“The Ortigia, on her previous voyage, had a collision in the same spot with a French steamer, and this fact adds strength to the belief that she was responsible for this morning’s disaster” - The New York Times, July 22nd, 1895. Though the two accidents were fifteen years apart the two disasters had some striking similarities. On both occasions, the Ortigia had struck an emigrant ship full of sleeping passengers at night, and on both occasions, the Ortigia was found to not be at fault. Not only that but on both occasions the accident had happened off of La Spezia, Italy. It was enough to catch anyone’s attention.
Ship Name: Oncle Joseph
Tonnage: 823
Year Built: Unknown
Ship Type: Iron Screw Propelled Steamship
Nationality: French
Location Wrecked: Of La Spezia
Reason For Wreck: Collision with the Ortigia
Year Wrecked: 1880
Lives Lost: 238
Ship Name: Maria P
Tonnage: 772
Year Built: 1886
Nationality: Italian
Ship Type: Iron Hulled Screw Propelled Steamer
Location Wrecked: Off La Spezia
Reason For Wreck: Collision with the Ortigia
Year Wrecked: 1895
Lives Lost: 148
Sources:
https://www.theshipslist.com/ships/lines/florio.shtml
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/196567066?searchTerm=oncle%20joseph
https://newspapers.library.wales/view/3750501/3750504/14/uncle%20joseph%20italian%20ship
https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/lccn/sn89053704/1880-11-30/ed-1/seq-2/
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/267146579?searchTerm=oncle%20joseph
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/209047136?searchTerm=maria%20p%20ortigia
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/62119201?searchTerm=oncle%20joseph
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/238524952?searchTerm=maria%20p%20ortigia
https://law.justia.com/cases/foreign/international/1927-pcij-series-a-no-10.html
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1895/07/22/103368769.html?pageNumber=1
https://newspaperarchive.com/decatur-bulletin-sentinel-jul-27-1895-p-6/
