161: Chicago's SS Eastland Disaster w/ Michael McCarthy - A True Crime History Podcast

Most Notorious! A True Crime History Podcast

Erik Rivenes

True Crime, History, Education

4.7 • 2.8K Ratings

🗓️ 26 July 2020

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On July 15th, 1915, a steamship with a checkered past called the SS Eastland docked at a wharf on the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, ready to transport 2500 Western Electric employees and their families across Lake Michigan to a company picnic. Once boarding completed, however, terrible tragedy struck when the ship tilted over and into the river, killing over 800 people -mostly women and children- in a horrific, chaotic scene.

My guest is Michael McCarthy, author of the New York Times Bestseller "Ashes Under Water: The SS Eastland and the Shipwreck That Shook America". He offers a fascinating glimpse into the history of the ill-fated SS Eastland and recounts the story of the tragic sinking and its aftermath, including famed attorney Clarence Darrow's involvement in the trial that followed.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	On this episode of the most notorious podcast, the sinking of the SS Eastland steamship,
0:10.2	one of the worst nautical disasters in American history.
0:15.9	But the scene was so terrible because it was a situation where people were drowning all
0:22.2	at the same time and men were grabbing a hold of women and pulling them down, trying
0:27.9	to float on them.
0:29.9	Most of the people who died got trapped at a stairwell inside the ship.
0:35.1	Everybody had to go up the one single stairwell from deck to deck and as they all tried to
0:40.6	get up the same stairwell when the boat tipped over and was on its side, two big problems.
0:45.7	Number one, a stairwell on its side now has the treads going up and down so there's
0:50.0	nothing to grab onto.
0:51.5	And secondly, as everybody tried to get up the staircase, which is now sideways and can't,
0:57.1	they pile up together and most of the bodies were found right at that single spot.
1:01.7	It was a choke point.
1:28.1	Welcome everyone to another episode of the most notorious podcast.
1:32.9	I'm Eric Rivenes.
1:34.8	Great to have you here as always.
1:37.3	I am so pleased to have as my guest today, Michael McCarthy.
1:42.9	He worked as both a reporter and an editor at the Wall Street Journal for 22 years.
1:50.3	But he is the author of the New York Times best selling book, Ashes Underwater, the SS
1:58.2	Eastland and the shipwreck that shook America.
2:03.3	Thank you so much for coming on the show.
2:06.1	Eric, I'm honored to be here with you.
	...

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