Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-09-10
A Dreadful Catastrophe.

"A DEcdulul Sdtu5tEUpnCs
New CASTLE, Colo, Sept. 10.-The most
disastrous railroad accident that ever
happened in Colorado occurred at 1915
this morning, mile and a half west of
this town on the Rio Grande junction
road.
The Denver & Rio Grande passenger
No, l, west bound, collided with a Colo
RADIO Midland stock train, going east,
wrecking both engines and several cars,
smoker, day coach and tourist sleeper
were burned.
A number of passengers, not killed
outright, were pinned in the wreckage
and persisted in the flames.
There were about 200 passengers. 1t
is estimated that 25 persons were killed
and as many more bruised, scalded and
burned, of whom five or six are likely to
die.
The accident occurred on curve or
bend around the mountain, where neither
engineer could see the other train until it
was impossible to avoid a collision.
The junction road is a track operated
jointly by the Denver & Rio Grande and
the Colorado Midland between New Cas-
tie and Grand junction, connecting with
the Rio Grande Western.
The road follows the Grande river and
nearly all the way are high bluffs on one
side and the river on the other, Is to 20
feet below the railroad.
The Rio Grande was due at New Cas-
tie at ll:05, but was an hour late.
The responsibility for the wreck has
not been determined, but it appears that
Conductor Burbank, of the Midland stock
train, who knew that the Rio Grande train
was an hour late, mistook the figures at
Silts as to the time the Rio Grande train
would pass New Castle and expected to
pass it here.
SOME OF THE DEAD AND DYING.
1t is impossible to get full list of the
dead and the injured. Following is a
partial list of the dead:
Mrs. Alexander Hartman and two chill
dren, Hersher, Ill.
Engineer Ostrander.
Robert Holland, fireman.
Charles Leiper of Pennsylvania.
James Keenap, postal clerk.
The injured are: Alex Hartman, Her.
sher, ILL.,, both legs broken, will die.
Robert Gordon, engineer, ruptured,
terribly bruised, may die.
Fireman Hynds, terribly burned, can
not recover.
Miss Pearl Cornell, Oregon, leg broken.
John Il. STANDARD, Blackfoot, Ia, cut,
bruised, both legs broken.
j. H. Sheets, Iowa, right hand cut.
R. j. Sheets, Leiper, Pa, slightly hurt.
James O. Foley, express messenger,
bruised.
VIM. s. Mesmer, express messenger,
bruised.
W. L. Hawthorne, conductor, bruised.
P. H. McAney, Victor, Colo, burned
about head, back injured.
Frank P. Manni, newspaper man, Vic
tor, Oolo., slightly bruised.
J. O. Yeager, Victor, Colo, badly hurt.
Brakeman Knapp, leg crushed.
Four more dead have been brought in
burned beyond hope of recognition.
Very slow progress is being made in
getting the bodies out of the wreck.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS OF HORROR.
Since the foregoing was wired James
0. Errick of Chicago has been added to
the list Of the certainly killed..
Additional names of the injured are:
R. b. Brickley, back hurt
Mary Israel and son Nathan, both hor-
ribly cut.
Ov. Tysin, bruised.
Thomas Nash, Moab, Utah, arm broken,
face cut.
J H. STANDARD and A. Hartman have
Just been removed to the hospital at So
lido both will die.
Hartman is minister from Herscher,
ILL.,, who was travelling with his wife and
two children to the coast.
When rescued his frat thought was for
his wife and children, but they we're not
to be found and it is supposed have died
more painless deaths than the minister
himself most certainly will.
A dsgo caught lootipg the baggage
has been sent to Glenwood. His name is
Nicholas Fico, shift boss of the Con-
solidated Goal company. There is talk
Of lynching him.
From the day coach few escaped. The
side of the car pinned down the pas
sengers, many of whom were roasted in
plain sight of those who wanted to help
them. The oars were sblaze in two min.
utes.
General superintendent sample and
Surgeon Dean are on the field working
hard.
CONDUCTOR ARRESTED
Conductor Burbank has been arrested.
Some think that Engineer Ostrander has
fed TO the hills. II is believed that they
were trying to "steal the station" on tho
Rio Grsnde train contrary to rules. The
names of many Of the dead will never be
known 90 they are burned beyond recog.
milton.