An Insurance Scandal on the Seattle Waterfront
After his steamer burned to the waterline, a captain takes to the newspapers to publicly shame the insurance companies refusing to pay his claim.
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.
To Whom it May Concern: Last June I purchased the steamer Wildwood, paying $11,000 for her. I had her placed on the ways and rebuilt and refitted at an additional cost of $4,000. I had her insured for $7,000, divided as follows: Phoenix of Brooklyn, $3,000; Commercial of San Francisco, $1,000; Merchants of Newark, N.J., $1,500; and Springfield of Springfield, Mass., $1,500. My boat was completed about the latter part of July, and I placed her on a paying route between Seattle and Olympia. On the night of the 21st, while lying at the wharf at Olympia, she took fire and burned to the water line. Adjusters of the Phoenix and Commercial Companies examined the remains of the steamer and allowed me the full amount of my policies in their company ($4,000). Since that time, I have made every effort to get a settlement with the Merchants of Newark, N.J., and the Springfield of Springfield, Mass., but they flatly refuse to do anything. I called on Jacobs & Easton, general agents of those companies, to see what could be done, and he telegraphed me they refuse to move in the matter and that I had to commence suit. I publish this card in justice to the Phoenix of Brooklyn and the Commercial of San Francisco, which are honest, straightforward insurance companies, and also to warn my friends on this coast, and the public generally, against the Merchants of Newark and Springfield of Springfield, and all other companies represented by Jacobs & Easton. Companies that will delay, hinder and swindle one policy holder will do the same thing to others. Before paying out money for insurance, be sure you are getting into a good company like the Phoenix or Commercial, which will do as it agrees to in case of a loss. Thos. Grant, Late Owner and Master of the steamer Wildwood.
“Companies that will delay, hinder and swindle one policy holder will do the same thing to others.”
Publicly calling out corporate bad actors in the newspaper was the 1885 equivalent of a viral social media thread. Today, while we have more consumer protection, the struggle between policyholders and insurance firms remains a flashpoint in the Pacific Northwest, especially as climate-driven disasters complicate property coverage.
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