The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1897-01-07
WRECK ON A TRESTLE.
An Alabama Passenger Train Plunged
Down One Hundred Feet.


Down One hundred Feet.
Memphis, Dec. ga special to the
Commercial Appeal, from Birming-
ham, Ala, says:
Fiends in human form wrecked the
Birmingham Mineral passenger train
No. at Cahaba river bridge, twenty
seven miles from here, at 1880 this
morning, and twenty-five lives were
lost. That number of bodies have
been recovered, and further search may
swell the list of dead. The wreck is
regarded as almost certainly accom-
plished by the removal of rail on the
middle span of the trestle. This de-
rallied the train, which caused it to fall
down the two spans and precipitated it
into the river, ITO feet below. The
wreck was the worst that has ever oc-
Cured in the state, and the survivors
are so few and so badly hurt, that they
are unable to give any detailed descrip-
tion of how it happened.
1t is not known and may never be as
certained just how many passengers
miners and residents of mining towns
in this district who had round trip
tickets, and were returning to their
homes along the line of the Birming-
ham Mineral road.
Conductor Kennel, who probably
knew better than anybody else as to
how many passengers were aboard, is
dead. 1t is thought, however, there
were not exceeding twenty-five or
thirty. Only one passenger purchased
a ticket at Birmingham.
The railroad company tonight fur
nished the following as the list of dead:
James Boiling, of Guthrie, KY,
Southern express messenger; Frank
White, of Birmingham, engineer; A
P. Connell, of Helena, conductor;
George Carney, of Birmingham, flag
man; R. Webb, of Birmingham; Bruce
G. Phillips, of Blocton; 1. w. Martin,
of Brookwood, Ala; Mrs. Henry
Handberry and two children, of Bir-
mingham; R. Fl. Blount, of Birming-
ham, colored; Miss Ada Powers, of
Blocton; DR.. L. N. Powers, of Blocton;
Mrs. Emma Powers and two children,
of Blocton; Mrs. r. Little, of Blocton
Mr.. Gardner, of Blocton; Miss Gardner,
of Blocton; one unidentified body, sup
posed to be B. Struther, colored porter.
Seven were injured.
The mineral trains operate over the
Southern railways Briar6eld, Blocton
p no 1xor,
tract arrangement. Six miles south of
Guerney is the Cahaba river, shallow
mountain stream, which has depth
at this time of about three or four feed.
This river is spanned by an iron bridge,
with wooden trestles on each side. Its
entire length is 800 feet, and the height
of the span, where the wreck occurred,
is 10 feet. The bridge was built only
four years ago, and was regarded as a
very safe structure. The main span
and the span just beyond it, both made
of iron, gave way and precipitated the
entire train into the river. The en-
CINE landed on it's side, almost at right
angles with the track. The cars piled
upon each other through the main span.
The entire wreck took fire soon after
wards, and was rapidly burned to the
waters edge. Nine persons alone es-
capped alive from all who went down,
and several of them will probably die.
The first news was brought to Har-
greave, station four miles from the
Cahaba river, by a farmer, who said
that while passing near the place, he
heard crash. Going nearer, he saw
the two spans of the bridge broken out.
He then discovered the burning wreck
age in the shallow water below. He
could hear the groans of the wounded
and dying, but without waiting to see
further, he rode ON horseback to Har-
greave as rapidly as he could, where
the operator telegraphed to Birming-
ham nd BIocton for relief.
Meanwhile, few country people
gathered at the scene to render what
aid they could, but it was too late to
do much. Nine people had gotten out
and the rest had been burned in the
wreckage.