The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1901-11-07
BLOODY DISASTER
Three Dead and Five Injured IN Hor-
rible Wreck at Summit Switch by
Collision of Freight and Work
Train Friday Night.

Early Fridad evening this city was
thrown into great excitement by the
report that a wreck had occurred but
short distance west and that a work
train on which many Plymouth men
were employed had suffered greatly.
The first rumors were that seven were
killed and many injured. A crowd
soon gathered at the Pennsylvania
station and railroad men were eagerly
besieged with questions as they moved
about their duties.
One of the Clifford work trains,
consisting of an engine and caboose,
came in collision with a westbOund
freight on the main track short
distance west of the ON tower, other
otherwise known as the Summit tower,
about mile and half west of Plym-
outh, and as a result three are dead
and five are injured.
THE DEAD
JOSEPH CLIFFORD, Valparaiso,
steam shovel engineer, killed instant
ly.
HOWARD COMPTON, FIT. Wayne, coh-
ductor of work train, killed instantly.
CHARLES CoU.IER, Valparaiso,
craneman on work train, lived four
hours.
THE INJURED
SCHUYLER GREGG, Plymouth, fire.
man on steam shovel, collar bone brok-
en-, back bruised.
MEAD LOGAN, Plymouth, pitman,
hack and shoulders hurt, thigh bruised.
FRED WoRDEN, FIT. Wayne, brake
man on work train, leg broken.
WILLIAM VANBUsKIRK, Fit. Wayne,
fireman on freight engine, slight in
juries.
CHARLES MARTIN, Fit. Wayne,
freight brakeman, slight injuries.
Two construction trains employed
by Clifford Bros, contractors, of
Valparaiso, were at work Friday in
the improvements of the railroad be-
tween Plymouth and Grovertown. 1t
is the custom to run these trains on
the main line without orders, close
watch being kept for regular trains,
and in this way the unfortunate train
was watching for chance to run to
Plymouth: to "Sneak in," the en-
ployes called it. They lay on siding
while passenger train number s, leav-
ing Plymouth at 5:45 p. IA, passed
them going west, then the first work
train backed out on the main track
and continued toward the east, and
the second work train, several miles
further west, also took the main
track for Plymouth very shortly after.
A freight train, number 81, due at
Plymouth in the afternoon, pulled out
westbound close behind the passenger.
1t is believed that her headlight was
not burning and many railroad men
assert that this is so, though the tower
man at the Summit says it was lit
when it passed him. At any rate the
approach of this train was not observed
on the worktrain until too late to
avoid the contact.
There were seven men in the work
caboose and but one escaped. He saw
the freight engine when about two
car-lengths away and jumped, rolling
under car on the siding and sustain
ing slight bruises and strains. The
engineer ON the work train also saw
the freight at close range and revers-
ed his engine so suddenly as to wrench
the locomotive loose from its COUP
lings, thus sending the caboose swiftly
to its fate, accompanied by the tender,
while his engine slowed and stopped.
The freight engineer saw the caboose
loom up ahead of him out OF the dark
ne IS and reversed his machine but not
in time to stop before the shock came.
He was not hurt, but his fireman was
caught between the engine ann ten
der, where he was held fast for half an
hour, his leg crushed and bleeding.
The head brakeman was also some
what injured.
The impact was terrific and the
light cabooSe was crushed like an egg
shell, 1t was literally torn into splint-
ers between the big freight engine on
one end and the tender on the other.
The locomotive of number 81 did not
leave the track. 1t was a miracle that
any one in that doomed caboose escap-
ed instant death. Conductor Compton
was standing in the door and received
the full force of the collision between
the framework of the car and the boil