Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1873-05-09
NUMBER 35.


parents, or taken to places of safety.
There were scenes of JOY and scenes of an
guish, and as the crushed and pallid bodies
were brought to the shore the air was rent
with walls of sorrow from broken hearts
| robbed of their dearest treasures. Tus-
bands and wives were clasped in each
| others arms. Pious mothers knelt down
| in the dust and thanked God that He had
been merciful to their households, while
others whom the blow of Providence
had stricken heavily fell senseless
| to the ground. There were cries of
| thankfulness and curses of despair.
| Weak women tainted, and strong men
bent down and wept. Each lifeless body
brought to light rent some heart anew,
and each one rescued alive caused shout
ofjoy. Mourning and rejoicing were gen.
eral and universal, for the ties of kindred
| were hidden in the closer relationship of
sorrow. The work of rescue and recovery
continued through the afternoon. Nearly
all the loss of life was owing to the crush
ing force of the bridge, for all who came
alive to the surface Of the water were
quickly saved. Men seemed to have SUI
perhuman strength given them, and took
alarming hazards without the quiver of
muscle. Edward Patrick, Fred Shaw,
William Dauntler, William Lawsons,
William Shylock, Atwood Burr, Henry
Woodyet, James VanArman, and other
young men, plunged boldly into the water
and swain like heroes with the bodies of
senseless women and children. Jacob
Armstrong went down with the crash, but
crawled on the bottom of the river from
under the network of iron that hemmed
him in, swan to the surface, and after a
few moments rest plunged in again and
saved others as he had saved himself
William Schuler, Joseph Haden, and
Eustacie Shaw narrowly escaped death,
but eXtricated themselves from the iron
work and swan ashore. Tony Brantigan,
boy eight years old, clung to plank and
was rescued after floating down half
mile with the rapid current. Several
bodies which had been carried by the un-
dercurrent, were picked up mile or more
Hope, a German baker, was found floating
nearly two miles below the bridge Mr..
and Mrs. Fowler clung to the iron rail and
were rescued exhausted. A young lady
named Hazenplug had miraculous es-
cape, being protected by a network Of iron
at the side of the stone abutment. A child
of John Wadsworth was seized by the hair
by bold swimmer and drawn to the bank
The Rev. Mr.. Pratt, of the Baptist Church,
the officiating clergyman, was just repeat
ing the ritual over the third candidate for
baptism when the crash came. He threw
off his coat and boots, and by persistent
and courageous efforts succeeded in saving
six lives. The man is totally crushed with
a weight of sorrow. He wanders about
the wreck in melancholy sadness, and
seems constantly in silent prayer. He has
some injuries and suffered much from eX-
posure.
Miss Keith, of Dixon, stood on the outer
edge of the bridge, and when the crash
came she started to leap into the water,
but was caught by Mr.. George Anderson
and held till both were rescued from their
perilous position. A Mrs. Keener, from
Chicago, who is visiting this place, had
very narrow escape, as also did Mrs. Dus-
chon, who clung to a jutting stone in the
pier for some minutes. She was painfully
wounded. The town is full with rumors
of other marvellous escapes. Some of the
prominent citizens, among them Mr.. Stick
ney, editor of the Sun, were just approach
ing the bridge when it gave way. Had
they been two minutes sooner they would
have gone to eternity with the rest. The
work of rescuing the living and recovering
the dead was carried on all Sabbath after
noon, large gangs of workmen employed
on the N Northwestern and Illinois Central
Railways, under the charge Of John g.
Jacobs, offering timely assistance, and
their labors were kept up during the
greater part Of the night. A derrick was
erected and a seine stretched across the
river to catch any bodies that might
be loosened from the watery prison and
float out, and several were recovered in
that way. Night settled like a mantle
over the scene, and made more CHASTITY
the horrid and fantastic shapes which the
broken bridge had assumed. Men con-
tinued to work with torches until mid
night when a watch was stationed and
further operations postponed till morning.
When your reporter reached Dixon, at
three O'Clock this morning. there were
still few persons lingering round the
place. People from the country were con
stantly coming in to in Iuire after friends,
anXiously peering over the dead list One
gray-haired farmer, who lives five miles
away, reached thegplace about four o'clock
this morning to Inquire after the safety of
a son who was working in Dixon. He
could not find the boy at his boarding
place and sought on the dead list for his
name. He did not find it there and wan
dered to the wreck with heavy heart. On
reaching the wreck he found his son alive
and watching with the rest. The meeting
was an affecting one.
From the high hill which overbrows
the town one could see the night dotted
with lights in houses here and there, each
of which marked home that death had
entered.
The list of the dead and missing is as
follows: et -al
Mrs DR.. Hoffman, Dixon Miss Catharine Foley,
Dixon: Mrs Joseph W. Latty; Miss Maggie
O'Brien: Mrs. Samuel Vann, Dixon; Ida Vann;
Geo. w Kent, Dixon; Mrs. Carpenter; Clara and
Rosa Stackpole, North Dixon; Mrs; 9. W: klntner'
Gilman: Mrs H. T. Noble, wife of Colonel Noble;
Nettie Hill, Dixon; Mrs Henry Sileman; Kittie
Sterling, Dixon; Mrs. Elizabeth Wallace, widow,
Dixon Mrs. Petersberger; Miss Petersberger;
Fred Hape Emily Deming, Dixon; Thos. Haley;
Ida Drew Dixon; Miss Bessie Rayne, daughter of
the editor of the Chicago MdgazSne; Mrs Cook,
Dixon: Melissa Wilhelm, Dixon; Mrs. Mary Suili-
van. Dixon Irene Baker, Dixon; Mrs. Wilcox,
Dixon: Mrs James Gable; Robert Dyke; Lizzie
man, one of the candidates for baptism; Miss Ag
mes Nixon Edward Doyle, Woosung, H.; Frank
H. Hamilton.
The wounded are:
Seth H. Whitmore, dangerously; Charles Murray,
severely Mrs. Charles Murray, slightly; Mrs; Dan
w. Sha, severely; Mrs. Lilly, ankle broken Wm'
Loveland, severely; j. b. Countryman; ,r; 1Is; %.
Deshon; VIM. Crook; VIM. Hart; Mrs; Iayaor
ems: Miss Addie Crnte. severely; Mrs. E. b. Baker;
Mrs. Dr. Smith; Miss Page; MIS- Mars1 nlss Ma
ion Thatcher; Mrs John More; Mrs. vann 1niss Miss
Lizzie Mackey Snerto1 b F. Bu5 r. Homgan Miss Ha-
zenplug Mrs. p NJ. Alexander
There were several buggies on the
bridge, and, strange to say, no one IN 'neIi
was 7niured and the horses also escaped.
>s