S3 Ep23: The Sultana Tragedy

Crimes of the Centuries

Amber Hunt and Audioboom

True Crime, Documentary, Society & Culture, History

4.6 • 3.8K Ratings

🗓️ 28 August 2023

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On April 27th, 1865, the Sultana, a 260 foot-long wooden steamboat, exploded into flames and sank on the Mississippi River. While the ship was only designed to hold 376 people, more than 2,000 passengers, predominantly made up of Union soldiers returning home from Confederate prisons, were crowded on board under the command of Captain James Cass Mason. In addition to the ship being overloaded, the boiler was leaking and showing signs of trouble. In today's episode, we explore how a preventable tragedy driven by greed led to the deadliest maritime disaster in U.S. history.

"Crimes of the Centuries" is a podcast from the Obsessed Network exploring forgotten crimes from times past that made a mark and helped change history.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @centuriespod

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Some crimes are so heartbreaking or shocking that they change laws, change society, or even
0:14.5	earn the label crime of the century.
0:18.5	But the stories that made headlines and decades passed aren't necessarily remembered today.
0:25.1	I'm Amber Hunt, a journalist and author, and in each episode of this show, I'll examine
0:30.2	a case that's maybe lesser known today, but was huge when it happened.
0:36.7	This is crimes of the centuries.
0:50.8	As more and more men climbed aboard the already packed ship deck, they began to grumble.
0:56.4	They didn't want to seem ungrateful.
0:57.8	They were absolutely elated to be on board this vessel, which was set to finally send
1:03.0	them home after months, and even years, as prisoners of war and enemy territory, the man
1:08.6	this boat was crowded.
1:10.2	Like really crowded, it seemed as though people were crammed into every corner of the
1:14.8	Sultana, a Cincinnati-built steamer legally approved to carry 376 people.
1:21.5	There wouldn't be enough room for everyone to sleep, that's for sure.
1:25.5	The men politely lodged their complaints, are you sure we can all fit on this thing?
1:30.3	Leave an offer to solution.
1:32.1	There were other boats docked alongside the Sultana that seemed practically empty.
1:37.0	Can't some of us go on one of those instead to split up the load?
1:41.5	James Cass Mason, captain and part owner of the steamboat, assured the men that everything
1:46.5	was fine.
1:47.5	Besides, those other boats might appear less crowded, but they carried diseases.
1:53.5	And anyway, you all were just released as prisoners of war, don't you just want to get
	...

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