The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1857-03-28
Particulars Of the Terrible Railroad
Disaster I'm Canada---Sixty or Seventy
Lives Lost.

1o ada BUFFALO, March 10.
The Commercial Advertiser has the fol-
lowing particulars Of the railroad catastro-
phe at Hamilton, from gentleman who left
the scene Of disaster this morning:
The accident occurred at the bridge over
the Des 'Jardines canal, about two miles
northeast of Hamilton. The bridge swings
and is elevated some sixty feet above the
water. rrl.
The train was a local accommodation run
ming between Toronto and Hamilton It
LETT Toronto at P. NJ, and was due at Ham
ilton at $3.50. The number of passengers is
variously estimated at from IS to 100, o..
whom only fifteen were taken from the wreck,
and of these five have since died. The wa
ter in the canal is eighteen feet deep, and all
tLat were not Immediately killed were drown
ed. The engine and tender, with the engi-
neer and fireman were pitched headlong into
the canal, and are buried twenty feet below
the surface.
The baggage car and two passenger cars
are a complete wreck One of the latter
was turned bottom side upwards, and is about
twothirds submerged.
Parties were still busy this morning ex-
Treating bodies from the wreck.
In an out house adjoining the station
house at Hamilton, about fifty or sixty corp
ses-men, women and children-were laid
out. No inquest has yet been held.
Most of the passengers were from Hamil-
ton, Toronto, and the adjoining towns.
Samuel Zimmerman, Mr.. Buchanan, Vice
President of the road, and Captain Twokey,
propeller commander on Lake Ontario, are
among the victims. t
Only one lady passenger was saved, and
she is considerably cut and bruised.
"A German lad in the hind car, seeing the
conductor hastily retreating to- the back
door, followed, and with the conductor and
two others, were the only ones who escaped
with trifling injuries.
Mr.. Bridges, managing Director of the
road, DIR. Maclim, and Mr.. Street of Chippe-
wa, were on the train, but escaped with their
lives, although considerably injured.
The following is list of the bodies recog-
niZed up to this morning:
Donald Stuart, Rev. A. Booker, Erastus
w. Green, little girl, daughter of J. X.
Clark, all Of Toronto; James Cannon, Thom-
as Benson, of Port Hope John Sharp, book
vender, A. Grant, VIM. Russell of the firm
of Mellish, Merrill & Russell, of Bradford !;
Joseph Barr, of Niagara; John c. Hender-
son, of Hamilton.
In one Of the Company's buildings lay
nineteen bodies, sixteen men, two women
and one child of these only three have been
recognized, Edward Duffield, Rev. Dr. Heisse
and John Morley. The remains of Mr..
Zimmerman will be taken to his residence
this afternoon. He was in the baggage car
at the time of the accident.
Parties have been busy during the day in
extricating bodies from the wreck. Up to
this evening 81 boIies have been recovered,
and several have been carried away by their
friends.
A jury was empannelled this morning, and
Immediately proceeded to view the various
bodies, and investigate the cause of the dis
aster
The following bodies have been identified:
Mr.. Doyle and Thomas Doyle, of Dunbar
ton; Jas. Barr and Jas. Mayer, of Two Riv-
ers d. McFagan, Gait; Mr.. Kendall, Lock-
port, N. Y Mr.. and Mrs. Brosfeld, of Sus-
pension Bridge; Miss Duffin, Toronto j ohm
Beck, wife and two children, Mr.. and Mr..
and Mrs. Russell, of Brantfort; Mr.. Curtis,
of Dowlings, back broken, and cannot live.
A public funeral of the unfortunate suffer-
ers will take place on Monday. ID
Committees have been formed to wait on
the friend. of the deceased.