The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1877-05-12
Appalling Accident.


hearts, ID now des olste ruin, q monu
ment Of criminal incompetency. Some
families which bsde adieu to their loved
ones this morning received their corpses
tonight, disagurcd by the ruins from
which they were drawn piecemesi. Tue
building was not vt under roof, and the
massive stone cornice which preceded the
root was to-day being put on. just as
the Keystone was being placed in the
brick work between, the iron and stone
gave way, and the entire dome and the
interior walls Of the structure came
crumbling down with terrible crash that
was heard mile away. A description
OF the structure will aid in understand
ing the accident. The style of the build
ing is French Venetian OF the R,nals
ance, designed by Henry l.. May, OF
Chicago, and the contract for the build
ing WAS let to w. Richards, OF Spring
field, who in the spring OF 1876 began
work. 1t has two psvllions and q centre
dome over the front entrance. The two
pavllions on each side rise 80 feet above
the level Of the corGice. The dome is ll9
feet from the ground and supported by
the front walls On the north side and two
IRON columns from 10 10 II inches in
diameter. On the inner side these col
umns rest on brick wall going up from
the ground floor to the floor
of the court room. The walls were
about 80 feet high and, it appears, were
entirely inadequate to hold the immense
weight of The iron pillars and the mas
slve masonry OF the dome, which rested
on the pillars. On the top of tho iron
columns was q wrought iron girder, on
which was laid the veneer and brick
OF the dome 1t appears that the lower
brick walls were crushed by the weight
OF the upper masonry and they crumbled
like Rotten mortar, bringing with
them the entire interior Of the
building, taking all the rsftcrs and
the corrugated iron ceiling and every
room with its concrete filling. The
scatfold came down in mass, bringing
with Il nearl Y all the workmen who
were operating on the top of the build
ing. At the time OF the accident there
were from twenty to twenty-five men st
work. The accident happened AZ
III. 80 A. NJ. to day. The wbole massive
stone top of the dome fell with terrific
crash toward State street, and u
man named Timothy FIaniken was
putting in the keystone OF the final
oornlce, jumped for the guy rope Of the
big derrick IN front, but missing his aim
tell distance OF l20 feet to the earth,
and was dashed to piecies. At this time
but few persons were on the scene. The
mass OF human beings, with the excep-
tion OF four or five, who Jumped from
the windows. Tell inside the walls ana
were buried in the debris. The whole
structure looked rs though 1t would TALL,
and those assembled were appalled,
and knew not what to do. 10 go
near enough the structure to rescue
those in The ruins WAS hazardous in
the extreme, but brave men went fear
lessly to work before the dust had cleared
away, and began to txtricate the dead
and dying. lndescrb4bIe horrors en-
sued. Men lay terribly mutIlated be-
4 cath those rocks, shrieking for assist.
ance that WAS only rendered at the risk
ot the bystsnders' lives. One un.
f fJrtuns,e man, named William
u Ioss, was extricsted, but one OF his
legs was left beneath huge stone. He
soon ed in great n sony ~ ne lay on the
green sward IN front OF the Court House.
A negro jumped from window sixty
feet from the ground, and though badly
injured will probably Recover. Within
t a minutes alter the disaster no less ,hiIn
four bodies had been rec, v,red by the
almost superhumsn ehOrLs OF the I'M
mense crowd that quickly gathered. The
city surgeons were promptly on nand,
rendering aid to the wounded, who were
c ri d on stretChcrs to the nearest
hotels. a Swede named Ahurew
Bildahl had his head sphL
open, but the wound was closed and
thu victim WAS tiken home. He may i've
The angus oil the living was heart rend
Ing. The workmea wives aud mothers
were soon I'll the spo', snd the air wa
ii hed with eUbs ana mOaus, and the
locker on was sIckened by the sight on
every hand. Up to7 p. ". the follow
ing list OF victims mad been obta ned:
Fred Haugh, dead, remains yet In the
building; A. Hausn, dead; A. Lucas,
badly injured and les broken
j. Hayes, engineer OF the lower floor,
badly hurt, but may recover;
WlIIIam McInnes, leg broken.
elbow injured and sCslp wound; j. r
Peck, mortaIly hurt; John Pipe, dead;
vi. IL. HoI!endock, dead, remains IN
building; Ge,rse Smith, badly hurt; ).
Warren. missing, PROBABLY dead; Geo.
q las, colorec, dead; Hugh Eldred., hurt
IN leg and face; Timothy. Flanagan, deao;
. Louholm, dying; J. lawson, color
ed, reported dead; A. Baldahl, BADLY 10
iured. may recover. II. w. Ames was
working on tie southeast corner OF the
building when the lett rsfter gave way,
and Tell down 70 tue frst
story, but escaped from the second
story wluGow al, badly huFt; Benz.
Brown, cclyred, slightly hurt lsaac
Don nelly, scalp woudds and cut IN the
head; Hugh Elireds confusion on !eg
and lace hurt; Geo. Smith, neck and
head hurt; Cicero Dixon, coniusi"n Of
the thigh; Donneliy is seriously wounded
but all those wounded will probably re.
cover; Z. Harris, OF Dlyona, II carpenter
hurt internally, and so badly that hIs leg
must come oti, and he will probably die;
Hui en- Beck, whose baby Is IN the ruins,
ae leaves n wife and tour children, who
depends on him tor support; w. u.
Richardson, contractor and r. Z.
Lstnsm, superintendent, had g narrow
ana Thrilling escape. They were b tn
on top oil the dome OF the building oricre
j, tell and were Ia king OF the probso!l ty
OF its falling, when tuey heard crasn
rrd rushed at once for the west wall,
where they stood when the dome came
down. Had they been a moment later
they must have pershed. When the
Gust cleared swsy oOtn were standing on
the wall
At S:30-The excsvstors have
lust removed the dead body ot
Warren, the negro before mention-
ed i, e terribly nuulated. The old court
house is turned into q morgue, and ESD
scenes are constantly occurring there
relatives weeping over the bodies OF their