The Sinking Of The Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy [Mass Market Paperback]

Jay Bonansinga (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 28, 2005

Chicago, Saturday, July 24, 1915: Over two thousand Western Electric employees and their families, dressed in their finest, arrive early at the riverfront to board the Eastland, a bold and breathtaking steamship. The boat is scheduled to ferry its passengers to the annual company picnic in Michigan City. Suddenly, as it sits in port, the Eastland begins to list. While thousands of people watch in horror, the ship rolls to its side and silently capsizes, killing a staggering 844 people... The Eastland tragedy was witnessed by nearly 10,000 bystanders and claimed more lives than the infamous Chicago Fire. Taking place in broad daylight on the city's bustling wharfside, it was a heartbreaking maritime disaster that sorrowfully echoed the sinking of the luxury liner Titanic just three years earlier. But the victims of this terrible mishap weren't among the world's most rich and famous. They were everyday people who worked hard for the right to enjoy a day's pleasure. They did not know that for many aboard, this day would be their last. And the only thing more shocking than the event that took their lives is the fact that it has been all but forgotten. Until now...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

On the morning of July 24, 1915, the liner Eastland rolled over and capsized into the Chicago River; 844 people died. In his first nonfiction book, mystery writer Bonansinga (The Black Mariah, etc.) captures the raw emotion in a story full of greed, courage and overwhelming grief. The victims were looking forward to a day of eating, drinking and dancing. Dressed in their finest, the passengers swarmed onto the boat. Gazing at the huge, sturdy looking, freshly painted vessel, most took it on faith that they were in good hands. Unbeknownst to them, the Eastland had been beset by serious problems from its launch. The ship was hard to control and prone to listing even under normal conditions, though its various owners had covered up this fact. As the disaster unfolded, the best and worst of human nature was immediately on display. Men shoved women and children out of the way in desperate attempts to escape. From shore, passersby risked their lives to save the fortunate few. In pure Chicago style, the disaster's aftermath was marked by political infighting and petty corruption. For all the loss of life and the implications to public safely, this incident is little known today; Bonansinga's powerful book returns it to the record. Photos.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"In his first nonfiction book, mystery writer Bonansinga captures the raw emotion in a story full of greed, courage, and overwhelming grief."
-- Publishers Weekly (Publisher's Weekly ) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (June 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806526483
• ISBN-13: 978-0806526485
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #643,683 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Informative and highly moving, August 11, 2005

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sinking Of The Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (Mass Market Paperback)

On the morning of Saturday, July 15, 1915, the passenger steamer Eastland was filled to capacity with some 2,500 passengers aboard. The passengers were Western Electric employees, heading out for a joyous company picnic on the other side of Lake Michigan from their home in the environs of Chicago, Illinois. As the ship prepared to cast off, it suddenly rolled over, taking some 844 men, women and children to their deaths. This is the story of the Eastland disaster, a horrifying catastrophe by any standard, and the worst disaster in Chicago's history.

Overall, I found this to be a fascinating and very informative read. Even more, especially once the narrative got to the disaster itself, I found it very moving. In particular, amongst the pictures there is one of a firefighter holding a dead child, shock and despair written all over his face - as I read the narrative, I kept turning back to that picture.

This is a great story of the disaster and the people who were caught up in it: the victims, the rescuers, the government officials and the businessmen. If you want to read an informative and highly moving account of this disaster, then get this book! I give it my highest recommendations.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why haven't many people heard about this?, July 26, 2006

By 

microtv (Jackson, MI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sinking Of The Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (Hardcover)

I'm going to cheat. I'm going to write one review and use it on three separate books. No doubt I'll offend the review gods at Amazon, but this subject merits it. Even though I live only 4 hours away from Chicago, I had never heard of the Eastland until I was searching for something entirely different and found a Western Electric website mentioning it. This is an utterly incredible story. I promptly ordered "The Sinking of the Eastland." The book goes into a fair amount of detail about the tragedy itself, yet its primary purpose is to describe the people involved and how they were affected. The author never claims to be a technical authority and instead makes reference several times to another book "Eastland: Legacy of the Titanic." I promptly ordered that one as well and while searching for additional information I learned of a third book "The Eastland Disaster (Images of America)." That one was ordered as well. Since you have read this far, you are obviously interested in my opinions and in my opinion, all three are required reading to grasp what happened. "The Eastland Disaster" is primarily a collection of relevant photographs which augment the other two books. Many more photographs of the events surrounding the ship, the sinking and the aftermath. And finally, "Eastland: Legacy of the Titanic" is much more technically oriented including the naval architecture concepts concerning the ship itself. I found this book to be especially good as it attempts to provide as much of a balanced view as possible, including several contemporary naval experts analyzing the court testimony of a leading architect of the day. Absolutely fascinating stuff. Not only that, but it is interesting to learn our concern for American jobs being lost to China is not a new thing. Ninety years ago people were worried about the same thing as a result of new regulations coming from the Titanic sinking. All three books solidly contribute to gaining knowledge about the disaster.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Really Good Historical Tale, September 2, 2005

By 

Elaine C. Kasprzyk (Plainfield, Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sinking Of The Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy (Hardcover)

I never got to know my Mother's sister, my Aunt Rose. She drowned
on the Eastland. She was buried on her 18th Birthday. But, by
reading this book I learned about the Eastland and what really
happenend. I really didn't know because my Mom was only 9 at the
time and families didn't discuss "bad" happenings. That's why
this book is so great. It takes you through the boarding and then
the overturning and the rescue. If you have anyone, who was a
passenger on that boat, or even if you don't , this is very
excellent reading. It made me cry at times to think of all those
people just dumped into the water. I thought about my Aunt,
and her final words, "Tom, what about Frannie?" Frannie being
my Mother. Tom was Rose's boyfriend. He tried to save her but
people just clung to him and he couldn't get to her.