THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 2017
COMMUNITY
1B
THE ILL-FATED ROSECRANS
he ill-fated iron tanker Rosecrans crashed on the rocks near
Peacock Spit in a “furious gale” 104 years ago Saturday, Jan.
7, according to the Jan. 8, 1913, edition of the New York Tribune
(http://tinyurl.com/peacockrose). She is pictured, courtesy of the
Saltwater People Historical Society archives.
The story, headlined “Thirty-One Lost on Hoodooed Steam-
ship,” mentions that the ship, once an army transport vessel, left
in her wake “marine records strewn with tales of death and disas-
ter connected with her career.” Only four survived this particular
incident.
The ship was heading to Portland with a cargo of crude oil when
she ran into a 55 mph gale near the Columbia River bar. It was spec-
ulated that the officers “lost their bearings” in the storm, causing the
ship to be hurled onto the rocks.
The Rosecrans wired for assistance, and the tugs Oneonta and
Goliath and life-saving crews from Fort Canby and Point Adams
Rescue sped out to assist. “When the tugs reached the neighbor-
hood of the tanker she was found to be hard aground, and the high
seas and driving winds made a near approach impossible,” the story
says. Instead, they concentrated on looking for survivors in the
water. There were none.
In the meantime, the vessel — which by then had taken a severe
pounding — shifted and began to break up. Soon she slipped off the
rocks and sank, leaving only the masts and funnel showing above
water. All seemed to be lost, but incredibly, three crewmen were still
clinging to the rigging.
“For many hours they clung there, the waves breaking over them
repeatedly,” the story says. “The wind died down somewhat late
today, and the lifesavers were able to reach them. Two of the men
were taken from their perch, while the third, who had leaped into
the sea when the lifeboat neared the spot, was taken from the water.”
The fourth survivor, a lucky man indeed, came ashore six miles
north of the wreck at what was then known as Tioga, Washington (a
long-gone resort subdivision on the north boundary of Long Beach).
The Rosecrans’ disastrous run of bad luck was finally over.
‘A WONDERFUL PERSON’
FIRE AND ICE
T
ASTORIA IN THE FOOTLIGHTS
f you loved the book “Asto-
ria: John Jacob Astor and
Thomas Jefferson’s Lost
Pacific Empire, A Story of
Wealth, Ambition, and Sur-
vival” by Peter Stark, or, if
you didn’t have a chance to
read it but wish you had, there’s
a treat in store for you.
“Astoria: Part One,” by
Chris Coleman, based on the book, is being put on by Portland
Center Stage at The Armory. Previews are Jan. 14-19, opening
night is Jan. 20, and the show runs through Feb. 12, at the U.S.
Bank Main Stage in Portland. The story is in two parts, covering
two seasons: Part One features 16 actors, and is about the journey
to Astoria; Part Two is about the establishment of Astoria. Tick-
ets are available at www.pcs.org (where there’s also a lot of other
information) or by calling 503-445-3700.
And here’s a deal for you: Since Coleman and his design and
production team spent an afternoon at the Columbia River Mari-
time Museum as part of the creation of the play, you can get a $5
discount on tickets by using the promo code “CRMM.” Bravo!
I
y dear friend, Patricia Fessler (pictured), whom I work
for on a government work program at her thrift store,
Penny-Wise, had an accident in December,” Rebecca Graham
wrote. “She fell at her store, and (her husband) Peter took her to
the hospital, where she was medevaced to St. Vincent’s in Port-
land. The next day, she had surgery for a broken hip.
“She is a wonderful person, and has been so prominent in the
community. We need support for her for volunteers, cards, best
wishes or whatever can be sent to let her know we care about
her, and Peter and Penny-Wise.” In case you don’t know, the
store profits benefit the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
(DBSA) of North Oregon & South Washington Coast.
Want to give Patricia a shout out, or help out? The address
is Penny-Wise Thrift Store, 737 E. Harbor St., Warrenton, OR
97146.
‘M
here’s been a bit of an uproar in the Titanic history sec-
tor. According to The New York Times (http://tinyurl.
com/titanic-fire) Irish journalist Senan Molony, who has
been researching the ship for more than 30 years, pro-
claimed in a recently aired documentary, “Titanic: The New
Evidence” (http://tinyurl.com/titandoc) that a coal fire on
board, not just the iceberg, was responsible for the vessel’s
demise.
Molony contends that the fire — which had been raging
for three weeks in a three-story-high coal bunker next to a
boiler room — weakened the hull, causing Titanic to sink
as quickly as it did after the collision with the iceberg, long
before help could arrive, in fact, causing the deaths of more
than 1,500, including the great-grandson of Astoria’s name-
sake, John Jacob Astor IV.
“It’s a perfect storm of extraordinary factors coming
together: fire, ice and criminal negligence,” Molony argues.
“The fire was known about, but it was played down. She
should never have been put to sea.” He argues that the
launch and maiden voyage proceeded anyway, because to
delay would have been financially disastrous.
This new revelation about the fire comes from an unpub-
lished album of Titanic photos found in an attic, taken during
and after the ship was built, and discovered by a descendant
of the Belfast ship-building company, Harland and Wolff.
In the photos, a 30-foot “black mark” (shown in a screen
shot from the documentary) can be seen near where the
ship hit the iceberg, and engineers at the Imperial College
London who studied the photos said the mark was likely
caused by a coal bunker fire. Molony calls this discovery
“the Titanic equivalent of Tutankhamen’s tomb.”
A former honorary secretary of the British Titanic Soci-
ety, David Hill, who has been studying disastrous sinking
for more than 50 years, isn’t convinced, however. The ice-
berg “opened up too many compartments to the sea, so that
the weight of the water dragged the bow down so low that
the ship eventually sank,” he said. “A fire may have accel-
erated this. But in my view, the Titanic would have sunk
anyways.”
T
GONE FISHIN’
iled under “You’ve Gotta Be Kidding”: The PowerRay Fish
Finder, a submersible drone — made by Beijing drone builder
PowerVision — “uses sonar to detect fish, blue light to lure them
in and a 4K camera to stream all the action back to the boat” to a
smartphone app or an optional set of PowerVision Virtual Real-
ity (VR) Goggles, according to NewAtlas.com (http://tinyurl.com/
cheatfish). A photo of the drone is shown, courtesy of PowerVision.
The PowerRay has an operating time of four hours, can dive
to 98 feet, has multiple operating modes, and an optional sonar
attachment can detect fish up to 131 feet away. It can also lure
fish, and drop bait where you want to cast your line, and even
identify fish, if you wish. If fishing ain’t your thing, you can
always take 4K underwater photos without having to don a wet-
suit, or use it for underwater inspections.
You can preorder, starting Feb. 27, at http://powervision.me/
en, with one caveat: There’s no word yet at how much this little
marvel will cost.
F
WHO GOES THERE?
ANCHORS AWEIGH
AT LAST, A MUSEUM
arine biology fans take note: Scientists from Ore-
gon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science
Center are hearing what they call “crazy” calls from the
depths of the Mariana Trench, according to a story on
NewAtlas.com (http://tinyurl.com/trench-call). The trench,
which is in the western Pacific Ocean, is one of the deepest
ocean areas known to man. To give you some idea of how
deep, according to Geology.com (http://tinyurl.com/deep-
est6), a 2009 an unmanned robotic vehicle reached a depth
of 35,814 feet (about 6.8 miles).
OSU scientists have named this eerie new sound,
recorded by research instruments at a depth of 3,281 feet,
the “Western Pacific Biotwang.” You can hear it here:
http://tinyurl.com/osutwang
Scientists think the calls are from minke whales, but
they’re baffled that the sounds occur year-round. Is it a new
type of whale song? Could well be, even though new song
discoveries are rare.
“It really is an amazing, weird sound,” Sharon Nieu-
kirk, lead author of the study, noted, “and good science
will explain it.”
M
hile planning continues for a modest Scandinavian memo-
rial in Astoria, in Seattle, the Nordic Heritage Museum is
embarking on a huge building project on Market Street in the Bal-
lard neighborhood,” Astorian writer and photographer Peter Marsh
(http://sea-to-summit.net) wrote, noting that they have already
started driving the 300 pilings needed to prepare the foundation.
“There are 2,700 families in the museum’s membership helping
to raise the estimated $45 million the new building will cost,” he
continued. “This will replace the organization’s original home — a
small 1907 grade school leased from the Seattle School District.”
An image of the planned completed museum is shown, cour-
tesy of the Nordic Heritage Museum website, http://nordicmu-
seum.org/future
“This will be the only museum in the U.S.,” Peter added, “to
honor the legacy of immigrants from the five Nordic countries:
Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.”
‘W
he Maritime Archaeological Society (http://maritimear-
chaeological.org) took a trip up the Washington coast to the
Westport Maritime Museum (www.westportmaritimemuseum.
com) to measure a large anchor (pictured, courtesy of MAS) a
fisherman had found in his net and donated to the museum.
MAS then posted the anchor (No. 770) on the Big Anchor
Project website (www.biganchorproject.com), which docu-
ments found anchors all over the world, and emphasizes their
historical function and importance.
“Sometimes the anchor is the last remaining visible symbol
of an incident at sea,” the website says, “whether cut loose in
emergency or marking the last resting place of a shipwreck. …
The distribution of particular types may show old trade routes,
or mark the progress of exploration, and all this evidence is just
lying around us every day.”
If you create an account with Big Anchor (it’s free), you can
see the database, which has nearly 700 photographic entries.
The oldest category is stone anchors; and the biggest category is
stocked anchors, which came into use around 500 B.C.
The Big Anchor project is always looking for images of
anchors, so keep your camera handy.
T
COMMUNITY NOTES
SATURDAY
Sit and Stitch Group — 11
a.m. to 1 p.m., Custom Threads,
1282 Commercial St. Knitting, cro-
cheting and needle work. For infor-
mation, call 503-325-7780.
Detachment 1228 Marine
Corps League — noon, Uptown
Cafe, 1639 S.E. Ensign Lane, War-
renton. For information, contact Lou
Neubecker at 503-717-0153.
Columbia Northwestern Mod-
el Railroading Club — 1 p.m., in
Hammond. Group runs trains on
HO-scale layout. For information,
call Don Carter at 503-325-0757.
Spinning Circle — 1 to 3 p.m.,
Astoria Fiber Arts Academy, 1296
Duane St. Bring a spinning wheel.
For information, call 503-325-5598
or go to http://astoriafiberarts.com
SUNDAY
Angora Hiking Club — 2 p.m.,
Oregon State University Seafood
Lab, Conference Room 231, 2001
Marine Drive. Planning meeting.
For information, call Bob Wester-
berg at 503-325-4315.
National Alliance on Mental
Illness (NAMI) Support Group
— 2 to 3:30 p.m., Seaside Public
Library, 1131 Broadway. Family to
Family Support Group, for anyone
with friend or loved one suffering
from a serious brain (mental) illness.
For information, contact Myra Kero
at 503-738-6165, or k7erowood@q.
com, or go to www.nami.org
Pacific Green Party of Clat-
sop County — 4 p.m., Clatsop
Community College, Art Building,
Room 101, 1651 Lexington Ave.
Discussions on Rank Choice Voting
continue. For information, email pg-
pclatsopcounty@gmail.com or go
to fb.me/clatsopcountypgp
Line Dancing — 5:30 to 8 p.m.,
Seaside American Legion, 1315
Broadway. For information, call
503-738-5111. No cost; suggested
$5 tip to the instructor.
MONDAY
Chair Exercises for Seniors
— 9 to 9:45 a.m., Astoria Senior
Center, 1111 Exchange St. For in-
formation, call 503-325-3231.
Scandinavian Workshop —
10 a.m., First Lutheran Church, 725
33rd St. Needlework, hardanger,
knitting, crocheting, embroidery
and quilting. All are welcome. For
information, call 503-325-1364 or
503-325-7960.
Mothers of Preschoolers —
10 to 11:30 a.m., Crossroads Com-
munity Church, 40618 Old Highway
30, Svensen. MOPS group is a time
for moms to relax and enjoy each
others’ company. For information,
call 503-502-3118.
Astoria High School Class
of 1970 — 11 a.m., Rod’s Bar and
Grill, 45 N.E. Skipanon Drive, War-
renton. For information, call 503-
791-1231.
Senior Lunch — 11:30 a.m.,
Bob Chisholm Senior Center, 1225
Avenue A, Seaside. Suggested do-
nation $3 for those older than 60;
$6.75 for those younger than 60.
For information, call Michelle Lew-
is at 503-861-4200.
Columbia Senior Diners —
11:30 a.m., 1111 Exchange St. Cost
is $6. For information, or to have a
meal delivered, call 503-325-9693.
Warrenton Senior Lunch Pro-
gram — noon, Warrenton Commu-
nity Center, 170 S.W. Third St. Sug-
gested donation of $5 for seniors
and $7 for those younger than 60.
For information, or to volunteer, call
503-861-3502 Monday or Thursday.
— 1 p.m., Peace Lutheran Church
library, 565 12th St. For informa-
tion, call 503-440-1970 or 503-440-
1985.
Peninsula Quilt Guild — 1
p.m., Peninsula Church Center,
5000 N Place, Seaview, Wash.
Newcomers welcome. Bring non-
perishable food donation. For infor-
mation, call Janet King at 360-665-
3005.
Astoria Rotary Club — noon,
second floor of the Astoria Elks
Lodge, 453 11th St. Guests always
welcome. For information, go to
www.AstoriaRotary.org
Knochlers Pinochle Group —
1 p.m., Bob Chisholm Community
Center, 1225 Avenue A, Seaside.
Cost is $1 per regular session per
person. Players with highest and
second highest scores split the prize.
Game is designed for players 55 and
older, but all ages are welcome.
Parkinson’s Support Group
See NOTES, Page 2B