The Forrest City times., 1897-07-02
The West Chicago Wreck.

CHICAGO. July l. - Three persons were killed outright and about twenty or thirty persons injured in the rear end collision on the Chicago X North western road at 12:45 a. m. at West Chicago. 30 miles out of Chicago, on the Galena division.
 Following is a corrected list of tho dead and injured.
 Mrs. R. Shipman, Appleton Wis
 John Gooding. Austin, NeY.
 Unknown tramp. who was riding on She front end of the baggage car
 INJURED
 wm Miekelstetter Seymour. Wis baeh hurt.
 Mrs. Wm. Miehelstetter. Seymour Wis . body bruised.
 Miss Sarah Shipman. Appleton, Wis left foot sprained and right side of body bruised Miss C. E. Shipman, Appleton lip cut and face bruised.
 Michael Courtney, engineer 'lvidere, Ill two ribs fractured, right leg badly laeerated will recover.
 L. A. Williams. Fond dn Lac Wis chest badly bruised and right ankle sprained
 Dr. E. A Miller, Clintonville Wis right ankle spraned.
 W H. Finney Chntonville, Wis Jeff arm kprained and head bruised
 Mrs. NJ D. Mcintosh, Fond du Lac Wis right side bruised. Miss A L McAllister, oconto. Wis contu- siOns of the face.
 Mary Baird Neenah Wis badly bruised OF left side of face.
 Mrs. $. A. Russell Appleton Wis. back SC riOusly hurt.
 Amelia Mckay, Appleton, Wis; left aIm fractured and lacerated.
 Mrs. W. D. Gibson Appleton Wis right side Of chest hurt and one hip sprained
 s. B. Mersh. Appleton, Wis; left wrisi broken and otherwise injured
 W. D. Gibson, Appleton, Wis slight scalp wound.
 Mrs. A. F.. Pfeiner Neenah Wis slight bruises.
 C. E. Ripley Fond, du Lac, Wis; left aru sprained.
 Mrs. AlgiDon Galpin. Appleton. Wis slight bruises.
 Miss Daisy Blackwood, Depere Wis
 The victims of the collision were Christian Endeavor delegates who left Chicago Tuesday night en route for the great convention in San Francisco.
 The colliding trains were sections Nos. and 5 of a Christian Endeavor special sent out in nine sections, be- ginning at 10:30 D. ID. Section No , ran into section No. 1, which left Chi cago l5 minutes ahead of it. Section No. 4 carried the Wisconsin delegates nearly 800 strong, and in the rear sleeper were people from Fond du Lac. Green Bay, Appleton and other Wis consin cities.
 Section No. had come to stop just out of West Chicago, where the Free port line diverges from the main line. Section No. came up behind at great speed, and the shock of the collision was terrific.
 The passengers in the two rear sleep CTS of section No. were all in their berths, and most of them were asleep They received no warning, and those not killed outright awoke to find them selves jammed in the wreckage. Passen - gers on both trains hastened to the spot and began the work of rescue. One of the first of the injured taken out was Engineer Charles Courtney of sec tion No. 5. He had stuck to his post like hero. and is so seriously injured that he can not live.
 The body of an unidentified man, supposed to be tramp, was found be- tween the baggage car and the engine The man had been crushed to death. An immediate call was made for help on every point within reaching dis tance. Chicago was notified and asked to send physicians at once, and medical help was requested from Geneva, Wheaton and Aurora.
 The engine of section No. struck the rear sleeper of section No. with terrific force. The engine was totally wrecked. Strange to say the rear sleeper of section No. was not the one to suffer most It was driven with frightful impact upon the second sleeper, and such was its impetus that It crushed through it as if it had been eard-box, and reduced it to mass of wreekage. The passengers in the sec ond sleeper were, therefore, the ones to suffer most, and it was in it that most of the victims were hurt Mrs. Ship man and Mrs. Gooding were both in the sleeper. Men and women could be seen struggling to extricate themselves from the wreckage. Others pinned down by some crushing weight were crying for help. Here and there was an arm or leg protruding from the debris. A pathetic scene was the res cue of the two daughters of Mrs. ship man, of Appleton, Wis. The res cuers were attracted to them by their cries. They were unable 10 extricate themselves, and though hurt, refused assistance, begging thai their mother be first helped. Mrs Shipman was found crushed under a part of the roof. and life was extinct When she was taken out. 1t is strange that the two daughters escaped with comparatively slight injuries, while the mother, close by, met instant death.
 Mrs. John Gooding, of Appleton, wa' probably instantly killed The force ot tue collision crushed together the partitions of her berth. and she had nc possible chance of escape.
 Prof Leo A. Williams, of Fond dr Lac was found under pile of debris and though he was unable to extrieate n sk hon