Peachy Bright's pocket watch .
Today is the 144th anniversary of the greatest maritime disaster
in United States history. The steamship Sultana, a Mississippi River
paddle wheeler, contracted by the U. S. War Department, was loaded
with Union soldiers, just released from Confederate prison camps.
The legal capacity for the ship was 376, but was crowded with 2400
soldiers, desperate to get home. One of the Sultana's four boilers,
poorly repaired just days earlier, exploded, causing the ship to sink
several miles north of Memphis on April 27, 1865.in United States history. The steamship Sultana, a Mississippi River
paddle wheeler, contracted by the U. S. War Department, was loaded
with Union soldiers, just released from Confederate prison camps.
The legal capacity for the ship was 376, but was crowded with 2400
soldiers, desperate to get home. One of the Sultana's four boilers,
poorly repaired just days earlier, exploded, causing the ship to sink
photo of the over crowded Sultana
taken the day before the disaster
.
No exact death toll is known, but the official count by the United
States Customs Service was 1,547 and estimates range from 1,300
to 1,900, even more than perished on the Titanic. This disaster
received somewhat diminished attention, since it took place soon after
the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and during the closing
weeks of the Civil War.
Peachy Bright's statement of Civil War service
from the National Archives
.
My two great-great-great uncles, Peachy and Isaac Bright, born
1841 and 1843, in Madison Township, Montgomery Co, Ohio
and enlisted into service from Howard Co., Indiana in the 24th
Indiana Artillery Regiment, were on board the Sultana. They had
both just been released from the horrific Andersonville prison camp
and were finally on their way home to their loved ones. Sadly, they
both perished in the explosion.
.
Peachy's pocket watch was given to me by my grandfather, just a
few months before he died at the age of 93. Regrettably, the tin
type photos of both young Bright brothers were separated from the
collection of family albums I am currently scanning and cataloging
into a book for the extended family.
What a personally poignant piece of history you get to keep and cherish for the entire family. I didn't know about the Sultana and its sad demise. I'm sure very few people would know either. Thank you for sharing it with us.
ReplyDeletea sad day indeed. I think it is wonderful that you give pause to remember your great-great-great uncles. thank you for sharing this touching story.
ReplyDeleteWhat a tragic tale and one I have NEVER heard. Thank you for the history. How incredible to have his pocket watch and the project you're working on? What an extraordinary gift.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I have ever heard of this tragic incident...
ReplyDeleteIt is so sad to have lost loved ones who were just trying to get home as soon as possible.
But it must be an honor to have inherited such a lovely timepiece. So much history and love can be packed into a tiny heirloom.
How terribly sad. They were finally on their way home. Thanks for educating us on this disaster. I had never heard anything about this horrific accident. I was reading not long ago about one of my relatives who died of injuries, writing a letter home as he lay mortally wounded. What a toll this war took.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing that sad, sad story and how it has significance for your family! What a treasure that pocket watch must be, especially with the fascinating and sad historical info that you have to go along with it. It's sad that I've never heard of that incredible disaster before. I will now remember it! Blessings, Lisa
ReplyDeletewow, i've never heard of that tragic sinking. i seriously wonder how they got 2400 people onboard a ship designed to hold 376! they must have been hanging off every surface!
ReplyDeletewhat a treasure to have the watch!
thank you for sharing this story!
I have never heard of this disaster, what a sad story, thank you for letting us know.
ReplyDeletetragic, yet very intriguing story.love the pocket watch, have an old railway watch given to me by my dad that has been passed down, need to get it fixed as it has sprung. very cool you are looking into you history.
ReplyDeleteI take it this for your future book. It will be a marvel to behold. What an interesting and yet sad story at the same time. And how many memories that watch must hold. Many thanks for such a beautiful post.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from London.
I am familiar with the Sultana disaster. I too, had ancestors who fought and perished on both sides during that terrible war.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful heirloom the watch is. I'm sure you treasure it.
Thanks, Willow, for sharing this bit of forgotten history. As a Cuban in London said, this belongs in a book.
ReplyDeleteCuban, this would make a great historical novel! But the project I'm currently working on is my personal memoirs.
ReplyDeleteWillow....this is a wonderful tribute to the Sultana! I am familar with the story as a Civil War buff, it is a horriable tragedy! The watch is priceless!!
ReplyDeleteCarol
How very interesting. Like many others I had never heard of this.
ReplyDeleteAfter a quick scan of what's out there, I hear Ken Burn's did mention it but I must have blinked.
It makes me wonder what else we will discover over the years.
"somewhat diminished attention"...that's for sure! I don't remember hearing of it ever!
ReplyDeleteSo wonderful that you have that watch...it's beautiful!
Too soon forgotten, the tragedies of war and they are all tales of sorrow. Good luck with your search.
ReplyDeleteHow easily pieces of history can fall by the wayside. I've never heard this story either, your uncles' heroic legacy is spreading the word to us.
ReplyDeleteA very sad story. Still, I admire your knowledge of & connection to your family history. The pocket watch is an amazing object.
ReplyDeleteWhat a story, Willow! I was not familiar with this ship. How tragic, and how extremely sad that it was probably avoidable. I was fascinated with stories about ships growing up, in particular because I had a great aunt and her 3 children who were in a ship that was torpedoed during WWII, and they all perished excepting for one child, whom we came to know as "Uncle" Con. I love that beautiful watch! What a treasure.
ReplyDeleteI recently read "The Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All" and after a slow start, it was quite engaging. Life then was very different than ours, that's for sure. What a beautiful shot of the watch, there's an episode about one in the book as well.
ReplyDeleteI did not know about the Sultana. How truly awful to have survived the war & the pow camp only to perish on the trip home. That is a true tragedy.
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful though that you have the watch as a link to your ancestor. It is beautiful.
Thank you for sharing, Willow.You always have interesting posts. I look forward to every update and am never disappointed.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Susie
Wow...what a story. I'd never heard of the Sultana tragedy. Thanks willow.
ReplyDeleteso interesting. and such a tragedy. i'm sorry about your uncles. how wonderful though that you have this interest in exploring and recording your family history.
ReplyDeleteA brilliant post. A sad post. I enjoyed reading the account you gave us and the bits and pieces...the watch and the photo and the letter. Well said. I surely enjoyed the post. And I had never heard of the explosion on the Sultana until I read it here. I wonder why that never made the history books?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the visits.
Expected rain tomorrow. Wednesday, expecting a new very large zoom lens and with that I should be able to get some pictures I have never got before.
I will, of course, be on a diet of bread and water over the cost, but at my age I sometimes think I deserve something from the estate.
It is such a remarkable thing that you know so very much of your family's history, Willow. How marvelous that you are putting it all together for them.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of the Sultana. The photo is amazing, and sad.
Thank you for sharing this story with us Willow. How sad. The time piece is a treasured item even more so for its history. How wonderful that it ended up in your loving hands.
ReplyDeleteOf this catastrophe, I have not heard. Amazing since it was a larger death toll than the Titanic. You are probably right in that it occured between to very momentus events.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely tribute to your great-great-great uncles. It was a terrible disaster and one not well known to the American people. Thank you for submitting it today.
ReplyDeleteTruly sad and so sad in the fact it seems lost in history. I can just imagine all the beating hearts wanting just to go home...your uncles among them.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of this disaster..........& the pocket-watch is indeed a poignant Gift.Very Sad, but its wonderful that (after all this time)it still has a keen personal meaning,
ReplyDeleteWhat a personal tragedy for your family and a national tragedy. I think it's wonderful you have his pocket watch.
ReplyDeleteTerribly sad. I suppose the watch gave those left behind a small measure of comfort, but still...Good for you for preserving the family memories. Otherwise stories like that of the Sultana would be forever lost.
ReplyDeleteThank you for more insight of your family history. It is very thoughtful how you commemorate your ancestors of your family.
ReplyDeleteFascinating commemoration..this was indeed an incident not easily recognized..I thank you for having the historic knowledge and salute your family connection!
ReplyDeleteYou're absolutely right. I've never heard of the Sultana, although I'd heard of the Emancipation Proclamation, Sherman's March, Gettysburg, and Bleeding Kansas. And I'm sure I don't have those in chronological order. Civil War history is poorly taught, lots of cliches and not much nuance or detail. That goes for the rest of history too, but you'd think we'd at least get our own national history right. Anyway, thanks for the history lesson!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this Willow. I'd entirely forgotten this disaster; interesting to read of your connection to it. History is always about people.
ReplyDeletewow Willow - this was not mentioned in our textbook in school when studying this frightful war - a very sad incident indeed - always learn something new here....
ReplyDeleteWhat a tragedy. Thank you for bringing it to my attention Willow. What a sad day to add to the loss of life already suffered in your country's Civil War.It is wonderful that you have such a treasured momento from your family.
ReplyDeleteA very sad story, Willow. The pocketwatch is a lovely keepsake.
ReplyDeleteI love the Assistant Adjutant General's handwriting; he certainly wrote with a flourish!
Like most here I had never heard of this sad story... thank you for this thoughtful post. Just imagine the individual stories of each and every person on board that boat...what they had been through during the war, prior to getting on board. The collective hope that boat was carrying..... a sad story indeed. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteSuch a sad story and one I hadn't heard. The pocket watch must hold great symbolism for you, Willow. A beautiful reminder of a brave man.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't heard of the Sultana, either. My goodness, what a sad thing to have happened.
ReplyDeleteIt's wonderful that you have Peachy's watch. It fascinates me that some of the little fragments of our lives manage to endure.
Hello Willow,
ReplyDeleteThe pocket watch is indeed a treasure. And "Peachy" what a name! Tragedies such as this are all the more distressing when those involved are supposed to be being saved!
...I am yet another who had never heard of this incident...it is an amazingly touching story especially with your connections to it...the photo of the overcrowded boat is very sad...definitely seeds for a great historical novel!
ReplyDeleteThat pocket watch is a gem. Thank you for sharing your story, however tragic.
ReplyDeleteSarah
What a tragic story...but a fabulous post!!! Thanks for sharing this! And congrats on your POTD! So well-deserved!
ReplyDeleteMy first time here. Came over from David's blog. Such a heartrending story. I can't imagine the grief the families must have gone through to have their loved ones so near, but so far.
ReplyDeleteI learned about the Sultana in school eons ago, but didn't realize that the death toll exceeded the Titanic.
ReplyDeleteSo tragic for your family to lose them when they were enroute home.
Congrats on POTD for this wonderful story.
A sad story-but a wonderful post. Congratulations on the Post of the Day from authorblog!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing to hold pieces of our ancestors in our hands. At least pieces that were held in their hands. Thank you for your tribute!
ReplyDeleteI remember parts of this...but not the details. Such a tragic disaster.
ReplyDeletecongrats on david's potd
I remember learning about this in our US history class. So sad.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on being POD! Well deserved!
I hope you find those photos to add to the wonderful piece of history and family life you have here. It is always a pleasure to arrive at your door step and learn more about history.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really irresponsible thing for the captain to do, to overload his ship like that! I hope you find the photos you're looking for. Good luck!
ReplyDelete