Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1889-01-25
A FR1GHrFuL WRECK.

] A FRIGHTFUL WRECK.
| A frightful wreck occurred on the New
York. Pennsylvania and Ohio railroad
near Tallmadge, o., on the morning Of the
18th. a passenger train colliding with one
section of q freight which had broken in
two.
| Eight persons were killed and dozen
| injured. The list OF killed is as follows:
| ROBERT HUNTINGTON. of Gallon, pas
| senger engineer.
| WILLIAM WALTERS, of Gallon, passen.
ger fireman.
j. Il. RUSHFORD. of Gallon. freight
brakeman.
WILLIAM LUNDY. of Salamanca. N. Y.
express messenger.
Three Cinnamon. II
MARY ANN LYON, Of idaho. aged G..
! ticketed second class to Cherry Creek.
NY. a
Four of the injured are in q precaricus
condition.
Leader special from Akron gives the
following particulars Of the wreck: At2:27
this morning train No. 8. eastward Bound.
rounding curve one and one half miles
east of Tallmadge, came suddenly upon
part of freight train No. 81. there was a
dense fog. and this conspired with other
things to make the accident beyond human
power to avert,
Engineer Huntington hadjust time to
reverse his engine when thecrash came
He was instantly killed. Thefreight train
was heavy and while it was climbing a
grade coupling parted abo,t the middle
of the train. 1t was decided to resort to
the common eXpedient of doubling up.
Flagmen were sent out. one ,ast and an
other west. to warn any approaching train.
Brakeman Bradley was sent ahead to flag
the east-bound passenger. which was
known to be about due.
Meantime the first part If the broken
train was taken to Tallmadee station. The
engine then returned for thu second part.
Asignal was given, which is said to have
been to summons back the flagman sta
toned at the east. Flagmaa Bradley took
it TO be for him also, and started back to
the freight. The engineer ofthe freight en-
CINE says no recall whistle was sounded.
but at any rate Bradley heard it and so
went back. The freight had just got in
press came along. The momentum of the
fast train was somewhat checked by the
reverse. but the impact was terrific never
theless The freight engineer and brake
man jumped an escaped serious injury.
The passenger engine was crushed into
bits and mingled with the w,eckage behind
it. The freight engine rearedup and stood
almost on end.
Engineer Huntington and Fireman Wal
tiers. OF the express. were terribly crushed.
The brave engineer was disemboweled. his
head crushed and his limbs broken and
doubled up.
The passenger train consisted Of com.
bination baggage and express car and
smoker. common coach and two sleepers.
The greatest horror came when the bag
gage car and smoker. which telescoped
with the common coach, took fire. Engi-
neer Jones. of tho Kent yard engina. five
miles off. began to be uneasy, and looking
down the track saw through the trees the
glare OF the burning cars. After the acct
dent the two telescoped coaches appeared
as one. and from the shattered and burn
ing cars came the gfoahs al1d shrieks Of
the unfortunates. Then came a sceHe of
terror, the strong struggling to escape a
5orrible death by fire, the weak and help
less and wounded praying for succor from
the flames that were fast enveloping them.
One man. George Shaw. pinned in the
wreckage. managed by superhuman efforts
to release his lower limbs and ESCAPED cut
and bruised.
In the smoker were eight Cinnamon.
Five were pulled out alive. but half dead
from fright. Three were never seen after
the-crash. and the bones and bits Of charred
flesh gathered up in bag were all that
was found Of them.
One Of the pathetic scenes was that at
tending the death of the little orphan.
Mary Ann Lyon. who was being sent from
Idaho on secon i-class ticket to relatives
in New York. Friends whom she had
made on the train We're compelled to stand
idly by while the unfortunate child burned
to death. pinned down by the wreck o.
seats in the smoking car.
The passengers in the rear sleeper We're
hardly aroused by the concus sion OF the
wreck.