The Slocum Is on Fire!
June 1904: What had started out as a cheerful event, the annual outing of the Lutheran Church in East Village, ended in a terrible disaster. Nearly 1100 people, mainly women and children perished when the excursion boat General Slocum went on fire and sank – within sight of thousands of New Yorkers who watched helplessly on the shores of the East River. It became clear quite soon that not a single fire drill had been carried out since the ship had entered services. This was only to be the tip of the iceberg: With interviews, photos, archival footage and visits to the actual locations we will recount the event in which an entire Manhattan neighbourhood was wiped out and shine light on the political scandal which rocked New York in the wake of the „Slocum Disaster“ – eight years before the Titanic sank.
