The Unclaimed Dead of Lake Union
A morning discovery at a local boat house reveals the lonely, anonymous death of a Prussian immigrant, underscoring the precarity of life in a booming frontier city.
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.
At an early hour yesterday morning, Sam Ward and Charles Hunter, who own a boat house at Lake Union, near the end of the electric motor line, found the body of a man floating on the water a short distance from the shore. The remains were towed to the shore, identified, and word telephoned to Sheriff McGraw. As Coroner Kinart was ill, Justice Miller took his place and, in company with the sheriff, drove to the lake. After due inquiry into all the facts connected with the finding of the body and as an examination showed no signs of violence, it was concluded by Justice Miller that it was not necessary to hold an inquest. In the pockets of the deceased was found a bunch of keys and a hotel key with a brass tag numbered 13 attached. In another pocket was found a North Pacific baggage check marked 'local' and numbered 3,112, and a broken gold-plated collar button. The drowned man was five feet, nine inches in height, weighed 140 pounds, and was aged about 35 years. The body was attired in a neat dark corkscrew suit, with a dark tailor-made overcoat, black necktie, white shirt, and cuffs. He was rather well-dressed. The remains were taken to Cram & Co.'s establishment. Detective Wootery took the key and finally found that it belonged to a lodging house on Main street. A valise belonging to the drowned man was opened, and it was discovered from papers that the name of the drowned man was Joseph Beckman. It was also learned that he was a native of Prussia; that he was naturalized at Shakopee, Minn., in the district court for Scott county, on November 6, 1887. He was last seen in the lodging house on the 13th of May. The people of the lodging house know little or nothing about Beckman's history.
“After due inquiry into all the facts connected with the finding of the body and as an examination showed no signs of violence, it was concluded by Justice Miller that it was not necessary to hold an inquest.”
The story of Joseph Beckman highlights the transient, often solitary existence of early industrial Seattle, where thousands arrived to build a city. Today, Seattle continues to grapple with the tragedy of the 'unclaimed' and the transient, a grim resonance for a city that has rapidly transformed from a mill town to a global hub.
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