Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1855-09-07
Awful Catastrophe on the
Camden and Amboy Railroad,
New Jersey.


The New York papers give the
essential particulars of calamitous
railroad accident in New Jersey very
destructive Of human life. 1t occur
red on "Wednesday the goth, about
10 A. NJ.
The morning mail-tran left Phila-
delphia at 10 A. NJ, and reached
Burlington (twenty mles) a few min
uies ahead of time-say quarter of
an hour after ii O'Clock. There
were sir passenger cars in the train.
BY the rules Of the Railroad Com
pany, the train first arriving at Bur
Ilngton, which is the place for the
meeting OF the trains, IS required to
, wait ten minutes, aud if the other
, train does not arrive then, the first is
! entitled to the road both trains 10
, run, looking for each other. There
is bu, a single track.
The up-train waited, according to
: orders, for the train from New York
ana 'i!.a1srfiRs side n n So'u'
the trains met, saw each other IN
season to reverse, reversed rapidly,
and the train which Jeff Burlington a
few minutes before, ran back for two
miles, until it had reached cross
road half mile this side OF Burlmg-
/ ton.
At this point, wagon with two
horses, driven by DR.. flanagan, an
old physician, residing just out of
Burlington, was crossing the track
as the train backed. The hind car
struck the horses, killing them instant
/ ", and this caused that car to be
thrown from the track, while those 10
front piled up on top Of ii. Four
out of the six cars were thrown off
the track IN this manner, and three OF
them were utterly destroyed. They
were all peU filled Nth passengers,
nearly all of whom were Injured more
or less seriously, and II is feared that
the number who were killed outright
was even greater than was at first re-
ported. The accounts gathered,
however, indicate that TWENTY THREE
persons are killed, while not less lhun
seventy were injured.
When the down train (from New
York; was stopped, IT was within
one hundred feet of the wrecked, or
Philadelphia train. The vehicle
which caused the accident to the up
train, was driven by Dr. flanagan,
and combined, also, his wife and two
children, all of whom escaped with
but trilllng injuries. Both horses
were instantly killed The Doctor
was hard of hearing, and did not
hear or see the returning train. Hav-
ing seen the train pass up he thought
all was safe.
Most of those killed outright seem
10 have been residents of Phladel-
phla, baltimore, p,,tsbursh a"L ut'vr
places south and west. Several were
attached to The U $. Navy service.
Only four or FIVE females are reported
among the dead.
The ladies' of Burlington, and of
the houses in the immediate vicinity
Of the accident. rendered the greatest
possible hospitality to the unfortunate
sufferers. Mrs. Neving, of Burling-
ton, we have heard mentioned in
terms of the highest praise. The
! Quaker families and others eally re-
paired TO tho scene Of the disaster,
with bandages, linen cloths, sIimu-
lants, &c. Many of the wounded
men he in the houses near the cross
roads, and many others have been
taken into Burlington. The honses
of that city have been freely opened,
and the bodies OF The dead were all
taken thither
A number of physicians from Phil
adelpha came up and rendered all
the assistance il was possible to afford
to the sufferers.
A passenger states that when the
/, train was backed towards Burlington
they were going at very rapid rate
| about 25 miles an hour, but the en-.
gineer AYERS il to be only 10 miles, -
T; and when near Burlington the reau
$ car, which was entirely empty ano
e was lighter car than the others, ran
, into a span of horses driven by Dr.
, Hannegan. The horses were rolled
f aud crushed under the car, being
carried distance of thirty or fort,
yards. The empty car was then
thrown outside the track and down
an embankmenl of or s feet. The
+ next car, filed with passengers. was
thrown off the track and driven 50
or GO yards further along through the
S sand, finally lodging cross wise on
!. The track. The third aud fourth
S cars were jammed against the second,
y crushing IL and its passengers in an
$ awful manner, one being thrown of
It the track to the riga, and the o,he,
'e 10 The left. The fifth car was then
Of forced In between The two preceding
N II.
l. The greatest loss OF life was among
n the passengers in the third car, bu
I'd that IN the second and fourth wa
e. also terrible.
A. One man had his head mashed lit
orally 10 a Jelly; another was Gu
ed completely IN Two; another wa
'r- buried in the sand. aud so thorough
ny mangled that his body was literal
L. removed IN shovelsfui.
The sigh, Of the killed aud dyin
N. was SO utterly horriying that, for Fl,
dy or ten minutes afterwards, those VIII