There were 600 passengers on the "Assyrian Monarch". They were mostly Russian Jews going to the United States. There were 90 crew members. Food was brought on the ship for Jumbo's 13–14 day voyage. There were 65 bales of hay, of ship's biscuits, 50 loaves of white bread, three sacks of oats, three sacks of bran, and two sacks of onions.