Sea Wing Disaster

Title: List of Sea Wing Victims
Type: Document
Date: 1890
Source: Minnesota Historical Society

Description: This listing of the victims of the Sea Wing disaster was printed in the bulletin used at the memorial service in Red Wing.
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Activities:

1. As a way of remembering those who died in the wreck, this listing was included in the pamphlet handed out at the memorial service. From what community were most of the dead?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: Most of the deceased were from Red Wing.
2. By studying this list, what might we learn about those who died in the wreck?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: If we look at the names of those who died, we could be able to guess that some of them were mothers or fathers and their children out for an afternoon excursion. In some cases, several people from the same family died in the wreck.
3. What does this listing not tell us about those who died?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: We cannot learn from this source alone for sure which of the dead were family members, and there is no way to tell how old any of them were or why they were going on the trip that day.
4. The black outline around the list separates it from the rest of the pages in the pamphlet. What else could it mean?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: During the 1800s, it was common to use stationery with a black border if you werein mourning for a loved one. This is anexample of one way to memorialize and honor those who have died and recognize that the town and community is in mourning for all of those who perished.