Morro Castle Shipwreck Scrapbook Collection

Collection

Identifier: MG NJ Morro

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection contains an advertisement brochure with an itinerary for the Morro Castle’s three-day return voyage from Havana to New York, as well as dozens of articles and photographs pertaining to the shipwreck clipped from local and national newspapers and magazines. Multiple large glossy photographs are included, showing rescue efforts for survivors, the bodies of victims, and the interiors of the shipwreck. The scrapbook’s origin and creator are unknown, and the brochure contains a stamp bearing the name of the John E. Mayer Travel Agency, which was located at 9 Clinton Street in Newark, New Jersey in 1934. The scrapbook has a geographic focus on New Jersey, New York, and Cuba. The majority of the articles date from September to November 1934, and they are sensationalist in nature, include topics ranging from investigations of the shipwreck’s cause to survivor testimony.

Dates

1934 - 1935
Majority of material found in 1934

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers wishing to publish, reproduce, or reprint materials from this collection must obtain permission.

Biographical / Historical

The Morro Castle was a turbo electric ocean liner owned by the New York and Cuba Steamship Mail Company, also known as the Ward Line. Taking its maiden voyage in August of 1930, the ship spent four years transporting passengers between New York and Havana on round trips costing $650. On September 8, 1934, the ship caught fire en route from Havana. The fire killed 137 of the ship’s 549 passengers and crew, with the survivors being forced to jump into the water due to a lack of sufficient lifeboats. As the fire died down, the Morro Castle ran aground at Asbury Park Beach in New Jersey, where locals gather to assist the survivors who were washed ashore. In the months following the disaster, the shipwreck became a short-lived tourist attraction, eventually being scrapped in March 1935. Both governmental and media investigations were made into the cause of the fire, but it remains unresolved.

Extent

.96 Linear Feet : 1 oversize Hollinger box (flat), 1 scrapbook, 51 p. illustrations, photographs, 38cm

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The Morro Castle Collection consists of one scrapbook filled with newspaper clippings, brochures, and photographs concerning the Morro Castle shipwreck disaster of 1934.