The General Lyon had left Wilmington, North Carolina three days before, bound for Fort Monroe, Virginia. Up to 600 people were aboard, including released prisoners of war, refugees, and more than 200 time-expired men of the 56th Illinois Volunteers, heading home. A fire during a violent storm off Cape Hatteras destroyed the vessel and only 29 people survived. And only five men from the 56th aboard made it home. (By John Osborne)
Source Citation
"Dreadful Fire at Sea: Five Hundred Lives Lost," New York Times, April 3, 1865
"Terrible Calamity: Burning of the United States Transport Steamer General Lyon Off Hatteras," New York Herald, April 3, 1865, p. 4.
"Terrible Calamity: Burning of the United States Transport Steamer General Lyon Off Hatteras," New York Herald, April 3, 1865, p. 4.
Record Data
Date Certainty
Exact
Type
Crime/Disasters