Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-07-27
VARIED DISASTERS.
Ore More Fatal Accident to an
Excursion Train.
THREE PERSONS LOSE THEIR LIVES.

Nearly Twenty Others Seriously or Sc
,erely Injured-A Freight Crashes Into
Passenger Train with Awful Results
Dreadful Wreck French Line
Two Devastating Cloud-Bursts Out
West with One Fatality-The Man with
the "Unloaded'' Gun-Other Fatal Mis-
haps.
DAYTON. O., July 27-While the Cincin-
natl, Hamilton and Dayton excursion
train of fourteen cars was returning with
working people from picnic at Woods
dale park, freight train crashed into it
at Middletown station at 10 p. M, and
three persons were killed and between
twenty and thirty wounded, many of
them fatally. The names of the killed
are: Frank L. Simonton,o of Dayton. Minnie
Freier, of Dayton; VIM n Matthews, a
boy IA years old, cut into three pieces.
Names OF the Injured.
The injured are as follows: Frank Pat
terson, 10, LEFT arm amputated; Joseph p.
Cleal, 81, left arm amputated Joseph l..
Snavely. Pottstown, Pa, left leg badly
lacerated; Squire Murphy, internal in
Jures; Frank Reiger, compound fracture
of left arm; William Aman, left foot bad
ly liberated; Annie Vernard, confusion
of right side and right hip; Katie Schleiu,
both feet badly injured: Mary Graham,
right foot lacerated; Eldon Beason, left
side of body and leg bruised; Ella Beason,
left foot badly confused and abraded;
Marcus limerick left hip abraded and back
sprained; Edith futile, right leg bruised;
May Reber, slightly bruised Gus Grau.
hand cut; Effie Wolf, left elbow bruised;
Mile Fritz, cut on right cheek, chin and
forehead; Cary Reese, Osborne, o., slight
ly' injured.
Locality of the Disaster.
Noodsdale park is a resort on the Great
Miami river, about four miles north of
Hamilton, and about thirty miles from
Dayton. The eXcursionists filled all the
cars on long train, and spent the day at
Woodsdale. They were mostly young peo-
pie, composed of about equal numbers of
men and women, with few children. 1t
was after 9 O'Clock when the long train,
with its load of happy occupants, started
to return to Dayton. 1t was a little after
10 v hen the train stopped at Middletown
to 1T off an excursion which stopped there
This was twenty miles south of Dayton.
How the Accident Occurred.
The excursion train broke a draw-bar
while pulling on the siding. and in the de-
lay Of repairing freight train came along
and ran into the next to the rear coach,
causing the awful disaster. The car was
packed full of people, and the freight
plowed into mass of broken cars and
dead and crippled human beings. Re
ports of the wreck spread over the city
like wildfire, and the station soon filled
with anxious families awaiting friends on
the ill-tated train. Ambulances and
patrol wagons were ordered to the station
to transport the injured to the hospital or
to their homes
Details of the Horror.
Engineer Schwind, of the freight train,
saw the passenger train in front of him.
He reversed his engine, whistled for
brakes, and applied sand, but to no pur-
pose. The momentum of the freight was
too great TO prevent collision. He and
his fireman jumped and saved themselves
The excursion train was just pulling off
the side-track when the collision occurred,
and the engine struck the hind coach at
an angle, knocking il off the track 1t
ripped the side off the next one, and lifted
the next one right up on top of the steam
dome. 1t was in this car that the three
persons lost their lives, and most of the
injured were seated