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S.S. Watertown Ghostly Faces

S.S. Watertown Ghosts

The oil tanker, S.S. Watertown, set sail for the Panama Canal from New York City in December of 1924. Two crewmen, James Courtney and Michael Meehan, had been assigned to clean a cargo tank of the oil tanker when a terrible freak explosion occurred. The unfortunate two men were overcome by gas fumes as well as severe scalding and died as a result. As is the custom of ocean going ships, the sailors were immediately buried at sea. The next day, and for several days thereafter, to the horror of the remaining crew the faces of the sailors were seen in the water and were evidently following the ship. This tale might be easy to dismiss as maritime legend if it weren't for the photographic evidence and the integrity of the witnesses. When the ship's captain, Keith Tracy, contacted his company about the strange events, to to his surprise, the Cities Service Company, suggested he try to photograph the eerie faces - which he did. One of those photos is shown above.

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