Wreck of the Steamship Pacific by Brian K. Crawford

"The Worst Maritime Disaster of the West Coast"

The tragic story of the 1875 sinking of the steamship Pacific off Cape Flattery in Washington, with the loss of up to five hundred lives, making it the worst maritime disaster in the history of the West Coast.

On the evening of Thursday, November 4, 1875, the steamship Pacific collided with the clipper ship Orpheus off Cape Flattery in Washington. The Orpheus resumed her journey but the Pacific – old, unsafe, and dangerously overcrowded – broke up in minutes and went down, scattering hundreds of men, women, and children into the sea. Exactly how many died will never be known, but the names we know are enough to make this still the worst maritime disaster in the history of the West Coast. Only two men survived, and their first-hand accounts are here. The passengers included many wealthy and famous people, along with gold miners, singers, actors, and an equestrian troupe. One passenger had already survived three other shipwrecks on the same passage. Several were carrying large amounts of gold. The stories of how they came to be aboard that night are as interesting as the disaster itself. In period newspaper articles, letters, diaries, and mysterious notes in bottles, the tales are told.