The real story of the Magellan will probably never be learned. The craft, which
was the "canaler" type, was a big boat for her day, being of 500 tons capacity,
and was enroute from Chicago to Oswego with a cargo of 20,000 bushels of corn. She
hailed from Toronto and was sailed by a Canadian crew. Because of the storm she
came to anchor outside of Two Rivers and the story is that she was run down by the
Joseph L Hurd of the Leopold Austrian line but this was never investigated. The
Hurd came into this port with some damage to her bow and a shifted cargo, retrimmed
and left but no statement was made regarding any accident. The accident occurred
on November 8, 1877 and the Magellan with all hands on board went down to Davy
Jones locker. Days later the sea gave up its dead, the bodies being washed to the
shore where they were recovered by people from this city.
The finding of the anchor of the Magellan at the point off Two Rivers would
indicate, say marine men, that when the storm broke the boat may have dropped
anchor at that spot and that the vessel tore loose in the storm to be wrecked and
sunk nearby, probably within a mile or two of the place where the anchor was
recovered yesterday.
The wrecked hull of the lost steamer for many years has lain on the beach
between this city and Two Rivers and the fact that pieces of the boat still are
intact points to the staunchness of the craft which must have been of sturdy build
and timber to have withstood for so long a time the onslaught of the elements, the
winds, rains, snows and ice.
Photograph Dead of Wreck
The victims of the disaster were all brought to a building east of Eighth street,
near where the Torrison warehouse is now, where a rather unusual procedure was
taken. The dead bodies were placed in standing positions and photographs taken of
all of them. The photographs were forwarded to Toronto, home port of the vessel
and all of the bodies claimed by relatives with a single exception, that of Emil
Gilius Larson which was buried in the Potter's Field at Evergreen cemetery.
But Larson's grave did not go unmarked. For the purpose of future identification
a wooden board with the name of Larson, the date of the disaster and other
information marked the spot and then years ago a visit to the spot by Nic
Kettenhoffen resulted in a permanent monument at his own expense. It is not an
elaborate headstone but it is a wonderful piece of work showing the old style
anchor with hawser attached and bearing on its face an inscription that gives
Larson's history as far as it was known here.