Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1907-01-05
FIFTY DEAD
IN B. & @. WRECK
Frederick Special Crashes Into Train
Of Empty Passenger Cars.
OVER SIXTY PERSONS INJURED

Washington. Jan. 1.-The Baltimore
& Ohio wreck at Terra Gotta grows in
magnitude as the hours pass. The
most conservative estimate OF the dead
is 50. with three scores OF injured in
the hospitals or at their homes suffer
ing from wounds and fractures sus-
tanned in the rear-end collision which
completely demolished the two day
coaches and the smoker attached 10
the local Frederick, Md. express. No.
sc. Several of the most seriously in
jured are expected to die and the death
list may yet reach co or more.
List Of the Dead.
Fannie Austin. negro, Washington;
Lewis w. Baldwin, East Orange. N. J.;
Ollin L. Bailey. Newark, o.; Mrs. L. A
Barnes. Terra Gotta, d. c.. DR.. f. Oil
yer Belt and two sons. Edward. aged Z.
and St Clair. aged 9, Washington:
Mary A. BOhrer; J. A. and S. L. Bond,
address unknown; Commodore p.
Miss Corinne NJ Bohrer. Washington;
| Brown, Washington; Mrs. Sallie V.
Butts. Washington; Mrs. Mary A. Ca
her; Miss Nellie Cole. York. Pa; Mrs
Frank r. Chase and infant, South
BroOkland. d. c.; Lulu V. Cobb; Nettie
L. Compiler Washington; Mrs. May
Cook and infant, Washington; Carrie
COrnwell. Washington; Miss Rosalie
Cross. Washington; Annie Cunlo.
years Washington; oliver L. Daily:
Edward L. Garrett. Washington; DR..
+. G.. Harris, Washington; Henry Hig-
bic and 7-year-old son. George, Brook
/ land ID. c.. Prof T. j. King. Kensing-
ton. Md. organist Wesleyan church.
Washington. Frederick Leigh. Wash
/ ington Junction. Md: Mary Lippold,
BrOokland. ID. c.; A. Lee Lowe. Wash
| ington; Theodore Merit, New York:
| J. A. McCaghey. Baltimore; Minnie b.
Merkling; Thomas Metz, Germantown,
Md. Lucy b. Millican. DeanwoOd. ID.
| c.; Mrs. ID. G.. Pearman; Miss Reeves,
| Takoma, d. c.; Miss Anna w. Reading,
| Washington; Elizabeth Reid; Norman
Rogers. Marion. Ind; Rupert,
Washington: Mabel and Raymond
Sturgeon. Washington; John Wright,
Baltimore, and four unidentified
| Heartrending and pitful were the
/ scenes at the city morgue. where hun
dreds of persons have hocked 70 as
sist the police in the Identification c
the dead. Women. girls and even men
with iron nerves shrieked. sobbed and
/ tainted as their relatives or friends
were found among the 80 corpses
strewn about the floor. Collins. wicker
| baskets and winding sheets were found
on all sides. Il was a day never to be
| forgotten
officials OF the Baltimore & Ohio
| railroad are conducting an investiga-
/ ton of the wreck in Baltimore for the
purpose OF placing the responsibility
| for the terrible disaster.
General superintendent Todd exon
Grated Milton w Phillips. the operator
at the Takoma block station. the last
signal station that the equipment train
passed before crashing into the pas
senser train at Terra Gotta The SUI
/ perintendent declares that Phillips
was obeying instructions when he
went home at $50 o'clock. leaving the
double green" signal burning While
making no positive charge. Superin-
| tendent Todd minated that the bur
den Of the blame would fall upon the
engineer and crew OF the extra. The
five members OF the crew. who were
arrested shortly after the accident are
now being held To await the result OF
the official investigation. They are:
Harry II. Hildebrand. engineer; ira c.
McClelland. fireman; Frank r. HOm-
meyer. conductor; Ralph Rutter.
brakeman. and William a Norris bag
gagemaster.
The impetus Of the heavy freight
cars behind the engine was so great
D ina. AZ
which had been struck Except two
sides of the coach. which were ripped
of, there is not timber used In the
construction OF the coach now more
than two feet in length. Il was twist
ed, splintered and ground into bits SO
small that they could have been put
into an ordinary market basket. The
wreckage OF the car was so ground up
that IL makes a pile OF twisted iron
and wood scarcely as high as a roll
top desk and not more than seven or
eight feet long
This coach was filled with men wo-
men and children. there being hardly
vacant seat. AS the sides were ripped
of the passengers by the force Of the
shock were thrown out In all direc.
tons. 1t was here that the greatest
number Of killed were found. OF the
so or more passengers In the car. only
one woman escaped. She was thrown
some so or more feet from the track.
After blowing through the rear car
the freight telescoped the next two
passenger coaches. and swept the en-
tire passenger train along with Il.