Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1900-09-06
THIRTEEN KILLED.
THIRTY OTHERS ARE INJURED IN A
WRECK NEAR HATFIELD, PA.

WRECK NEAR HATFIELD, PA.
Six of the Ten Coaches Completely Demol-
ished--With Three Four Exceptions
the Dead Were Killed Outright Victims
Pinned Down by Wreckage.
| Philadelphia Sept. 3.-Thirteen per-
sons killed and over 80 injured is the
appalling record of rear end col
| lision between an excursion train and
milk train on the Bethlehem branch
of the Philadelphia and Reading rail
way yesterday at Hatfield, Pa, p
miles north of this city.
The killed: Miss Annie Sherry,
aged 21; Robert Miller, aged 21 Rich
ard Bachman aged 40; Ira Ehret, aged
| 20; William Ehret, brother of Ira;
Joseph Mordaunt aged %, all of South
Bethlehem; Charles McFonigle and
Thomas Day, Allentown; Miss Mamie
Kaelin, aged IA, Telford; God
frey Kaelin, father of Mamie; William
Blackburn, Amber; Harold Lands,
Hatfield; - Alderman, Philadelphia.
The injured: John David, Philadel
phia, engineer of excursion train,
skull fractured; Albert j. Wagner,
Philadelphia, tiagman excursion train,
contusions of chest and legs, serious;
Wilson Crosland, South Bethlehem,
baggagemaster of milk train, head
lacerated, serious; Michael ]. Tighe,
Allentown. legs crushed and burned,
serious; Abraham Transue, Jr., South
Bethlehem, deep scalp wounds, con-
fusion of back and internally injured,
serious: Miss Gertrude Burkhardt,
South Bethlehem, both legs broken.
The wrec-.ed train consisted of ten
day coaches, and was the first section
of large excursion made up of peo
pie from Bethlehem and Allentown
and surrounding towns to Atlantic
City. This section carried only those
persons who lived in Bethlehem and
Allentown and left the Union depot in
Bethlehem at 6:05 a. M, exactly 35
minutes behind the milk train. Tie
latter train consisted of two milk cars
] and two passenger coaches. AT 6:45
the milk train drew up at the milk
platform at Hatfield and in less than
two minutes the special excursion train
running at the rate of 35 miles an
hour crashed into the rear of the milk
\ train. Tie locomotive ploughed
4 ! through the two passenger coaches and
crushed them as though they We're egg
shells. The milk car Immediately III
4 front was also badly wrecked. Four
Z persons on the passenger car of the
z milk train We're almost instantly killed
q Fortunately there were very few per-
! sons on this train. The excursion train
4 was picture of indescribable horror.
The locomotive was mass of bent
y and broken iron and firmly held the
bodies of its engineer and fireman be-
I meath its great weight. Behind the
/ engine, six of the ten cars were also a
0 mass of wreckage. The first car was
3 broken in twain and the other five cars
were thrown on their sides, complete
ly demolished.
3 Nine persons We're killed in the first
8 two cars and the others in those
R coaches We're badly MANNED. AS soon
as the crash came terrible cry arose
j
) had not been injured quickly crawled
: or jumped from the cars and went &c
the assistance of the injured Many
We're pinned down by wreckage anG
had to be freed by the liberal use OF
. axes. With three or four exceptions
the dead We're killed instantly, the
= others dying on their way to the hos
:, pitfalls.
/. A special train carrying the injured
\ arrived at Bethlehem at II 30 and wa:
II met by fully 5000 persons. all clamor
: ing to get a bit of news of the wreck
II or trying to learn whether loved one.
were among the victims. The new.
of the wreck had reached Bethlehem
at s O'Clock and spread like wildfire
IS All the policemen of the town wer,
t gathered at the station, and it wa
e with great difficulty that the injured
II We're removed to the waiting ambr
II lances and other vehicles which con
e veyed them to the hospitals. All dur
a, ing the day the people of Allentown
e Catasauqua, and other places cam
al pouring into Bethlehem and confusion
IS reigned througout the day.