Canoe Overturns on Chehalis; Father and Son Drown
A family canoe outing ends in a desperate struggle for survival and a tragic drowning near Oakville.
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.
A sad accident occurred at Oakville, Monday. At about 5 p.m., A. Balch started to cross the Chehalis River in a canoe. There were in the boat besides himself, Mrs. Balch, his wife, and their three little children, their son Stephen and a Mr. Howe. The canoe was overturned. The men succeeded in getting Mrs. Balch and the baby up on the boat, while Balch struck out to save the little ones. Although a fine swimmer, Mr. Balch was carried under the jam of logs and drowned with his little boy, George, in his arms. Mr. Balch and family were old residents and much loved by their neighbors.
“Although a fine swimmer, Mr. Balch was carried under the jam of logs and drowned with his little boy, George, in his arms.”
The dangers of the Chehalis River—particularly around log jams—were a constant peril for 19th-century residents navigating the watershed. This event highlights how integral the river was to local travel before the current road infrastructure replaced the watercraft routes of the 1890s.
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