Rescue And Relief...

The City of Chicago Department of Health participated in the rescue and relief efforts following the Eastland Disaster. Read all about it in the new section located here .

CONTEST CLOSED!

We have gathered the entries that were submitted to name our newsletter, and we will be announcing our winner in the 1st quarter edition of our newsletter in 2000.

Eastland Corner

"My dad, Otto Muchna, was an undertaker on the West side of Chicago, in a neighborhood where many Western Electric employees lived. He started getting calls to attend to many of the victims. I remember people coming to talk to my dad about picking up someone who had died and arranging for the funeral. We had horses and carriages at that time. We had so many bodies at the funeral chapel that we did not have enough room for them. The driveway was enclosed and it too was just filled with bodies. My dad did all of the embalming and my mother did the make-up and hair dressing. They worked continuously and were just worn out. It was day and night work for several days. I remember that the poor horses were also worn out because of the many trips to the cemeteries. My dad would return from the cemetery, and then embalm and prepare another body for burial. It was just too much work for both my dad and my mother, but they did their best."

"I remember that the Western Electric Company paid almost all of the funeral bills for those that were lost."
(Recollection by Jerry Muchna.)

Family History Progress

When we originally formulated our business plan for the EDHS, we felt that family history had to be a major part of it. After all, the truly important pieces of history regarding the Eastland Disaster are the pieces that pertain to family history, not the ship. And even though we are now just starting to develop the family history part of the EDHS, we are already seeing the benefits that we envisioned at the inception. Here is but one example.

William Corbett was one of the many heroes who stepped forward on July 24, 1915, and assisted with the rescue efforts. His nephew, Bob Dorgan, contacted us back in February and then in March sent us his family tree information. (Currently this family tree includes 1,172 family members from 379 families, and is hosted at no cost on our web site.) Six months later in September, a relative of Bob's wife, Donald Frieders, was doing genealogy research on the Internet and found his name in this family tree. Donald Frieders writes: "Thank you for your surname family tree. It's wonderful! I'm going to try to find out what my connection to the Eastland Disaster is."

Success! Through the wonderful world of genealogy on the Internet, at least two things happened here, both which tie into the objectives of the EDHS. First, someone found out about the Eastland Disaster even though they were not searching for information about the Eastland Disaster. Second, someone discovered that his family had a connection to the Eastland Disaster. As we develop the family history portion of our society, think of the potential that sharing it has to offer!

Did You Miss It???

All new subscribers to our mailing list who missed the SPECIAL EDITION of our newsletter (issued Aug 29), please go here. It is a "titanic" of an announcement!

Trivia Pursuit

Q: How do they determine the names for naval ships?
A: Battleships are always named after STATES; submarines after FISH; cruisers after CITIES; and destroyers after HEROES.
(This month's trivia courtesy of subscriber Gary Kremholz.)

Our guests say

"Thank you for the research that you have done. I am most grateful." D.S., Naperville, IL

"Thank you for creating and maintain-ing the web site so the memory of those that perished on that tragic day in the history of Chicago will not be forgotten." W.S., Albuquerque, NM

"The Best Web Page I have ever seen!" M.C., Chicago, IL

"I applaud your efforts to record history and make it available to future generations. As a teacher I always looked for interesting subjects that could be researched by my students that would help them to understand their own section of the country." C.F., Aurora, IL

Coming Soon!!!

Show your support - memberships in the society will be available soon. Who will be the lucky one to be the first member? Remember, there is only ONE number one!
Copyright © 1998-2001 Eastland Disaster Historical Society