Linseed King

History
NameLinseed King
OwnerSpencer Kellogg & Sons, Inc.
Port of registryUnited States
Laid down1919
FateSank December 20, 1926
General characteristics
Class and typeLaunch
Tonnage10.75 grt
Length45 ft (14 m)
Beam10 ft (3.0 m)
Depth4.5 ft (1.4 m)
Installed powerGasoline engine

The Linseed King was a gasoline-powered launch owned by Spencer Kellogg & Sons, Inc., that sank in the Hudson River near New York City on December 20, 1926, resulting in the deaths of between 51 and 58 people.[1][2][3] The boat departed Manhattan's 95th Street pier at 6:30 in the morning in darkness, carrying between 75 and 86 people, mainly workers destined for Spencer Kellogg & Sons' plant in Edgewater, New Jersey. Just past midstream, the boat struck a heavy object, likely an ice floe, opening a 19-inch (48 cm) tear in her port bow. She sank in about two minutes. Twenty-nine people survived by clinging to the launch or by swimming to ice floes, while the remainder, unable to escape the boat's cabin, drowned in the icy water.[2] It was the deadliest maritime accident in New York City history since the sinking of the PS General Slocum in 1904.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "TOLL THIRD WORST IN HARBOR HISTORY; 1,021 Lost on the General Sio-cum in 1904 and 51 to 58 on the Linseed King in 1926. MULROONEY RECALLS FIRE Arrested Excursion Boat Captain in Hospital Where Observation's Pilot Died Yesterday". The New York Times. September 10, 1932.
  2. ^ a b The Linseed King. Petition of Spencer Kellogg & Sons, Inc., 24 F.2d 967 (District Court, S. D. New York. 1928).
  3. ^ "LIABILITY UNLIMITED IN LAUNCH DISASTER; Federal Court Decides Owners of Linseed King Were at Fault When Fifty Drowned. CLAIMS TOTAL $5,053,992 Kellogg Corporation Sought Limit of $2,500, Value of Boat--way Cleared for Suits. Way Cleared for Lawsuits. Sees Corporation at Fault". The New York Times. March 17, 1928.