Fatal Steamship Boiler Explosion Rocks Seattle Waterfront

Early this morning, the boiler of the steamer J. S. Robinson, which lay at the foot of Yesler Way, exploded with frightful force, instantly killing Captain George S. Warner and fireman Wm. Cleary, and seriously injuring Fred Sinclair, the engineer, who was blown into the water and narrowly escaped drowning. William Darant and Melville Ryan, deckhands, were also injured. Richard VanZant, son of Captain VanZant of the tug Cora, lying alongside the Robinson, was also injured. Captain Johnson of the Hattie M. Belts was blown from his house on the wharf and severely injured. The Cora, lying alongside, was a total wreck. The Robinson sank immediately, carrying with it the body of Cleary, the fireman. One section of the boiler, weighing two or three tons, was hurled four hundred feet against the top of a third-story building, crushing in a portion of the building. Another section, weighing nearly a ton, crushed the roof of the barge E. Downing, and still another section was hurled to the rear, grazing the canal boat Oppello and tearing away the roof before it fell into the river. Buildings were shaken and shattered. General consternation prevailed in the vicinity. The exploded boiler was built by Robert Livingston of this city in 1882.