This is the first comprehensive account of the capsizing in 1915 of the steamer Eastland, an accident that killed more than 800 men, women, and children--the worst disaster of any kind in the history of Chicago and the worst in the history of the Great Lakes. Reviews "Hilton has written a comprehensive and exhaustive study of the worst disaster in Chicago's history. . . . Alterations and the addition of more lifeboats and rafts after the Titanic sank made the Eastland so unstable that it rolled over in the Chicago River. . . . The vessel's entire career is examined, and . . . the disaster itself is meticulously described and analyzed. Hilton also critically evaluates the subsequent civil and criminal court proceedings, raising a number of issues relating to marine safety regulations and the compensation of the victims' families." --Choice "Irony and tragedy combine in this account of America's worst marine disaster. . . . Hilton constructs a careful account of the events leading up to the calamity. The disaster itself is recounted minute by minute. . . . The numerous illustrations and period photographs, as well as numerous appendixes, make this a definitive account." --Library Journal "This is the book on the Eastland." --Inland Seas "It contains vivid accounts of drownings and rescues, heroism and cowardice." --Chicago Tribune