Offbeat Oregon History podcast · www.offbeatoregon.com (finn @ offbeatoregon.com)

Fiery explosive shipwreck gave Boiler Bay its name

February 13, 2026·11 min·1 clip

Badly burned Captain Charles Darling got his crew into lifeboats and rowed for hours before rescue by the steamer Breakwater.

Host Finn J.D. John tells the story of the 1910 wreck of the coastal steamer J. Marhoffer, whose boiler explosion killed four crewmen, created a massive fireball, and led to the bay being named Boiler Bay. The episode details the ship's voyage, the catastrophic explosion, the survival and rescue of the crew, and the lasting geographical legacy of the disaster.

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