Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1907-07-26
Somebody's Blunder or Disobedience
Causes Passenger Carrying 500 to
Collide with Freight.

The list of known dead is as follows:
DOT. WILL.
PATTERSON, JOHN.
MACALNOI. CHARLES.
HEBERT, AL.
EDDY, MRS. ABRAHAM.
NAFF, HERMAN.
CORNELL, y J.
ROGERS, JOHN.
GRAMS, WILLIE, a boy.
R re III ( = Mrs i-G. AUGUST.
GALLAGHER, NED.
FINLEY. CONDUCTOR E. Z.
LATHAM L IIIL FREDERICK.
HESS, CHARLES. and his two sons.
MCAULEY, CHARLES, SIR.
TKAUTWINE, ALBERT.
WIZARD, JAMES
REYNOLDS, HARRY.
SMITH. HOMER.
FITZGERALD. FRED.
STEIGER, WILLIAM, Kansas City, who
VAUGHAN, FRED, South Bend, Ind.
Six Coaches Smashed Up.
The wrecked train consisted of eleven
coac hes carrying employees of the COM
panys shops at lonia on their annual
excursion to Detroit. All of the en-
Dloyes were accompanied by their fami-
lies. The train left Ionia at + o'clock this
morning damned with gay picknlckers.
The wreck occurred on perfectly
straight level piece of track. The heavy
freight and passenger trains came to-
gether with enormous force, and SIX OF
the eleven passenger cars were entirely
wrecked. The smash occurred at what
is known as Washburn Crossing, two
miles east of this village.
Places Blame for Disaster.
General superintendent Trump of the
Pere Marquette railway says that the
responsibility for the wreck rests with
some employe who failed to obey orders.
He says that the blame rests with the
crew of the freight which was a west
bound local. they had orders, Mr..
Trump says. to wait at Plymouth for
the excursion train, which had the right
! of-way. Instead they proceeded on to-
wards Salem and the collision resulted.
Few Children Injured.
Three of the coaches were telescoped
by the terrific impact and the fourth
and fifth coaches were smashed into
matchwoOd. Although there were prob
| ably $50 children among the excursion
| lists it is a strange fact that few of
them were severely hurt. Nearly all Of
| the dead and the injured are men. Pas
| sengers OH the wrecked train say that
! the passenger train was running about
forty miles an hour when the trains
met. Many of the freight cars were also
! piled up in the heap OF wreckage, which
/
! hours to clear the track.
Dctors Rushed to Scene
When the uninjured persons recovered
| from the shock and craWled from the
wreckage. they at once began eXtricatlng
the dead and injured. Messengers were
! rushed to this village and to plymouth
| and all the doctors from this place and
! neighboring villages were hurried to the
| scene. Farmers who heard the crash
! came to the rescue also. \ special train
| was made up i'll the yards at Detroit and
/ sent to the wreck, Il distance of forty
! miles, with doctors. nurses, surgical in
struments and cots BY the time this
! train arrived there We're several scores
! of people waiting TO receive medical at
! tention and over a score of bodies had
| been eXtricated and were lying on the
! grass beside the tracks.
Horror of the Accident.
The banks alongside the track at the
| crossing where the collision occurred are
| ten feet high and the space between
! them for several hundred feet is literally
! filled with wreckage. The railroad
! wreckers made all the speed possible in
! clearing it, but even with the assistance
! of steam crane at each end it will be
! twelve hours before it can be definitely
! stated whether all the bodies are out.
! The passenger engine was completely
wrecked and its crew killed but in some
| manner the engineer and fireman OF the
| freight engine escaped with their lives.
/ A majority of the killed were men, who
were seated in the smoking car. which
! was at the head of the train. This car
! received the first impact of the collision
| and the heavy tender and engine were
forced through it, crushing everything
! before them. 1t will be many hours be-
! fore some of the dead who were in the
smoking car are identified as they are
! literally cut to pieces. Fire did not
| break ont in the ruins and add ~ hor-
rors to the tragedy.
Farmer Sees Collision
The trains met in cut which is in
/ the arch of four mile long curve in the
i track. and the banks run up for ten feet
above the rails at the point of collision.
! L. 4. Smith. farmer living near the
! crossing, was at work in his field and
saw the two trains bearing down upon
each other. Both of them dashed into
the cut and out of his range of vision.
| Just the tops of the smoke stacks We're
! visible as they rushed along under the
/ ten foot banks to destruction. He saw
the stacks come together and then the
/ two engines reared up above the banks
! and fell back as the roar of the collision
came to his ears. Almost before he
realized what had happened, the air was
| pierced with screams of the wounded and
dying people. staggering out from the
wrecked cars.
Terrible Scenes at Wreck
Mr. Smith with dozens of other far
mers in the neighborhood rushed to their
| assistance. Many of the farmers
brought bedding and bandages for the
injured and as the hours wore on sent to
their homes for food for the suffering
! people. The scene about the wreck as
| the wreckers delved among the shat
tered cars were pitiful. Ien, women
4 hi
! dered about searching for missing
friends and relatives.
In addition TO the 75 to 100 people