Sultana Explodes: 1,700 Die in America's Deadliest Maritime Disaster
The steamboat SS Sultana explodes on the Mississippi River, sinking with 1,700 souls aboard, mostly Union soldiers just freed from Confederate prison camps. This disaster claims more American lives than the sinking of the Titanic, leaving a devastating gap in the ranks of returning veterans who had survived years of captivity only to perish in a preventable tragedy.
April 27, 1865
161 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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