The Batesburg advocate. [volume] (Batesburg, S.C.) 1901-1911, 1903-07-15
Conductors Dreadful Mistake That
Cost Many Lives.
TWENTY-THREE KILLED.
Death and Destruction Insane
from Mental Anguish.
Further Details.

land division of the Southern railway
at Roc' lsh, Va, at II minutes after
3 O'Clock Tuesday afternoon. PasSen-
ger train No. 30, leaving Washington
at 11.l5 a. M, for Atlanta, Ga.
dashed into local freight No. 6S,
standing on the main line Of the road
at that point, wreckibg both engines
and the baggage and express car of
No. b. The baggage car and tile
second-claSs passenger coach immcdi-
ately following it tclcScopcd. The
coach was occupied mostly 10y colorcd
people. The casualties thus far re-
ported i'm detail are as follows:
Killed:
Engineer Davis.
Engineer Mccormick, who was rid
ing as IA passenger on No. 6S.
A cOlored fireman on No. Us.
The freight train WAS i'm charge of
Conductor Brubeck and Engineer Hale
and at the time OF the accident was
on the return run from Lynchburg To
Charlottesville.
RocktiSh station is midway between
these two points and the track there
is single one. Engineer had orders
TO get out of the way of the passenger
train but for some reason which has
not yet been explained he overStayed
his time and had failed to take sid
ing SO that the passenger train could
pass. The trains came together with
a horrible crash and fearful scene of
panic ensued when the occupants of
the cars realized what had occurred.
In, Nn .l,t
which left Washington Tuesday morn
ing at .45 was made up of an cX
press car, a baggage car, two day
coaches and two Pullman cars. The
two Pullmans formed an early morn
ing New York connection at Wash
ington for Atlanta and the south.
s-The train arrived there at 32 Il. m. ;,
from Boston also connected with No.
35. No. 80 was in charge Of Engi-
neer Davis and Conductor Mays One
OF the passenger cars of the train was
Il second class day coach and the other
a veStibule car.
Engineer Mccormick, who was a
passenger on the freight train, was
going To Charlottesville To take Il train
south at the time he met his deaf n.
The engineer OF the freight cScap ed
without injury.
1t is estimated here that there were
In all probability l20 passengers on
the train, including those from Boston
and intermediate stations.
1t was at first reported that Bag
EagemaSter Payne of train No. 30 had
met his death in the wreck Later
reports, however, show that this is in
correct. He was caught under one
OF the coaches and was badly stunned,
but later he revived and probably will
recover 1t is now said TO be almost
certain that 10 were colored persons,
as the second class coach which was
telescoped was occupied almost exclu-
Sively by them.
Later adviceS from the scene of the
wreck are that the freight train which
was on the main track had been there
for six minutes longer than the orders
directed when the collision occurred.
LATER ACCOUNT.
special from Charlottesville, Va.
says: Southern railway passenger
train No. 30, Southbond, ran into an
open switch at Rockfsh depot, %
miles south of this city, at o'clock
siding. The passenger engine and
express coach teleScOped through the
second class passenger car in the rear.
In sChe 'lattcr was a party if immi-
grants, all Of whom were killed or in.
jured The dead number - and the
injured number -. Traffic was SuS
pended for eight hours.
The dead, as have been identified
are:
Engineer James Mccormick of Char.
lottcsvillle.
Engineer Charles Davis of Alex.
andria.
Thomas Sheppard of CharlOttcS-
vile, brakeman ON freight train.
Charles II. Gay Of Charlottesville
fireman on freight.
j. Il. Lowe, colored, Of Baltimore.
Chas T. Leitch, colorcd, dining cal
water.
co. Owen, Philadelphia, boiler in
spector.
Adam f. Vicocsavlievich, Austrian
boy.
Barilani Gugclmo, Austrian wo
man.
Two unknown Austrian women.
Unknown mulattO woman.
The injured are:
Engineer Hale of Charlottesville
injuries TO spine.
II. A. Sharpe of Knoxville, Tenn.
head and legs bruiSC1 and back hurt
Turner A. Henry of BcntUnyillc
Va, injuries TO legs, head and shoul
derS.
Walter Jackson, colored of Char
lottesville, passenger fireman, leg
broken.
Austrians, all painfully but not Sc
TiouSly injured.
II. G.. Hudson, colored, Chatta
noOga, Tenn, serious wounds OF
head.
r. E. Mercer, colored, Washington