The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1879-10-23
A RAILROAD SLAUGHTER.
Terrible Accident ON the Michigan
Central, Near Jackson, Nlich.-Fif.
teen Persons Killed, and Many Others
Wounded.

Terrible Accident ON the Michigan
Central, Near Jackson, Mich.-Fif.
teen Persons Killed, and Many Others
JACKSON, Mich, October 10.
The most frightful accident in the
history of the Michigan Central Rail-
road occurred between one and two
o'clock this morning three miles east
of this place. The Pacific express
train, No. 2, consisting of seven Wag-
ner slcepers, four passenger coaches,
with mail and baggage cars, which was
due to leave Detroit at $50 last even
ing, had been delayed, and left Grand
Trunk Junction forty minutes late. On
arriving at the switch, quarter of q
mile east of the jackson Junction, with
out the. slightest warning, it collided
with a switch-engine, which had been
left on the main track.
Both engines were completely demol-
ished. When the Pacific express struck,
her engine and two baggage cars passed
off to the left, leaving the smOking-car
to strike the switch-engine and tele-
scope with the first passenger and emil
grant coach. Upon the latter fell the
heaviest burden of the disaster. The
tender of the express engine was tele-
scoped into the baggage car about half
its length, and this car in turn forced
its way into the mail car, and these
crowded the cmi9rant car off the track
on to an embankment, and crashed
back through the two following coaches.
All was in inextricahlc confusion.
The cars were hcaped one upon anoth-
er, and beneath the broken timbers lay
the dead and dying in great numbers.
1t was some time before those who
were able to assist the suffering could
recover from their shock sufficiently to
understand the full force of the dis
aster. When the locomotives struck
the engineer and fireman of the switch
engine jumped off and saved them
selves. Milton Gilbert, of Detroit, the
engineer, and Smith, of jackson, the
fireman, and Carlisle, the express mes
senger of the Pacific, were all instantly
killed. The engineer and fireman were
literally torn to pieces and buried I'M
der the wreck. Both engines were
thoroughly demolished.
In the first coach were some fifty or
sixty Canadian French emigrants,
bound for the northern woods, to en-
gage in cutting lumber. The majority
of these were instantly killed or fatally
injured. There were several women
and children among them. Many of
them were buried under the fragments
of cars, and, hemmed in by the train
and timbers, shrieked and moaned in
vain for assistance.
The passengers in the first regular
passenger coach were mainly unframed,
the harvest of death being reaped in
the second and third coaches. The
fourth coach escaped with slight dam
age, and some of the Wagner cars were
not at all injured.
The killed thus far number fifteen,
as follows:
Milton Gilbert, of Detroit, engineer; aged
about twenty-five years; no family.
e. B. Smith, of Detroit, fireman; aged about
twenty-five years; no family.
Lewis MOnyOOn, a French Canadian.
Mr.. John Rice and wife, of Philadelphia.
Mrs. Garland and daughter, of Philadelphia.
Moses Green, of Troy, VT.
Willie Elkins, of Troy, VT.
Mrs. s. M. Sparklin, of Philadelphia, and
two children, aged three and six years.
Two men unknown at this writing.
The child of Mrs. George A. Jones, of Chal-
don, Pa, eighteen months old; killed in
stantly, and body not recovered SO as to be
recognizable.
One of the two unknown dead is a man, evil
IDENTIFY sailor, forty years of age, prominent
Roman nose, initials G. +. r. i'm India ink
on arm; and the other, about twenty-five years
of age, clad in a gray suit of clothes, with q
conductors check to Chicago.
The Michigan Central Railroad Off
cials this afternoon examined the diff
ferent yard employees on duty last night
at Air Line junction, where the acct
dent occurred. 1t appears that the
men engaged in making up a freight
train at the east end of the yard went
to the telegraph Office at the Junction,
and got information that the Pacific
express was nearly fifty minutes late.
Colwell, the yardmaster, reported to
Jones, the engineer of the switch en-
CINE, that they had forty-five minutes
Of the Pacific's time in which to make
up the freight train, and it was that
work they were engaged in when the
collision occurred.