Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1857-03-19
From the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser, 18th
Appalling Casualty!-.Upwards
of SO Lives Lost.

From the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser, 18th
Appalling CasuaIty!-.Upwards
of so Lives Lost.
A frightful accident occurred on The
Great Western Railway, at the Bridge
over the Des JaIdines Canal, four miles
northeast of Hamilton, Canada West, yes
terday afternoon, between five and SIN
o'clock. Our intelligence is imperfect and
contradictory in respect to the details, but
there seems 10 be no reasonable doubt that
more than eighty lives were destroyed by
the terrible disaster The bridge across
the Canal swings, and the accident was
caused by the-defective manner in which il
was constructed. 1t was local train from
Toronto to Hamilton, leaving Toronto at
10 P. NJ. and was due at Hamilton at
40, which met with the fatal disaster.
There were no through passengers upon
it, most of the victims being from those
two places. 1t is supposed that the train
which passed East short time before, sunk
the bridge so much that the locomotive OF
this train was obstructed by the abutment
to such degree that the passenger cars
were raised up and thrown into the canal.
1t is said that there were ninety-eight
passengers on the train, and that only four
teen were rescued alive. The water in the
canal is Is feet deep, and all who were not
Immediately extricated must have been
drowned, of course. Mr.. Bridges, the man.
aging director of the Great Western Road,
and DR.. Macklem and Mr.. Street, both Of
Chippewa, were on the train, but escaped
with their lives, although they are said to
have been considerably injured.
We hear flying rumors of the most pain
full description, in respect to several gentle
men will known in this city; but as they
lnay prove unfounded, We refrain from Civ
ing them currency.
FURTHER PARTICULARS FROM AN EYE WIT
NESS.
Our informant was at the scene of the
disaster, at Z o'clock this morning. The
place where the accident took place is a
short distance beyond Hamilton, where two
bridges crr SIS the Welland Canal at an ele-
walton of about 60 feet above the water
When he arrived parties were still busy in
extrieating the dead bodies from the wreck.
There lay TIE shattered remains of the bag
gage car and two passenger cars, the first
on its side, and one of the passenger cars
turned completely bottom side upward and
about two-tbirds submerged; the other lay
near, also complete wreck. While gazing
on the sad scene, the body of woman
was brought out-the legs drawn up and
the arms extended rigid in death.
In an out house adjoining the station
house at Hamilton were about fifty or
sixty corpses laid out on the floor, men,
women and children. No inquest had yet
been held. Most of the passengers were
of Hamilton, Toronto, and the adjoining
towns. Mr.. Zimmerman, Mr.. Buchanan,
Vice-President of the road, and Capt. Two
hey, a popular commander on Lake Onta-
rio, were among the victims. Only one
lady passenger was saved, and she with
considerably many cuts and bruises, A
German lad who was in the hind car, see
ing the conductor hastily retreating to the
back door, took alarm and followed, and
he with the conductor end two others were
The only ones who escaped with trifing in
out of the car just as it
made the final pitch into the deep chasm.
But fifteen persons were taken alive from
he wreck, and of these five have since died |
rom their injuries. The number of per-
ons on the train is yariously estimated at |
rom seventy-fve to one hundred.
The cause of the accident was undoub-
edly owing to the engine having by
ome means got off the track just as the
rain was approaching the bridge under
speed; the wheels of the engine
,fcourse cutting off the ties of the bridge
IS it advanced, till the whole weight of
,ngine and tender falling heavily, parted
he string pieces, and pitched headlong in-
o the canal below, and is now buried with
he engineer and fireman, at least twenty
eet below the surface.
Many of the observers were disposed to
ensure the company for the apparent
lightness of the structure Of the bridge,
'ut the fact that heavy freight trains have
'een constantly passing, should at once
'ut this at rest. The remains of Mr. Zim-
herman were to be brought to his resid-
nee this afternoon. Mr.. Z. was in the
agggage car at the time OF the accident.
BY TELEGRAPH.
FURTHER FROM THE RAILROAD ACCIDENT.
HAMILTON, G. W., March 13.
D,r4ia. bo,-, loa,, l,....