The Eastern Oregon After the Fire
A board of survey finds the burned steamer's machinery ruined and its safe intact, while the crew buries the ship's cook.
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.
Superintendent B. F. Bush, of the Oregon Improvement Company, accompanied by ex-Mayor Robert Moran, Captain J. A. Hatfield, and Alex. Allen, the ship builder of Seattle, as a board of survey, arrived on the 1 o'clock train this morning. They visited the scene of the disastrous fire and made a thorough inspection of the hull and the interior. The hull itself is in remarkably good condition, the shell being in perfect condition. The hold is filled with water, and but little can be learned until it is emptied. The machinery, wherein lies the greatest loss, is damaged almost beyond repair, although the extent of its utility cannot be determined until it is taken apart. The greatest damage was done aft and amidships, where the fire raged so fiercely. Everything above the hold, in fact, is a mass of ruins. Not a particle of the woodwork is fit for use.
The ship's safe was found and broken open, showing its contents to be preserved. The insurance on the boat is $68,000, while the cost of rebuilding to its former condition will be far in excess of that amount.
The body of the third cook, whose name is learned to be Charles Nietchwaitz, was interred this morning in Masonic Cemetery, members of the crew attending the funeral. The expense, of course, was borne by the company.
The board of survey will return to Seattle and make a report as to the exact condition of the boat.
“Everything above the hold, in fact, is a mass of ruins.”
The Eastern Oregon fire was a reminder that Olympia's waterfront economy could be undone in an afternoon—and that the risk fell hardest on the crew. Maritime accidents and insurance losses still shape how we think about who bears the danger of transportation and trade.
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