During library class we read a book called The Circus Boat, written by John Hooper, illustrated by Charles E. Pont, and published by Down East Books in 1983.  After talking about the story, we decided that the book was probably based on a true story but that the story was fiction.

There really was a circus boat, and it really did sink off the coast of Maine.  On October 25, 1836, a steamboat called the Royal Tar caught fire and sank off Vinalhaven.  It was carrying 92 passengers, a crew of 21, and a touring wild animal show called Burgess’ Collection of Serpents and Birds.

1836 was a long time ago.  The United States of America was only 60 years old.         The United States was at war with Mexico because we wanted Texas to be part of our country.  James Bowie (left) and Davy Crockett (right) were killed at the Alamo.

We began building the Washington Monument in Washington, DC.  Narcissa Prentiss Whitman and Eliza Hart Spalding were the first white women to travel clear across the continent to the state of Washington.  Martin Van Buren was president of the United States.

While white settlers were thriving, our Native peoples were suffering.  Maine sold off thousands of acres of land belonging to the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes.  It also harvested and sold Native timber and hay ... illegally.  On the reservations there were few jobs and little money.  Indians were not allowed to speak their Native languages.  Many Natives caught tuberculosis, measles, and whooping cough, and many died. 

A lot of stories have been written about the Royal Tar.  They don't all have the same information.  We are going to read some of the stories and make a list of how they are the same and how they are different.  First, though, you need to know that the Royal Tar was a boat called a side-wheel steamer.  It had paddle wheels on the side and smoke stacks in the front.  It also had three sails.  It looked a lot like this:

On October 25, 1836, a strange sea disaster happened in Penobscot Bay.   The passenger steamer Royal Tar passed Vinalhaven around noon on its run from St. John, New Brunswick, to Portland.  The boat was a wooden sidewheeler.  It was 164 feet long.  The captain was Thomas Reed.  It carried 92 passengers and 21 crew members.  It also carried Burgess’ Collection of Serpents and Birds that had an elephant, six horses, two dromedaries (camels), two lions, a leopard, a Bengal tiger, a gnu, and a pair of pelicans.

The chief engineer was asleep in his cabin because he had been up all night taking care of the boilers.  The second engineer was supposed to be in charge, but he had turned the job over to the fireman.  The pilot’s son happened to notice that the boilers had no water.  He told his father, who told the second engineer.  The second engineer said, “Forget it.  I know what I am doing.”  Then the pilot told the captain, who woke the chief engineer. 
The boilers were very hot and they set fire to some wedges that had been put between the boilers and the deck to support the elephant’s weight.  The crew tried to put out the fire, but smoke forced them to leave the engine room.

Because the animals needed a lot of space, two lifeboats had been left in St. John.  The engineer and 15 crew members got on the largest of the two remaining lifeboats and headed for shore.  The passengers began to panic.  The captain tried to run his boat ashore, but the sails caught on fire, and the boat began to drift out to sea.

Some people jumped overboard.  Women dropped their children into the water and jumped in after them.  Some people tried to float on pieces of wood.  Some stayed on board until their clothes began to burn.  The animals stamped and clawed, trying to escape.  The horses were backed over the side.  Three started swimming toward shore, but the others circled the boat until they were exhausted and they drowned.  The lions, leopard, and tiger were left in their cages because they were so fierce.

Suddenly the revenue cutter Veto was spotted.  When it arrived, Captain Reed began making trips in the last lifeboat between his burning steamer and the cutter.  Because he was afraid that his passengers would rush the lifeboat, he only let one passenger come aboard at a time.  Captain Reed was also afraid the elephant would try to jump into the lifeboat.  The elephant did jump, but it jumped onto a raft two sailors had made.  The raft was destroyed.  The sailors and several other people were drowned.  The elephant headed toward shore, but he didn’t make it.

Flames from the steamer could be seen until 9:00 p.m.  Thirty-two passengers and crew members lost their lives.  Captain Reed was praised by the survivors for trying to rescue his passengers. 
 

Johansen, Jon B. "A Beastly Shipwreck." Down East Oct. 1986: 46-47
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

In October 1836 the Royal Tar was a new steamer carrying a circus, a menagerie (a collection of living wild animals), a brass band, and passengers from St. John, New Brunswick, to Portland, Maine.  Some of the animals were horses, camels, lions, an elephant, and a tiger.  Because of stormy seas, the Royal Tar stopped at Eastport.  It stopped again behind Fox Island (Vinalhaven) in Penobscot Bay.  On October 25, while the ship was anchored off Fox Island Thoroughfare, the pilot’s son discovered that the boilers were dry.  He told the second engineer, but the man did not believe him.  The empty boilers got red hot and started a fire in the elephant’s stall.  The fire was soon out of control.

The stern (rear) boat was lowered, and when it was filled with men, the wind blew it to shore.  The revenue cutter Veto sent a gig (small rowboat) to rescue the passengers, but the pilot was afraid to get too close to the burning ship and turned around.  Several men build a raft out of deck boards, but just as they were ready to leave the ship, the elephant feel overboard, smashed the raft, and drowned the men.

At the same time, the Royal Tar’s captain took charge of the Veto.  The captain of the Veto was afraid to bring the cutter close to the burning steamer because the Veto had gunpowder stored on deck.  Captain Reed brought the cutter close enough to save many of the passengers.  Almost 100 people were on the Royal Tar.  Thirty-two of the people and all of the animals died.  The Royal Tar finally sank.
 

Crowe, Mike.  “Between a Rock and a Hard Place.  Fisherman’s Voice.  Jan. 1999.  9 Mar. 2006 <http:www.fishermensvoice.com/archives.jan99.html>.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

The  Royal Tar was launched at St. John, New Brunswick, in April 1836.  In May she began sailing from St. John to Eastport and Portland in Maine.  In Portland she connected with other steamers going to Boston.  Passengers on the Royal Tar would be able to go from St. John, New Brunswick, to New York in two and a half days!

The Royal Tar sailed this route until October 21, when she was destroyed by fire.  On this trip there was a menagerie (a collection of animals) on board.  Thirty-two people and all the animals died.

Because of stormy weather, the Royal Tar did not leave St. John until Friday, October 21.  There were human passengers, the animals, wagons, and some of the horses that belonged to the circus.  The circus had been traveling in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.  At first the weather was good, but then the wind started blowing very hard and the steamer stopped at Eastport.

On Tuesday the steamer started out again and about 2 p.m. it was crossing Penobscot Bay near the Fox Islands (Vinalhaven).  Again, they stopped and anchored because of the wind.  About half an hour later, fire was discovered.  The fire engine was started, but the men only stayed at the pump for five minutes because the smoke was so bad.

Everyone rushed for the two lifeboats.  Sixteen passengers and crew took the largest boat and went away.  Captain Reed and two men took charge of the jolly boat and picked up three men.  About half an hour later, the U.S. revenue cutter Veto came toward the Royal Tar.  Captain Dyer ran the cutter close to the steamer and picked up 40 passengers. 

The boat left the wreck for the last time about dusk.  The wind was still blowing very hard and the Royal Tar was drifting out to sea.  The survivors got to Isle au Haut in Penobscot Bay.

Mr. Stinson Patten, who was a passenger on the Royal Tar, described what happened:

As soon as the passengers learned the steamer was on fire, they rushed for the quarter boat.  Mr. Patten was the last person to jump into the boat.  He was the sixteenth person.  They reached land about nine miles from the steamer.  They lost everything they had on the steamer.

A temporary raft was made of ladders and planks, but most of the people who tried to get on the raft were thrown into the sea and sank.  Many who jumped overboard tried to hold onto parts of the wreck, but the waves and the cold killed them.  Women threw their children overboard and jumped in after them.   It was a horrible scene.

When the fire burst through the deck, the wagons caught on fire and animals in their cages died instantly.  The horses and the camels were backed overboard in the hopes they could swim to shore.  The elephant did not jump until the fire reached him.  His dead body was found on the shore of Brimstone Island.  The wreck drifted out to sea and was seen until 10 p.m. when it supposedly sank.

There were 72 passengers and 21 crew on the Royal Tar the day it sank.    Thirty-two people--29 passengers and three crew--died.

The Royal Tar was 400 tons and had cost about $50,000.  It was owned by three men from St. John, New Brunswick.  On board the steamer was about $60,000 in coins plus whatever money the passengers had.  One of the caravan keepers had $500 in coins.  When he jumped overboard with the money, he drowned.  One of the passengers, Captain Edward Waite of Portland, lost $5,000.

When the accident was investigated, it was learned that the second engineer had allowed all the water to run out of the boilers.  The wooden wedges that had been driven in between the deck and the boilers to support the elephant were what caught on fire.
 

"Burning of the Royal Tar." The Vinalhaven Pilot Dec. 1937: 6-8.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

On October 25th Captain Reed wrote:
Dear Sir.  I am sorry to tell you the Royal Tar was destroyed by fire about 2 p.m. yesterday about two miles from Fox Islands (Vinalhaven).  The fireman had accidentally let the steam down (the water go out of the boiler), so they had to anchor, but the area around the boiler caught fire.  They started using the pump to put the fire out, but the smoke was so bad the men had to leave the boiler room.  When they realized they couldn’t put the fire out, I took one boat and 16 passengers took the other.  The other boat headed for shore.

I stayed near the steam boat for awhile, then started to sail to the nearest island because of the wind.  I saw a schooner coming toward us.  It was a small cutter from Belfast.  I boarded her and put all my passengers on her, then I returned to the steam boat, which was all in flames and managed to save about 40 people.  I think about 25 were lost.  I don’t want to blame anybody.  I think it was an accident.

We’re hoping to get a schooner tomorrow for the passengers.  I hope you will send the deck passengers to Boston for free because they have lost everything.  So have I.  I didn’t even save my money.  There was no time to think of anything except living.  Mr. Waite, from Portland, barely escaped with his life.  He was hanging on to the stern for about an hour and a half.

We had the caravan (the circus) on board, 6 horses, 1 elephant, lions, etc.  The wild beasts burned.  The elephant and the horses jumped overboard and I don’t know where they went.

I’m going to go back to St. John with the crew as soon as I can.  We lost two men and one woman from the crew.  If the fire engine had been on the deck, wwe could have put the fire out.  It was a mistake to have the fire engine (pump) below deck. 

People have been very kind.

Signed, Thomas Reed
 

"Particulars of the Loss of the Steamboat Royal Tar." Bangor Daily Whig and Courier 31 Oct. 1836: 46.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

On October 25, 1836, Captain Reed anchored the steamboat Royal Tar about a mile off Fox Island (Vinalhaven) because of a gale.  At 2 p.m. the crew discovered a fire that had started because there was no water in the boilers, but they didn’t tell the passengers.  If they had, maybe some of the passengers could have helped put the fire out.

When they realized it was impossible to put the fire out, the captain decided to run the boat on shore, but the sail caught on fire and the boat began to drift out to sea.  Because two of the life boats had been left in St. John to make room for a wagon, there were not enough boats for the passengers.  They tried to use a wagon as a boat, but it was too heavy.  Some passengers got on one boat and the rest jumped overboard to get away from the fire.

Women threw their babies overboard and then jumped.  Some passengers used ropes to climb down the side of the boat, but the ropes burned.  One man had a lot of silver dollars and the weight of the money sank him.

Six horses were backed overboard.  Three swam toward the nearest land, but the other three swam around the boat until they sank.  The elephant stayed on board until it became too hot.  When he jumped off the boat, he took several passengers who were holding on to him.  The elephant started swimming toward land, but he disappeared.  The revenue cutter (revenue cutters were U.S. ships that were supposed to help sailors in trouble and make sure laws were obeyed) from Castine came, but the captain would not take it close to the Royal Tar because he was afraid the elephant would jump.

The steamboat drifted out to sea, and people could see the fire until about 9 p.m.  That’s probably when it sank.  It had drifted about 20 miles.

Mr. H. H. Fuller, who worked with the circus, wrote about what happened.  He said that he was sick and at first he didn’t realize anything was wrong.  When he went up on deck, he saw the long-boat full of people and about a quarter of a mile away.  Captain Reed took control of the smaller boat and picked up three people who were swimming.  He took them toward land.  When Captain Reed left, a whole lot of people jumped overboard.  Women and children were screaming, men were yelling, and the wind was blowing hard.  It was awful.

Mr. Fuller said that Captain Atkins, who was the pilot of the Royal Tar, tried to sail, but the sails caught fire.  The fire was in the middle of the boat, so the people in the front and those in the back (fore and aft) could not talk to each other.  Mr. Fuller sat on the stern (rear) rail till his coat caught fire.  He fastened a rope to the tiller chain and dropped over the side of the boat.  He found about 15 other people hanging from the water with waves washing over them.  He saw several people drown.  He took his own rope and wound it around his neck and thigh.  Three men and one lady hung onto him.  Captain Atkins tried to hold onto another lady with his feet.  When she got washed away, another man caught her.  A gig (rowboat) from the cutter came close, but it did not pick any one up.  However, Captain Reed came back in his small boat and saved everyone.  Mr. Fuller had been in the water two hours.

Mr. Fuller believes that Captain Reed did the only thing he could after the long boat disappeared and that if he had not taken charge of the small boat, more people would have drowned.

Another passenger, Mr. William Marjoram, also wrote about the  Royal Tar.  He said that when the fire was discovered, Captain Reed told the boy who reported it to keep quiet.  He said that fifteen people got into one boat, Captain Reed and four men got into the other boat, and both boats rowed towards the shore.  Men, women, and children were running in all directions.  When the sails were raised, they caught fire.  Mr. Marjoram started preaching to the passengers, telling them to stay calm, to trust in God, and reminding them that they were sinful creatures. 

By the time Captain Reed came back, according to Mr. Marjoram, several people had caught on fire and jumped into the sea.  Some were holding on to the stern.  When the cutter (the revenue cutter) came close, people got ready to jump on board, but the cutter started to turn around!  Captain Reed got on the cutter, came back to the Royal Tar, and took some of the passengers off the stern.  The cutter were afraid to come too close to the Royal Tar because it had gunpower on board.  Mr. Marjoram was taken off the steamer three hours after it caught on fire. 

Mr. Marjoram ended his story by thanking all the people who helped to find clothing for the survivors, who took care of their injuries, and who helped them get to Portland.  He blamed the accident on crew members who were neglectful and lacked courage.

The animals who were on the Royal Tar were part of a menagerie (a collection of living wild animals) owned by Macomber, Welsh, and Co.  The company had sent hunting parties to South Africa to collect the two lions, a Bengal tiger, the elephant Mogul, and a gnu.  There were also two dromedaries (camels), a lot of smaller animals and birds, Burgess’s collection of serpents and birds, Dexter’s locomotive museum, and a large number of musical instruments.

The Royal Tar weighted 400 tons.  It carried 85 passengers.  Twenty men, eight women, and four crew members drowned.
 

Ellms, Charles.  The Tragedy of the Seas, or, Sorrow On the Ocean, Lakes and River, From Shipwreck, Plague, Fire &Famine.  New York: Collins, Keese & Co., 1841.
Chapter reprinted in Smith, Barbara Darrah.  Terror at Sea.  Cape Elizabeth, ME: The Provincial Press, 1995.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

The Royal Tar was the first steam boat to offer regular service between Maine and Nova Scotia in 1836.  She was a wooden side-wheeler built at St. John, New Brunswick, and her captain was Captain Reed.  She was 164 feet long and 24 feet wide.  She weighed 400 tons and cost $50,000.  On her first trip in May 1836 she carried 200 passengers.

On October 25, 1836, the Royal Tar was destroyed by fire near the Fox Islands (Vinalhaven).  She was carrying 90 to 100 passengers, her crew, Burgess’ collection of serpents and birds, and Dexter’s Museum and Band.  An elephant, two camels, several horses, and several cages of animals were on the deck.  When the Royal Tar was destroyed, 32 people died, including four that worked with the animals.

S. A. Rowland wrote a book about steamboat disasters in 1940 and said that the animals on board were an elephant, six horses, 2 dromedaries, 2 lionesses, 1 leopard, 1 Bengal tiger, 1 gnu, a pair of pelicans, and a number of other animals.  There was also a collection of serpents and birds, horses, and all the musical instruments that belonged to the band.  The men who worked with the animals had been paid in St. John.  They lost all their money. 

After the steam boat caught on fire, the six horses were backed overboard.  Three tried to swim to shore, but three swam around the boat until they sank.  The elephant stayed on the boat until he got too hot and then he leped overboard.  As he slid down the side of the boat, he carried several of the passengers who were hanging on the side into the water.  The elephant started swimming to shore, but he didn’t make it.  The other animals died in the fire because they were too dangerous to let out of their cages. 
 

Wescott, Allen P. "Loss of the Steamer "Royal Tar" with a Menagerie Aboard -- Year 1836." Note Sheet 15 July 1944. Circus Historical Society. 9 Mar. 2006 http://www.circushistory.org/Bandwagon/bw-1944Note13.htm
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

Mr. H. H. Fuller was sick and at first he didn’t know anything was wrong.  Then he realized he was the only person in the cabin.  When he went up on deck, he saw the long-boat full of people and about a quarter of a mile away.  Captain Reed, captain of the Royal Tar, took control of the smaller boat and picked up three people who were swimming even though the wind was blowing the waves were high.  Then he headed toward land.  When Captain Reed left, a whole lot of people jumped overboard.  Women and children were screaming, men were yelling, and the wind was blowing hard.  It was awful.

Captain Atkins, who was the pilot of the Royal Tar, tried to raise the sails, but the sails caught fire.  The fire was in the middle of the boat, so the people in the front and those in the back (fore and aft) could not talk to each other.  Mr. Fuller sat on the stern (rear) rail till his coat caught fire.  He fastened a rope to the tiller chain and dropped over the side of the boat.  He found about 15 other people hanging from the sides with waves washing over them.  He saw several people drown.  He took his own rope and wound it around his neck and thigh.  Three men and one lady hung onto him.  Captain Atkins tried to hold onto another lady with his feet.  When she got washed away, another man caught her.  A gig (rowboat) from the cutter came close, but it did not pick any one up.  However, Captain Reed came back in his small boat and saved everyone around Mr. Fuller.  Mr. Fuller had been in the water two hours.

The U.S. cutter (a small ship), commanded by Lt. Dyer, took the survivors from the Royal Tar to Isle au Haut.  The steam boat sank about 8:30 p.m. after drifting six or seven miles.  If Captain Reed had not made many trips in the small boat, more lives would have been lost, and Mr. Fuller was very thankful to Captain Reed, Mr. Atkins, and Mr. Black, the mate, for their efforts to rescue the passengers.
 

"Loss of the Steamer Royal Tar! Thirty-Two Lives Lost!!" Lincoln Patriot 4 Nov. 1836: 2.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

Mr. William Marjoram, a very religious man, spoke about his adventure on the  Royal Tar.  At 2 p.m., the engineer reported that there was no water in the boiler.  Captain Reed ordered the anchor to be dropped.  However, when the fire was discovered, Captain Reed told the boy who reported it to keep quiet.  Fifteen people got into one boat, Captain Reed and four men got into the other boat, and both boats rowed towards the shore.  Men, women, and children were running in all directions.  When the sails were raised, they caught fire.  Mr. Marjoram started preaching to the passengers, telling them to stay calm and to trust in God.  He also reminded them that they were sinful creatures and hoped that they would be given.

By the time Captain Reed came back, several people had caught on fire and jumped into the sea.  Some were holding on to the stern.  The fire filled the middle of the steam boat, so people in the bow (front) couldn’t talk to people in the stern (rear).  When the cutter (the revenue cutter) came close, people got ready to jump on board, but the cutter started to turn around!  Captain Reed got on the cutter, came back to the Royal Tar, and took some of the passengers off the stern.  The cutter and the cutter’s boat were afraid to come too close to the Royal Tar because it had gunpower on board.  Mr. Marjoram was taken off the steamer three hours after it caught on fire.  As soon as he was on the cutter, he helped people out of the smaller boat that was carrying survivors from the Royal Tar. 

Mr. Marjoram was thankful to all the people on the islands who helped to find clothing for the survivors, who took care of their injuries, and who helped them get to Portland.  He blamed the accident on crew members who were neglectful and lacked courage.
 

Smith, Barbara Darrah.  Terror at Sea.  Cape Elizabeth, ME: The Provincial Press, 1995.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth grader by Ann Dodd-Collins]

There was a superstition among sailors that a voyage started on Friday would have bad luck.  However, the Royal Tar, a new wide-wheeler, started its voyage on a Friday.  Its run was between St. John, New Brunswick, and Portland, Maine.  Its captain was Captain Reed.  The 160-foot steamer carried a brightly painted cages and crates full of the wild life of Burgess’ Menagerie.  (A menagerie is a collection of wild animals.)

The Royal Tar had left Vinalhaven for Isle au Haut when fire was discovered near the boiler.  A steady gale fanned the flames, and the 93 people and the animals on board became panic-stricken.  Animals cried, men screamed, and the animal keepers released the animals from their cages.  They hoped the animals would reach Vinalhaven.  Because they tried to save the animals instead of themselves, all the animal keepers drowned.

The Burgess Menagerie included serpents, birds, an elephant, a Bengal tiger, two lionesses, two dromedaries (camels), a gnu, and six horses. The revenue cutter Veto that came to the rescue had to plow through the animals.  The only animal that made it to shore was the elephant, which was named Tena.  She got to Fox Island (Vinalhaven), trumpeted, and fell dead.
 

Chambers, C. Spencer. "When the Steamer Royal Tar Burned with Burgess Menagerie on Board." Circus Historical Society. 9 Mar. 2006 <http://www.circushistory.org/Bandwagon/bw-1948June.html>.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]

The Royal Tar was carrying a circus when it burned in October 1836.  The skipper was Captain Thomas Reed.

The Royal Tar was built in St. John, New Brunwick, in 1836 and cost $50,000.  She was a sidewheel steamer that ran between St. John and Portland, Maine.  She was 160 feet long and 24 feet wide.  At the stern (rear), there was a wood-framed tent.  The middle was open.  Near the bow (front) were two tall smokestacks with a mast between them.  She had one square sail and two jibs (triangular sails).  The sails were used when the engines didn’t work against the tide.

There are many superstitions about the sea.  One is that it’s unlucky to have birds, snakes and brass bands on a boat.  Another is that you shouldn’t start a voyage on a Friday.  The Royal Tar sailed on Friday, October 21, 1836.  It carried the brass band, a circus, and a menagerie (collection) of wild animals, bird and reptiles.

There were red and yellow wagons, cages holding cobras and pythons, two big lions, a spotted leopard, a Bengal tiger, and many smaller animals.  There were two pelicans, a lot of chattering monkeys, six Arabian horses, two camels, and Mogul the elephant.  There were also passengers and a crew of 21, more than 100 people.  Many of the passengers were moving from New Brunswick to Portland for the winter. 

On Sunday the seas got rough.  Captain Reed anchored at Eastport and stayed there until Tuesday.  On Tuesday afternoon they started sailing again, even though the sea was choppy.  They were heading south toward Fox Island (Vinalhaven) Thoroughfare when the assistant engineer rushed into the pilot house.  He told the captain that they had to anchor and fill the boilers.  He said the boilers were red hot and smoking.  Captain Reed couldn’t believe it, but he gave orders to drop the anchor.

There are lots of different stories about what happened, but most people say that the chief engineer had been up all night fixing the boiler.  He left his assistant, Mr. Marshall, in charge, but Mr. Marshall didn’t notice the water was low in the boilers.  When he was told, he just said don’t worry.

Almost as soon as the anchor was dropped, someone yelled, “Fire”.  When Captain Reed came out of the pilot house, he saw flames and heard the passengers screaming.  He ordered the crew to lower the life boats, and then he realized that three of them had been left behind so that there would be room for the circus wagons and the cages.  He told his men to throw the wagons overboard because they would float.  Then he saw that the assistant engineer and several of his men had taken one of the boats and were rowing toward Isle au Haut.

Captain Reed took the longboat and picked up some of the people who had jumped overboard.  Then he returned to the ship.  Captain Reed tried to raise the sail and head to shore, but the sail caught fire and the steamer began to drift out to sea.

All the animals died in their cages.  Passengers huddled at the bow (front) and the stern (back), but they couldn’t see each other because of the flames in the middle.  Some people jumped overboard.  One man rolled 500 silver dollars in his stocking, tied it around his waist, and dove over the side.  He sank.  A young girl with two children pushed the children over the stern.  The children held onto a bale of hay and Captain Reed picked them up, but the girl drowned.  H. H. Fuller, manager of the circus, stayed on the steamer till his clothes caught fire, then he lowered himself over the side with a piece of rope tied to the tiller chain.  Three other passengers, whose ropes had burned, grabbed on to him. 

Captain Reed had his men make a raft from floating timbers and wreckage.  Just as it came to the side of the steamer, Mogul the elephant jumped, crushing two of the crew.   Mogul’s body washed ashore a week later on Brimstone Island.

Many of the passengers on the Royal Tar were pulled from the water by the crew of the U. S. Revenue Cutter Veto.  It came close to the burning steamer even though it was carrying a load of gunpowder.  The Royal Tar drifted by Saddle Back Light, and then she went down. 
 

Mason, John.  “The Wreck of the Royal Tar.”  Yankee  Oct. 1965: 85, 110-113.
[Edited and rewritten for fourth graders by Ann Dodd-Collins]