The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1899-08-30
BUILDING COLLAPSED
Structure of the Chicago Col
iseum Gives Way.

iseum Gives Way.
'IIs Known That Six Lives Were Crush
ed Out; Three More Are supposed to
lie Under the Wrecksge, and Seven Are
In the Hospital, Two of Them Fatally
Injured.
CHICAGO. Aug. 30. - Twelve steel
arches, each weighing 80 tons, which
were to have supported the super
structure of the Coliseum building in
course of erection on Wabash avenue,
between Fifteenth and Sixteenth
streets, fell to the ground. 1t is known
that six lives were crushed out. The
bodies of three men are supposed to be
under the wreckage. Seven are in the
hospital with injuries received in the
accident and of these two will surely
die, one may possibly recover and the
rest are for the greatest part seriously
injured.
The dead are:
Charles Walpot, crushed to death.
Stephen j. Thompson, crushed to
death.
John Fay, head crushed.
Richard S. Herman. head cut off.
Edward Murray, head and both legs
cut off.
Theodore Thorne, crushed to death.
The missing who are supposed to be
under the ruins are:
Frank Logan.
Alex Millas.
Samuel Smith
Those fatally injured are:
John Dowd, both legs broken both
eyes knocked out; internal injuries.
John White cut on head and right
side; internal injuries.
The others injured are:
Cornelius Toomey, head crushed; in
ternal injuries; may recover.
Peter Pelletre, crushed about should
ers and chest. serious.
John Hawthorne, head cut, internal
injuries: serious.
All of the II arches were standing,
the 18th and last having just been
COlllPltltu- II was NhN lHNNlNlpiI VI
the steel contractors, the Pittsburg
Bridge company of Pittsburg, to turn
over its work to the general contractors.
The immense traveller" or derrick,
which had been used in the erection of
the arches had been removed and the
agents of the bridge company were ac-
counting their work as practically COM
pleted when suddenly and without the
slightest warning, the arch last put in
one next to ii. The weight was too
much FOR this, 1t gave way, crashed
against the third and then one by one
the great steel span fell over to the
south precisely in the same manner
as a number of cards would fall.
Nearly all the men who were killed
were at work on top of the arches 40
feet above the ground. Some of them
made futile attempts to slide down the
side of the arches, but before they
could save themselves, were hurled to
the ground. Many of them uttered
piercing shrieks for aid as they fell.
Most of them were killed outright by
the awful nature of their injuries. The
skulls of the unfortunate men were
crushed into shapeless masses, their
limbs were cut off as If by monster
knife and they were mangled beyond
recognition.
The immense structure began falling
slowly, each arch being sustained by
the cross beams supporting the entire
structure. As the mass gained i'm
petus, bars of iron inches thick snapped
with loud report and the great mass
moved faster and faster in its descent.
With a crash that was heard blocks
distant, the structure fell, leaving the
walls practically uninjured.
An immense crowd gathered around
the place and, despite the efforts of the
police, who were close at hand, they
swarmed over the mass Of wreckage,
making desperate but ill-directed eff
forts to drag out the dead and to save
the wounded. 1t was only with the
greatest difficulty that the police were
finally able to drive back the crowd,
and give the .firemen and uninjured
workmen chance to rescue the in
jured.
That more men were not killed and
injured was almost a miracle. Fully 90
men were at work in the space covered
by the arches as they fell.
A number of the men jumped into
small excavations. of which there are
many in the ground beneath the steel
works, and were saved from the great
masses of steel that crashed down over
them. Several of them were standing
under the arches when they commenced
to fall and, running to the side walls,
by great good fortune, happened to
stand in the space left vacant by the
cave of the arches away from the side
walls. Had the arches fallen to either
side the loss of life must have been
much heavier, but they fell true to the
south on a line parallel to the side of
the building and none of them save the
two southern arches fell at all out
side of the space to be occupied by the
building.