Flower in the River: A Family Tale Finally Told

Rivers of Grief: Eastland and the General Slocum

• Natalie Zett • Season 2 • Episode 65

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This episode dives into the eerie connections between the Eastland Disaster and the General Slocum tragedy, two devastating events with striking historical parallels. Listen in for compelling stories of individuals touched by these disasters, their genealogical backgrounds, and personal narratives. Discover the profound impact on immigrant communities and the importance of keeping their stories alive.

Key Points:

Introduction:

  • Kicking off with an introduction and a promised update on individuals mentioned in a letter from Eastland survivor Martha Willig.

Eastland Disaster Stories:

  • Investigating the heart-wrenching story of Anna Hillman from Hoboken, NJ, who lost her life in the Eastland Disaster.
  • Exploring the emotional toll of Anna's death on her scattered family and their poignant journey.

Personal Reactions and Genealogical Insights:

  • Sharing a visceral reaction to Anna Hillman's story and the challenges of researching fragmented family histories.
  • Highlighting how genealogical research can transform personal perceptions and shatter hidden biases.

Alarm Clock Saves Lives:

  • A remarkable tale from the Plainfield Courier News about how a failed alarm clock saved Mr. and Mrs. A.W. Dorchester from boarding the Eastland by a minute.

Connecting the Eastland and General Slocum Disasters:

  • Drawing parallels between the Eastland Disaster and the General Slocum tragedy, focusing on the similarities in affected demographics and their relative obscurity in popular culture.
  • Both disasters predominantly involved working-class immigrants, particularly women and children.

General Slocum Disaster Overview:

  • The General Slocum caught fire in the East River in 1904, claiming over 1,000 lives, mainly German immigrants from St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church (New York).
  • Discussing the details of the fire, the crew's delayed response, and the tragic loss of life.

Artistic Tribute:

  • Highlighting the incredible work of artist Cindy Vojnović, who created a series of paintings depicting the General Slocum disaster. Her artwork adds emotional depth to the tragic event and helps preserve its memory.

Reflection and Closing:

  • Reflecting on the importance of remembering and honoring past tragedies through art and storytelling.
  • Emphasizing that the Eastland and General Slocum disasters, though not as iconic as the Titanic, hold unique and significant places in history.

Links:

Natalie Zett:

Hello, I'm Natalie Zett and welcome to Flower in the River. This podcast, inspired by my book of the same name, explores the 1915 Eastland disaster in Chicago and its enduring impact, particularly on my family's history. We'll explore the intertwining narratives of others impacted by this tragedy as well, and we'll dive into writing and genealogy and uncover the surprising supernatural elements that surface in family history research. Come along with me on this journey of discovery. Hey, this is Natalie, and welcome to episode 65 of Flower in the River podcast. I'm really glad you're here and this week, as with most weeks, there is a lot to talk about. So I'm going to jump in and at the conclusion of today's podcast, I'm going to update you on some of the people that were mentioned in the letter from Martha Willig, who was the former Hoboken, new Jersey resident. Martha survived the Eastland disaster and penned a beautiful, detailed letter to her sister in Hoboken, and this letter was reprinted in one of the newspapers at that point and there were a few inaccuracies that I wanted to correct as much as possible, or rather as much as possible, or rather I wanted to update, and so we will get to that. Before we get into that, during this past week I stepped back, as I often do, and I realized that when you're engaged in this type of research whether it's researching an historical event or researching your own family history and you start getting into the stories and start doing the deeper work that's required, your ideas of who you are they get shattered fairly quickly based on the reality of what you find. And that's also true with an historical event like the Eastland disaster. And what happens is well, if you allow it to happen, your perception of who you are and who your family is can be completely transformed. And in parallel, the same thing can happen when you start to research an event such as the Eastland disaster and you realize that both your family history and events such as the Eastland are very different. They're more complex and more nuanced than what you thought, and that is the best gift of this type of research it really tackles those dug-in views that you have. So if you listened, last week, the episode focused on those with origins in New York and New Jersey who were impacted by the Eastland. New York and New Jersey who were impacted by the Eastland, and right out the gate. When you think of the Eastland as a Chicago-based thing, you think what does New Jersey have to do with it. Well, you learned a little bit about that last week, as did I, and this week.

Natalie Zett:

I wanted to lead off with the title of an article that sums up everything that's happened so far. I read an article by James Beidler, who is a well-known genealogist. The article's title is you Need Every Ancestor, every Darn One. What Beidler is saying is that every person matters, every darn one. What Beidler is saying is that every person matters, not just if they're of a certain class, gender, age. A lot of stories, granted, that don't have much detail, but that doesn't matter. What matters is trying to uncover them and share them and, most importantly, keep a record of them. Along those lines, there are so many stories that I found about people who originally came from New York, new Jersey, et cetera, and who were in Chicago during the time of the Eastland disaster. I shared those last week and there's more coming up here. But that area, that entire area too, was very affected, not just by the Eastland disaster, but by another awful tragedy that you'll hear about later in this episode. And here's an article that I wanted to share in the last couple of weeks with you but honestly, I didn't have room for it, but it's so important and the article's title is Hoboken Girl Lost.

Natalie Zett:

Miss Anna Hillman, one of the victims of the Eastland disaster, was a former Hoboken girl. Miss Hillman, who was 18 years old, lived on Clinton Street between 5th and 6th Streets, hoboken, with her mother and sister and sister. About a year and a half ago she went to Chicago and took a position with the Western Electric Company, making her home with her aunt and uncle, mr and Mrs Frederick Mikey of Chicago. Mr Mikey is also an employee at the Western Electric. Miss Lucy Hillman, an older sister of the girl, lived with Mrs Henry Tank at 182 Passaic Avenue, west Hoboken. The mother lives at Blauvelt, new York. Yesterday morning Miss Lucy Hillman received a telegram stating her sister was among those missing. Later in the day her uncle telegraphed word that she was dead. Last night the Western Electric Company of Chicago telegraphed for instructions as to the disposal of the body, stating it had been recovered. This morning Miss Lucy left for Blauvelt to confer with the mother as to what they would do about having the body brought east. Word was telegraphed to Chicago to keep the body until this afternoon when instructions will be wired. In all probability the body will be brought east for burial.

Natalie Zett:

And this is from the Jersey Journal July 26, 1915. Now what did you think about the tone of that article? This is what happened to me After I read the article. I had a visceral reaction to it and I always pay attention to things like that because I thought some things are not adding up in the description of what happened here, and there was also something about the tone. They didn't say her mother, they said the mother, and I thought that was odd as well. So stuff wasn't adding up, and it wasn't just because this article was written in 1915. So I knew that I needed to do a little bit more investigation, because I wanted to tie up these loose ends and figure out what was bothering me about this article.

Natalie Zett:

And in Anna's case, my first concern was why are all of these children living all over the place with different relatives? Why were they not living with their mother? Okay, we need to backtrack a little bit. According to the 1900 census, anna, or Annie as she was known, was living with her parents and three siblings in Hoboken, new Jersey. Her dad and mom were both immigrants from Germany and her dad was working as a saloon keeper in Hoboken. Everything seemed kind of status quo at that point.

Natalie Zett:

But here comes the 1910 census, and that reveals something dramatically different. Annie was still living in Hoboken, new Jersey, but she was residing with her aunt, who was her mother's sister, and her aunt's husband and their children, and she was working at Western Electric, as was her uncle. The question is, what happened to the rest of Annie's siblings? Where were they living? Well, long story short, her father died. So at that point Annie was 17 years old according to the 1910 census, but that doesn't match up with the age that the newspaper article reported, that she was 18 when she died. So I had to do a little bit more research, and she was actually born in 1892. And she was indeed 17 or maybe 18 years old at the time of the 1910 census, and thus she was about 22 years old when she died in 1915. I was afraid, though, for a second, that she was some kind of child worker at Western Electric, but she wasn't. She was young, but she was not a child. But she wasn't, she was young, but she was not a child. But again, why was Annie and why were her siblings living all over the place? Well, her father died, and shortly after her father's death her mother remarried and it looks like her mother married a guy who already had several children of his own. So Annie's mother and her new husband were living separately with his children in 1910. And of course Annie and her siblings were living with different relatives throughout the city of Hoboken.

Natalie Zett:

Who knows what the story is behind this. We can speculate, but we really don't know and we may never know. But maybe it was a case of something really simple. Maybe there was just no room and they had to decide to find other accommodations for the children from Annie's mother's first marriage. But what a thing to go through for the family. So they lose their dad, they're split up and they're not able to live with each other. I mean, they'd grown up with each other until that point. And when I was reading this story I thought, gosh, does this kid ever get a break? And of course she doesn't. She comes at some point to Chicago with her aunt and uncle and she continues working at Western Electric there. The one bright spot is that there is this cute photo of Annie and a bunch of her young women co-workers at Western Electric and they're dressed up for some kind of event that the company was sponsoring and they're in costume and they're just in that photo goofing around and you can tell they're having a good time posing. Little did they know that a year later after that photo was taken, that the Eastland disaster would occur occur. But I thought at least it gave me some hope that Annie had some fun and was able to enjoy her young life while she was on Earth. And if you take a look at my website I do have a photo of Annie and her friends at Western Electric having a good time.

Natalie Zett:

Now it is time to move on to another set of stories from New Jersey. This article is from the Plainfield Courier News. That's Plainfield, new Jersey, and the date is Monday, july 26, 1915. So that is two days after the Eastland disaster. Headline Alarm clock saves lives. Brother of Plainfield woman would have been on Eastland had he awoke, missed boat by minute, Another local family anxious over relative, but it is believed he also escaped Eastland disaster of excursionists.

Natalie Zett:

An alarm clock that failed to go off proved a lifesaver for Mr and Mrs AW Dorchester of St Louis Avenue, chicago, who were to enjoy an outing on the ill-fated steamship Eastland which overturned on the Chicago River Saturday morning when 1,372 passengers lost their lives. Mr Dorchester is a brother of Mrs Edward T Walsh who resides at 1144 Thornton Avenue, this city. Mr Dorchester's mother resides here also. As the excursion boat was to leave early in the day, the Dorchesters had set the alarm clock but for some unknown reason it did not go off. The family nevertheless awoke and hurried to the dock but missed the boat. Relatives in this city knowing the plans of the Dorchesters, relatives in this city knowing the plans of the Dorchesters, were quite worried on Saturday when the news of the disaster was learned, but later in the day were gratified to receive the following telegram quote missed the boat by one minute.

Natalie Zett:

Alarm clock failed to go off. Mr Dorchester had been employed for a number of years as an efficiency electrician in the Western Electric Company's works. Some anxiety is felt by Mrs Dorothy Stewart of Leland Avenue, whose brother, george Ferguson, an expert electrician, may have been on the Eastland, but Mrs Stewart said he was not one of the excursionists, for she has received no word and at any rate his name does not appear among the casualties. At any rate his name does not appear among the casualties. Miss Ethel Pearson of Chicago, a cousin of Mrs Oscar Schweitzer of Whiteburg Avenue, north Plainfield, was thought at first to be among the passengers on the Eastland on Saturday. To ally fears, mrs Schweitzer wired to Chicago yesterday and received word that although Miss Pearson had intended to go on the excursion, she took another boat later. Ms Pearson is employed as a stenographer in the office of the Western Electric Company in Chicago.

Natalie Zett:

The sinking of the Eastland recalls to mind the General Slocum disaster in New York Harbor 11 years ago. Filled to her capacity with excursionists, most of them women and children, members of the St Mark's Church of New York, the steamer General Slocum, on June 15, 1904, caught fire in the East River and before she could be beached on North Brother Island, upwards of 1,000 of her passengers had lost their lives. Among the calamities on the water accompanied by great loss of life in recent years, the White Star Line steamship Titanic, the Cunard liner Lusitania and the Canadian Pacific steamship Empress of Ireland disasters hold chief place. The Titanic, at the time the largest ship in the world, while making her maiden voyage across the Atlantic, struck an iceberg off the Newfoundland banks on April 14, 1912, and sank within a period of two hours. Of her passengers and crew, 1,059 persons lost their lives. The survivors numbered 745. The Cunard Line steamship Lusitania was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine on May 7th of the present year off Old Head of Kinsdale, ireland. The number of persons who lost their lives in this disaster was more than 1,100, including upward of 100 Americans. The Empress of Ireland sank in 20 minutes off Father Point in the St Lawrence River May 29, 1914, after being in collision with the Collier Storstad. In this wreck, 1,024 persons perished.

Natalie Zett:

That's the end of the article, but it has introduced something new and noteworthy, at least in our discussion about the Eastland. So I want to recap what happened here. On the morning of June 15th 1904, the steamship General Slocum caught fire in the East River with approximately 1,300 people on board, including many women, many children, and within 20 minutes an estimated 1,021 people had perished. Prior to September 11th 2001, this disaster held the grim distinction of being the highest death toll in New York City history. The General Slocum was a wooden side paddler built in 1891 and named after Union Army General Henry Warner Slocum, and it was chartered by the St Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church for their annual excursion. Does that sound familiar? Yeah, st Mark's Lutheran Church served primarily German immigrants from Manhattan's Lower East Side, and it mentions the East River, and I want to talk about that a little bit.

Natalie Zett:

The East River is a saltwater strait in New York City and it's actually not a river, despite its name. But it connects the upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end, and then it separates Long Island with the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, from Manhattan Island and from Bronx on the North American mainland. And as the ship sailed up the East River, a fire broke out. River. A fire broke out. Despite the presence of smoke, the inexperienced crew did not immediately alert the captain or passengers. Many passengers, facing a lack of functioning life jackets, jumped into the turbulent waters of Hellgate, leading to numerous drownings. The fire intensified as the General Slocum passed Randall's Island, finally prompting the captain to beach the burning vessel on North Brother Island. Rescue efforts were swift but chaotic, involving numerous vessels, some of which also caught fire. The ship burned to the waterline within 15 minutes. President Theodore Roosevelt's commission of investigation found multiple failures in the steamship inspection service, which had recently certified the outdated and faulty safety equipment on board. In 1906, a memorial fountain was dedicated in Tompkins Square Park to honor the victims, and annual ceremonies continue to be held there. The US Coast Guard now oversees maritime safety there. The US Coast Guard now oversees maritime safety, reflecting the ongoing importance of ferries and ships in New York City life.

Natalie Zett:

As I was researching to get more history on the General Slocum, I stumbled across a wonderful visual artist. She's got a lovely website and her name is Cindy Voinovich and she dedicated a series of paintings to the general Slocum disaster and I will put a link on my website and please visit her page because she's got a lot of different types of paintings. But her general Slocum paintings are incredible, haunting, memorable, and Cindy writes on her website, quote perhaps the only thing that shocks me as much as the utter disaster, which was the steamboat Slocum's June 15, 1904 excursion, is that it so quickly slipped into obscurity. She says there are 22 paintings in the series that were based on black and white photos taken in 1904, with the exception of the monument which I was able to view in person. There are many, many talented artists, right, but there are so few who can not only recreate or represent an image or a situation but imbue so much life into something so horrific. Cindy and I have been emailing and, as far as she knows, she has no familial connections to the general slocum. But I told her just wait, you might find something. We're drawn to things, I think for a reason, and I don't know what her reason is for being drawn to the General Slocum. Maybe she doesn't know yet either, at least on the conscious level. But give it time and I'm sure more things will be revealed. But now I'm going to try to do the impossible and describe for you two of the paintings that Cindy has created around the General Slocum.

Natalie Zett:

The first painting that I want to describe to you is that of what happened after the General Slocum disaster, and in this particular painting you see a somber scene unfolding, depicting a group of people in the aftermath of the General Slocum disaster. Cindy has captured the deep sense of grief and despair among the survivors and onlookers, and at the center of the painting several figures are seated, their postures conveying a heavy burden of sorrow. One man, dressed in a brown suit and hat, sits with his head bowed, his hands clasped together in a gesture of mourning. Beside him, a woman in a dark dress and blue hat mirrors his posture, her face hidden, absorbed in her grief. To the left, a child in light clothing stands near a seated woman who gazes out. Her expression, a mixture of sadness and resignation. The child's presence adds a poignant touch, highlighting the tragedy's impact on all ages.

Natalie Zett:

In the background, a group of men dressed in dark suits and hats, typical of the early 1900s, stand in a row. Their faces are grave, reflecting the collective mourning of the community. Some look toward the seated figures, others stare off into the distance, lost in thought. The variety of hats, from bowler to boater, adds a historical touch, anchoring the scene in its time period. The color palette is muted, dominated by dark tones and shades of brown, gray and blue, enhancing the melancholic atmosphere. The brushstrokes are expressive, capturing the raw emotion of the moment. On the right, a woman in a purple hat and light-colored dress sits slightly apart, her eyes directed toward the viewer. Her expression is intense, almost accusatory, as if demanding recognition of the pain and loss experienced by all those affected. This setting appears to be an exterior, perhaps near a building or dock, hinted at by the vague architectural elements in the background. The scene conveys a sense of displacement and harsh tragedy of a community grappling with the sudden and devastating tragedy. But there's another painting that I want to discuss, because I actually saw the photos of the bodies that are laid out, and it looks as if they're on a beach. But Cindy took that and again. Well, let me just talk about what she did with this particular painting.

Natalie Zett:

In this painting we are brought to a harrowing scene of rescue and recovery following the General Slocum disaster. The artist vividly captures the chaotic yet solemn atmosphere along the shoreline. Along the shoreline, foreground of the painting is dominated by the tragic sight of several bodies lying side by side. They are dressed in dark clothing, their faces still and peaceful in the grip of death. One body dressed in a dark suit with a white cloth draped over part of it draws the eye immediately, highlighting the sheer loss of life.

Natalie Zett:

To the left, rescuers are depicted at work. Several men are seen lifting a long wooden beam, possibly part of the wreckage or a makeshift stretcher. Their efforts are concerted and their expressions are a mix of determination and sorrow. One man in a dark uniform stands near the beam, his stance suggesting authority or coordination among the rescuers. The middle ground shows more rescuers bent over, perhaps checking for signs of life or arranging the bodies. The intensity of their actions is palpable, emphasizing the urgency and despair of the situation. The figures are dressed in early 20th century attire, with vests, hats and rolled up sleeves, marking them as workers and bystanders who have rushed to aid in the aftermath.

Natalie Zett:

The background reveals a wider view of the scene, with more figures scattered along the shore. The water reflecting the sky adds a stark contrast to the grim activities on land. The distant figures seem to be continuing the search and rescue operations. To be continuing the search and rescue operations, their forms less distinct, but their purpose clear. The sky is painted in soft, swirling hues of blue and gray, lending a somber mood to the overall composition. The colors used throughout the painting are muted and earthy, enhancing the sense of mourning and tragedy. On the right side of the painting, a tall structure, possibly part of the ship or a dock, looms over the scene. A ladder is propped against it, suggesting ongoing rescue efforts or the desperate attempts of those trying to escape during the disaster. The artist's brushstrokes are fluid and expressive, capturing the raw emotion of the moment. The interplay of light and shadow, along with the choice of colors, creates a powerful visual narrative of loss, resilience and the human spirit in the face of catastrophe.

Natalie Zett:

I hope you will take time to visit the website of this extraordinary artist. Not only has she done the General Slocum series, but she's created a special favorite of mine. Even though she didn't know that she was doing this, she has created these beautiful Byzantine icon paintings that so remind me of my grandfather, who was Rusyn and a Byzantine Christian. So, moving on, because we're coming to the end, I promised to update you on people that were identified in last week's episode as being lost on the Eastland. They were not lost on the Eastland, at least as far as my records go. They very much survived the Eastland and they were a Mr and Mrs Charles Kelly and a Mr and Mrs Walcott, and I have additional information about them and other updated pieces of information on my website. So please check that out, because it's always changing with my latest finds.

Natalie Zett:

Just as the Chicago River connects us to the Eastland, it also flows metaphorically to the waters of the General Slocum disaster. The ties between these two tragedies run deep, not just through the currents of the rivers, but through the stories of the people, ordinary individuals, many of them women and children, immigrants or first generation of their families in America. These disasters did not claim the lives of the famous, but rather they struck at the heart of the communities that built our cities and our families. The Chicago River and the East River may be separated by miles and state lines, but they share the same sorrowful tale of loss and resilience. The General Slocum disaster, much like the Eastland, was a tragedy that claimed the lives of many who had come to this country seeking a better life, leaving behind a legacy of heartbreak and heroism and heroism.

Natalie Zett:

These rivers remind us that our histories are interconnected and the stories of those lost on their waters continue to ripple through time, shaping the fabric of our collective memory. We, the descendants of those affected by these disasters, carry forward the memories of our ancestors. Their lives, though cut short, remind us of the fragility and interconnectedness of our existence. Each tragedy, each survivor, each lost life is a thread in the vast tapestry of our shared history, binding us together across time and space. Along for the ride, please subscribe or follow so you can keep up with all the episodes, and for more information, please go to my website, that's wwwflowerintherivercom. I hope you'll consider buying my book, available as audiobook, ebook, paperback and hardcover, because I still owe people money and that's my running joke. But the one thing I'm serious about is that this podcast and my book are dedicated to the memory of all who experienced the Eastland disaster of 1915. Goodbye for now.

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