The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1884-11-12
BAD RAILROAD ACCIDENT.
n Passenger and II Freight Train,
Collide Oh the South Carolina
hallway.
COlHmbin RfUjsffr.

|
| Collide on the South Carolina
Railway.
Col"mhn Rtgister.
Wednesday night, about haif-past 8
O'Clock, as the Charleston bound passcn-
ger train from this city was approaching
Reeves Station, on the South Carolina
Railway, it met with terrible accident,
! in which the engineer, j. C. Hunnicutt,
was instantly killed, the colorcd fireman,
named Mccoy, had an arm broken, and
William Wade, Of this city, the mail
agent, painfully if not seriously injured.
The up freight train was on a side
track. waiting for the down passenger to
run by, bu. the switch had been left open
and the passenger train, which was run
ming ut high rate Of speed, dashed into
the siding, and the locomotives OF the
two trains collidcd, utterly wrcckins
each other, and breaking every bumper
on the freight train.
The tender of the passenger engine
mounted the ruins Of the latter, and it
is believed that at that moment the head
of the engineer was completely severed
from his body and rolled to the ground
where it was subsequently discovered
The engineers body was taken from the
ruins Of the locomotive a limp and gliast-
ly spectacle.
The colorcd fireman was hurled into
an adjacent pond Of water, from which
he emerged with a broken arm
The mail car was dashed against the
furnace of the locomotive, having taken
the place Of the tender, and the mail hi-
vision crushed in. MIR. Wade, the mail
agent, was hurled to the other end OF
pthc car. and fortunately mail pouch
broke the force with which he was
thrown, and he escaped with his life, as
by 4 miracle. lie received bad cash
on the left side Of his head, his left
side is painfully i! not seriously injured
and his right leg spraincd. When Mr..
Blakcly, the Express Agent, recovered
from his shock he found Mr. Wade in n
semi conscious state and Immediately
gave him needed attention. Physicirns
were summoned from ncishboring villa
gcs and proper care taken Of the wound
Cd.
Mr.. Avcrill went from Charleston on
an extra train to the scene Of the acci-
dent, and took the delayed passengers,
the dead engineer and the wounded
men to Charleston. Mr.. Wade was
brought to his home in this city ycstcr-
day morning.
The following account Of tho accident
is taken from the .Nc,rs and C0uyicj' of
yesterday:
At half past o'clock yesterday even
ing, as the passenger train Oh the South
Carolina Railway, due in Charleston at
9.3S O'Clock, Was running into Rccvcs's,
a misplaced switch threw it on the side
track against freight train.
Both engines were smashed to atoms,
as the passenger train was running at a
frightful rate, estimated at forty five
miles an hour. Engineer j. G.. IIunn-
cutt was instantly killed, being crushed
into jelly, and Fireman Mccoy, col
ored, was badly in jured.
The passengers were Jared and thrown
from their seats, but no harm was done
to them. The engineer and fircmcn
were the only persons Injured. The
body Of the engineer and the wounded
fireman came in on the train at 415 this
morning. The engineer leaves 4 family
in Atlanta, Ga. A large crowd was at
the Line Street Station, notwithstanding
the unreasonable, hour, this morning, to
sec the train come in. The body Of the
engineer was CHASTITY sight and the
fireman was moaning pitcously.
y passenger told reporter Of the pa
per that the effect Of the jar was terri
bic, throwing people ten feet from their
seats, and in some instances against the
top of the car. Both engines and about
twenty freight cars were wrecked.