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Chicago, July 24, 1915: Over 2,000 Western Electric employees and their families, dressed in their finest, arrived early at the riverfront to board the Eastland, a bold and breathtaking steamship. That morning the boat was scheduled to ferry its passengers to the annual company picnic in Michigan City. Suddenly, as it sat in port, the Eastland began to list. While thousands of people watched in horror, the ship rolled to its side and silently capsized, killing a staggering 844 people.
Unlike the fabled sinking of the Titanic three years before, the Eastland disaster has somehow been lost within the annals of recent American history. Now award-winning writer and Chicagoan Jay Bonansinga has set out to discover why.
Using eyewitness narratives, rare archival materials, and first-hand accounts from those who escaped with their lives, Bonansinga pieces together the untold story of the sinking of the Eastland in the only book ever devoted to the human drama of the subject. Bringing to life all the sights and sounds of 1915 Chicago, Bonansinga recounts minute by minute the extraordinary events of that fateful day. He explores the secrets behind the Eastland's troubled past, why the catastrophe could have been predicted, and how safety measures taken in the wake of the Titanic disaster ironically contributed to the Eastland's demise.
You'll meet the master of the Eastland, Captain Harry Pederson, whose behavior before, during, and after the accident would be scrutinized for years to come; the Eastland's crew, some of whom became helpless victims of the wreck; both lucky and unlucky passengers, including a thirteen-year-old girl faced with the fight of her life; and a young mechanic who became one of the day's unsung heroes.
