Tuesday • March2-
West Texas Civil War fighter survived ship catastrophe
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SAN ANGELO — When he read the
brief item in the “Did You Know” column
of the Standard-Times, Robert Warner
knew he had to respond and set the
record straight.
“In 1865, the steamer‘Sultana’ explod
ed on the Mississippi River near Mem
phis, Tenn., killing more than 1,400 Union
soldiers,” the item read.
Warner’s educated and thoroughly re
searched guess was that there were at least
2,400 men on the ship whose maximum
capacity should have been about 400.
“There may have been 500 survivors,”
he wrote in a note to the Standard-Times.
A historian of sorts and a Civil War buff
by hobby, Warner had a unique perspec
tive for how many there were on the Sul
tana that night and why they were there.
His father was one of the Sultana survivors.
“My father (yes, that’s right) was one of
the lucky ones,” Warner wrote.
According to Warner, the Confederates
at Fisk feared for their own safety after
Lee’s surrender “and decided they better
not stay around any longer.”
“They left,” he said, “so the Union
made arrangements for the POWs to be
taken North by steamboat to be dis
charged.”
The arrangement was that the prison
ers would be transported up the Missis
sippi on paddle wheelers (steamboats)
and that the boat captains would be paid
$5 for each private and $10 for each offi
cer they carried.
The bookkeeping was done by taking
a roll-call list of the soldiers — supposed
ly as they were getting on the boat, Warn
er explained.
By the time the Sultana docked in
Knoxville, April 25, 1865, three situations
were mounting that would lead to the
boat’s ultimate disaster.
First, the Mississippi River was in flood
stage. Second, the Sultana was having
boiler problems and was already behind
schedule because so much time was
spent in repairs.
And third, the Sultana’s captain had
decided he would not have a high-
enough income if he transported only
300 or 400 soldiers at a time — which was
the boat’s capacity.
But, when word got out of the last load,
the soldiers rushed onto the boat. “They
never knew how many got on,” Warren
said.
“They were packed on there so tightly,
there wasn’t even a place to lie down. One
of the officers warned them that if the
boat stopped, they shouldn’t run to one
side because it would turn over.”
Warner said his father had gone to
sleep — and was still asleep — when 10
miles up the river, the boiler exploded.
When he woke up, he figured he was a
quarter-mile from the flaming vessel.
There were other survivors out swimming,
and several caught on to a floating device.
“But Dad said there were so many
holding on, the float was sinking,” Warmer
said. “He let go, and then he grabbed a
couple of boards and hung on to them.”
Warner said his dad was only wearing
“long John” underwear when the Sultana
exploded, and, needing something to lash
the boards together, he removed his pant
leggings to use for a tie rope.
“Then, a hat came floating toward him,
and he put that on. When he got rescued,
that’s what he was wearing, a hat, a shirt
and nothing else,” Warner said, some
what amused by the spectacle his father
must have been.
That the Sultana disaster in which so
many drowned would become a nearly
forgotten incident baffles Warner.
“Just two weeks before, Lincoln had
been assassinated... .JSo many died in the
Civil War. Don’t they say more were killed
in the Civil War than have died in all the
wars since, combined?”
Warner described the sinking of the
Sultana as an avoidable tragedy caused
by “greed and gluttony.” Though the ca
sualties were far more than the brown
ings of the Titanic, the Sultana has war
ranted but a small mention in American
history books.
System check
GREG MCREYWXIS
Jim Keys, an environmental science major, works on a data gathering system wd
Campus Thursday. The system is designed to measure the amount of carbon exc';
crops. It will be moved to a rice field in El Campo, Texas, tomorrow.
What's Up
Tuesday
TAMU Water Ski Club: A general meet
ing will be held at 8:30 p.m. in the Stu
dent Recreation Center. Contact John at
695-8843 for details.
Alpha Phi Omega: Meet to go to the
Crestview Retirement Home at 3:30
p.m. in 133 Koldus.
ATM Womens Rugby: Come join! No ex
perience needed. Practices are from 5
p.m. to 7 p.m. at the pitch on the corner
of Texas Ave. and University Dr. Call Nik
ki at 694-0084 for information.
Aggie Lutherans: A meeting will be held
from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Tree-
house, Our Saviors Lutheran Church. Call
694-6663 for details.
ATM Roadrunners: There will be a meet
ing in front of G. Rollie White at 5:30
p.m. today. We will run 3-4 miles, and
everyone is welcome. Call Steve at 847-
7905.
Aggie Anglers: There will be a meeting
tonight at 8:30 p.m. in Rudder 404. The
program is “Pathway to Fishing” and new
members welcome. Please call Tim at
693-5415 for details.
Society of Women Engineers: There will
be a meeting tonight at 6:45 p.m. in Rich
101. Come and meet candidates for stu
dent body elections, prospective SWE ex
ecutive board candidates and yell lead
ers. Spring banquet tickets will be on sale
for $10.
English Language and Literature Soci
ety: There will be a mjeeting tonight at
7:00 p.m. in 504 Rudder. Dr. Jeff Cox
will preview the IGHS Conference on Aes
thetic Subjects.
MSC Visual Arts Committee: Everyone
is invited to vote for their favorite artwork
in the Artfest ‘98 student art exhibition
now on display in the MSC Visual Arts
Gallery, 289 MSC. Winners will be an
nounced at a free reception on March 25
at 7:00 p.m. in the MSC Visual Arts
Gallery. Call 845-9251 for details.
Society of Hispanic Professional Engi
neers: There will be a general meeting
tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Richardson 114.
Officers for next year will be nominated.
Call Jesus Giles at 847-2055 for details.
Pre-Medical Society: Guest lecturer Dr.
Peek, professor of anatomy, will speak
tonight at 7:00 p.m. in 292B MSC.
Hindu Student Council: There will be a
general meeting tonight at 7:30 p.m. in
Zachary 342. Call Vijay at 696-4431 for
details.
Wednesday
ATM Womens Rugby: Come join! No ex
perience needed. Practices are from 5
p.m. to 7 p.m. at the pitch on the corner
of Texas Ave. and University Dr. Call Nik
ki at 694-0084 for information.
What’s Up is a Battalion service that lists
non-profit student and faculty events and ac
tivities. Items should be submitted no later
than three days in advance of the desired run
date. Application deadlines and notices are
not events and will not be run in What’s Up.
If you have any questions, please call the
newsroom at 845-3313.
Research
Continued from Page 1
Julie Barker, executive di
rector for Sigma Xi, a scientific
research organization, said Sig
ma Xi will sponsor a sympo
sium Thursday on student
based research programs. Sig
ma Xi will host a banquet at 6
p.m. at the College Station
Hilton and Conference Center.
Mary Ann Fox, vice president
for Research at the University
ofTexas, will speak.
Barker said Sigma Xi will
hold a series of panel discus
sions and talks throughout the
day on student-based research.
Friday, the oral and poster
presentations will continue
and a chemistry symposium
will be presented from 1 to 5
p.m. Various spjeakers will pre
sent their ideas during the day.
Q-Dri
Continued'
Page 1
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The Road To Stability
Africa In the Next M i I I e rt r i m im
Past Economic Success Stories:
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Future Economic Success Story:
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27 March 1998, 8:00 p.m., Rudder Auditorium
Featuring a panel of experts on African economic, social,
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'SERIES
Tickets Available at the MSC Box Office 845-1234
iBattauon
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Helen Clancy, Copy Chief
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