Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-03-10
NOBLE DAVE HOLLOWAY.
Tragic Death Of a Brave Engineer al
SWeetWater Bridge-A Road Masters
Terrible BIunder.


SUeetWater Bridge-A Road Masters
Terrible BIunder.
Knoxville Press and Herald March 6.
We briefly announced in yesterdays is
sue, that Engineer David Holloway had
been killed by his engine falling through
bridge over Sweetwater creek on the East
Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia Railroad,
one and a half miles west of Philadelphis.
The following are the particulars Of the
sad disaster:
The bridge had been carried or in the
freshet Of last week, and was replaced By
the working party under Mr.. Isaac Benson,
the road master Of the western division.
There was considerable trestle work in
the approaches, making the entire bridge
perhaps sixty feet long, while that portion
Immediately over the creek was not more
than twenty-five feet in length. The bridge
was about fifteen feet above the water. IL
was being completed when the train on
which Mr.. Holloway was engineer came
up, and was not pronounced as ready to be
crossed for an hour afterwards. IL appears
that Mr.. Benson instructed engineer HOl-
lOway to unCOuple his engine from the
train, and cross and recrOss the bridge in
order TO Test it. In Obeying these inStruc-
tiOns, Mr. Holloway was killed, and the
engine and tender p1ecipitated into the
creek. The story Of the fireman Of Mr..
HOllOway's engine will best describe the
accident.
THE FIREMAN'S NARRATIVE.
Yesterday morning we had a talk with
the fireman. of HollOway's engine, Mr.. A.
J. Smith, ,,familiarly known among his rail-
road acquaintances as "Jud" Smith. He
told his story in a plain, connected way,
and was greatly affected during lis recital.
He said:
l was the fireman on Mr.. Holloway's
engine. We left Knoxville on No.
passenger train, last Wednesday morning
q week ago, for Chattanooga, but did not
get any further down than Athens, owing
to the breaks in the road. Yesterday after
noon we started up from four miles this
side Of SWeetWater, with a train on which
were a good many passengers, and intend
ed coming to Knoxville. We ran on lit
tie while, and then arrived at the bridge, a
mile and half west Of Philadelphia, over
SWeetWater creek. Mr.. BensOu's party
were at work on the bridge, which had
been carried of by the flood. We waited
there about an hour. The engine was
standing pretty near the bridge and Mr..
Benson (the rOadmaster of the Western
DivisiOn) ordered me to run her back
away from the bridge, as she was making
so much noise he could not hear the work
men. / got on the engine and ran her
back two or tn ee hundred yards.
- The engine was disconnected from the |
train, and Mr.. Holloway was not on it.
About dark learned that the engine was
to run over the bridge to test 1t, and soon
after was signalled by a lantern to 90 for
ward. moved the engine on slowly, and !
had gone may be ha.f the distance to the /
bridge when Mr.. Holloway stepped on her. |
He said 10 me, "Jud, you need not 20 over |
the bridge unless you want TO; if 1 were !
YOU l would not CO." 1 said / didn't know |
about it. just as weneared the bridge Mr.. !
Holloway said to me again, tTemOr in his /
voice, "Jud, perhaps the bridge may fall, /
and something happen. You had better i
get on; there IS no reason why you and l /
should both be killed" / said. then that /
as he insisted l would 60, and stepped of. /
The engine went slowly on the bridge. /
When it reached the central portion, right /
over the creek, l heard a crash, and saw the /
bridge give way, the tender fall into the
water and the engine double backward and
fall on the tender. As it went down /
heard the shrek Of the whistle. l suppose
Mr.. Holloway started 70 jump and his hand
caught on the whistle lever.
There were quite a number who wit
messed the accident. Capt. Jaques was
there, aud Mr.. Benson. After a moment
somebody hallOOed that Mr.. Holloway was
in the creek, and L fastened, with a section
hand, into a skid, and rOwed some dis
tance, but only succeeded in finding
his hat which was floating down stream.
TLen we came back and after
wards discovered that Mr.. Holloway
had been fastened down between the
tender and the engine, and was dead.
saw his body. He had been caught across
his breast, which was crushed. We found
il impossible to get the body from under
the engine. The tender was at the bottom
Of the creek, and the engine lay over il, the
body being out Of the water.
Those Of the passengers who had not
previously gone over the bridge, were taken
across the creek by boat, and reaching 4
gravel train, half a mile away, we came on
L to Knoxville about one o'clock this
morning.
said "Jud" Smith, in concluding; "There
was no nObler man ever lived than Dave
Holloway. He seemed to fear that he
would not get safely over the bridge, aud
when be told me the last time TO get of
The engine, his voice trembled 50 that he
could scarcely speak"
The dead engineer was about thirty /
years Of age, was married to a most esti-
mable lady, and was the happy father Of !