| Contents |
Introduction. Harnessing the power of steam -- A "fire engine to raise water" -- "Fulton's folly" and the New York monopoly -- The competition emerges -- Gibbons v. Ogden : the demise of the New York monopoly -- High-pressure engines and anthracite -- Steam-propelled navigation on the sound : Vanderbilt launches the Lexington -- Fires and exploding boilers -- Congressional power to regulate steamboat safety -- The Steamboat Act of 1838 -- Vanderbilt sells the Lexington to the Boston and New York Transportation Company -- All aboard the Lexington for Stonington -- The fire alarm sounds -- Rescue efforts prove too little, too late -- The coroner's inquest : the owner's testimony -- The coroner's inquest : the Lexington's safety record -- The coroner's inquest : the survivors' testimony -- The inquest jury's verdict -- The public demands retribution and improved safety -- The Lexington's owner's liability for property lost on board -- The shipowners' limitation of liability act of 1851 -- The call to overhaul the steamboat act of 1838 -- Congress versus the states -- The Steamboat Act Of 1852 -- The Steamboat Act Of 1871 -- Salvaging the Lexington -- Epilogue. Requiescat in pace. |
| Abstract |
"Death by Fire and Ice tells the little-known story of the sinking of the steamboat Lexington on Long Island Sound in January 1840. The Lexington left Manhattan bound for Stonington, Connecticut, carrying an estimated 147 passengers and crew and a cargo of baled cotton. After making her way up an ice-encrusted East River and into Long Island Sound, she caught fire off Eaton's Neck. The fire quickly ignited the cotton stowed on board and the blaze burned through the ship's wheel and tiller ropes, rendering the ship unmanageable. There were only four survivors, and the tragedy remains the worst maritime disaster in the history of Long Island Sound"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Issued in other form | Online version: O'Connor, Brian E., 1952- Death by fire and ice Annapolis, Maryland : Naval Institute Press, [2022] 9781682478073 |
| LCCN | 2022011940 |
| ISBN | 9781682478042 (hardback) |
| ISBN | 1682478041 |
| ISBN | (ebook) |
