The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1898-08-26
SEVEN PEOPLE WERE KILLED
Rear-End Collision on q Mas
saehusetts Railroad.
WOUNDED NUMBER TwENTY-slx
Several Soalded by Escaping Steam
The Injured Wore Removed to Bos-
tOn-Signals Failed to Work.

! =
Sharon, Mass, Aug. 23.-A frightfu
rear-end collision occurred in tn
Sharon station of the New York, New
Haven & Hartford railroad, at 7:3
O'Clock tonight, when an express train
which was running as the second sec
tion of long train. crashed into tn,
first section, composed OF local cars.
| As result seven persons were killet
and 26 seriously injured. The injure.
were nearly all removed to Boston on /.
special train, which was met by ambu
lances and surgeons. The rear car o
the local train was completely demol
| ished, and a portion of the second car
while the engine of the express train
was crippled. The dead are:
Franklin M. Waters, Somerville
Mass; Mrs. w. ]. Fitzpatrick, Boston
Mrs. w. ]. Fitzpatrick granddaughter
Mary Fitzpatrick, 10-year-old girl
Mrs. Fitzpatriok's grandson. Is year:
old; woman, supposed to be Mrs
Watson, of Westerly, r. l.; Mrs. Fl. G.
Brisco, Revere, Mass; C. B. Frye,
Revere, Mass.
The two trains which were in the
collision were usually combined into
one long train, but as the traffic today
was so heavy, it was divided, the first
section running as local accommoda-
tion, while the second, which started
from Mansfield Is minutes later than
che first, ran as an express. The local
train due at Sharon at 7:O2 was 1S
minutes late. 1t left Mansfield on
time, making two stops. and had lost
the '13 minutes between Mansfield and
Sharon. 1t was due in Canton juno
tion, the next station beyond Sharon,
two minutes ahead of the express
train. which should bave passed il
there. Sharon is situated ON curve,
and both the outward and inward
tracks are protected by electric block
signals.
After the accident 1t was thought the
block signal protecting the inward
track was set at danger, showing, as 1t
was intended, that there was train in
the station. There was no warning
given by the conductor of the Mans
field local, to show the approaching
train that the track was not clear at
the station, and 1t was not until he was
within 800 feet of the station that the
thing wrong. He Immediately set all
brakes and whistied warming, but it
was too late to stop the express. It
crashed into the rear car, splitting it
asunder and completely demolishing it,
with the exception of the roof. It's
speed was not slackened until the
engine had penetrated fully five feet
into the rear of the second car. The
escaping steam entered the car and
badly scalded a number of the occu-
pants. The roof of the last car was
forced on top of the engine of the ex-
press, and remained there as the only
portion of the car intact.
Engineer Getchell and Fireman
Holmes, of the express train, both
jumped. Getchell was cut and bruised
about the head. He stated after the
accident that he left Mansfield prompt
ly on time and there was no incident
until he was within 400 feet of the
Mansfield train. Then he saw the red
lights Of that train and shut off steam.
Meanwhile he had whistled for brakes
and used every effort to stop his train.
Every one of the killed and injured
was on the Mansfield train, and the
only explanation of the fact that the
number of fatalities is not larger is
that the passengers were all in the
forward end of the car, and most of
them at the time of the accident were
either upon the front platform or stand
ing by the door.
Mary Fitzpatrick, 10 years old, was
taken from the wreck unconscious, and
died just as the special train bearing
the injured started for Boston. Twenty
one of the injured were taken On this
train.
The scene about the little station at
Sharon was a terrible one. A large
corps of surgeons and two undertakers
arrived soon after the accident and inn
mediately set to work to relieve the
suffering and care for the bodies of the
dead. There were very few lights about
the portion of the track where the ac-
cident occurred, and the surgeons were
to do their work in almost
total darkness.
Fifteen ambulances waited the ar
rival of the train at the Park square
station. which brought the injured from
the scene of the wreck. A great crowd
had assembled, and force of police
men were necessary to keep them from
onto the tracks.
Lined upon the platform were IA
while 80 hospital attend
ants and number of surgeons were on
hand.
Daniel G. McCann, an express mes
senger on the New Bedford train, had
his right hand and arm badly lacerated
and his right knee painfully injured in
a man who was pinned be-
tween the engines head plate and the
flooring of the telescoped car. Just in
front Of the prisoner lay his wife,
crushed and bleeding, and he was un-
able to move hand or foot to help her.
The woman died in a few moments.
Steam was arising as in a Turkish
bath. The heat from the escaping
steam was intense. Mr.. McCann said
hat many people were slightly burned,
,uOuSH III tu0lF HcIOlC cAuCdFoiS W
assist the injured the workers did not
Know it.
c. B. Frye, of Revere, Mass, one of
he injured brought to this city, is
lead, making the total number seven.
Norwegian Bark Sunk.
Aldenburg, England, Aug. 23.-The
Norwegian bark Nimbus, Captain Nick
'lson, for Sunsfel, Sweden, was sunk /
if here today in collision with an un-
.nown steamer. No lives were lost.
The Nimbus arrived at London on July |
10, from Tadiose, Quebec.