The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-12-28
THROWN NTOARWER
HORRIBLE CRIME CHARGED TO
FIENDIsH ALABAMA ROBBERS.
Birmingham Mineral Railway Train
PYecipitated 100 Feet with Two
spans of the Cahaba Bridge.
OVER A SCORE OF VICTIMS
ONLY EIGHT OF THOSE ABOARD THE
TRAIN TAKEN OUT ALIVE.
Twenty-Five MangIed and Ckarred
Bodies Recovered. and others
Possibly in the Debris.
LITTLE LEFT OF WRECKAGE
THE BROKEN PASSENGER COACHES
BURNED TO THE WATERS EDGE.
Crime Charged to Three Men. Who
Are Said To Have Removed n Rail
and Later Robbed the Dead.

more twenty-seven miles south of this city.
A Birmingham Mineral Railroad passenger
train went through the bridge over Cahaba
river at $50 o'clock a. m, fell over 100 feet
and was burned. Twenty-Five bodies have
been recovered, and there may be others or
charred remains in the mass of blackened
wood and twisted iron that marks the scene
of the disaster. The victims are so badly
mangled and burned that identification is
difficult. Following is a partial list:
JAMES BOILING, Guthrie, KY. South
FRANK WHITE, Birmingham, engineer.
A. p. CONNELL. Helena, conductor.
GEORGE CARNEY, OF Birmingham,
r.. WEBB. of Birmingham.
BRUCE PHILLIPS. of Blocton:
l.. w. MARTIN, Brookwood, Ala.
MRS. HENRY HANDBERRY and two
children. Birmingham.
r. IL. BLOANr, of Birmingham, colored
MISS ADA POWERS, Blocton.
DIR. l.. N. POWERS. Blocton.
MRS. EMMA POWERS and two children,
Blocton.
MRS. r.. LITTLE, Blocton.
MIR. GARDNER, Blocton.
MISS GARDNER. Blocton.
TOM STRUTHER, colored porter. Body
not fully identified.
The following are the injured:
HENRY HANDBERRY, Birmingham. a
Louisville & Nashville conductor; seriously
E. L. ECKELS. of Helena; slightly.
SAMUEL SPENCER, fireman; arm bro
ANDREW BRYsoN. of Brocton; fatally
MISS BOOTH, of Blocton; slightly.
MRS. POWERS AND CHILD, from
Blocton; slightly
MRS. WALKER, slightly. Her three
children escaped practically uninjured.
RAIL REMOVED.
Some of the railway officials who visited
the scene of the wreck this afternoon say
the disaster was undoubtedly due TO the
criminal removal of rail on the middle
span of the bridge. This is believed to hav.
derailed the train, which caused the two
middle spans of the bridge to give way and
precipitated the train into the river below.
The wreck was the worst that has ever oc-
Cured in the State, and the survivors are
so few and are so badly hurt they are un-
able to give any detailed description of how
it all happened. 1t is not known and may
never be ascertained just how many pas
sengers were on the train. Most of them
were miners and resident of mining towns
in this district, who had round-trip holiday
tickets and We're returning to their homes
along the line of the Birmingham Mineral
Railroad. Conductor A. p. Connell, who
probably knew better than anybody else
how many passengers were aboard. is dead.
1t is thought, however, there were not TO
exceed thirty or thirty-five. But one pas
senger purchased "a ticket at Birmingham.
The Inflated train was a local passenger
which left here at $50 a. m, and was
scheduled to make circuit of the Birming-
ham Mineral. which is branch line of the
l.. & N, reaching all the important mining
towns in the district. The train, consisting
of an engine, baggage car and two coaches
left here at $50 a. m., and went to Tacoa
or the main line of the Louisville & Nash
vile. There it switched off to the Brming-
ham Mineral track and went to Gurnee
from Gurnee to Blocton. The Mineral
trains operate over the Southern Railways
Brierfield, Blocton & Birmingham branch
under a contract arrangement. Six miles
south of Gurnee Is the Cahab ba river,
shallow mountain stream which has /;
depth at this time of only about three oil
four feet This river is spanned by an iror
| bridge with wooden trestles on each size
Its entire length is 500 feet. and the Length
| of the main span where the wreck oc
| curred is 40 feet The bridge was built onl,
! four years ago, and was regarded as ;
very strong structure.
| The main span and the span just beyon,
it, both made of iron. gave way, and pre-
| cipitated the entire train into the river TIL.
| engine landed on its side, almost at righ
angles with the track. The cars piled ul
on each other through the main span Tn
entire wreck took fire soon afterward. an,
| was rapidly burned To the waters edge
| Nine persons alone escaped alive from nj
who went down. and several of them will
probably die.
RECOVERING THE DEAD.
The first news of the wreck was brough
to Hargrove. a telegraph station four mile
from Cahaba river, by a farmer who sal
that while passing near the place he hear
crash. Going nearer he saw the tw
| spans of the bridge broken out He the
discovered the burning wreckage in tn
shallow water below. He could hear tn
| groans OF the wounded and dying. but with
| out waiting TO see further he rode his hors
! rapidly to Hargrove. where the operate
! telegraphed To Birmingham and Blocton TO
relief. Meanwhile few country peopl
| gathered at the scene 10 render what All
they could. but il was too late to do much
Nine people had been got out and other
were burned i'm the wreckage. When tn
relief train from Birmingham arrived ther
| was little need Tor the army OF physician
that had come along. The wounded wer
quickly attended To and sent 10 Blocton fo
! further attention. The work of taking ou
the dead was begun. Nothing was left c
the wreckage but the smolderng remain:
which had burned TO the waters edg,
Charred corDses were packed in oetwce
the iron framework where the seats ha
been. Most OF the bodies had been bufre
beyond recognition. Some had their head
burned of and OF others nothing was LEI