Editing PS Lady Elgin (section)

==Final voyage==
[[File:LadyElginCollision1860.jpg|thumb|[[Wood-engraving]] of the collision from ''[[Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper]]'']]
On the morning of September 6, 1860 ''Lady Elgin'' left [[Milwaukee]], [[Wisconsin]], from the Dooley, Martin, Dousman, and Company Dock, for Chicago, carrying members of Milwaukee's Union Guard to hear a campaign speech by [[Stephen A. Douglas]], [[Abraham Lincoln]]'s opponent, although there is no clear historical evidence that Douglas actually appeared. The passengers spent the day of September 7 listening to political speeches followed by an evening of entertainment by a German brass band on board ''Lady Elgin''.<ref name="Sternwheelers & Sidewheelers" /> On the return trip to Milwaukee that night, the brightly lit ''Lady of Elgin'' was steaming through [[Lake Michigan]] against [[gale force]] winds when she was rammed by the schooner ''Augusta of Oswego''. ''Augusta'' was sailing using only a single white light, mounted on a five-foot Samson<!--what's this?--> on the bow, and did not attempt, or was unable, to turn to avoid the collision in the gale.<ref name="Boyer">{{Cite book |last=Boyer |first=Dwight |title=True Tales of the Great Lakes |publisher=Freshwater Press Inc. |year=1971 |isbn=0-912514-48-5 |location=Cleveland, OH |pages=177–208}}</ref>  On the morning of the collision (September 8) at 2:30 am, ''Augusta'' rammed the port side of ''Lady Elgin'', damaging her own bowsprit and headgear, while holing the latter ship below the waterline.<ref name="Boyer" /><!--need more details about the collision itself: which struck what where, what immediate and subsequent damage was sustained, etc.-->
[[File:The Sinking Of The Lady Elgin, On Lake Michigan, On The Morning Of September 8, 1860, Half An Hour After She Had Been Run Into By The Schooner Augusta, Of Waukeegan - NYIN 1860.jpg|thumb|The ''Lady Elgin'', sinking, half an hour after she had been run into, off [[Winnetka, Illinois]] - New York Illustrated News]]
Concerned that she was damaged and believing ''Lady Elgin'' had got safely away, ''Augusta'' made for Chicago. Aboard ''Lady Elgin'', Captain Wilson ordered that cattle and cargo be thrown overboard to lighten the load and raise the gaping hole in ''Lady Elgin's'' [[port]] side above water level while the [[Chief Steward|steward]] was down in the coal bunker trying to stop the leak with mattresses.<ref name="History" /><ref name="Coroner's Inquest">{{Cite news |date=September 13, 1860 |title=The Lady Elgin Disaster; Coroner'S Inquest at Chicago Testimony of Persons On Board the Two Vessels |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1860/09/13/78644856.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1860/09/13/78644856.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |access-date=February 22, 2009 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Captain Wilson ordered a [[Lifeboat (shipboard)|lifeboat]] lowered on the [[starboard]] side to check the extent of the damage but it never regained the steamer. Within twenty minutes, ''Lady Elgin'' broke apart, and all but the [[Bow (ship)|bow]] section rapidly sank. The night was lit up at intervals by flashes of lightning showing the scattered wreckage.<ref name="History" />

The [[Personal flotation device|life preservers]], {{convert|2|in|cm|abbr=on}} hardwood planks, {{convert|5|ft|m|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|18|in|cm|abbr=on}} wide, were never used.<ref name="Sternwheelers & Sidewheelers" />  Two boats with a total of 18 persons reached shore.  In addition, fourteen people were saved on a large raft and many others on parts of the wreckage. Over 300 people died and 98 saved.<ref name="History" /> The drummer of the German band, Charles Beverung, saved himself by using his large [[bass drum]] as a life preserver.<ref name="Sternwheelers & Sidewheelers" /> Survivors reported the heroic efforts of Captain Wilson to save about 300 persons collected on a raft.<ref name="History" />  When day broke, between 350 and 400 passengers and crew were drifting in stormy waters, holding on to anything they could, many only to be pulled under by breakers near shore.

Students from [[Northwestern University]] and [[Garrett Biblical Institute]] were watching the shore on the morning of September 8, looking for survivors.  One of the students, Edward Spencer, is credited with rescuing 17 passengers over the course of six hours.  He sustained injuries during his rescue efforts that left him an invalid for the rest of his life.  A plaque in his honor was first placed in the Northwestern University Gymnasium, and is now housed in the Northwestern University Library.<ref name="ship-wrecks.net">{{Cite web |title=Lady Elgin |url=http://www.ship-wrecks.net/shipwreck/projects/elgin/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150708015522/http://www.ship-wrecks.net/shipwreck/projects/elgin/ |archive-date=July 8, 2015 |access-date=March 7, 2015 |website=ship-wrecks.net}}</ref>

About 300 people died in the sinking,<ref name="Supervising Inspectors page 43" /> including Captain Wilson, who was lost trying to save two women when he was caught by the surf and forced into the rocks.<ref name="ship-wrecks.net" /> Most were from Milwaukee with the majority of those from the Irish communities, including nearly all of Milwaukee's Irish Union Guard.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Irish Pub - Milwaukee |url=http://www.theirishpub.us/general/default.aspx?pageid=5 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728151710/http://www.theirishpub.us/general/default.aspx?pageid=5 |archive-date=July 28, 2011 |access-date=April 18, 2010}}</ref> So many Irish-American political operatives died that day that the disaster has been credited with transferring the balance of political power in Milwaukee "from the Irish to the Germans".<ref>''Zych v. Wrecked Vessel believed to be Lady Elgin'', 960 F.2d 665, 667 (7th Cir. 1992).</ref>  It is said that more than 1000 children were orphaned by the tragedy, however research shows that there were fewer than 40 children orphaned.<ref>"Lost on the Lady Elgin", Valerie van Heest, 2010.</ref>{{Page needed|date=July 2012}} The ''Lady Elgin'' disaster remains the greatest loss of life on open water in the history of the Great Lakes.<ref name="The Story" />

Among the 300 victims was Sir Herbert Ingram, the founder and owner of the Illustrated London news and a Member of Parliament, who with his son, were the only foreigners on the ship. Herbert Ingram was the most wealthy and prominent individual to perish on a shipwreck in the Great Lakes.<ref>VanHeest, Valerie, Lost on the Lady Elgin: Honouring Herbert Ingram, 2025, In-Depth Editions.</ref>