaker at Hickman, was fatally injured while hauling the corpse of Clerk Ingram to the City of Alton. His horse ran away and threw the casket out and upon Gardiner, breaking both his legs and injuring him internally.

“All the wounded have the appearance of being burned by hot steam, and no profusion of water was noticed by anyone.

“Engineer Bowers was on watch, and reports the water flush with the upper-gage cock, and the steam at one hundred and forty pounds. He had just stepped into the blacksmith shop for a wrench, intending to blow out the mud-drum. He noticed the steam gauge as he passed. He declares the boilers were in a normal condition and full of water.

“Pilot Ed. Gray and his son, and Mis Hildah Smith, of Troy, Pa., were in the pilot-house. Pilot Lem. Gray was asleep in his room over the boilers. Ed Gray heard two keen reports and saw the forward part of the boat raise up. Then the pilot-house fell down in the wreck. All three in the pilot-house got out of it without a scratch. Lew Gray fell on top of a hot boiler. Both of his hands and both feet, and one leg were badly scalded and burned. Ed. Gray helped Lew Gray out of the wreck, and noticed that the other two boilers were away from their places. One had gone aft and struck one end through the cabin floor. One lay in the engine-room, one end resting on each engine. The third one was in place, but he could not say whether it exploded or not. Five ladies were on board, and only one hurt slightly.

“Although the engineer believed the boilers to have plenty of water, the character of the burns indicate they were really empty.

Further Details of the Gold Dust Explosion.

“Memphis, Tenn., August 8. – James McNichols, one of the crew of the Gold Dust, left Hickman by rail this morning at 8, and arrived home, here, this evening. He reports that the Gold Dust, exploded her starboard boiler while under full headway, three miles above Hickman, and two hundred yards from the Kentucky shore, at 3 o’clock yesterday afternoon. He was asleep at the time on deck by the side of the first boiler that let go, but was partially protected by a pile of lumber. He was blown into the river, and swam to a drift-pile in company with three others, and was taken off by a skiff an hour afterward. His hands and face are badly scalded, but he will not be disfigured. He says after the first boiler exploded the remaining two followed suit, and the entire middle part of the cabin, texas and pilot-house were wrecked and sunk to the deck.

“The boilers appeared to have blown overboard, though one of the flues fell on the afterdeck as flat as a plank. The wreck, after the blow-up drifted into an eddy, and went ashore on the Kentucky side, above the town, where the survivors were taken off, after which a fire broke out, and destroyed the boat. He says James Gansen, head cook, was taking his afternoon nap near him, and was blown against the…[unclear word] rails on the outer guard, then into the river and was lost. He has a wife and six children in St. Louis.

“The head engineer, Bowers, on watch at the time, was in the baker’s shop when she let go, and was not scratched. The entire cook-house side was blown off. Ed. Gray, pilot on watch sank with the pilot-house to the main deck, and was rescued with rather severe injuries.

“Two or three persons were blown into the river on the Missouri side and it is reported swam to the Missouri shore in safety. A lad named Frank, who has a father keeping a baker shop in Cincinnati, was in the pantry room rolling out bread, and was not hurt. He went to St. Louis on the City of Alton, which steamer arrived at Hickman near daylight this morning. Only eleven cabin passengers were aboard – five ladies and six gentlemen, and all are safe. One of the cabin crew took three ladies from the upper to the lower deck after the explosion, then started toward the stern of the boat to answer a call of distress; saw a large pool of blood on the deck, but thinking it best to save himself, turned and made his way to shore, and the crippled person or persons were burned with the wreck. The boat took no freight after leaving here, except a pile of lumber, and she had no cargo, but was pushing up the river at her best speed to catch up with the Maude, and lead her above Cairo to secure a cargo of wheat at way-landings.

“Several of the rescued were taken from the stern of the wreck by small boats after the boat was on fire. On another drift-pile, a short distance from the one McNichols and his three companions was on, three others of those blown into the river found safety, and were afterwards taken to shore by skiffs.” (Cincinnati Commercial, OH. “Gold Dust Disaster.” 8-9-1882, p. 5.)

Aug 8, AP in Titusville Herald: “St. Louis, August 8….

“The most complete list of those who died from the effects of their scalds and other wounds received by the accident, is as follows: [We break the original paragraph into separate lines.]

Wm. A. Ingram, third clerk;
John Lytle, second pantry man;
Wm. Travers, barkeeper (later noted as the book-keeper);
Peter Winter, second porter;
Jim Jerry, captain of the watch;
Walter Howard, roustabout;
Charles Williams, second barber;
Manuel Victor, deck passenger.

“The names of the missing are not known, as the books were lost, and the number may swell twenty or thirty more….

“Ten of the dead were buried at Hickman. The bodies of the clerk, Ingram, and book-keeper, Travers, are on board for St. Louis. While the undertaker was bringing the body of Mrs. [? Probably Mr.] Ingram to the Allen at Hickman, his team ran away and Gardner was fatally injured….

“The Golddust [sic.] at the time of the accident had 100 people on board, which includes passengers, officers and crew. There are eighteen missing, which are supposed to have gone down in the wreck….” (Associated Press. “Fatal Explosion on the Steamer Gold Dust.” Titusville Herald, PA. 8-9-1882, p. 1.)

Aug 9: “Cairo, Ill., Aug. 9. – A colored man, one of the victims of the explosion on board the steamer Gold Dust, died at Hickman this morning, and another is expected to die soon. Undertaker Gardner is still living, but is in a critical condition. The passengers and crew at Hickman under treatment are John Langlois, Mr. and Mrs. Thornton, L.P. Day, Frank Leibk, who are all doing well, and Henry Hayes, Thomas Gibson, Henry Washington, and James Washington, whose conditions are still bad.

“The names of those buried at Hickman are William Robinson, of Edwards, Miss.’ P. J. Fitzgerald, St. Louis; Newton Coleman, Ohio; Manuel Victor, St. Louis; Thomas Brenk, Warren County, Ohio; Henry Hays (colored), Memphis; George Washington, St. Louis; John Evans, William Hall, and Jeff Walker, Memphis; Jeff Thornton, Kansas City, Mo.; Walter Howard, Memphis; James Day and Sidney Drewrey, St. Louis.” (New York Times. “The Gold Dust Victims.” 8-10-1882, p1.)

[Compare the paragraph above with the Memphis Appeal list-form article below.]

Aug 9: Cairo, Ill., August 9. – At Hickman one colored man died this morning….

Dead Buried at Hickman:

Wm. Robinson, of Edwards, Miss.
P. J. Fitzgerald, of St. Louis.
Newton Coleman, of Ohio.
Marvel Victor, of St. Louis.
Thomas Break, of Warren county, Ohio.
Colored buried

Injured at Hickman.

Henry Hayes, Memphis.
George Washington, St. Louis.
John Evans, Memphis.
William Hall, Memphis.
Jeff Walker, Memphis.
Jeff Thornton, Kansas City.
Walker Howard, Memphis.
James Day, St. Louis.
Sidney Drewery, St. Louis.

“….John O’Neil, deck-hand, and another of the crew, name not obtainable died on the way up….” (Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Four More Deaths.” 8-10-1882, p. 1.)

Aug 9, Cairo Daily Bulletin: “The account of the explosion Monday night, near Hickman, Ky., of the boilers of the steamer Gold Dust, given in yesterday’s Bulletin, was confirmed so far as it went by the full developments of yesterday, about twelve o’clock, when the steamer City of Alton arrived at our wharf, having aboard nearly all that were saved from the catastrophe.

“When the tug Ariadne, having aboard Drs. Parker and Dunning, Capt. Shields and Mr. Sol. Silver and others, arrived at Hickman Monday night, they found everything in better condition than they had expected. The wrecked steamer was no more, having been destroyed by fire after the explosion, the dead and wounded, such as could be found, had all been taken ashore and give all possible care and comfort by the citizens of Hickman….

“The steamer Alton arrived at Hickman about 1 o’clock yesterday morning. She was not heavily laden and had but few passengers. Her cabin was cleared of the furniture, mattresses wre spread upon the floor and the wounded were carefully carried aboard to be conveyed to their homes in this city and in St. Louis. The boat came here, running very carefully and making no intermediate landings. She came in sight here about 11:30 o’clock and immediately people from every part of the city flocked to the levee. The flag on her jack staff was at half-mast. She came up very slowly without the usual long blowing of the whistle and landed about 12 o’clock, touching the wharf almost without a jar. Chief Myers and officers Martin, Mahanny and Wims were on hand and kept the crowd, which was by this time several thousand strong, from boarding the boat. And no efforts were made to get aboard. All crowded on the outer guard of the wharfboat, but stood there quietly; there was no bustling, no loud voices, no laughter, not a smiling face. Rough men talked in whispers – the horror of the occasion was reflected in every face in that great crowd, tears filled the eyes of some, deeply sympathy spoke in every movement.

“The boat lay here an hour and a half, receiving medicines, ice, provisions and other necessaries. While she lay here, three of the wounded were brought ashore and taken to the hospital. The names of three of them were William Hall, Al Hill and Jeff Walker – all negroes. They were badly scalded about the hands and arms, chests and heads. They were brought down from the cabin on litters, carefully laid in ambulances, of which over a dozen were in waiting, and conveyed to the marine hospital station. One of them, however, Jeff Walker, died before he reached the hospital. A fourth, whose name we did not learn, died before he was taken from the boat, was placed in the hands of the undertaker and was buried at the seven-mile graveyard yesterday evening. One of the two who were taken to the hospital, William Hall, col., has a family living here. He is very badly scalded about the face, neck and heard and seemed to be in greater mental agony that the others, for he groaned and raved almost incessantly.

“A view of the cabin of the Alton soon after she landed here, was heart rending. There were fifteen men lying in cots and upon mattresses on the floor. Nearly all as still as though dead, with eyes closed, faces bruised and red and swollen in come cases, almost beyond human semblance, hands and arms bandaged, and bodies covered with cloths and blankets saturated in liniments. But they were receiving the best of care. Two young ladies in particular – one of them on the passenger on the steamer Alton, a Miss Coffee, of St. Louis, the other one of the fortunate rescued from the ill fated Gold Dust, a Miss Smith, of Troy, Penn., deserve special mention in this connection. They moved about among the mangled, suffering men like ministering angels, dressing their wounds with gentle hands, cooling their fevered brows, giving water to the thirst, applying medicine and speaking words of cheer to those who could understand. The officers of the City of Alton are fervent in praise of those young ladies and with good cause.

“The names of the fifteen were as follows: James Gee, John O’Neil, Lem Gray, Stephen Stetson, Nathaniel Horrs, Patrick Fitzgerald, Thomas Beck, Henry Evans, James Welsh, Solomon Price, Henry Burdolf, Peter Randolph, Jefferson Walker, Albert Hill and William Hall. These fifteen were all helplessly injured, but their injures consisted almost exclusively of scalds, more or less extensive. Several were raw all over, and were unconscious and not expected to live. There were about an equal number of others on board, who were less severely injured, and who, with arms or heads or hands bandaged, were moving about the boat nursing themselves. The boat left here about 1:30 o’clock for St. Louis.

“At the time of the catastrophe there were on the boat 38 deck hands, 14 general officers, 16 cabin officers, 16 cabin passengers and 25 deck passengers – a total of 109 people. At Hickman were left 13 dead and 12 wounded; the Alton brought up 64 in all making a total of 89 and leaving 20 to yet be accounted for. Of the officers of the Gold Dust nearly all were more or less injured, and two, the barkeeper and third clerk were killed. Pilot Lem Gray who was off watch, Captain McCord, First Clerk Henry Deitrich, and second Clerk John Laugolis, were all scalded but not seriously, and second mate Garl Dunham was bruised about the arms and chest.

“The cause of the explosion is of course unknown as usual. The boilers were full of water, the steam was not above the general gauge, the boilers were in good condition, all who had charge of the craft’s boilers were on duty and had just inspected everything and ground all as it should be when the explosion occurred – nobody was to blame. When the explosion occurred the boat had left the wharf at Hickman but a few minutes. It was seen and heard by nearly every citizen there, all of whom gathered on the riverbank. To the fishermen at the bank is due the credit of bringing the wrecked and burning boat ashore and thus enabling nearly all the passengers to escape both flames and water. They took ropes out in skiffs, fastened them to the boat, and people standing on the shore caught the other ends and pulled the burning wreck into shore.” (Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. “A Floating Hospital.” 8-9-1882.)

Aug 10, Quincy Daily Herald: “Cairo, Ill., August 10. – An unknown corpse was found near the wreck of the Gold Dust, by a fisherman, this afternoon. Undertaker Gardner, who was hurt by a casket falling on him, is doing well. Clerk Langlois will recover. No further deaths reported.” (Quincy Daily Herald, IL. “The Hickman Disaster…Later Items.” 8-11-1882, p. 1.)

Aug 11, Cairo Daily Bulletin: “A dispatch received yesterday [Aug 10] by Captain T. W. Shields here, from Dr. Farris, at Hickman, stated that of the twelve wounded men left there from the steamer Gold Dust, one died and the others were all in a fair way to recover. Of those on the steamer City of Alton, on her way up from here, four died on the way up. This swells the number of dead accounted for to twenty-one.” (Cairo Daily Bulletin. 8-11-1882.)

Aug 12, Cairo Daily Bulletin: “Two more victims of the Gold Dust were buried in St. Louis day before yesterday [10th]….

“A report from Hickman, concerning the condition of the victims of the Gold Dust explosion, says that of those remaining there, John Langlois, Mr. and Mrs. Thornton, L. P. Day, and Frank Libke, are all doing well. Henry Hayes, Thomas Gibson, Henry Washington, are still bad.

“The dead buried at Hickman are: William Robinson, of Edwards, Miss.; P. J. Fitzgerald, of St. Louis; Newton Coleman, of Ohio; Manuel Victor, of St. Louis; Thomas Brenk, of Warren County, Ohio.

“The colored buried at Hickman are: Henry Hayes, Memphis; George Washington, St. Louis; John Evans, Memphis; William Hall, Memphis; Jeff Walker, Memphis; Jeff Thornton, Kansas City, Mo.; Walker Howard, Memphis; James Day, St. Louis, Sidney Drewery, St. Louis.

“Of those who went to St. Louis on the City of Alton, Capt. McCord and two or three others were able to leave the boat alone and went to their homes, but the remainder of the badly hurt were carried ashore on stretchers and conveyed wither to the Marine of the City Hospital. Lem Gray, one of the pilots, was taken to the home of Capt. Carter, in the suburbs, where he will be carefully nursed. He is badly hurt, but will recover. The persons most seriously injured are Lem Gray, pilot Henry Evans, fireman; Thomas Beck, deck sweeper; Henry Stutsman, pantryman; Pat Fitzgerald, watchman; Sol. Price, mate; and James Welch, peter Rudolph, and two others names not give.

“John O’Neil, deck hand, and another of the crew not named, died on the way up.” (Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. [Gold Dust Victims.] 8-12-1882.)

Aug 16: “Cairo, Aug. 16. – Ed. Com.: The City of Vicksburg yesterday brought up three colored men of the crew of the Gold Dust and a white deck passenger from Hickman to the Hospital. The white man, though in a bad fix, will get well, but it does not seem possible that the colored men can recover. Their condition is horrible, and it is a wonder they have not died ere this. Langlois is still at Hickman, and improving. He was burned pretty much all over, but managed to keep the steam out of his mouth. He did not think he was so badly hurt at first, and when a line was called for he picked one up and tried to hand it out. The flesh came off the inside of his hands in consequence. A few moments later he tripped over the same line, and the flesh was taken off both legs half-way below the knees. He fell, and the line caught him diagonally across the chest, and again the flesh was stripped off. These wounds are the sorest spots. His left eye is swelled shut, and it is not known whether the sight is injured or not.” (Cincinnati Commercial. “Special Correspondence. Cairo Letter.” 8-20-1882, p. 7.)

Aug 25: “The remains of poor Lem Gray, one of the pilots of the ill-fated Gold Dust recently blown up, were carried to their last resting place Wednesday, 23rd. Many friends paid sad duty to his death by attending his funeral, beautiful floral tributes to his memory were scattered around and over him, pilots of the Anchor line acted as pull horses. Lem Gray was one of the best pilots of the line to which he belonged, and his memory will remain fresh and green in the heart of his comrades. He was buried in the cemetery at St. Louis.” (Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. 8-25-1882.)

Persons Identified as Killed in Sources Above

1. Brenk, Thomas From Warren County, OH; buried at Hickman.
2. Coleman, H. P. (Newton?) Deck passenger from Ohio; buried at Hickman.
Day, James. From St. Louis; buried at Hickman. Another report writes injured.
Drewrey, Sidney. From St. Louis; buried at Hickman. Another report writes injured.
Evans, John. From Memphis; buried at Hickman. Another report writes injured.
3. Fitzgerald, P. J. Buried at Hickman; noted that he was from St. Louis.
4. Gansen, James. Head cook.
5. Gray, Lem. Pilot; died after moved to Cairo, IL; buried in St. Louis, Aug 23.
Hall, William. From Memphis; buried at Hickman. Another report writes injured.
Hays/Hayes, Henry African-American from Memphis; buried (injured) at Hickman.
6. Howard, Walter. Roustabout.
7. Ingram, Wm. (Bill) A. Third clerk. Scalded to death; body taken to St. Louis.
8. Jefferson, Thomas. Roustabout; body taken to Cairo, IL.
9. Jerry, Jim. Captain of the watch.
10. Joy, John. Roustabout.
11. Lytle, John. Second pantry man.
12. Oat, Mr. Cabin watchman.
13. O’Neil, John. Deckhand; died on steamer City of Alton.
14. Robinson, William Buried at Hickman; noted he was from Edwards, Mississippi.
15. Say, Jas. Roustabout. (Have seen just one report noting this death.)
Thornton, Jeff. From Kansas City, MO; buried [injured] at Hickman.
16. Travers, William. Book-keeper/or barkeeper; body taken to St. Louis.
17. Victor, Manuel. Deck passenger from St. Louis; buried at Hickman.
18. Walker, Jeff. From Memphis; buried at Cairo. Another report writes injured.
Washington, George. From St. Louis; buried at Hickman. Another report writes injured.
19. Williams, Charles. Second barber.
20. Winter, Peter. Second porter.
21. Unnamed black man. Crew or passenger status not noted; was noted he died on Aug 9.
22. Unnamed man. Crewmember; died on the steamer City of Alton; buried in Cairo.
23. Unnamed man. One of 12 injured left behind in Hickman; died on Aug 10.
24. Unnamed man . 1st of 4 reported to have died on City of Alton, Cairo to St. Louis.
25. Unnamed man . 2nd of 4 reported to have died on City of Alton, Cairo to St. Louis.
26. Unnamed man . 3rd of 4 reported to have died on City of Alton, Cairo to St. Louis.
27. Unnamed man . 4th of 4 reported to have died on City of Alton, Cairo to St. Louis.
28. Unidentified corpse found by fisherman near the wreck Aug 10 (presumably buried in Hickman)

Three badly scalded deckhands brought to Cairo on City of Vicksburg, not expected to live

Identified as Missing

1. Baker, Nicholas; third cook.
2. Baker, Mrs.
3. Dietrich, P.; freight clerk.
4. Dunham, D.; second mate.
5. Lawson, James; first cook.
6. Monahan; sailor.
7. Unnamed cabin boy #1 of 4.
8. Unnamed cabin boy #2 of 4.
9. Unnamed cabin boy #3 of 4.
10. Unnamed cabin boy #4 of 4.
11. Unnamed cabin passenger.
12. Unnamed coal-passer #1.
13. Unnamed coal-passer #2.
14. Unnamed deck passenger.
15. Unnamed fireman.
16. Unnamed roustabout #1 of 8.
17. Unnamed roustabout #2 of 8.
18. Unnamed roustabout #3 of 8.
19. Unnamed roustabout #4 of 8.
20. Unnamed roustabout #5 of 8.
21. Unnamed roustabout #6 of 8.
22. Unnamed roustabout #7 of 8.
23. Unnamed roustabout #8 of 8.

Sources

Associated Press. “Fatal Explosion on the Steamer Gold Dust.” Titusville Herald, PA. 8-9-1882, p. 1. Accessed 9-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/titusville-herald-aug-09-1882-p-1/

Bragg, Marion. Historic Names and Places on the Lower Mississippi River. Vicksburg, MS: Mississippi River Commission, 1977. Accessed at: [Both links broken]
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

Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. “A Floating Hospital.” 8-9-1882. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://sites.rootsweb.com/~ilgssi/Cairo/obits_1882.html

Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. [Gold Dust Victims.] 8-11-1882. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://sites.rootsweb.com/~ilgssi/Cairo/obits_1882.html

Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. [Gold Dust Victims.] 8-12-1882. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://sites.rootsweb.com/~ilgssi/Cairo/obits_1882.html

Cairo Daily Bulletin, IL. [Gold Dust Victim.] 8-25-1882. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://sites.rootsweb.com/~ilgssi/Cairo/obits_1882.html

Chappell, Phil E. “Missouri River Steamboats.” Transactions of the Kansas State Historical Society, 1905-1906 (Vol. IX). Topeka: State Printing Office, 1906. Accessed at: http://books.google.com/books?id=2dw7AAAAIAAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s

Cincinnati Commercial, OH. “Gold Dust Disaster.” 8-9-1882, p. 5. Accessed 9-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/cincinnati-commercial-aug-09-1882-p-5/

Cincinnati Commercial. “Special Correspondence. Cairo Letter.” 8-20-1882, p. 7. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/cincinnati-commercial-aug-20-1882-p-7/

Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Another Horror. Seventeen Lives Lost…by the Explosion of the Steamer Gold Dust, near Hickman, Ky…” 8-8-1882, p. 1. Accessed 9-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/memphis-daily-appeal-aug-08-1882-p-1/

Memphis Daily Appeal, TN. “Four More Deaths by the Gold Dust Disaster…” 8-10-1882, p. 1. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/memphis-daily-appeal-aug-10-1882-p-1/

New York Times. “The Gold Dust Disaster,” August 9, 1882, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=19723683

New York Times. “The Gold Dust Victims.” 8-10-1882, p. 1. Accessed 9-8-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/new-york-times-aug-10-1882-p-1/

Quincy Daily Herald, IL. “The Hickman Disaster…Later Items.” 8-11-1882, p. 1. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/quincy-daily-herald-aug-11-1882-p-1/

St. Landry Democrat, Opelousas, LA. “Another Steamboat Disaster.” 8-19-1882, p 4. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/saint-landry-democrat-aug-19-1882-p-4/

The Locomotive. “Boiler Explosions…August, 1882.” Hartford: Vol. IV, N2, Feb 1883, p. 41. Accessed 9-9-2020 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=NgjQAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

United States Office Supervising Inspector-General of Steamboats. Annual Report of the Supervising Inspector-General of Steamboats to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1883. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1883. Accessed 9-8-2020 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=AD2E0KPaKAcC&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.