Litchfield enquirer., 1857-04-02
The Canada Railroad Accident,

HAMILTON, Canada West, March l3, 1851. The most heart-rending Railroad accident upon record, took place at this city last evening of which you will no doubt have heard ere YOU receive this. Happening here, and having wis tied the scene of horror, will give d brief ae- count of it.
 The evening express train from Toronto, in cro sing the draw-bridge over the '' D.siard;nes Ship Canal" (connecting Burlington Bay with the village Of Dundas, six niles distant, broke as IS supposed, one of the driving axles of the locomotive, when about ten rods distant from the bridge. The engine together with g bag gage and two passenger cars, went through the floor of the bridge down into the water beneath. l visited the spot about o'clock this evening, anG a moro hcart-renting scene never met my vision. The bridge was situated about 100 feet from the extreme outer point or end of the canal, from either side of which the bank rises very steep to the height of about l 70 feet. The excavations for the railroad track, left the floor of the bridge about 49 feet above the water level The train was running at very slow speed, when the breaking of the axle left one wheel upon the track, while the other ran inside. The road being we'll graded, the engineer probably did not discover the break until as the engine came upon the bridge The wheels cut through the floor, aud proba- ply overturned the engine. This is the theory generally adopted here--I cannot however give it credit, from the fact that the side rail ing E scarcely broken Be this as it may, the locomotive took the fatal plunge the baggage car followed, and alighted where it now stands directly on top of the engine--the latter being entirely out of sight, while the top of the car appears to be neary On level with the ice. The first passenger car is represented as having been uncomfortably filled with passengers, not one of whom escaped-many of whom, and in- deed the larger proportion, were merchants of this city and other places, returning from mak- ing spring purchases at Toronto and Montreal together with many of the most eminent men connected with the railroad and city interests who had been attending the present Parlia- ment. Fms car turned complete somerset, end over end, the roof finding resting place on the bottom of the canal The next car, not SC full of passengers, seems to have fallen with less force, and to have stood on end, the lower part resting upon the bottom of the first car, while the other end rested against the substantial stone piers. When 1 reached the spot, this last car had been chopped to pieces and re- moved, while the first car had been raised by heavy tackles at either end, and now hangs suspended by these tackles, some ten feet above the water. Large gangs of men have been at work all night and to day. fishing with long poles for the bedies-oyer 70 having by these means been recovered The sight presented by the long rows of bodies, which have been plac ed in one of the freight houses of the company is shocking beyond all comprehension. There | ci1o Inv SiHa low bo ho1ioc of o1l male and female, the gray haired man and the infant of few mouths. Some faint idea oi the extent of the calamity may be formed from the fact that it is supposed ouly l5 escaped out of over 100, some say l20.
 Among the killed was Samuel Zimmerman Esq, commonly known as the Canadian Rail road King E:an whose loss will be most SC. verely felt-onc or two of the present and ex Aldermen of this city, and some 15 or 20 mer chants of this place.
 But to give brief description of the bridge The canal at this place is about 60 feet wide the bridge being common trussel work draw examined the construction as well as possible
 in the fast fading twilight, and fonmed the i'm pression that the two string pieces were about 90 feet in length, of white pine, 12xI4 inches Upon these were framed the weak and fimsy joists, 6xl2, the bridge being about IA feet in width Tue top timbers of the sides, as near as I could judge, were about Sx1l inches, laid flat, and into them were framed the treIlis work which formed the only stay or support which the bridge received--timbers should say 4xl0. The only bolting or iron work impart- ing strength to the bridge, were the bolts con- meeting these braces to each other at the point where they lapped.s These sides are still per feet, while the two string pieces and the entire floor, is broken off exactly at the stone work next the circle. If such bridge were placed on any of the streams around New Haven, for common travelling, it would be removed in less than eix months, as unsafe for teams to cross. Thousands have visited the spot to day. It is in every one's mouth, the Norwalk accident could not be compared to this"