West Virginia daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1894-1902, 1901-12-26
rITRo-GLYCERISE HORRORS.


SEINE OF the Many Fatalities That Have
Been Caused by the High Explosive.
Butler, Dec. 26.-Anent the nj
tro- glycerine horror of Tuesday af-
ternoon by which the lives OF
Thomas L. Edwards and Charlie d.
Parker, two we'll known well shoot
ers of this place, were snufed out,
as 1t were, In the twinkling of an
eye, and two families were bereft of
their support and their homes made
sad and desolate just on the eve of
the Christians great festival, a
brief review, retrospectively. of
similar catastrophies of this char
acter that have occurred In this
county within the recollection of
the writer may be of some interest
at this time. The first that I Wv
idly recall happened on December
9, 1876. Dan Smith and William
Humphreys, in the employ OF the
Roberts Torpedo company, had
gone to the magazine, located up
Glycouse hollow, about three
quarters of mile from Petrolia, for
the purpose of taking stock. Both
men were blown to atoms, and the
shock was so great that the himsy
buildings that made up the town
of Petrolia were shaken from cen
ter to circumference. The loss In
broken glass and crockery was no
uncomfortable amount.
This disaster was followed on
October 20, 1873, by the destruc-
ton of the Gotham factory on Bear
creek, about three miles from Pc.
trolia, resulting In the death of the
owner, S. 0. Gotham, and his two
employees, John Fowler and Harry
French. The latter was on the
outside of the works when the ex.
plosion came and did not receive
the full effects of the shock; he was
fdghtfully injured, however, and
death relieved his sufferings about
four hours later. There was sup
posed to have been about 600
pounds of the deadly compound that
exploded.
E Butler had lis first baptism In a
nitro glyceline horror on December
10. 1889 The victims were James
0. Woods aud William Medill, ex
pert oil we'll shooters. They were
blown to fragments at the Butler
Torpedo company's magazine, To-
Gated on the Shaffner farm, about
two miles south of town. While
the shock was severely felt In the
borough, 1t caused no damage
worthy Of mention.
On the afternoon of December d,
1895 December seems to have been
a fateful month) George Bester, a
shooter in the employ OF the Humes
Torpedo company, accompanied by
young man named Lewis Black
who was merely along for recrea-
ton. drove to the company's maya
zine, two miles from town, for a sup
ply Of the material. The explosion
came shortly afterwards and caused
people to rush from their houses In
CONSERVATION. The cause was soon
learned and many fastened to the
scene, only to find a deep hole
where the magazine had stood. and
a destroyed factory that stood
nearby. Nothing was found of
Bester. Young Black, who must
have been some distance away from
the mage zine was managled beyond
human semblance, but his body re-
manned partially intact.
Ga April I, 1897, c. N. Brown,
manager for the Pennsylvania Tor.
pedo company, a veteran shooter.
met death at the Burke & Marshall
well On the Ramsey farm near
Evans City, while engaged In
shooting the we'll. What caused
the premature explosion will never
be known, bat 1t Is supposed Brown
dropped a can while filing a shell.
A house nearby had the end blown
In, bat the family miraculously es-
capped. Brownie, as he was famil.
iarly known, was man of infinite
jest and good fellowship; of ample
girth. he more than once joculariy
remarked that there was a good
deal of life n him bat 1t would only
require a cigar box tor him In
death, referring to his hazardous
business. How truly was his
prophecy, made In jest, fulfilled.
Chas. H. Ford, one of the or
gauiz ers of the Producers Torpedo