The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-08-07
JUMPED THE TRBSTIE.
Terrible Accident to q Loaded Troll
ley Car Near Bridgeport.
NEARLY FORTY PEOPLE KILLED.

NEARLY FORTY PEOPLE KILLED.
Tho Car Dropped Forty Feet and the
Four Ton Motor and Heavy Trucks
Crashed Through 1.-THE Passengers
Were In q Joyful Mood.
Bridgeport, Conn, Aug. 7.-Nearly
40 people were killed by an accident
on the Stratford extension Of the Shell
ton Street Railway company at 4
o'clock yesterday afternoon, when
loaded trolley car went off the trestle
over Peck's mill pond at Oronoque,
lbout six miles north of Bridgeport.
md sank in the fats 40 feet below.
Thus far 36 people are known to be
dead and several more injured.
1t is now stated that SO people were
killed. The identified dead are: Jo-
seph Hotchkiss, Bridgeport, engineer
fire department; Henry G. Cogswell,
Bridgeport, aged 80, employee OF New
York, New Haven and Hartford rail-
road, member of board of education;
Orlando B. Wells, aged So, shoemaker;
Selectman Elias E. Bradley and wife,
Milford; William Osborn, Stratford;
Daniel Calvin, Ansonia: Conductor
John Carroll. Bridgeport: s. Banks
Shelton; Mrs. Mcdonald, Bridgeport;
Winton Lanthear, motorman, Bridge
port; Bessie Toomey, aged %, Bridge
port; William H. Harvey, 81, Bridge
port; Mrs. J. H. Rugg, Stratford; Mrs.
Frank Blew and two children, a boy
aged 3 and q girl aged s, Stratford:
William Mccullough, Stratford: Mrs.
Arthur Holmes, Bridgeport; Thomas
Mentally, 80, Bridgeport identification
not positive); Peter Ring, %, Bridge
port; Patrick McDermott, so, Bridge
port; Mrs. Patrick Brennan, 80, Bridge
port; William Cotter, rs, Bridgeport
identification not positive); Alfred
Pitt, %, Bridgeport; Frank Kraft, rs,
Bridgeport; Irving Doruz. %, Bridge
port; Mrs. William H. Harvey. Bridge
port.
Among those seriously injured at the
Bridgeport hospital are: Margaret
Brennan, scalp wound; Mrs. Sidney A.
Pitt, Bridgeport, right leg fractured
twice; Margaret Farrell, right leg am
putated above knee, will probably die;
George Hamilton, scalp wound, injury
to leg; Frank Kraft, Bridgeport, in
juries about head and back; Arthur
Holmes, Bridgeport, confusion about
body. left leg crushed.
Only two persons are known to have
escaped unframed. 1t is believed that
there were 43 passengers on the car,
but the indicator was removed by
conductor Of another car and. spirited
away, so that at present it is impos-
sible to state accurately the number
aboard.
The scene of the accident is midway
between Shelton and Bridgeport. The
car was north bound, running toward
Shelton. 1t was in charge Of Conduc-
tor John Carroll, of Bridgeport, who
was among the killed, and Motorman
Hamilton, of Bridgeport, who escaped
by jumping.
The trestle is 44O feet long, made of
iron, with stone foundations, and was
not protected by guard rails. South Of
the trestle is an incline, down which
the car run at high rate of speed.
After it ran on the trestle for about
ten feet the trucks left the rails and
then the car continued on the ties for
about rs feet, when it went off the
trestle and dropped into the pond be-
low, distance of 40 feet, overturning
completely and up ended. When the
car struck the four ton motor and the
heavy trucks crashed into it, instantly
killing many of the passengers.
Three physicians who were passen-
gers on a car short distance behind
arrived quickly on the scene and rem
dered all possible assistance to the In
jured Word was sent to Bridgeport
and three ambulances and police
wagon were hurried to the scene, and
the injured were taken to Bridgeport
General hospital. A morgue was i'm
provised in the main room of the town
hall at Stratford, and in very short.
time 20 bodies were laid out, awaiting
identification.
The accident was witnessed by Miss
Frances Peck, who resides about 400
feet from the bridge She was up
stairs at her home as the car was pass
ing, and she says that it was running
at an unusually fast rate. Frank Graz
mer, who was bathing near the bridge,
states that the passengers were all
singing in the most joyful mood as
they passed him.
The road, which is practically con-
trolled by the Bridgeport Traction
company, was opened for traffic last
Thursday.
All of the persons killed sustained
fractured skulls. William Kelley, of
Bridgeport, who was in company with
Miss Farrell, escaped death by jump
ing from the car as he felt 1t sWaying
to the flats below. Soon afterward the
Car tOppled over He sustained severe
shock, but was otherwise uninjured.
He stated that the car was not running
unusually fast, but that it was swaying
considerably when it struck the trestle,
and he realized the danger and knew
his only safety was in jumping.
George Willis, Of Shelton, was on the
highway not more than a hundred feet
from the scene and witnessed the car
topping over. He says that there was
one unearthly shrek as it went down,
and after that silence.
One of the pathetic scenes was that
of a lifeless baby reclining in the arms
VI d uedu EldH, lHe miami aPpediiA6 W
be smiling and asleep. The 3-year-old
son Of Mrs. j. H. Rugg was frantically
appealing to his dead mother. His sis
ter, years old, had her arm broken.
1t has been ascertained that 40 fares
were registered, and these, with the
young children that did not have to
pay, the motorman and conductor and
an extra motorman who was being
taught make the probable number on
the car AZ.