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Letter from Douglas L. Howard to Edwin C. Pendleton

Letter from Douglas L. Howard to Edwin C. Pendleton

Midshipman Howard of the USS Missouri informs Captain Pendleton that he took a team of sixteen men ashore to Kingston, Jamaica, following the earthquake. First, they extracted the American Consulate archives. Howard then met up with Lieutenant William P. Scott where they began searching for and recovering bodies. Next they helped the owner of the company Milke Bros. recover a safe and return the contents to the owner, Mr. Milke. They also assisted a Mr. Newton in recovering and opening another safe for him.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Letter from Howson W. Cole to Howard E. Ames

Letter from Howson W. Cole to Howard E. Ames

Howson W. Cole, Assistant Surgeon for the Navy, reports to Navy Medical Inspector Ames his observations and work concerning the relief effort after the earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica. Cole reports that their offers to help care for the wounded were refused by Dr. Karr at the Central Hospital, although Karr did request some medical supplies. This refusal was despite the clear lack of appropriate medical services for all the injured, and Cole provides case-specific examples. Because of the clear need for more aid, Admiral C. H. Davis set up an American Hospital, where Cole and others saw as many patients as possible. Cole provides details for a number of patient cases, and concludes that no matter what Governor James Alexander Swettenham believes, medical aid is “certainly needed and asked for, by the poor wretches who are even yet without treatment.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Letter from Howard E. Ames to C. H. Davis

Letter from Howard E. Ames to C. H. Davis

Navy Medical Inspector Ames writes a narrative to Admiral Davis relating the events that unfolded when he arrived in Kingston, Jamaica, to provide medical relief after the earthquake. Ames found the city of Kingston to be absolutely demolished, and the populace to be in a “dazed, frightened, and nervous condition.” When Ames offers medical assistance and advice to Governor James Alexander Swettenham, the assistance is refused, and the suggestions denied, with the exception of some limited supplies for which the governor is thankful. Because both Ames and Davis, among others, found that the official city response was lacking, Davis informed Governor Swettenham that the naval medical officers would establish an independent hospital that would serve everyone “irrespective of age, sex, creed, or nationality.” The Jesuit fathers gave their cottage in Winchester Park as the site of the hospital, and they were able to treat many injured people with the help of the Sisters of Mercy. Ames offers comments on the casualties and destruction caused by the earthquake.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-20

Letter from Charles Walter Tait to C. H. Davis

Letter from Charles Walter Tait to C. H. Davis

Charles Walter Tait, the mayor of Kingston, Jamaica, writes to Admiral Davis to express his “deep and sincere regret that any unpleasantness should have arisen” that would have prompted Davis to withdraw any aid to the city and island after the events of the January 14, 1907, earthquake. Tait asks Davis not to withdraw his assistance.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Letter from W. Pitt Scott to Edwin C. Pendleton

Letter from W. Pitt Scott to Edwin C. Pendleton

Lieutenant Scott from the USS Missouri reports on his landing team’s work in disaster relief in Kingston, Jamaica. The men under his command assisted in tearing down walls that had been made unstable, removing dead bodies from the rubble, and disinfecting streets and areas where the dead were found. The people of the city were deeply appreciative of their help.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Memorandum from Dennis H. Mahan to C. H. Davis

Memorandum from Dennis H. Mahan to C. H. Davis

Captain Mahan reports to Rear Admiral Davis the extraordinary work of Navy men in responding to the earthquake crisis in Kingston, Jamaica. Mahan names individual sailors who have performed remarkably well in the dangerous conditions. They commanded the work done on shore, quelled a mutiny at the penitentiary, and repaired the Plumb Point Lighthouse.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Memorandum from Arthur Bainbridge Hoff to Edwin C. Pendleton

Memorandum from Arthur Bainbridge Hoff to Edwin C. Pendleton

Lieutenant-Commander Hoff, of the USS Missouri, updates for Captain Pendleton accounts of the United States Navy’s aid efforts in Kingston, Jamaica, following the earthquake. This aid took the form of supplies and medical assistance given to hospitals, food and other assistance given to Americans on the island, and dangerous damaged buildings destroyed with gun cotton (an explosive now known as nitrocellulose). The Governor of Jamaica, John Alexander Swettenham, told the Americans not to destroy any buildings without the owner’s approval.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Memorandum of events in connection with a visit to Kingston, Jamaica, after its destruction by earthquake and fire

Memorandum of events in connection with a visit to Kingston, Jamaica, after its destruction by earthquake and fire

Lieutenant Gilmer of the USS Missouri provides a detailed description of the United States naval response to the January 14, 1907, earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica. Gilmer explains that the Navy landed in Kingston on January 17, setting up a hospital, landing forces, and providing aid. Gilmer describes the destruction of the city both from the earthquake and the subsequent looting and the various dead victims he sees and living victims he interacts with. After the governor of Jamaica asked the Navy to leave the island, Gilmer interacts with many who request that the Navy stay and insist they are badly needed. The Navy withdraws on January 19, back to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Letter from C. H. Davis to Lewis Jacob Clark

Letter from C. H. Davis to Lewis Jacob Clark

Admiral Davis directs Lewis Jacob Clark, as commanding officer of the USS Celtic, that the Celtic is not to leave supplies as there are enough in Kingston (following the earthquake), and that the Celtic is not to allow shore leave but to proceed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after as brief a stay as possible.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Letter from C. H. Davis to Victor Howard Metcalf

Letter from C. H. Davis to Victor Howard Metcalf

Admiral Davis reports to Secretary of the Navy Metcalf that he has left two orders for the USS Celtic through the Vice-Consul. First, the Celtic is not to leave supplies as there are enough in Kingston (following the earthquake). Second, the Celtic is not to allow shore leave but to proceed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, after as brief a stay as possible.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Letter from Harry E. Cooper to Edwin C. Pendleton

Letter from Harry E. Cooper to Edwin C. Pendleton

H. E. Cooper, a carpenter in the U.S. Navy, writes Edwin C. Pendleton from Jamaica in the wake of the Kingston Earthquake. He reports that he went ashore with Lieutenant W. P. Scott and 50 other men, where they worked construction under the supervision of Captain C. Jones and H. Humphrey. He reports that the emergency hospital building was badly damaged and details the work done by his crew to fix it.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-19

Report from William P. Williamson to Dennis H. Mahan

Report from William P. Williamson to Dennis H. Mahan

Midshipman Williamson reports to Dennis H. Mahan regarding the evacuation of Americans from Kingston, Jamaica, following the Kingston earthquake. After going ashore to bring women aboard the USS Indiana, Williamson was joined by Chaplain Matthew C. Gleeson of the USS Missouri. The Americans ashore were out of food other than cheese and crackers. Williamson found 40 or 50 women and 100 men, but only four women agreed to be evacuated, so Williamson brought them with the four men attending them. Williamson delivered a memo regarding the people’s need for food to his executive officer.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-01-18