The Salvage Diver of Elliott Bay
A local diver describes his successful, DIY operation to raise a sunken boiler from the depths of Puget Sound to sell for scrap.
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.
I have just arrived in Seattle with the boiler of the steamer Lottie, which I recovered from the seabed yesterday. It will be remembered that three years ago, Captain Sweeney lost the steamer, the Lottie, in Deception Pass. I had brought my steamer to Seattle for repairs and made up my mind to find the whereabouts of that boiler. After locating the place at which the steamer went down, I put on my diving suit and took a trip under the water. There I found the boiler and alongside of it a chain which Captain Sweeney had lost. I attached the chain to the boiler and carried the other end to the surface, where I had a windlass. My partner and myself raised the boiler to the surface and fastened it there. When the tide receded, we floated a raft of cedar logs which we had made, under it, and we had our prize secured. I asked a steamboat captain what he would charge to tow the raft to Seattle, and he said $50. That was more money than I cared about paying for boat hire, so I got a double-ended fishing boat and towed the raft to Seattle myself. It took me two days, and I do not know how I could have made $25 per day any easier. The boiler is sound and good, and I expect to get a fair price.
“I asked a steamboat captain what he would charge to tow the raft to Seattle, and he said $50. That was more money than I cared about paying for boat hire, so I got a double-ended fishing boat and towed the raft to Seattle myself.”
Long before Seattle became a high-tech hub, its maritime industry relied on grit and resourceful salvage operations in the very waters that now host modern ferries and cruise ships. This story captures the era's 'blue-collar entrepreneurship,' mirroring how today's residents often still find creative, individual ways to hustle for a living in an increasingly expensive city.
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