The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1900-08-16
CONFUSION OF ORDERS
CAUSED FATAL WRECK.
FAST TRAINS MET HEAD-ON
IN A DENSE FOG.
Operator Failed to Transmit Right
Order for One to Take
q Siding.

Grand Rapids, Mich, Aug 15.-The north
bound Northlard express. which left this
city at i:O5 a. m. and southbound passenger
train 30. .. dae here at 6 a. m. collided in
the dense fog of the early morning at Pier
son. twenty-nne miles north of Grand Rap
ids.
Seven persons were killed and nine in
jured, one fatally
The Dead.
LET'S CHARLES NJ. Grand Rapids. con-
ductor northbound train. No. ).
GROETVELD, GILBERT, Grand Rapids. en-
gineer No. ).
FISH. WILLIAM H. Grand Rapids engineer
wooDHousE. EDWARD D.. Grand Rapids.
f:enlan No. ..
BOYLE LOUIS c.. Grand Rapids. fireman
.PIERsoN. c. passenger. of franklin. Ind.
I.ENAN. RALPH. son of BasgageElan Lcvan.
Of GSfnd Rapids. who was in the car with his
Fatally Injured.
BLOSSOM. MARK, Grand Rapids, news agent;
base Of skull fractured.
The Injured.
DENNIS. H. a., Grand Rapids. passenger: cut
on head. legs jamrned. left shoulder hurt.
GRAY ES. W. NJ. Grand Rapids. negro. walter
on 30. o. compound fracture OF right arm and
FORD. G. 81; Grand Rapids, negro. porter
rowERs DAVID G.. Grand Rapids. baggage
man o, No 2: scalp wound. throat cut. eontu-
loRoEF. FRANK. Traverse City. tra!nman:
BARNES. WILLIAM. Grand Rapids. dining
car conductor: left OF chest hurt. head cut
HARTSAW. W. G.. passenger: badly hurt
Met In the Fog.
When the trains met day was just dawn
ing and the fog was thick that the en-
sineers could not see more than 100 yards
Sand Lake, two miles south of Plerson. al
4:52. No. was evidently late and was try
ing to make the siding at Pierson. The
Northland Express had the right OF way
and was going at nearly full speed.
The express train was made UP largely OF
Pullman cars. 1t carried the Grand Rapids
coach, a day coach, several sleepers from,
Cincinnati and the South, the buffet car and
According to the railway officials. the coll
lision was the fault of Operator Wells, sta
toned at Mill Creek. four miles north of
this city.
Operator Blundered.
The trains usually meet at Sand Lake. two
miles south of Pierson. An order was is
sued that they meet at Woodstock. four
miles north of Pierson. Later. Operator
Wells was asked i the express press had passed Sc
was then told to countermand former or
ders and give orders 10 No. to meet No.
at Sand Lake. Similar orders were given
ready passed Mill Creek. They collidcd,
therefore, while both were going at full
speed.
The forward cars were telescoped. The
baggage, mai! and dining cars on No.
saved the Pulmans in the rear and the pas
sanger coaches on No. were saved by three
freight cars which happened to be attached
next to the engine.
There were eleven cars on train No. 2
and ten on No. 8. Only six cars remained
on the track. and the engines were torn to
pieces.
When Operator Mills had discovered his
error he tried to stop the express at Pier
son. but was half minute too late. The
injured were brought to this city and taken
to various hospitals. The dead were also
brought here. The railroad detectives
caught thieves at work at the scene OF the
diSaSter