Vivian Krug from the South County Historical Society shares this item about a story outlined previously here in Photos from the Vault.
September 1938 — A lumber freighter runs aground and the captain decides to lighten the ship by tossing cargo overboard. Free lumber was a big deal during the Depression and there were fights on the beach and at least one death.
That story can be found here.
Vivian Krug writes:
South County Historical Society ends its Third Season of Historic Readers Theatre productions with Goldrush in Oceano? The Story of the Elg opening July 20 and running every Saturday thru August 24th at the IOOF Hall 128 Bridge Street in Arroyo Grande at 2PM. Doors open at 1:15. Free.
In 1938 with the country still struggling through the Depression, a Norwegian freighter, the Elg, ran aground off Oceano. Her captain made a decision to pitch prime lumber overboard to try to free her. Days of scavenging chaos on the beach followed, filled with good deeds and greed. Gold Rush in Oceano is a story of people at their best and worst.
Freighter Elg aground in Oceano, 1938. Photo courtesy Karen White via Vivian Krug.
For more information on the Historical Society visit www.SouthCountyHistory.org
