The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1905-06-30
TWENTY-ONE DIE
IN TRAIN WRECK
Twentieth Century Limited
Goes into an Open
Switch.
WAS RUNNING AT HIGH SPEED
Superintendent Moon Asserts
Switch Was Opened by
Wreckers.
WAS RUNNING AT HIGH SPEED
FIRE ADDS HORROR TO SCENE
Disaster Occurred at Mentor, O., a
Few Miles East of Cleveland
Worst i'm Lake Shore
Roads History

Cleveland, o.. June 23-According
tc a statement made at the head
| quarters of the Lake Shore road here
the number of dead as a result of the
wreck of the Twentieth Century
| Limited at Mentor, O., is twenty-one
1t is believed there will be no further
deaths. T.. n. Eirick, manager Of
keiths theater here, who was pas
senger on the wrecked train, is miss
sing and it is feared that he may be
among the unidentified dead. D. G.
Moon, assistant general superintendent
Of the Lake Shore road. after investi-
eating the cause of the wreck, made
this statement:
II have made a careful and thorough
examination. The switch was Open
| am satisfied somebody, having a key,
opened the switch with malicious in
tent. The train did not jump the
track
The List of Dead.
Following is revised list OF the
dead: G. H. Wellman. general man
ager of the Wellman-Seaver-M Morgan
Engineering company of this city;
Thomas r. Morgan, of the same COM
pany, burned to death; Archibald T..
Head, London, Eng. prominent Eng
lish steel man: John r. Bennett. patent
attorney. New York city burned to
| death; A. l.. Rodgers. Plat Iron COM
pany, New York, died at hospital; HI.
II. Wright. travelling man, Chicago,
died at hospital; William b. Mickey.
address unknown: r. J. Brandt. ToIe-
do, died at hospitals; s. G. Beckith. New
York. died at hospital: J. H. Gibson
Chicago, travelling man; N. B. Waters.
Hamburg. Y. Y. bagga gemaster: Allen
Tyler, engineer. CollinwoOd, crushed
under engine; J. A. Bradley, Akron,
died at hospital; Henry Trinz, New
York, barber on buffet car; H. G. Neck
ling, manager of the Wheeling Corfu
eating company. New York Seven
unidentified dead. one Of whom is sup
posed to be Arthur L. Johnson, of
Convey & Johnson, Cleveland
Wreck Occurs at Mentor, o.
The disaster occurred while the
| Twentieth Century Limited was tray
cling at the rate of seventy-five miles
an hour. The train ran through an
open switch at the little town of Men,
tor, east of Cleveland. at 900 o'clock
at night, causing one of the most hOr-
rible wrecks in the history of the Lake
Shore road. The engine was hurled
into the ditch. A part of the train
was crushed on top Of it and the
wreck was partly burned.
The train was crowded. It was be-
hind time and the greatest of speed
was being made to make up lost time
Practically all the injured were burned
and had to be eXtricated from the blaZ-
ing wreckage by rescue parties. The
wrecked combination car. which had
landed crushed and splintered on top
of the engine, was at once enveloped
in binding flames and scalding steam.
The cries of imprisoned passengers
were heard above the roar. but many
were beyond all human aid
Passengers Burned Alive.
There was small water supply and
the means at hand for fighting the
flames were pitifully' inadequate. but
the zeal of the rescuers wrought great
things for the first few minutes 1t
was known that a number Of injured
were helpless in the wreck, but though
the work was dome with frantic haste
flames gradually drove the rescuers
back, and after ten minutes of awful
battle, the rescuers were driven away
from the blazing combination coach
and the imprisoned passengere were
incinerated.
Despite all their help the fire burned
until after midnight. and the last
corpse was not recovered from the
funeral pyre until 1 o'clock
1t was the belief of the men who
were at the scene that those whose
bodies were burned in the wreck were
unconscious ftar tho crash