Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1881-02-11
MORNING, FEBRUARY II, 1881.


Following are full particulars OF the ter
rile disaster nj Buffalo, Tuesday, meagre
accounts of which have been received by
telegraph: AT nine o'clock in the morning
of that day the archcd roof of the old part Of
the New York Central depot on Exchange
street, fell with terrible crash The cause
of the disaster is attributed to the weakening
of the walls by making the arches to COM
muniCale with the new depot recently built.
The roof WAS ovrrwcighed with accumulated
snow and weakened by removal of the form
or offices which had formed large portion
OF its support, fell crashing To the earth,
burying a number OF cars and human forms
beneath Il tangled lE;.ss Of iron wood, glass
snow and brick. The st. Louis ,ApIess on
the Central was three hours AMI IL half late
and its connecting tram on the Lake Shore,
composed OF four cars with the sleeper stood
upon the outer track waiting for ii. \ Can
ada Southern train had Just hauled out of
the depot and only twenty minutes before
the DAY express on the Central had borne
eastward large load Of living freight
Switch engine No. l26, manned 10y Frank
Schacfcr, engineer. was standing on the
middle track ready to take Coroner Scott
To East Buffalo. Near the other end of
the new depot was Il train of Hat cars.
On the track just outside of the south wall
were some old-fashiOned passenger cars be-
longing To the Central road Half dozen
| passengers were in the cars of the waiting
Lake shore TRAM and one or two others who
are believed to be lost were standing in the
depot near the flat cars. Coroner Scott had
| Just boarded the switch engine and was on
the point Of bidding goodbye /" Henry
| Walters, Superintendent Tiilinghasts conf
dental secretary, when sudden, hollow
sound as Ui snow falling in II mass from the
roof was heard, and Immediately afterward
the south wall. about 10 feet from the new
portion, began to totter AMI fall Depot
Master hrng succeeded in getting beneath
Il brick wall, which held its position, but his
cap was torn from his head by fragments.
| Mr.. Smith ran into the veslibulc of the
abandoned eating house, and escaped through
| the cellar Mr. Waters, who was Just be-
hind HIM, was caught by a timber, and
held Il prisoner until other portions
of the falling rnuf crushed out
both his life AMI human shape.
| The Lake Shore train was buried
from sight 10y roofing material. The switch
engine was broken and partly dismantled.
| An unsghtly gap was torn out of the wall OF
the new waiting room, the fatal mass which
crushed the life out of of Capt Byrnes.
| The old cars which stood on the track were
all torn 10 pieces. The work Of overhaulng
the ruins was Immediately commenced by
members of the fire department and employees
al the railroad. and the first two bodies re-
covered were those of Capt. Byrnes and Hen
ry Walters. Shorty after the workmen
found the mangled bodies of VIM. Wells,
clerk for Car Inspector Howe of the Lake
Shore railroad, and two other bodies have
been found.
The noise resemblcd that OF an earthquake
and was head Il mile distant. The whole OF
the old depot structure, which was $50 feet
long by 100 feet wide, is a mass of ruins. Al
no other hour of the day or night could the
accident have happened without Il more ter
riblc loss of life, as the depot at the time was
comparatively deserted. The number OF
narrow escapes was large, but, fortunately, NJ
accidents are reported of Il serious nature he
yond the four persons killed outright. Ii
the Lake Shore cars of the waiting Train
few passengers, perhaps fifteen or twenty il
all, were seated, waiting for the train I,
start Fortunately not one of them was in
jured. The bodies of the victims have beer
taken in charge by the coroner and IN in
vcstigaiion VIII he promptly made.