The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1900-05-07
WRECK AND RUIN
A DISASTER NEAR ARDTORE
early THIS MORNING.
Three Persons Injured in the Wreck
and Property to the Amount
of $4,000 is Destroyed.

There are wrecks and wrecks,
but Ardmore has to-day gazed
in horror and amazement on one
of the worst ever witnessed where
no collision occurred.
The scene beggars description
and will not soon be effaced from
the minds of those who visited it
to-day. 1t is a second Inferno,
with dumb brutes as the torment
ed sufferers.
The wreck occurred about two
miles north of town about ) O'Clock
this morning and is supposed to
have been caused by the rails
spreading under the weight of a
big eight-wheel locomotive.
Engine. No. 924 in charge of
Engineer Warner, pulling mixed
train of about twenty five cars in
charge of Conductor Harris, left
Ardmore at 3o'clock, going north.
While at the depot here 1t was
boarded by several boys and young
men who slowed themselves away
for a ride to Davis in hope of wit
Messing a lynching which had been
currently reported would take
place there last night or this morn
ing.
Engine No. .924 is a big eight
wheeler and seems to be regarded
by trainmen as entirely too heavy
for this track. When two miles
out, and at a point where a stone
culvert bridges a small stream, the
rails spread and the cars piled upon
each other in shapeless mass OF
wreck and ruin.
The cars are lying diagonally
across the track, which is torn up
for considerable distance. AT
the point of the wreck a deep cut
opens, fanked on either side by a
deep branch or gully, rendering the
building of a switch around the
place almost an impossibility. AS
result no trains can pass until
the track is cleared.
Twelve cars and the tender OF
the engine are piled together. The
first car of the train was an emil
grant car containing household
/ goods, horses. chickens, etc. The
: other eleven were stock cars loaded
with cattle from Southern Texas.
News of the disaster was quickly
sent up and down the line and by
Z o'clock this morning a wreck
) train and crew from Gainesville
e were on the scene and the work of
; clearing the track begun. 1t will
probably take all of to- day and a
good part of the night to get the
/, track in shape for trains to pass.
A fortunate thing about the
> wreck. and fact that seems
almost miraculous, was that not q
:. member of either the train or stock
crews was injured though severa
II had very narrow escapes.
J. The Ardmore boys were not sc
e fortunate. Chas. Stewart wa:
). taken from the wreck and carried
i to his home in a precarious cOndi
ton, his spine being injured, hi:
9 hip crushed and his left arm
# broken. The report was curren
= that he had died of his injuries
y but this was erroneous as he wa
- considerably improved at noon ant
- talked intelligently of the accident
:, a young man named Clark wa
IS badly injured in the left shoulder
but not seriously hurt otherwise.
w. A. Barker sustained sever
bruises on the head, face ant
" chest, but escaped any serious in
ie jury.
- 1t was reported that Jake Lewis
II Clyde Nichols and Dud Slaughte
were also injured. but this prove
to be mistake as these younl
gentlemen were on our streets to
S. day as hale and hearty as usual.
y A boy named Coffee, who wa
thought also to be on the train
T. had not been found up to moo