Women and children piled into a second lifeboat that was lowered towards the water. An obese and badly frightened politician, former U.S. congressman John Macy of Fond du Lac, launched himself off the Niagara and into the heavily laden boat. After falling seven feet, Macy tore the falls out of the boat’s stern, and the entire group dropped into the lake and drowned.

The capsizing of the two lifeboats was later judged the primary cause for the large loss of life.

Amid the chaos of the frightened passengers and the scrambling crew, one passenger heard explosions and what sounded like several gunshots. The source of these sounds, however, was never determined.

Only 15 or 20 minutes passed from the time the fire was discovered to when the Niagara was completely abandoned. A boat dispatched from the steamboat Traveler and commanded by the future beer king Frederick Pabst picked up Captain Miller and several others.

Records are unclear on the number of people aboard the Niagara at the time of the fire, but the loss of life was estimated to be 60 people, making this one of the worst transportation disasters in Wisconsin's history.

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