The Sun.
London, England, 1845-10-07 00:00:00

TUE SUN, LONIiON, TUESDAY EVENIN(7 OCTOBER 7 1845

ACCIDENT on the GREAT NORTH
OF ENGLAND RAILWAY.
A fearful accident occurred on Saturday, near the Cowton
station of tl. Great North of Regland Railway, by which
several persons were more or less injured, and a lady so se-
verely that but faint hope is entertained of her recovery.
The following particulars have betn communicated by the
guard of the train, and may therefore be relied upon :
The mail train for London left the Gateshead station of
the Newcastle and Darlington Railway as usual, at half .past
three o'clock on Saturday afternoon, and reached Darlington
at 27 minutes past five. After the usual detachment and
accesicn of carriages the train left the station at 37 minutes
past five, and then consisted of the engine and tender, a lug-
Igage van (on which the guard who communicated this account
was placed), two second-class carriirees, two carriage-trucks
belonging to the Newcastle and Ca'rli,le Railway Company,
three first-class carriages, the mmil-van and sorting carriaev,
a carriage-track, and a horse-box. Among those who joined
the train at Darlington were Mr. and Mrs. Whitehead, of
Manchester, who had booked to the Normanton station, and
they occupied the compartment next the engine, of the first
of the three first-class carriages, the other end being a coupe.
They had a private carriage and horses by the same convey-
ance, and were returning home after a short excursion
among their friends.
Alma a mile and a half north of the Cowton station,
which is the second from Darlington, the attention of the
guard was drawn to the accident by the breaking of the
coupling-bar between the luggage-van and the carriages,
which drove in the end of the van. On turning round and
looking back, he observed taat they had left a portion of the
train behind, and he immediately gave a signal to the engine-
man to stop, which was done after proceeding about 300 yards
further—the train having been previously going at the rate
of about 30 miles an hour. The engine having been detached
from the van was snot on to Cowton to stop the train ex-
pected from the south; after which the guard returned
along the line, nearly a quarter of a mile, where he found
the two second-class carriages standing cn the rails, not
much injured; about fifty yards further, the first of the car••
riage trucks was standing on its stock upon the rails, the
wheels and axles having been completely taken from under
it. Tire second truck was about 20 yards further, and
about 40 yards past that the three first-class carriages were
thrown together in such a manner that it is surprising the
injury to the. passengers was not greater than it has been.
The first carriage was thrown upon its end, the coupe end
uppermost, and the lower end embedded in the earth,
awl in the anterior compartment of the second carriaeg,
which was thrown on its side across the rails. The third
was also off the line. The mail van and sorting carriage
were upright, but the wheels were off the rail, and deeply
embedded in the earth. The rails were much bent, and the
ground ploughed up for several yards. His attention was
first directed to the situation of the passengers, and he found
that Mrs. Whitehead, by the a,sistance of Major Parker, the
superintendent Of the line, in succession to Captain O'Brian,
-and who was fortunately travelling with the train, had been
removed fecen the carriage, having sustained very serious in-
jury, it being at first thought that both her legs were broken
above the knee. She was placed on the bank, the accident
h lying occurred in a deep cutting, and every immediate aid
was rendered by Mr. Parsons, of York, and Mr. Boyd, from
the firm of Abbott and Co.. of Gateshead, who were passen-
gers by the train. Mr Whitehead, who was in the same
compartment with his wife, sustained no serious personal
injury, but his feelings were of course, much excited by the
situation of the unfortunate lady.
Tire passengers in the second carriage were buried under
the coupe of the first one, which wtaa also filled, and some
delay took place in extricating them from their perilous posi-
tion, but when that was effected it was happily found that
none of them had sustained any injury beyond a few slight
blows and scratches.
The situation of Mrs. Whitehead was extremely distress-
ing, but she bore her sufferings with a degree of fortitude
that was quite astonishing. Mr. Chapman), of Dalton, who
occupies a fatin near where the accident occurred, was soon
upon tire spot, and kindly offered the use of his house, and
Mrs. Whitehead was conveyed thither on a door supported
by cushions taken from the carriages, and borne by six men.
A special messenger having la en sent to Darlington, the
station-keeper, with about thirty assistants arrived, and
commenced removing the carriages and repairing the line.
In the meantime the York train, having arrived at Cowton,
was detained there untill the arrival of Major Parker,
when it was determined to take some of the carriages from
it to forward the passengers from the north, and that was
accordingly done, leaving Cowton station for York at half •
past eight o'clock. The express train and the mail train,
from London, having also arrived, were detained till the line
was cleared and the rails replaced, which work was accom-
plished with all practicable speed, and the three trains, with
short intervals between each, reached the Gateshead station
about one o'clock on Sunday morning. The wheels that had
been so completely detached from the carriage truck were
found between 200 and 300 yards along the line from the
carriages, one pair broken ; and the breaking of these wheels
is supposed to have been the cause of the accident.
On Mrs. Whitehead being removed to the house of Mr.
Chapman medical aid was procured, but the last accounts
leave little hope of the lady's recovery. It is ascertained
that the thigh bone of only one leg is broken—a very exten-
sive compound fracture. It is due to the servants of the
Company to state that everything in their power was done to ,
alleviate the feelings of the sufferers.

REMOVAL OF TOBACCO UNDER