Flower in the River: A Family Tale Finally Told

Mr. Eastland and the Night at the Museum

• Natalie Zett • Season 4 • Episode 176

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This week, I remember Dave Nelson, who passed away on July 10, 2026, just before the 111th anniversary of the Eastland disaster. 

And yet his name rarely surfaces in the retellings his own work made possible.

Dave was the grandson of Elmer Nelson (born Knute David Hjalmar Nilsson in Kalmar, Sweden), an ironworker who helped cut through the Eastland's hull to free trapped passengers in 1915 and was awarded a Silver Star by the Cook County Coroner for his valor.

Watching The Poseidon Adventure brought his grandfather to mind and set Dave in motion in 1972! What he and his wife Rose built over the years became the most extensive collection of Eastland memorabilia in existence.

I wrote to Dave in the late 1990s after I had just discovered my family's connection to this disaster that I'd never heard of. He dropped everything to open his Eastland Museum (in downtown Chicago) late one night just for me and my friend. He gave us the grand tour and regaled us with the story of the Eastland as if he had been an eyewitness to it! By the time we were done, I was overwhelmed in the best possible way. I thanked him over and over, but he refused my donation. As we were winding down the visit, he looked at me, smiled and said, "Natalie, I'm afraid you've been Eastland-ized." I replied, "If that's true, then it's your fault, Mr. Eastland."

I also revisit a 1989 Chicago Tribune article, "The Eastland Remembered," documenting the Nelsons' 17-year labor of love, their refusal to charge admission, and their fight to keep the collection open. I remember Dave as someone who authentically cared about the Eastland and those whose lives were forever changed by it. It was never about him, but about his work to ensure the history of the Eastland and its people was preserved.

Mr. Eastland, you've left the stage, but your influence and your work continue.

Resources

  • Donna Chavez, “The Eastland Remembered,” Chicago Tribune, July 23, 1989.
  • “‘You’ll Spoil the Boat,’ Captain Tells Rescuers,” Chicago Examiner, July 25, 1915, 69.
  • Acetylene Journal. Vol. 17, 1915–1916. Chicago: Acetylene Journal Publishing Company. Google Books.

Welcome To Flower In The River

Natalie Zett

Hello, I'm Natalie Zett, and welcome to Flower in the River. This podcast, inspired by my book of the same name, explores the 1915 Eastland disaster in Chicago and its enduring impact, particularly on my family's history. We'll explore the intertwining narratives of others impacted by this tragedy as well. And we'll dive into writing and genealogy and uncover the surprising supernatural elements that surface in family history research. Come along with me on this journey of discovery.

A Different Plan For Today

Natalie Zett

Hey, this is Natalie, and welcome to episode 176 of Flower in the River Podcast. I hope all is well with you. This week I had a lot of things planned, but I had to scuttle those plans because I need to instead remember somebody. Someone who was also very much part of the Eastland Disaster history. His name was Dave Nelson. Is that name familiar to you? It should be if you have any interest in the Eastland disaster, but Dave's name has for the most part been omitted from recent retellings. Out of respect for the family and because this is so recent, I am not going to read his obituary. But I will tell you about how I met Dave Nelson and how he supported me early on when I first discovered my family's connection to the Eastland disaster.

Grief And A Package From Chicago

Natalie Zett

In 1996, my father passed away. I felt lost and empty and weird and trying to come to grips with this. It was hard. And about a year and a half after that, something arrived that not only helped assuage my grief, but literally changed the direction of my life. I got a package from my mother's much older half-sister in Chicago. I was quite shocked because I thought she was dead. My Aunt Pearl was briefly a reporter in the 1930s for the Chicago Daily News and for a number of other papers. I don't know how long she did this work, and I don't think she ever got any bylines. She stopped working when she got married. However, the reporter instinct, the journalist that lived inside of her, it never left. And she continued to find other outlets for her creativity. And toward the end of her own life, she put together her very own Magnus Opus, which was the family history of my maternal grandmother's family, people I knew very little about. And because of my Aunt Pearl's document, I was, for the first time in my life, able to learn about my mother's mother's side of the family. The majority of these people, these stories, and so on were brand new to me. All I knew about my grandmother was her name and the fact that she died when my own mother was three years old. I also knew that my grandmother was married once before she married my grandfather and had two children in that first marriage, including my Aunt Pearl. My Aunt Pearl was a most excellent journalist, and she included everything she could think of in that family history document. Plus, she did this other thing, she cited her sources. She did, and because she did that, I was able to pick up the document and continue growing and expanding the information. You can tell she was a professional journalist, and there were so many things that shocked me and overwhelmed me, but one of the big things that stood out initially was that our family started relocating from either Europe or Johnstown, Pennsylvania to Chicago in the late 1800s. So all my life, well, since I was a child, I suffered from what I call Chicago envy. Although I'm originally from Johnstown, Pennsylvania, I spent my childhood and teen years in Cleveland. And as it turned out, I really didn't need to have any kind of envy. This branch of my family had been in Chicago for many, many years.

Meeting Martha Pfeiffer in the Manuscript

Natalie Zett

While reading her document, I also learned about this tragedy called the Eastland disaster, something I never heard of. My Aunt Pearl shared the story because we lost a family member in the Eastland disaster, my grandmother's younger sister, 19-year-old Martha Pfeiffer. I'd never heard of Martha either. And that was all it took to send my curiosity into overdrive. I wanted to learn everything about my newfound family members, about my great aunt Martha who was killed, and I wanted to learn about this tragedy, this Eastland disaster. Lucky for me, Minneapolis, St. Paul, where I lived and live, is not that far from Chicago. So I was able to go back and forth quite a bit to do this research. And one of my college friends was originally

Tracking Down Dave Nelson

Natalie Zett

from Chicago and she returned there after college and was doing, among other things, history tours. She heard of the Eastland disaster, and it was she who told me about this guy. There was a guy who had an Eastland museum, and his name was David Nelson. And at that point, we're talking in the late 1990s. The information about the Eastland was sparse. There was George Hilton's book, which I now consider my guidebook, but at that time I was overwhelmed by the detail, the numbers, etc. That's not what I wanted. I was looking for something to make sense of all of this. And along that journey, I was also still carrying the very fresh grief from the loss of my father. So everything came along for the ride. I got on this journey. He said, The next time you are in Chicago, give me a call. You and your friend can come visit me at my Eastland Museum. At that point, it was downtown Chicago, and I do believe it was the South Racine Avenue location, but not 100% sure. The fact that somebody, another family member, by the way, and I will explain his connection to the Eastland disaster, went to all of this trouble to collect information, to collect artifacts, and to create his very own museum, traveling museum, as it turned out to be. And later I learned that he paid for everything out of his pocket, and when it came to family members such as me, he never asked for any money. And at the point where I met him, I was so vulnerable. I think I could have been taken advantage of in terms of this connection to the Eastland disaster. He did not do that. I didn't know Dave Nelson well, but the Dave Nelson that I did know was quite an extraordinary character. For one thing, he made good on his promise.

Inside The Eastland Collection At Night

Natalie Zett

The next time I was in town, my friend and I traveled from her home in Oaklawn to downtown Chicago, where Dave Nelson opened his museum late at night, especially for us. What I recall from that very first meeting was how welcoming he was, how absolutely enthusiastic he was when it came to sharing the history of the Eastland disaster. He had all kinds of photographs, he had a deck chair, he had some kind of diving suit. I was honestly too overwhelmed to take it all in, and he probably was the first person that I met in the flesh who had a family connection to the Eastland disaster. It doesn't happen all the time, but I have found that throughout the years, those of us who have actual family members that were involved in the Eastland disaster, whether victims, rescuers, witnesses, etc., there is often a special bond that we share with each other. And if memory serves, I think I ended up blurting out everything to him, the death of my father, this document arriving, all of this newfound discovery, and he was so kind and so patient, and I definitely didn't just feel welcomed. I felt like this person gets what I'm talking about. During our time together, I remember not just talking about the heavy stuff, but about laughing and getting to know somebody that felt like an old friend. And as we were concluding our visit, I began to feel not just better, I began to feel as if I was connected to something way bigger than I was. On a certain level, this pulled me out of my personal grief and allowed me to take that grief and see it differently, maybe see it in context of something tremendously larger than just my own personal loss, which was huge. Indeed, as we were leaving, I was so filled with hope and excitement, and I told Dave, Wow, I can't wait to learn more about all of this. And he said, Natalie, I'm afraid you've been Eastlandized. And I laughed so hard. And I said, Well, if that's the case, it's your fault, Mr. Eastland. And I never forgot that. I forgot so many of the details from that visit, but I never forgot his words, you've been Eastlandized, and so I was.

The Moment I Got Eastlandized

Natalie Zett

Before I read this article about Dave Nelson, I want to tell you one more thing. Not

Titanic Exhibit And Libby Ruby

Natalie Zett

that long after we met, there was a big Eastland event at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and it was in conjunction with the Titanic exhibit. It was really very well done. It was done by a professional organization, but several Eastland organizations also were responsible for getting the Eastland exhibit up and running as well. And after we toured the Titanic and Eastland exhibit, most of which was comprised of Dave's collection, there was this banquet for Eastland family members and friends. And I saw Dave there and he brought with him an Eastland survivor. She might have been one of the last survivors. Her name was Libby Ruby. And I found out later that she and Dave Nelson were actually very good friends of many years, and he looked out for her and was in her life. I want to mention that because that's one of the things that not just touched me, it was one of the things that I remembered about him.

The 1989 Chicago Tribune Profile

Natalie Zett

I'm going to read this article and please take note of the date. The date is very significant because this is how far back Dave Nelson goes in terms of his caring for and promoting the Eastland disaster history. This is from the Chicago Tribune, july twenty third, nineteen eighty nine. Headline The Eastland Remembered This is by Donna Chavez. To start with an understatement, Dave and Rose Nelson of Wheaton, that's Wheaton, Illinois, have spent much of the last seventeen years accumulating photos, records, and other memorabilia of a maritime disaster they believed all too few remember. Their goal, no small task, is to keep the memory of a moment in time alive and on the tips of people's tongues. The Nelsons know all the significant accomplishments began with one common denominator, someone who cares. In order to meet the challenge of indifference and to fight the good fight against apathy, somebody has to believe strongly in what he is doing. Just as the very mention of the Titanic brings to mind clear visions of hapless victims, the Nelsons would have us all recall the woeful victims, as well as the heroes, of what has been called our country's worst inland maritime disaster, the 1915 capsizing in Chicago of the Fairy Eastland. Nelson relates the story as clearly and vividly as an eyewitness. It was on July 24th that employees of the Western Electric Company and their friends and families, nearly 10,000 in all, lined the docks at the Clark Street and Chicago River, hewing up to board three luxury ships that would ferry them across Lake Michigan to an annual company picnic at Michigan City, Indiana. The first ship at the docks was the Eastland. Called the Queen of the Great Lakes, she was a beautiful two hundred and sixty-five-foot ship with an extensive history of service. Women in white pinafores and men in white linen or seersucker suits laughed and played games with the children in anticipation of a festive day of food, dancing, and lawn games. Six blocks away, a twenty nine-year-old ironworker named Elmer Nelson, toiling on the city's latest superstructure, at the corner of Dearborn and Madison streets, could faintly hear the music and laughter of the crowd on the docks, between the clattering of trains on the elevated tracks. At dockside, cameras captured happy families celebrating the largesse of such a generous employer. The day promised a perfect outing. Then it all turned ugly. The Eastland with twenty five hundred passengers aboard began to rock back and forth. Confused and terrified passengers were being tossed across the decks like ricocheting pinballs. The boat listed and finally came to rest on its port side, aground in twenty one feet of water. Most of those on the topmost deck, the quote unquote lucky ones, were thrown free into the water. Many were not, though, and so clung to any one or anything that could help keep their heads above water. Observers dockside, seeing the floundering people, began throwing crates, chairs, virtually anything that would float into the rolling water. Their actions proved rash, however, when the hurled objects, many of them heavy and blunt edged, dealt death blows to those in the water. Others in the water ripped at the bulky skirts and petticoats to better swim for life as they urgently searched the teeming river for children or elders. Those sounds of panic carried those six blocks to ironworker Elmer Nelson, who responded at first with curiosity, wondering what all the noise was about. Soon he and his co-workers were summoned to the scene for their ironworking skills, but if the vision on the top deck was an unprecedented disaster, then the silent and more deadly vision on the decks below was unspeakably worse. Hundreds had no escape. The iron workers were asked to begin cutting through the sides of the ship to free the other passengers in hopes they had reached air pockets. Settle in torches cut windows in the hull through which frantic passengers could climb to safety. Some windows opened only to reveal the rescuers were too late. The death toll was eight hundred and twelve, though the final tally would not be made for weeks. Nelson and the others toiled relentlessly at the rescue efforts for the next three days to save even one more life, to account for one more missing person. The story is one that young Dave Nelson grew up with as Grandfather Elmer would mesmerize the family with the vivid story of death. Grandfather Nelson had been among those decorated for their valor during the ordeal, awarded a silver star by the Cook County Coroner in recognition of his contribution to the rescue effort. He carried it in his wallet for the rest of his life. His wife, his children, his grandchildren were brought to respect the memory of that day. And that would have been that were it not for an evening at the movies in 1972 for Dave and Rose. They went to see the Poseidon Adventure, and as they watched Jean Hackman lead an ever-diminishing group to rescue on a capsized ship, Nelson began to feel more and more the very real drama of that day in 1915. Rose recalled at the end of the movie when those people were saved by an ironworker's torch cutting through the hull of a ship, Dave's mouth fell open and his eyes popped wide open. He said, That's what my grandfather did for those people in the Eastland. We've just got to learn more about it. It was witnessing the movie's rescue that galvanized Nelson into action. From that moment, their lives would never be the same. Their first stop was the Chicago Historical Society, where they found some photos and records, such as passenger lists and newspaper clippings. From there they went to Port Huron, Michigan, where the Eastland was built in 1902 by the Jenks Company. They continued their pursuit at each stop accumulating more information, but instead of quenching their thirst for knowledge, every bit seemed only to fan the flame. Before long they were taking family vacations to locations specifically to collect more information. On car trips throughout the Midwest, they stopped at antique shops and flea markets, searching for memorabilia. The collection adds up to more than 700 newspaper articles from cities such as Cleveland. Cleveland and Michigan City, to name a few, they have 150 postcards depicting the disaster and rescue, as well as grisly scenes of rows of yet to be identified bodies, and more than 80 photographs, including an original lithograph plate from which one of the photos was made. The Nelson's three children can hardly remember a family vacation that didn't include a visit to such places as local historical societies or the Library of Congress. The quest has yielded yet another silver star donated to the collection by George Pappas. The star belonged originally to Pappas' uncle, who also took part in the Eastland rescue attempts. Other items include a gaily painted deck chair from the ship and a silver sugar bowl found by a diver. In short, they have what is recognized as the most extensive collection of Eastland memorabilia in existence. Ed Dietrich, assistant curator of the Chicago Maritime Society, describes Nelson as certainly one of the most knowledgeable people about the Eastland disaster. His collection on information about the families and the effect of the disaster on the community is vast. Once the collection began, according to Rose, it took on a life of its own. She explained, if someone says the name Titanic, even small children know about it, but very few are even aware that something as devastating as the Eastland disaster ever happened. What multiplies the tragedy of the Eastland is that more than twenty entire families were wiped out on that day, Dave said. Just imagine all those families without one survivor. Of those who did survive, the Nelsons have spoken to more than a dozen. We started about four years ago sharing our collection with those who might be interested. You know, survivors, families of victims, and so on, Dave said. The response was positive, so the couple set up a place to display the collection at the nursery they own in Downer's Grove. More than 200 people have viewed the collection since then, and many have contributed items or referred the Nelsons to others who have made contributions. Brass plates on a wall plaque hanging with the exhibit recognized these contributors. Until recently, the Nelson's collection had been available for viewing by visiting the nursery. Dave had some signs printed advertising his collection. They were posted throughout the community, but the signs referred to his collection as the Eastland Disaster Museum, and a phone call from DuPage County officials informed him that since it didn't meet the county's definition of a museum, he could not call it that. Nor could he continue to invite the public onto grounds of his nursery to view the collection. Faced with this news barely six weeks before the anniversary of the disaster, Nelson was temporarily deflated. The most important purpose of all his efforts is to serve as a reminder of the anniversary. The timing was terrible. I understand where the county is coming from. I hold no grudge. We don't want the collection to get lost in political issues, so we will comply with a letter of the law. The Eastland Collection went on display recently at a new location and is in compliance with county regulations. He rented a storefront on Main Street in Wheaton. The Nelsons have painted and fixed up an exhibit area that shows just some of their Eastland memorabilia. There is no charge to view the collection. Every expense has been out of the couple's own pocket, including the rent. Dave said he won't let a fee prevent anyone from viewing the collection who wants to see it. The whole thing is about honoring the memories of the victims as well as the heroes. And at that point, the Eastland Disaster Collection was available at one one North Main Street in Wheaton. That's the end of the article.

Why Dave Nelson Must Be Named

Natalie Zett

There was a lot packed into that article, right? So I want to pause and summarize what we just heard. If most of what you know about the Eastland disaster comes from the more modern retellings, chances are you have never heard Dave Nelson's name. I went looking and in most of those accounts, he is not even a footnote. Although to be fair, footnotes are few and far between in recent Eastland history retellings. And that's why I want to tell his story in more than one way. Dave Nelson's contributions to the Eastland disaster history should not disappear. Anyone working with the history of the Eastland disaster, myself included, myself especially, owes him a debt. So in nineteen eighty-nine, here is a summary of the Dave and Rose Nelson Eastland Disaster History Research. The Dave and Rose Nelson collection had seven hundred plus newspaper articles gathered from cities including Cleveland and Michigan City. Two silver stars, Elmer Nelson's awarded by the Cook County Coroner, and a second donated to the collection by George Pappas, whose uncle also took part in the rescue, a painted deck chair from the ship, a silver sugar bowl recovered by a diver. The Nelsons began their adventure in 1972 after they saw the Poseidon Adventure. By 1989, when this article was written, the Nelsons already had 17 years of doing this work. They did interviews with more than a dozen Eastland survivors, and their public display of the Eastland artifacts began roughly four years before the article, around 1985, at their Downer's Grove Nursery. Two hundred plus people had viewed the collection since it opened. Ed Dietrich, assistant curator of the Chicago Maritime Society, called Nelson, quote, certainly one of the most knowledgeable people about the Eastland disaster, and said his collection on information about the families and the effect of the disaster on the community is vast. The article states flatly they have what has been recognized as the most extensive collection of Eastland memorabilia in existence. Here are the details of the 1989 Eastland Disaster Exhibit. They had a storefront at 111 North Main Street, Wheaton, that was rented, painted, and fitted out entirely at the Nelson's own expense. They charged nothing for admission. Dave refused to charge a fee. Quote from Dave Nelson: This whole thing is about honoring the memories of the victims as well as the heroes. Contributors were recognized by brass plates on a wall plaque. Unfortunately, the DuPage County had shut down the nursery display six weeks before the anniversary, ruling it didn't meet the county's definition of a museum. I say this again because Dave just passed away, and as of July twenty third, twenty twenty six, that's a day before July twenty fourth, twenty twenty six, the one hundred and eleventh anniversary of the Eastland disaster, I may not be looking in the right locations, but so far, neither Dave's contributions nor his passing have been mentioned at least so far. And that's why I wanted to reiterate what we heard in the article to drive home what he's done for all of us. And I just added Dave's name to the list of people that have been omitted from the Eastland Disaster Retellings. Right now, and this number keeps changing by the way, I have 263 people who were part of the Eastland disaster, but who are omitted in the current retellings. I will share the story of Dave's grandfather in a future episode. He's called Elmer Nelson in the article, and indeed that's the name that he mostly went by in the United States. But Knut David Halmar Nielsen originally immigrated from Sweden, and he has quite the story, so we will continue to get to know him better. In the meantime, Mr. Eastland, I know you've left the stage, but your influence and your work continues. And we will continue next week with more stories of the people of the Eastland disaster.

Dedication, Farewell, And How To Support

Natalie Zett

As always, take care of yourselves, take care of each other. Stay safe, and I will talk to you soon. Hey, that's it for this episode, and thanks for coming along for the ride. Please subscribe or follow so you can keep up with all the episodes. And for more information, please go to my website. That's www.flowerinthher.com. I hope you'll consider buying my book available as audiobook, ebook, paperback, and hardcover because I still owe people money, and that's my running joke. But the one thing I'm serious about is that this podcast and my book are dedicated to the memory of all who experienced the Eastland disaster of 1915. Goodbye for now.

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Natalie Zett

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