Ship Strikes Seattle Wharf in Gusty Storm
A sudden gust of wind slams a ship into a Seattle wharf, destroying cargo and prompting a liability dispute.
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.
The ship India hauled into the dock yesterday between the Ocean wharf and Harrington & Smith's wharf and made fast to the former. About 5 o'clock a little gust of wind from the south struck the vessel and she lurched over and struck Harrington & Smith's wharf with sufficient violence to knock the stringers off of several piles and let 100 barrels of Portland cement, 100 barrels of lime, several barrels of salmon, a large quantity of oil and considerable other stuff into the bay. The loss will probably reach $2500, which will undoubtedly fall upon the vessel, for had she been properly moored the accident could not possibly have happened. Mr. Frank Hanford, representing Harrington & Smith, at once boarded the vessel and notified the captain that he would be held responsible for all damages. The captain seemed very civil and will doubtless make the loss good without resorting to an expensive law suit.
“The loss will probably reach $2500, which will undoubtedly fall upon the vessel, for had she been properly moored the accident could not possibly have happened.”
Accidents involving maritime infrastructure were a constant in early Seattle. While the waterfront has shifted significantly from the era of private wharves and barrels of lime, the vulnerability of the Seattle shoreline to weather-induced infrastructure failure remains a part of the city's coastal reality.
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