Delaware State journal and statesman., 1865-03-10
DREADFUL RAILROAD ACCIDENT-FlVE
PERSONS KILLED AND FORTY EIGHT
/

WOUNDED
| A little past two O'Clock on Tuesday morning,
q dreadful accident occurred on the Philadel phia
and Trenton Railroad, at Bristol, at which four
soldiers and one employee OF tho company were
killed, and forty eight passengers wounded, most
Of them being soldiers recently released from
Libby prison, and on their way home. From
the conductors Of the trains and persons residing
In Bristol are CLEANED the following facts in re
ference to the sad disaster.
Adams Through Express Train from Wash
ington, which passes through Philadelphia about
midnight, got Oft the track at Shamony Station,
n short distance this side Of Bristol and re.
mained of the track until the "0wl Line" which
left the Kensington depot at % o'clock, A. NJ,
arrived. Tho officers and men of the two trains
managed 20 get the Express train oil right, and
the Owl train pushed the Express train towards
Bristol Tho Express passenger train from
Washington was, at this time, within 30 minutes
of these two trains, and therefore the conductor
OF tho Owl Limo instructed the station man nt
Shamony to put out n red signal, aud stop the
Express line, and inform the conductor of what
was going OIL ahead, 30 that he might 60 into
Bristol al very low rate Of speel, It is alleged
by the conductor Of tho express train that no
red light was out, but that on the contrary q
yellow one vas displayed when be reached
shamony, and therefore the speed of tue train
was kept mp until reaching the curve at Bristol
bridge. Hero tho velocity was about eeyen
miles an hour, and tho red light on the rear car
Of the Owl train was not discovered, owing TO
the curve, until the distance was too short to
prevent a collision. When the locomotive of the
express struck, the las car Of the Owl line was
pushed through the car next, aud then tho loco.
motive itself crushed it's way through both Of
the broken cars, and was only stopped after de-
molishing the platform of the third car from the
end. All the passengers in the two demolished
cars were soldiers, and they were swept in Sc
oond Of time, with the seats to the upper end
of the second car, aud 30 tightly were they
wedged together that axes had to be used to ro-
lieve the dead and woueded from the wreok.-
To add to the horror and excitement of the scene,
the broken cars took fire from the stove, but by
the timely assistance of the citizens with buckets
Of water, the flames were extinguished before
any one was seriously burned.
The residents Of Bristol were indelatigable in
their Efforts to rescue tho wounded mud remove
them to their houses and the hotels, where ply
sicians were soon in attendance upon them
That 80 few were killed was a subject of
great astonshment to those who inspected the
wreck and saw the full extent of the Disaster
Every seat in both cars was occupied the train
being an unusually heavy one, aud when the
collision took place, the Seats floors, roofs, &c.
were all jammed together into one mass Of bro
ken aud splintered wood. Among the killed
was Joseph Wild, one of the employees of the
company. He was engaged as "greasern upon
the through express train, and at the time of the
disaster he was upon the locomotive, with his
oil can in his hand He was caught between
the locomotive, and when taken from the ruins
il was found that the oil can had been pushed
into his stomach. lie lived about ten minutes,
and remained sensible until within a few seconds
Of his death.
The saddest feature of the accident was the
fact, that the broken train contained large
number of soldiers just released from Libby
prison, who were on their way home. After
months and in some cases years Of imprison-
ment in the prison houses of the South, they
were paroIed to vuit tho old folks at home
They had escaped the peris of the battle field,
they had survived the refined torture of the
Confederates, aud were at last near to those who
were anxously waiting thur return. One Of
the soldiers, Moses Goddard, belonging to the
Fifth Vermont regiment, lived about one hour
after he bad been injured Just before his
death his mind wandered, and imagining that
he was at home, he exclaimed, "Sarah ] have
come home to de" Mr.. j. hn Rodgers, from
Troy, New York, received compound fracture
Of the thigh, and though he Was suffering much
pain at noon on Tuesday, be insisted upon start
ing for his home. He was placed upon settee
and 10 charge Of nurse, and taken in the cars.
In the list Of injured passengers we find the
namo Of Mr. Il. i. Walton, Of Wilmington, who
had his arm broken.
All Of the soldiers badly injured were taken to
the White Hall hospital and the others sent on
in trains to their homes
Tho coroner of Bristol viewed the bodies of
the dend, and will hold mn inquest, when the
true origin Of the accident will be known.
The conductor of the Owl train is positive in
his statement that instructions were given to
the signal man to stop the Express train, and
the conductor of that train also is positive that
no signal light of danger was displayed. The
Owl line was thirty minutes behind time when
it overlook the Express freight train, and the
through passenger train waa also behind time.