The Salvage Diver Threatens Dynamite in Seattle Harbor
A wreckage contractor, locked in a legal battle over a sunken steamer, vows to use explosives to clear the waterway despite an injunction.
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.
Captain Whitelaw has enjoined J.M. Moore from removing any more iron from the sunken steamer North Pacific, and holds the money from him for his franchises. 'I bought the wreck from a man who sent me to Mr. J.H. McGraw. I arranged to do the work and pay a certain per cent. of what I made. After working for some time, I found I could not make wages, and I turned my contract over to Mr. Brooks, who has worked hard at it ever since. Now I understand Captain Whitelaw, who once made an effort to raise the steamer and failed, claims the wreck and has attached the iron shipped to San Francisco and got out an injunction to restrain him from taking any more. However, his injunction does not extend to me, and I am going on that wreck and put a good, big charge of dynamite right between the massive cast iron cylinders of her engines, and I'll have that iron towed to the foundries. Benjamin calls me dynamite, and when it comes to blowing up a wreck, I plead guilty to the charge.'
“Benjamin calls me dynamite, and when it comes to blowing up a wreck, I plead guilty to the charge.”
This 1888 dispute over harbor obstructions and salvage rights mirrors modern tensions regarding abandoned vessels and derelict boats clogging Seattle’s waterways. Just as the city then struggled with the logistics of clearing the waterfront, modern authorities continue to grapple with the high costs and complex legal battles required to remediate abandoned maritime debris.
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