 Admiral Sampson in Resurrection Bay, offshore of Seward, Alaska, some time between 1898 and 1913. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | Admiral Sampson |
| Owner |
|
| Port of registry |  United States |
| Builder | William Cramp & Sons,Philadelphia |
| Yard number | 297 |
| Launched | September 27, 1898 |
| Completed | 1898 |
| In service | 1898 |
| Out of service | 1914 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Sank as a result of being rammed on August 26, 1914, in Puget Sound |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Admiral-class steamship |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 280.0 ft (85.3 m) |
| Beam | 36.1 ft (11.0 m) |
| Depth | 22.7 ft (6.9 m) |
| Installed power | 2,500 hp (1,900 kW) |
SSAdmiral Sampson was a U.S.-flagged cargo and passengersteamship that served three owners between 1898 and 1914, when it was rammed by a Canadian passenger liner and sank inPuget Sound. Following its sinking offPoint No Point,Admiral Sampson has become a notablescuba diving destination for advanced recreational divers certified to userebreathing equipment.
Admiral Sampson was one of several Admiral-class steamships built byWilliam Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania for the American Mail Steamship Company.[1] Named in honor of theUnited States Navy AdmiralWilliam T. Sampson, the other ships in the class wereAdmiral Dewey,Admiral Schley, andAdmiral Farragut.Admiral Sampson was a steel-hulled, twin-propeller design with two upper decks constructed of wood, and a singlesmokestack.[2][3]
Ordered by the American Mail Steamship Company, the vessel was put in the service of theUnited Fruit Company and made regular trips between Philadelphia andCaribbean Sea ports.[4] In February 1900,Admiral Sampson came to the rescue of theUnited States Army transport shipMcPherson, which was disabled by a broken propeller shaft offHampton Roads, Virginia.[5] On November 4, 1902Admiral Sampson sank the cargoschoonerCharlie Bucki in a collision inMassachusetts Bay in dense fog.Charlie Bucki'scaptain and three crewmen were killed.[6]
In 1909, theAlaska Pacific Steamship Company acquiredAdmiral Sampson and its sister ship,Admiral Farragut, as a result of its growing business on the West Coast shipping routes. Both ships were placed on theSan Francisco–Puget Sound shipping route.[3] In 1912, the Alaska Pacific Steamship Company acquired the remaining Admiral-class steamships and merged with theAlaska Coast Company to form thePacific-Alaska Navigation Company. The new company offered freight and passenger service between San Francisco and Puget Sound and Alaska ports as far north asNome.[3]
On the morning of August 26, 1914,Admiral Sampson leftSeattle, Washington, en route toJuneau, Alaska, with 126 passengers and crew aboard. Visibility was poor because of fog; the ship's captain, Zimro Moore, ordered a slow crawl of 3knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph), extra lookouts and the ship's whistle sounded at regular intervals. At the same time, the steamshipPrincess Victoria was inbound to Seattle with similar precautions in place.[1]
Despite both ships' precautions,Princess Victoria rammedAdmiral Sampson at approximately 5:46 a.m. near Point No Point, 18 miles (29 km) north of Seattle.[7]Princess Victoria struckAdmiral Sampson broadside, nearAdmiral Sampson's after hatch, a spot about midway betweenamidships and the ship'sstern. Capt. P. J. Hickey ofPrincess Victoria kept his ship's engines ahead and pushedPrincess Victoria into the gash torn into the hull ofAdmiral Sampson. This action both reduced the amount of water rushing into the hole and allowed some ofAdmiral Sampson's passengers and crew to evacuate ontoPrincess Victoria.[7]
Princess Victoria's crew lowered their ship'slifeboats to aidAdmiral Sampson's passengers and crew, as it was apparent that the latter ship was sinking. Captain Moore ordered the same action aboardAdmiral Sampson, but only two boats could be lowered in time.[8] Moore ordered that his passengers be dropped overboard for pickup by the lifeboats. He ordered the crew off the ship and said he would stay with the ship.[9]
In addition to tearing a gash that stretched belowAdmiral Sampson's waterline, the impact ofPrincess Victoria ruptured an oil tank aboardAdmiral Sampson and started a fire.Princess Victoria was forced to pull away and theAdmiral Sampson sank, about 15 minutes after the collision. All told, 114 passengers and crew members were saved. Eight crew members, including Capt. Moore, and three passengers drowned. One injured crew member died later in a hospital.[7]
Thewireless operators of both ships transmittedSOS signals constantly. AboardAdmiral Sampson, wireless operator Walter E. Reker transmitted emergency messages and helped passengers board lifeboats; he then joined his captain on the bridge. Reker and Captain Moore went down with the ship.[10] Reker's name was added to the Wireless Operators Memorial in New York City'sBattery Park.The Wireless World reported in April 1915: "As the cargo of his vessel consisted of oil, the horrors of fire were super-added to the situation and Reker found too much work to do to think of his own safety. He shared the fate of the captain side by side with him on the bridge."
Telegraph and Telephone Age reported on May 16, 1915: "It is proof of the bravery and efficiency of the crew that [most] passengers were saved. Reker might have saved himself by taking to the boats with the passengers and the greater part of the crew. He remained at the wireless telegraph key, however, giving direction to the rescuing ship which proved invaluable. He ignored repeated appeals from the boats to save himself. When the last boat had left safely, Reker reported to the bridge and remained to share the fate of the captain. It proved to be too late for them to leave and eight of the men, including the wireless telegraph operator, went down with the ship."[11]
A large crowd metPrincess Victoria when it reached theCanadian Pacific Railroad wharf shortly after 10 a.m.Princess Victoria had a gash two or three feet (0.61 or 0.91 m) above thewaterline, extending 20 feet (6.1 m) back from the bow.[7]
"Her decks were crowded with people, half of them well-dressed and the other half with only fragments of clothing protecting them from the cold," theSeattle Star reported. "A gaping wound loomed large in the vessel's bow, only two or three feet above the water line … In the breech hung a battered hatch cover from the Admiral Sampson."[11]
The wreck ofAdmiral Sampson remained undisturbed for 80 years, owing to its depth and the difficulty of a salvage operation. In 1991, two divers usedside-scan sonar to locateAdmiral Sampson's resting place. The following year, the two men obtained exclusivesalvage rights for the ship. They began diving on the wreck with a small, two-man submarine and retrieved artifacts, including the ship's whistle.[1][8]
The wreck rests about 320 feet (98 m) below the surface of Puget Sound, directly under a major shipping route. The hull lies in two pieces, having broken apart either as it sank or shortly after it hit bottom. In 1994, the two men expressed hopes that they might find the ship'ssafe, which was believed to contain a valuable diamond necklace. Another potential prize was a suitcase containing gold brought aboard by a passenger.[8] The search failed to discover the safe, but the salvagers did recover the ship'sengine order telegraph and variousgalley equipment.[1]
Since the pioneering dives in the early 1990s,Admiral Sampson has become a destination for a handful of technically advanced and experienced divers. Owing to its depth and location, it is believed that fewer than 15 divers visitedAdmiral Sampson before 2005. DivingAdmiral Sampson remains a highly technical and involved experience. Owing to its location in Puget Sound shipping lanes, coordination with theUnited States Coast Guard is required.[12][13]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in August 1914 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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