The Suffolk County Historical Society Museum will spotlight The Sinking of the Steamboat Lexington on Long Island Sound, a book by author Bill Bleyer, on Saturday, Jan. 11.
The book commemorates the Jan. 13, 1840, fire that claimed more than 145 lives when the Lexington sank northwest of Port Jefferson. The event will include a discussion, book signing, and exhibit of artifacts related to the disaster.
The Book & Bottle event, titled The Sinking of the Great Ship Lexington, will take place from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the museum, located at 300 W. Main St., Riverhead.
In an interview with the South Shore Press, Victoria Berger, the museum’s executive director, described the disaster and its role in shaping maritime safety reform.
“It was one of the largest and most luxurious steamboats of our nation at that time. As it was traveling down near the Long Island Sound, they had some cotton bales stored on the top deck, and smoke and ambers from the smokestacks settled down on the cotton bales and ignited them and set the entire boat on fire,” Berger said.
Escape was nearly impossible due to sub-zero temperatures and malfunctioning lifeboats, she explained.
“The lifeboats were misplaced so they were actually in front of the paddle wheels. As the lifeboats were dropped down to the water, they were getting crushed under the paddle wheels so basically everyone on board was killed. It was also bitter cold; it was in January, and temperatures that night had dropped down to -11°… and so anyone who tried to jump off the ship into the waters would have also been killed by hypothermia.”
With only four survivors, one a second mate who drifted ashore in Riverhead after 40 hours at sea, the incident prompted legislators to enact safety measures aimed at minimizing future maritime disasters.
As Berger explained, the Lexington disaster made it a “catalyst for acts of legislation to actually start writing more maritime safety laws,” creating a world where life preservers and life jackets would be required, as well as ample lifeboats. “Because of this tragedy it set a lot of balls in motion in our country to develop tighter maritime safety regulations,” she said.
Curated by Bleyer, the exhibit includes a lithograph of the paddlewheel steamboat by NYC-based Currier and Ives, founded by Nathaniel Currier in 1835, and a painting of the Lexington before the fire, when it was owned by American tycoon "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt.
“We have first-edition newspapers,” which detail the accident, she said. “We have some letters that were written with witness accounts of the tragedy, and he’ll [Bleyer] be talking about each of those artifacts.”
Regarding the timing of the event, Berger noted, “It's coming up on the anniversary. It happened on Jan. 13, 1840, and it’s one of those stories that has been lost to history. This has been a great opportunity to raise awareness that it was one of the greatest maritime disasters on the Long Island Sound.”
The Suffolk County Historical Society offers a variety of exhibits and programs that connect the public with the region’s vibrant past.
“We were founded in 1886. We are the oldest museum institution of its kind on Long Island, and we have about 10 galleries of exhibits at any given time. We have lots of programming like this; we have lectures; we have genealogy workshops; as well as Book and Bottle lectures where we have local authors present local history," Berger said.
Berger also highlighted the History Through Music series, which features concert performances, and the museum’s library of archives for research. The museum is open year-round, Wednesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
For more information about the Steamboat Lexington event on Jan. 11, call 631-727-2881, ext. 100, for registration and prepayment. Tickets are $8 for non-members, free for members, and include refreshments. Copies of Bleyer’s book will also be available for purchase.