The engineer of the steamboat hears the crew, shouting and raging once again. His stomach turns as he hears their protests. He knows what the captain will say, and he knows why it is necessary, but he also understands why the crew is so repulsed, why they have threatened mutinies. They are military men, and the job they are being forced to do shocks and horrifies them.

The engineer can do little, as he approaches the massive paddlewheels that churn the muddy riverwater into a froth. Debris commonly becomes trapped in between the heavy, wooden slats, and must be cleared for the boat to move on. It's a common enough chore aboard Mississippi steamboats, but now no one wants to do it. No one wants to pull out the flotsam that is now clogging the massive wheels.

The engineer surveys the wheel, his stomach turning. Jammed in between the slats, dripping with mud, is not the usual mass of leaves and driftwood...but dozens of bodies, the corpses of drowned men.

This is the sinking of the S.S. Sultana.

Join us for a deep dive into America's worst maritime disaster, and the greed and negligence that lead to the deaths of over 1100 men, women, and children.