SINKING OF THE BELLE ZANE.

On the eighth of January, 1845, the steamboat Belle Zane, while on her way from Zanesville, Ohio, to New Orleans, struck a snag in the Mississippi, about twelve miles below the mouth of White river, and immediately turned bottom vpward! This terrible accident took place in tile middle of an exceedingly cold night. Of ninety persons who were on board a moment before the disaster, only fifty escaped drowning-and many of those who succeeded in reaching the shore were afterwards frozen to death. At the time tile boat was snagged, the passengers were all in their berths; those who were able to contricate themselves when the boat suddenly turned over, had scarcely any clothing to protect them from the inclemency of the weather. No situation could be more wretched than that of the people who escaped to the beach, almost naked, unsheltered and drenched with water on a freezing night in December. They–remained in this miserable situa­tion for nearly two hours, when the steamboat Diamond Caine down and took off all who remained alive, sixteen in number. There were five ladies on board, all of whom were saved in the yawl. The feet and hands of some of the survivors were so badly frozen that ampu­tation was necessary.

Tile following is a list of those who perished, as far as their names could be ascertained :-Dr. Brant, Ohio; Abner Jones, C. Banks, Mrs. Williams, two daughters and a colored slave, Miss.; Hettie Fra­zier anti cousin, name unknown, Boston; Edward Bossing and son, Illinois; Mrs. Wilkes and family, consisting of eight persons; seven deck hands, fourteen slaves, and thirty other names unknown. Sixteen bodies were picked up, including four ladies, and buried on the banks of the Mississippi.

advertisements

(source: Lloyd's Steamboat Directory from 1856)