A Tragic Burial at Sea
While working the lumber trade, a crew member falls from the rigging to his death, leaving his comrades to mourn him in the middle of the Pacific.
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.
Regarding the crew for payment before the shipping commissioner, [the vessel] Klikitat reported that one man, John Datoni, failed to make his appearance. The poor fellow, having fallen from the rigging, was killed and buried at sea.
“The poor fellow, having fallen from the rigging, was killed and buried at sea.”
While this brief report from 1885 is a somber footnote in Seattle’s maritime history, it captures the inherent dangers of the 19th-century timber industry that built the city. Today, Seattle remains a maritime hub, though safety regulations and worker protections have fundamentally transformed the working conditions of those in the rigging and on the docks.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.