The Podcast Gettin' Wrecked (Part 2)
The Podcast Gettin' Wrecked (Part 2)
Or…. The Little Steamship that Couldn’t?
The Wreck of the Steamer Buckeye, 1895
SUMMARY
In this episode we regale you with the saga of the wreck of the Steamer Buckeye, a little steamship of the Mosquito Fleet, that capsized in Bellingham Bay in 1895 between Eliza Island and today’s Larrabee State park with a small crew and several passengers including Will D. Jenkins, local editor and mayor of the town of Whatcom. This episode features one human casualty, and a number of unfortunate livestock. It’s a buck-wild story!
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References and Resources
(Note: News articles accessed via various websites, both free and subscription, as well as ye olde microfilms at either the B-ham Public Library or at the Center for Pacific Northwest Studies, WWU).
Mosquito Fleet. David B. Williams, History Link Essay 869 Feb 2, 2021:
Rosario. Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, June 3, 2022.
Seafarer’s Professions and Ranks. Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, June 28, 2023.
Why the Captain Goes Down with the Ship. Ian Fortey. Boat Safe. Updated on September 2, 2022.
The Captain Goes Down with the Ship. Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, August 24, 2023.
Patent Model, Life Raft. National Museum of American History. Smithsonian
Patent Model Life Raft. National Museum of American History. Smithsonian
Maria Beasley: Engineering Dynamo. Intrans. Institute for Transportation. April 24, 2018.
Chuckanut Chronicles. Robert B. Thomas. Third Edition 1971.
Lost in the Sound: Steamer Buckeye Went Down With Twenty Passengers. The Tacoma Daily Ledger, March 10, 1891
The Steamer Safe. Spokane Falls Review, March 11, 1891
Steamer to Be Sold By the Marshal. Seattle Post Intelligencer, May 12, 1894
A Steamboat Which is Here to Stay. The Islander, November 22, 1894
Capt. Wallace is Honored by Friends on 74th Birthday. Bremerton Sun, Aug 18, 1944.
Capsized in the Bay. Morning Olympian, April 2, 1895.
Death Run In the Wind. Bellingham Daily Reveille, April 3, 1895.
Fatal Steamer Trip. Anacortes American, April 4, 1895.
Kautzman’s Body Found. Bellingham Daily Reveille, April 4, 1895.
Steamer Buckeye Capsized. The Islander, April 4, 1895.
The Stories of the Wreck. The Blade (Bellingham) April 4, 1895.
The Buckeye Wreck. The Seattle Post Intelligencer, April 4, 1895.
Wrecked in the Sound. The Spokesman Review, April 4, 1895.
Taken to Anacortes. Bellingham Daily Reveille, April 5, 1895.
Kautzman’s Body Found. Bellingham Weekly Reveille, April 5, 1895.
The Wreck of the Buckeye. Daily Intelligencer (Seattle) April 5, 1895.
Casualty in Bellingham Bay. The Washington Standard, April 5, 1896.
H. Kautzman’s Funeral. Bellingham Daily Reveille, April 7, 1895.
The Loss of the Buckeye. The Seattle Post Intelligencer, April 8, 1895.
Funeral of Mr. Kautzman. Anacortes American, April 11, 1895.
The Anacortes Survivor. Anacortes American, April 11, 1895.
More About the Buckeye. The Islander. April 11, 1895.
Henry Kautzman Drowned in Bellingham Bay. The Frankfort Bee, April 19, 1895.
The New Buckeye. Anacortes American, July 18, 1895.
Mrs. Bertha Kautzman, of Whatcom, Sues to Recover $10,450. Daily Intelligencer (Seattle) February 1, 1898.
The San Juan Islander, May 30, 1908.
S.S. Buckeye: Woodburning through the San Juans Saltwater People Historical Society (Blog) May 27, 2015
Smugglers Wrecked on Lopez Island, SJC. Saltwater People Historical Society (Blog) December 14, 2015.
Steamer “Buckeye” of the Mosquito Fleet. Gabriel C. Sno-Isle Libraries Blog. August 6, 2020
The H.W. McCurdy Marine History of the Pacific Northwest. Gordon Newell. Published by Superior Publishing, Seattle, 1966
Claims His Wife Threatened Him: Charles E. Bowden Replies to Suit for Divorce. The Tacoma Daily Ledger, July 16, 1905.
He Lit Out When Wife Found Letter. The Tacoma Daily News, October 20, 1905.
Mrs. Bowden is Given Divorce. The Tacoma Daily News, October 21, 1905.
Moran Bros. Buy Newhall. The San Juan Islander, January 14, 1905.
“Idlewild” Sold to Andrew Newhall. The San Juan Islander, April 7, 1906.
Andrew Newhall As a Factor In Mail Service and Transportation. The San Juan Islander, Feb 4, 1910.
Asher Is Summoned. Bellingham Herald, March 3, 1924.
Will D. Jenkins. The Islander. Jan 21, 1897.
Will D. Jenkins Dead. Morning Olympian, February 16, 1902.
Died After Long Illness: Will D. Jenkins, Former Secretary of State, Passes Away. The Tacoma Daily Ledger, February 16, 1902.
Miscellaneous records at ancestry.com and other archival/genealogical sites
P.S. Come see us at the Sea Feast Festival 2023
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In this episode we discuss the early history of Bellingham’s historic Hotel Leo, aka the Leopold Hotel. From its earliest days as the Byron House through its take-over and expansion under PNW beer baron Leopold Schmidt. And since it’s spooky season, we include stories about some “potential ghosts” that might be wandering the halls…