The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1900-06-28
TRAIN DITCHED;
THIRTY KILLED
Fearful Wreck Occurs On
Southern Railway (.
CAUSED BY A WASHOUT
Loss of Life Greatest Ever Known
In Railway Accidents In the
South's History.

Passenger train No. Z, on the South
ern road, due in Atlanta at 9:45 p. M,
ran into wsshout over Camp creek
Saturday night at $50 O'Clock one
mile and half north of McDonough,
Ga, which is twenty miles south Of
Atlanta, and thirty-one people were
killed outright.
The train left Macon en- schedule
time. It was made up Of u engine.
No. 864, and three cars. The car next
to the engine was combination affair,
part of it being used for baggage and
part of it for passengers. The next
coach was first-class passenger coach.
while the third one was o Pullman car.
The run from Macon to McDonough
was made in a heavy storm which
had been prevailing for many hours.
At McDonough the usual stop was
made, and the train pulled out for At
lanta. One mile and o half north OF
McDonough was a culvert over Camp
creek, which had stood the storms for
many years. Either a cloudburst or
the heavy rush Of the waters after dark
Saturday night washed away quite
section, leaving an immense gap.
The train rushing along plunged
wildly into this gap, and in a second
the tender was piled upon the engine
and the cars upon cars in an extrica-
BILE mass.
Immediately after the cars went
down fire began to spread among
them, and what destruction the fall
did not accomplish, the flames about
completed.
OF the thirty-one killed, all except
Two were lifeless bodies when rescued
from the flames, the scalding steam,
aud the raging waters Of the creek,
swollen by heavy rains into torrent
Only nine persons were rescued.
None of them are seriously injured.
The wreck is said by railroad off-
cials who visited the scene to the most
disastrous in the history of the state.
Only q few moments were required
to arouse the people of McDonough to
the fact that the most horrible railroad
wreck the state had ever known had
occurred within two miles of their
town.
The scene when they reached the
place where the accident occurred beg
CARED description. All that remained
of the train was mass of ruins that
in the dim light appeared to be only .
mass of splinters.
A number of thrilling rescues were
made. The manner in which the only
two women were rescued was remark
able. Miss Mary B. Merritt is 6f
Boston, where she is a teacher in Q
school of oratory. She and her pupil,
Miss Clara Alden, also of Boston, had
been visiting in Macon and were en-
route to. Boston. Both occupied
berths in the Pullman. When the.
plunge was made they found their end
Of the car almost entirely submerged.
Going upon the platform, which was
an exhibition of nerve since the water
was almost to their chins, they climbed
to the roof of the Pullman and walked
up the inclined car to the further end,
where they stood calling for help.
They were the first to be rescued. A
rope was thrown, which each in turn
prasped and in that manner were
carried safely to the point from which
the cars had fallen.
The list of those killed is as follows:
Passengers-W. W. Iparks, W. F.
Maddox, George W. Flournoy, W. J.
Pate, Jesse Pate, aged 13, son of w.
]. Pate-all of Atlanta, Gs.
D. G. Hightower, Stockbridge, Ga.
il. Florida, Nashville, Tenn.
The crew.. Sullivan, engineer
of the wrecked train, Atlanta; W. A.
Barclay, conductor; Il. R. Cress-
man, conductor of Pullman on the
wrecked train; W. 81. Green, fireman;
W. W. Bennett, baggage master.
Employees of the road who were on
fatal train-J. n. Hunnicut, conduc-
tor, Atlanta; J. E. Wood, conductor.
Atlanta; G.. Y. Griffith, supervisor.
Floyilla, Ga.; W. r. Lawrence, fore
man, Stockbridge, Ga; W. O. Ellis,
bridgeman, Stockbridge, Ga; John
Brantley, fireman, Atlanta; J. 81.
Rhodes, fagman; W. I. Morrissette,
repairer, Pocahontas, Va; Ed Byrd.
negro fireman; Robert Spencer, negro
porter.
Unidentihed-Bodies of four white
men; one supposed to be Robert
Buchanan, of Atlanta, and one G. N.
Seewall, of Chicago; bodies OF five