Tragic Drowning of School Janitor
A search for health ends in death for a respected member of multiple fraternal orders.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
D. J. Hancock, of this city, janitor of the Central School and Master Workman of Columbia Lodge, No. 2, Ancient Order United Workmen, was drowned in the Stillaguamish River, near Stanwood, on Thursday evening. He had taken a boat at a ranch on the river above Stanwood, intending, as is supposed, to go down to the city to take a boat for Seattle. This was about 6 o'clock in the evening of Thursday, and he was not afterwards seen alive. His body was found in the river near his destination yesterday morning. The dead man was a member of Woodland Lodge, No. 10, Knights of Pythias; of Columbia Lodge, No. 2, Ancient Order United Workmen, and of Seattle Camp, No. 50, Woodmen of the World. He was 25 years of age. He was a brother of George Hancock who was killed by an elevator in the Pioneer block in the first week of September, 1894. Mr. Hancock had been ill during the last week of school and his trip up the Stillaguamish was for the sake of his health. It was on his return that the unexplained accident occurred by which he lost his life.
“It was on his return that the unexplained accident occurred by which he lost his life.”
Accidental drownings in Washington's rivers remain a persistent hazard for recreationists and commuters alike, echoing the isolation of the Stillaguamish valley in the late 19th century. The mention of his brother dying in a downtown elevator accident serves as a stark reminder of the industrial dangers faced by Seattle residents in the 1890s.
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