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Re: Need help identifying original manuscript relating to wreck of th e Bawnmore, 1895



You might also try contacting the Del Norte County historical society in my old home town of Crescent City, CA. It's just across the state line from Curry County. I believe they have extensive records on the wreck of the Brother Jonathan off Crescent City, and it's not inconcievable that someone there may be able to help with your ship or know of someone who can.

Thomas Berry, Archivist
Historical Construction Equipment Association
16623 Liberty Hi Road
Bowling Green, Ohio 43402
Phone 419-352-5616
Fax 419-352-6086
tberry@wcnet.org
http://www.bigtoy.com
 

I am seeking help locating the original of, and identifying the authorship of, an item I am cataloging.  What I have is a photocopy of a typescript account of the salvage of the Bawnmore, a British steamer that ran aground just off Floras Lake, Curry County, Oregon, in 1895.  The account was evidently written by a timber company engineer/surveyor some years after the wreck.  The photocopy is actually pages 112 to 137 of the typescript.

The document I have is quoted (but not cited) in Patrick Masterson's book Port Orford: A History (p. 115-116), so he must have read the original or another copy.  Unfortunately, Mr. Masterson is deceased.  I also found information taken from this account in Shipwrecks and Rescues on the Northwest Coast by Bert Webber, but Mr. Webber claims his information came from newspaper accounts of the wreck.  I have also been in touch with the Curry County Historical Society, but they referred me to newspaper accounts as well.  I don't think newspapers would have been the source of what is evidently a memoir written years after the wreck and other events.

I would appreciate it if anyone could help me track down the original or identify the author, or make suggestions as to my next step.  Thank you.

Richard E. Sapon-White
Catalog Librarian
121 The Valley Library
Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR  97331-4501

541-737-7319 (voice)
541-737-8267 (fax)
Richard.Sapon-White@orst.edu