Tragedy at Point Defiance
A young fisherman vanishes after a struggle with his sail in the currents off Tacoma.
That Luke Bridges, the half-breed fisherman of Vashon Island, was drowned off Point Defiance a few nights ago is now almost a certainty. His father came to town this morning and reported the boy missing. He and a younger brother were in town last Friday and collected from the American Fish Company the money due them for the week's catch of fish. They went directly home from there and then the older boy started for the smelter. Since that time he has not been seen. C. B. Lawrence, of Gig Harbor, noticed a boat off his place about that time, and the occupant was having trouble with the sail. Before he could get a glass to look at the craft, the man had disappeared and the boat, which is said to have belonged to Bridges, drifted ashore. Among the articles found in the boat was half a demijohn of whisky.
“Before he could get a glass to look at the craft, the man had disappeared and the boat, which is said to have belonged to Bridges, drifted ashore.”
The treacherous currents off Point Defiance have claimed many lives over the last century, often catching small watercraft off guard. Today, the area is a popular park, but it remains a reminder of the unforgiving nature of the Narrows for those working the water.
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