Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-08-07
CIRCUS TRAIN IN
A COLLISION
fwenty-One Men Killed Outright and Seven
Others Fatally Injured at Durand, Mich.
Rear Section of Wallace Bros Show Train Crashes Into First
Section Resulting In Horrible Loss of Le-Severa Off
cials of the Grand Truny Railway Among the Dead-Fail
ure of Air Brakes to Work Cause of the Wreck.

Durand, Mich Aug. 7.-Wailace's
circus was wrecked in the Grand Trunk
yards here early today and twenty one
men, mostly employees of the circus,
were killed outright. Twenty more are
injured, seven fatally. Among the dead
are:
The Dead.
]. Mccarthy. trainriaster of the
Grand Trunk.
A. w. Large Battle Greek, special
agent of the Grand Trunk.
John Purcell. Peru. Ind.
Jafe Larson, Cambridge, Ohio.
G. Thomas.
Harry ST. Clair, residence unknown.
John Leary, Springfield, I'll.
Andrew Rowland. New York state.
Frank Thorp Dundee. Mich.
Robert Rice
George Smith. residence unknown.
Charles Sands, Peru, Ind.
Joe Wilson, Pittsburs.
w. J. Mccoy, Columbus, Ohio.
Seven other showmen, names and
residences unknown.
Injured.
The seriously injured are:
James D. Foley, special officer Of the
Grand Trunk. Detroit.
Joseph f. Penton, New Milford
Conn.
w. II. Roe. Armstrong. III.
Frank Tilley. Rising Sun, Ind.
Bole Abrams, Sandusky, Ohio.
Burt McGrath. Connelisville, Ohio.
John w. Koons. Bairdstown, Ohio.
George Barley. Los Angeles. Cal.
Mhe1wreck. according TO statement
OF the engineer OF the section. was
caused by the failure of the air brakes
to work.
The. show was travelling in two sec
tions over the Grand Tvunk from Lam
sing to Lapere. The accident, it is said,
was caused by the failure of the second
section to stop on time and which ran
OF the second section and four of the
first section were demolished Much
valuable property was destroyed and
the loss to the circus people Will proba-
bly, be very heavy. Some of the ami
mails were killed
Appalling Scene.
The crapa ofter tho fcio ,,,,, -.
palling. The shrieks of the injured and
the believing OF the frightened animals
could be heard above the hiss of the
escaping steam and excited shouts of
the rescuers. 1t was some hours before
all of the injured were rescued.
Details Of the Wreck.
It was 3:45 O'clock when the first
section pulled into the west end of the
Grand Trunk yards here. A red light
hung on the rear car to stop the sec
ond section. Engineer Prost, of Battle
Creek, who was running the engine Of
the rear train, says that he saw the
light and Immediately applied the air
brakes. but to his horror they refused
to work. He reversed the engine, but
the momentum behind was too great
and with a crash that aroused all OF
the town near the yards, the two trains
met. Three cars of the first section
were telescoped and the engine and five
cars of the moving train demolished
The rear car of the first section was
caboose. in which the trainmen were
sleeping, and the next two were filled
with sleeping circus employees. The
greatest loss of life was in the caboose
Elephant Killed.
One of the wrecked cars of the sec
ond section was occupied by five ele-
plants and several camels. One eie-
phant and two camels were killed out
right, while the other animals and the
trainer escaped. With the exception of
this car, none Of the menagerie was
wrecked. The other demolished cars
contained canvass or wagons and
there was comparatively little excite
ment among the wild animals. The
elephants In the wrecked car behaved
with surprising calmness, and were led
out of the wreck without trouble.
The escaping steam and the screams
and cries Of those pinned in the wreck
added horror to the spectacle, when the
trainmen in the yards and the aroused
townspeople first reached the scene.
The rescuers could see the unfortunates
thru the tangled wreckage and went
furiously to work. The wrecking crew
was on the scene in very few minutes
bringing tools and equipment in plenty.
Work of Rescue.
All the physicians and trained nurses
In town were sent for and those in
nearby places rushed to the scene on
hand cars. Hotel Richeliey was con-
verted into temporary hospital and
scores of volunteers with stretchers
were in readiness to carry the injured
there as fast as the rescueis could ex-
tradite them. The dead, many of them
being so terribly mangled that identifi-
cation seemed we'll nigh impossible,
were carefully laid on the greensward,
a short distance from the scene. BY 6
o'clock a corps of twelve physicians
was operating on the injured and dress
ing their wounds in the temporary hos
pital.
When the wrsckiug train and crews