The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1907-10-01
KILLED IN TRAIN COLLISION
Failure to Set Switch Causes
Wreck at Bellaire, Ohio.
Musical Director Alfred Bobby, OF
Richard Carries Comic Opera Com
pany, Has His Arm Amputated.

Wheeling, w. Va-Fifteen men
were killed and a score injured, sew
eral fatally, at Bellaire, Ohio, when
the Chicago and Wheeling express
train on the Baltimore and Ohio Rail-
road crashed into a freight train
which was moving slowly on siding.
The dead are:
Bereran, Carl, No. 1885 Twenty
seventh street, Milwaukee.
Dolby, Alfred, No 419 West 121st
street, New York.
Dunlap, T. A., passenger fireman.
English. Harry, Connersville, Ohio.
Galbraith, l.. NJ, freight engine
driver, Newark, Ohio.
Hawk, John No, COS Fourth street
Getty not known.
Heinze, Ed, Fourteenth street,
Wheeling.
Johnson, w. j., freight engine
driver, Newark, Ohio.
Lafferty, Curtis, Cambridge, Ohio.
Motz, F. E., freight conductor,
Newark, Ohio.
Peterson, H., No. 704 Willow ave-
nue., Hoboken, N. J.
Shaw, William, No. 2311 Market
street, Wheeling.
Three unidentified men.
The wreck was due, it is said, to
the failure of an operator to throw
switch. The westbound freight had
received orders to meet the passen-
ger at the western limits of the Bel
laire yard and was moving slowly
along the siding. AT the point where
the wreck occurred there is a very
sharp curve, which prevents the en-
CINE drivers of eastbound trains from
seeing more than a few feet ahead.
The passenger train swung ar0und
the curve very rapidly, being three
hours late, and should have gone on
in safety on the main line. The
switch to the siding, however, had
not been turned and the train shot
into the freight.
There was scarcely time to apply
the brakes and no time for the engine
drivers to jump. The two big en-
gines were reduced to junk by the i'm
pact, but the worst damage was done
to the smoker, which was telescoped
SO completely by the baggage car that
every seat was thrown out of the
coach. Every occupant of the smoker
was badly injured. The passengers
in the other day coach and the two
Pullmans were tumbled from their
seats, but not seriously injured. l..
w. Galbraith, freight engine driver,
was scalded to death by the escaping
steam.
General Manager Fitzgerald, who
was in the neighborhood on an in
spectiol tour, and General Superin-
tendent Loree, of Wheeling, person
ally superintended the rescue work.
Great difficulty was experienced in
removing the injured passengers in
the wrecked smoker. Work was
slow because every movement of the
debris caused some one to shrek with
pain, as the victims were entangled
in mass of timbers and twisted
irons.
Among the passengers on the
wrecked train were the members of
Richard Carries Spring Chicken"
comic opera, which was to have
played at Wheeling in the afternoon
and evening. All the members of the
company escaped serious injury ex-
cept Alfred Bobby, the musical di-
rector. 1t was found necessary to
amputate his right arm, thus ending
his career in his profession. He was
riding in the smoker and was found
with a heavy timber tightly binding
him by the arms.
At the office of Superintendent
Loree 1t was said that they were not
yet certain which operator was to
blame for the accident, but a thor
ough investigation was under way.