Who is to Blame for the Larchmont Disaster?

Pictured is an illustration of Captain George Mcvey, the captain of the Larchmont. Captain McVey had some controversy surrounding when he actually boarded a lifeboat and deserted the vessel while it was sinking.  

This is a short article in the Morning Journal-Courier’s January 20, 1908 edition newspaper. In this article the Department of Commerce clear Captain Mcvey of fault and determined that it was the Harry Knowlton that was at fault.

After the wreck of the Larchmont, it was unknown initially what caused the collision of the two vessels. No one was sure if it was the fault of the captain of the Harry Knowlton,  Frank Haley or the Captain of the Larchmont, George Mcvey. Shortly after the wreck survivors began to tell their stories and started to paint a picture of what happened that fateful night. Amongst these accounts, an eighteen-year-old survivor, Fred Hiergsell, reported that Captain Mcvey and some of his crew members boarded one of the lifeboats and became one of the first boats to leave the ship. After the report from Hiergsell went public in newspapers across the country, a picture was painted of the captain deserting the ship leaving behind the passengers to fend for themselves. Newspapers took this idea of abandonment and ran with it spreading it from state to state with only the accounts of those who stepped forward at the time. Mcvey later made statements that even though his lifeboat was one of the first to leave the ship he stayed near the ship to try and help as much he could.

Newspapers also published articles accusing Captain Mcvey of being the one that ran his steamship into the Harry Knowlton. Captain Haley was reported by The Topeka State Journal of saying that the Larchmont was heading straight for his vessel and made no effort to steer away. Captain Haley did admit that he also did not try to steer his vessel out of the way but did not do so because he believed the steamship would eventually maneuver out of the path of collision. Like Captain Mcvey, the newspapers across the country, that reported on this issue, accused the first pilot of the ship of being the cause of the collision. It was common for him to take the first shift during the night so it is presumed he might have been at the wheel at the time of the wreck.  

Through the next months’ investigations, it was determined that the Harry Knowlton was at fault. In January of 1908, The Morning Journal-Courier reported that Secretary Straus of the Department of Commerce announced that his report on the wreck determined that the Harry Knowlton ran into the side of the Larchmont causing massive casualties. The Harry Knowlton, as the captain said, did not try to avoid the Larchmont as it neared. The captain assumed that it would maneuver out of the path of collision. Captain Mcvey and the first pilot of the Larchmont were ultimately cleared over time and the blame landed on the Captain of the Harry Knowlton, Frank Haley, and his crew.

"Men Desert Women and Fill Boats." Los Angeles Herald, February 14, 1907. Accessed March 01, 2019. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85042462/1907-02-14/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1907&index=1&rows=20&words=Larchmont&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=California&date2=1963&proxtext=larchmont&y=16&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1.

"Two Hundred Go To Death." The Topeka State Journal(Topeka), February 12, 1907. Accessed March 01, 2019. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82016014/1907-02-12/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1907&index=6&rows=20&words=Captain McVey&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1963&proxtext=captain mcvey&y=17&x=16&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1.