The General Slocum Centennial Scrapbook
[email protected]



On the 15th of June, 1904, the grandparents, aunts, cousins, mothers and children of St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church, New York City boarded the largest and most beautiful excursion steamer in New York Harbor for a day of cruising to Long Island Sound and back with a full day picnic at Locust Grove, Long Island. Before lunch, over 1,000, about half of the people aboard, would be dead or dying and New York City would change forever. This was the General Slocum Disaster.

It was not until I began researching my family history, that I discovered my connection to that horrendous day. I had relatives aboard the General Slocum disaster, in fact a party of 15. Only three survived. As my research progressed, I discovered that every account, newspapers, books written soon after the disaster, even several published more recently, all dwell on the same two things. Either the author writes to place blame on whom ever is responsible for letting such a terrible event happen, or he endlessly replays the scenes of the victims being burned alive or drowning. Unlike any other single event in our history, this tragedy wiped out every member of some families, and in others destroyed members of several generations all at the same time.

With the centennial anniversary of the Slocum coming up in 2004, I am looking for descendants of victims, survivors, rescuers, etc. anyone who was involved that day and passed down stories to their families. It is the family stories which have never been told. this is a shame as they are the testimonials to our families; their pain and their perseverance! I am anticipating each family having at least one (depending on how many survivors are located) page on which I will include a brief family tree showing the descendant's relationship to the person/ people they are writing about, a picture, (if you have one, of the person/ people involved,) and your family story.

The other thing which occurred to me as I was researching my own family's story, was that there was no single reference source on this event. So, included in this book will be maps, news accounts, etc. so that historians and genealogists could use the Scrapbook as a research tool for many years to come.

I firmly believe that to create a book as I have described here, is to create the most lasting living memorial to our families. Every time a researcher open this book to find help in his work, or a new family historian reads these stories, our ancestors will live again in another's memory, even after you and I are gone.

If you would be interested in participating, there is no cost to you except a little time to fill out a questionnaire, and to write your story. I will gladly answer any questions you may have now, or as the project proceeds. Even if you are not sure that you have "all the facts" please contact me, if I know what you are looking for I may either be able to point you in the right direction, or I may come across what you need in working on this project. Together I feel certain that we can honor the memory of those who had their lives destroyed that day and those who tried to help. Please contact me at the Email address below with questions and to receive a questionnaire.


Best Regards,
Karen Lamberton

descendant of the Muth, Koch, Hessel, Schnitzler, & Christ party aboard the General Slocum
[email protected]