On Saturday, April 5th, 2025 the Seaside Library Friends & Foundation will welcome author Rod Scher for a book talk and Q&A on his latest offering, “Ship of Lost Souls: The Tragic Wreck of the Steamship Valencia” The event will take place at 2:00pm in the Community Room and there will be a time afterwards for a Q&A.
In January of 1906, off the coast of Vancouver Island, BC, almost everyone aboard the steamship Valencia died, including every single woman and child, when the vessel crashed into the jagged rocks just off of the island. Some 170+ souls perished within a couple hundred yards of land, and in spite of the fact that ships had been dispatched to rescue them. Rod Sher’s account is the story of that disaster, about who was at fault, and about the lessons we may or may not have learned from the tragedy.