The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-08-16
AWFUL WRECK
on the Grand Rapids 10 Indiana Rail.
I 4: iFoad at Pierson, Iich.
5SEYENBWEREs I'M
And q Large Number Fatally Injur.i
cd -f The5 Cause Was q Headton COL,
listoa-An Operator 1t Fault
Finest Train In the World. W q
IN RA.plps MIcb. \ A,,..

4 "a ND RAPIDS, Mich. Aug. i15..--,
THE most terrible wreck In tho historyl
the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad
Occurred about s. a. to-day, ut Pier
son twenty nlne miles north i Of,
Grand Rapids. S!S,SS. IL
The snorthbound Northland express,
which left this Scitytat los, colIidedi
head on: with! passenger train No.32, due
here at 70 ~ m: Nine lives were lost
and tmany passengers were injured.
5 some seriously. Both engines SandSthet
baggage years were completely cmol-s
ished. II 4. N " N ~ yiy
When thestrains met day was Just
fdapntrgs an the fog was so,thick that
engineers could not see more than one
b hundred yards ahead Tho trains were
4 to have passed lat Sand kc.ltw5i
smilcs south OF piers9n at ASS. No. e!
was evidently late saacc was trying to
i make the siding at Plcrson. The
fNorthland express had the right, yof
way and WINS 'scnrrylng along a I, near
sslg full aspsed. Either the engineers.
blundered in their ORDERS or were6noti
sableSto seesslcnals oneacconnt OF !; the
/ fog. Y; q I
4 Finest Train on Earth.
telephone, message from Plnrson
says5thht the engineers and fremsn Of
4 both trains we're Killed, as well ,as i've
& other; persons The express train was
made up largelysof Pullman cars. 1T
: was the finest train on the road, 1t
& carried The Grand Rapids coach, a day
coach, several sleepers from Cincinnati
& and the south and IbufretEiabreakfast
car, and the baggage cars. rs 4
The 5dend: !; Is - y
Charles M Let's. Grand! Rapids, CON.
6 dpctori nurthbound train No. 6.
Gilbert Groetvcld. Grand Rapids en-
gineer No. 5.
William H. Fish, Grand Rapids. en-
4 gineerE No. 2. 4; a!
Edward p, SRoodhouse.; Grand Rap
lids, tlremen 81 No. 5. g
Louis G.i5oyle. Grand Rapids, are-t
man ot7No.32.. ~ n ~ 2f.
Plierson, passenger, Of 7 Franklin
Ind fS':!$ff9
Ralph 5Levan,z son Of rBaggnssreman
5Levan, OF Grand Rapids. Sswho was in.
the car with his father.
Largo Number Fatally Hurt.
Fatally Injured: Mark BLOSSOM,
Grand Rapids, news agent; base OF
skull fractured. 4
The injured: Z Is, \, i. n
< FL. A*Dennis. Grand Rapids. ,passen-
ger. Fcut on head, legs damned. left
shoulder hurt; William Graves, Grand
z Rapids. icolored waiter on No. Is, COM
spound fracture ;of the, right arm and
( badly cut, c. NJ. Ford. Grand Rapids,
I. eolorcd porter on No. s. injured about
( the legs ind chest: David c. Powers,
2 Grand Rapids. baggageman Of No. 9.
4 scalp, wound, throatfcut,j Commissions on:
\ limbs. both eyes closed; Frank Poroff,
Traverse City, train man, head badly
i cut; NJ. Barnes, Grand Rapids. din
Z Ing car conductor, left OF chest hurt.
! head cut: Harvey Taylor. Grand Rap
Z Ids. colored walter. both hands lacera-
ted. arms cut; w. G. Hartsaw. passen-
tGer, badly hurt sabout and chest. j
Fault of Telegraph Operator.
According to the railway officials the
collision was the fault OF Operator
Wells, stationed at Mill Creek, four |
miles north OF this city. The trains
usually meet at Sand Lake, two miles
south Of Pierson. An order. was Is
sued that they meet at Woodstock. four 4
miles north OF. Plerson. Later Operator
Wells was asked II the express had
+ passed his station yet. He answered
55..No. He was then told to cnunter-
Z mand former orders and give orders to
Z Nos to meet. No. 2 at Sand Lake. Sim
liar orders were given to- No. Train 1
I No. s never got the order, having al
ready passed MIL Creek. They ;colllded
therefore, while both were going at full
speed. The forward cars were telc-
scoped. The baggage. mail and dining
cars on No. 3 saved the 8Pullmnns In
the rear, and the passenger coaches on
{ No. 2 were saved by three freight.
cars which happened to be attached
: next the engine. There were eleven
cars on train No. 2, and ten on No. 5.
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