Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1896-12-31

Terrible Railway Disaster Near
Birmingham, Ala.
Siends Remove a Ran from a Trestle
aud a Train Falls into River
Twenty Eight Persons Killed and
Ten Injured

Birmingham. Ala, Dec. 2s.-One of
the most disastrous wrecks in the his
tory of southern railroads happened SO
miles south of here Sunday morning
at 1850 o'clock. in which 2s persons
We're killed outright and ten others in
jured, two of whom will die. The
ill-fated train was d Louisville & Nash
Vile one, which runs from here to
Blockton, distance of 40 miles. The
train left here at $50 a. m. in charge
Of Engineer Frank White and Con-
ductor A. p. Cornell. Four miles north
of Bloeton the entire train. made up
of an engine, baggage and TWO passen-
ger coaches. crashed through a bridge
zoo feet long aud l20 feet high into the
Cahaba river.
Wreck Takes Fire.
1t is the belief that the wreck was
caused by fiends for the purpose of rob
berry. \ rail had been removed from the
track. and when the engine struck this
500 feet of the bridge gave way and
went down with the train. Immediate
~ the wreck took fire, the water being
only about three feet deep. and before
sufficient help could be secured the un-
fortunate passengers and trainmen who
were pinioned under the debris were
burned to death in sight of other un-
fortunate victims of the disaster. Some
of the passengers not so badly hurt
managed to crawl out and do all they
could in assisting the others, but with
little avail. The dead are:
The Victims.
Frank White. engineer. of birmingham:
George Carney, fireman of birmingham
A. p. Council. conductor. of Birmingham :
Tom Streeter, colored porter, of Birming-
ham: Jordan Powell. wife and eight chill
dren. OF Blocton; Mrs Henry Hanberry and
! two children. of Birmingham: James Boil
ing, express messenger, of Guthrie Ky;
J.. w Martin, of Brookwood Bruce
Thillips of Blocton: s. w. Tibbs and wife.
of Campbeltown; Anarew Bryson. of Bloc
ton: George Glendall, Helena; four others
unidentified.
The injured are: Eo Echols, slightly
Henry Hamburg ribs broken; Powell child
feet badly burned: Mrs Walker. of Bloc
ton. internally, will die; Mrs Walkers
three children, slightly; MISS Booth, Bloc
ton, internally, will die; Stan Stewart. arm
broken.
Relief Promptly Sent.
As soon as the news was received here
both the Louisville g. Nashville and
Southern railways sent out relief trains
loaded with physicians and others, and
everything possible was done for those
who had been fortunate enough to get
away from the reach OF the flames
which quickly consumed all of the
coaches and part of the bridge. Many
of the dead were charred completely
beyond recognition. The exact number
who persisted will never be known, but
it is believed it will reach 35. The train
contained men, women and children
living at the mines who had gone to
Birmingham to spend Christmas and
were returning home.
Robbed Dead and Wounded.
DIR. Ray, Blocton physician, who at
tended Gardner, one of the survivors,
teaegraphs the statement made by Gard
ner as to the cause of the wreck. Card
ner says when he felt the cars leave the
track he looked out and saw three saw
age-looking men rushing from hiding
place down toward the waters edge,
and that after the wreck they went
through the wreckage, robbing the dead
and wounded, and then fed to the
woods. They did their work quickly,
and offered no assistance whatever in
the way of rescusing the imprisoned
and injured passengers. This story,
however, has not yet been corroborated,
but other facts tend TO show that it was
the work of train wreckers.