The Tragedy at the Tide Flats
A missing man is found dead in the bay, ending a days-long search in the southern waterfront.
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 body of L.P. Peterson, who had been missing for several days, was discovered yesterday morning in the bay near the float where he lived on the tide flats in the southern part of Seattle. Peterson, a 35-year-old native of Denmark, had been on a drinking spree and was last seen at a saloon on Jackson Street. When his housemate, John A. Anderson, returned from out of town, he could not find Peterson and reported the disappearance to the police. Anderson later discovered the body in four feet of water while the tide was low. Authorities believe Peterson likely fell into the water while attempting to navigate the steep ladder leading to his float. Despite the circumstances, his personal belongings, including a diamond pin and money, were still in his pockets. The Coast Seamen's Union is officiating his funeral services.
“Peterson was curled up, but his features were perfectly natural.”
This incident reflects the precarious nature of life on Seattle's historic tide flats and the prevalence of maritime-related accidents in the 19th-century harbor. The area described, near the southern waterfront, has since been transformed by extensive land filling and redevelopment.
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