The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-31
BAD RAILWAY WRECK
BIG FOUR FAST TRAIN DERAuED AT
THoRNTOWN YESTERDAY.
At First Thought to BE the Work of
Train Wreckers-Fireman and En-
gineer killed-The Injured.

engineer ,. Is. WlnSlow, of Greensburg.
and Fireman Jesse A. Crickmore of 1881
| new East Washington street, this city,
| were instantly killed.
The wreck was caused by coupling pin,
which seems to have been driven into a
frog at the elevator sidetrack. There are
two theories regarding the wreck One is
that it was a deliberate piece OF work plot
ted by striking miners This theory is not
| entertained by the railroad officials, but
| they have nevertheless offered reward of
500 for the arrest and conviction of the
hends II such was the case. The reward
| was announced by General Manager Schaff
| as soon as he heard of the wreck and the
| theory advanced. He and Superintendent
! Van Wrinkle were in Columbus O., at the
time and received the report by wire early
| yesterday morning
The Big Four has been doing a large
| coal business since the miners strike has
been in progress. An average of three hun
dred cars day has been received from the
Chesapeake & Ohio road at Cincinnati and
carried over the Big Four to Chicago This
fact probably was the ground for the first
! theory of the wreck advanced and in sup
| port of the theory the people of Thorntown
recall the fact that a number of strangers
| have been seen about town during the
past few days-men who seemed to have
no business and whose actions, now that
the wreck has occurred, are remembered
| as having been suspicious. The absence of
| the men gives color to the theory of an
| intended wreck.
Inc other theory, and the one which the
railroad officials hope is the correct one
is that the coupling pin which caused the
trouble was dropped off a passing train
/ a qrl iFcf af1 /,
bound train No. 81 had passed the switch
safely forty minutes before and that the
track must have been clear at that time
and as no train passed the point between
| the two 1t was thought the pin must nave
| oeen put there Intentionally. William Gar
stcng, superintendent of motive power, does
| nc DeleVe the evidence conclusive that
| the pin was placed so as to wreck the train
| intentionally He went out with the wreck
| ing train yesterday and returned in the
| evening! The switch is on the west Side Of
| the track and the coupling pin he saws
| was not In the frog, but between the split
| ran Oh the sIdetrack and the rail of the
| main line where the two come together
| The pin might have been between the two
rails when the west-bound train passed and
the passage Oh the train might have caused
| the pin TO force the two rails apart so as TO
make it a trap for the east bound train
MAIL CARS DERAILED.
| The wreck occurred at about 2:40 o'clock
| The train was due here at $40 o'clock yes
terday morning and was running on time.
| The switch which caused the damage is
used by grain elevator. The switch was
| open just enough to allow the flange of the
wheels to slip through and derail as much
of the train should follow the engine
| The train was long one having, besides
| several coaches sleepers and baggage cars
| two mail cars. which were next to the en-
CINE. The engine and tender were piled in
| HI hnxr n "a
| far from the place Of leaving the main
! track, for they struck soft earth and were
| stuck. The mail cars and a baggage car
! were also deralled, the former leaving the
| track completely and one running off at
| either side of the main line They stood
| almost end to end, at right angles with the
track. On either side was an embank-
ment about four feet high Up this the cars
were forced, but they retained their up
right position, though they moved tele-
graph poles and shade trees to the ground
as they were thrown out from the track.
one OF the mail cars climbed the embank-
ment and stopped fifty feet from where it
started in the back yard Of Arthur Taylor,
and within a few feet Of his house. The
baggage car did not get into the ditch,
although it left the track. The breaking
OF the train closed the airbrakes and caused
the coaches and sleepers 70 stop suddenly,
thus probably preventing great loss of life.
Engineer WinsOW was found twenty feet
from his engine, where he had possibly
jumped. 1t was found that he had set the
brakes and reversed the lever before jump
ing. His head was badly crushed and death
was probably instantaneous. Fireman
Buck Crickmore was found under the
tank He went down with the wreck and
Was probably killed instantly. he was
crushed and badly scalded.
The postal clerks, seven in number, es
capped with bruises of little consequence.
They were badly Jolted up and more or
less scratched, but none Of them left their
posts. Express Messenger John Edmonds,
of Bellevue, KY, was thrown violently
against the end of his car and rendered
UNCONSCIOUS; but when he revived it was
found that he was not injured. Under the
platform of the head mail car were found
two tramps. They We're Charles Kavern,
twenty-three years old, and Henry Criebe,
twenty-five years DID, both Of Cleveland.
They were more or less bruised and burned,
but will recover. Tavern has badly
sprained back and is bruised about the
hips Criebe's arms are burned below the
elbow and he is also suffering from a scalp
wound an inch and half long and a half
inch deep. Three other tramps escaped
without injury.
GREAT EXCITEMENT HERE.
Tho wreck created great deal of excite
ment in Indianapolis, as it was known that
several Indianapolis people were on board
the train. The first reports were that
number of passengers had been killed and
there were many anxious inquiries at the
telegraph and railroad offices. A wreckng
thain was sent from. this city, and as soon
as the track was cleared another engine
$3.50 o'clock. On another train which reached
here early in the afternoon were brought
the bodies of the two dead railroad men.
I he body of Fireman Crickmore was taken
in charge by Flanner & Buchanan. TO be
prepared for burial, and that of Engineer
WinsloW was taken on TO GreenSburg. At
$50 o'clock the two tramps were brought
here ana sent TO the City Hospital, where
they are being cared for.
On the first train which left this city for
the scene of the wreck there q COM
mittee of tiremen and engineers, composed
of Joseph Stitzel, Harry McHall, l.. h.
Brown and John f. Stull. They took charge
of the remains of their comrades and &C
companied them back here and to their
respective families during the afternoon.
Charles Coleman of ThorntOWn. proba-
bly, prevented a more serious accident than
that which is recorded. During the excite
ment of the early morning attending the
wreck he remembered that a freight train
due in few minutes from the west.
There is a curve just above Thorntown,
and il is impossible TO see the lights at the
station great distance up the track Cole
man snatched red light from the rear of
the wrecked trainand ran up the road and
succeeded in stopping the freight train,
which was coming at rapid rate of speed.
If 1t had not been thus stopped it could
not have been brought to a standstil by
the crew after seeing the light on the rear
end of the sleeper. and would have crashed
into the rear end of a train which was
filled with passengers
George Bender, superintendent of the
Chicago division of the Big Four went on
by Mr.. Garstang. He said after his re-
turn to the city that he was hardly pre-
pared TO believe that the wreck was inten-
tional He advanced the theory of the pin