Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1907-09-19
TWENTY-FIVE LIVES SACRIFICED
IN RAILWAY CALAMITY.
BAD READING OF AN ORDER
Trains Crash While Going at High
Rate Of Speed-lnjuries Are Many
And More May De-Vain Quest
for Doctors-Engne Crew Jumps
No Warning to Passengers.

Mite RIVER, Junction, VI. sept. 10.
Twenty-Five lives were sacrificed to
a telegraph operators blunder and
thirty other persons were badly in
jured in a train wreck which occur
red just before daylight this morning
four mics west of Canaan Station IL
New Hampshire on the Concord di-
vision of the Boston and Maine rail-
road.
An operator at Canaan station by
misconstruing orders sent a freight
train directly in the path of a crowd
ed excursion train. The two trains
met in a head-on collision at high
speed The resulting crash made Il
pile of splinters out of a light day
coach which was crowded with wo-
men and children who were returning
from a fair at Sherbrooke, Province
of Quebec, 100 miles over the Cana
dian border.
Engine Crews Jump.
The excursion train was rounding a
curve four miles west of Canaan Sta
ton when the engineer saw the head
light of a freight train. The passenger
train was running down grade and
attained a speed of nearly fifty miles
an hour. There was no chance or
averting a collision, as the curve at
that point is sharp and the trains
were within a few feet Of each other
when the engineers saw the danger.
Brakes were thrown on and the engine
crews jumped to safety.
The excursIonists did not have a
seconds warning. The jar caused b.
the setting Of the brakes was followed
Immediately by grinding crash and
the coaches doubled up as if they had
been made Of cardboard. The baggage
car, directly behind the engine, tele-
ScOped the coach and reduced it to
kindling wood. Men, women and child
rem were caught in the wreckage
Their cries added to the horror of the
scene. Those not killed outright beg
ged those who were attempting to lift
the timbers off their mangled bodies
to put them out of the suffering. 1t wa
hours before some of the injured were
taken from under the wreck. They
were taken on hospital train at noon
and until that time were practically
without medical attention, as physic-
ians are few and far between in that
portion of the state.
Take Bodies From Wreck.
At noon twenty-four bodies had
been taken from the wreck. Fifteen
OF these were Identified Several per-
sons are still missing. Of the thirty
injured, several were so badly hurt
that it is not thought possible they
will recover.
The identified dead:
Briggs, Mrs. E. T., West Canaan,
N. H.
Blake, Mrs. F. c., South Corinth, VI.
Barrett, Mrs. John, Manchester,
N. H.
Barrett, Miss, daughter of Mrs.
John Barrett.
Congrot, J. L., Somerville, Mass.
Duncan, J. G., Bethel, Vt.
Gagnon, Mr.. Philip. Sherbrooke,
Quebec.
Giron, Miss AIvina, Nashau, N. H.
Clifford, --, infant child of Erwin
Clifford, Concord, N. H.
Largy, Mrs. Margaret, Manchester,
N. H.
Phelps, Fred NJ. OchiItree, Texas.
Shaughnessey, Timothy, Castle Bar,
Quebec.
Shaughnessey, Mrs. Timothy.
st. Pierre, Miss Annie, Isle Verte,
Quebec
Unidentified boy, dead in hospital at
Vt.
Warren, Mrs. E. Haverhfll, Mass.
Webster, Mrs, Massachusetts.
Nine bodies taken from the wreck
have as yet not been identified. The
descriptions of the bodies are as fol-
lows:
Boy years old, body badly crushed
Man, 40 years old, dark complexion,
plain signet ring on middle finger of
right hand and small diamond ring on
IulTQ nnS6r right mana.
Woman, 80 years old, wedding ring
and three others with stones on third
finger left hand
Man, So years old, stout, sandy mus
tache, dark worsted check suit and tan
shoes.
Man, So years old, medium build,
signet ring on third finger
right hand, dark suit plain worsted
Boy Is years old, dressed in light
gray suit.
Woman, 80 years old.
Man, so years old, dressed in dark
blue serge suit.
Man, 30 years old.
Injured in the Crash.
The seriously injured are:
Batchelder, G. A, West Somerville,
Mass; legs broken.
Gagnon, Philip, Sherbrooke, Que;
hurt internally.
Myers, Mrs, hurt internally.
st. Pierre, Charles, Isle Verte, Que;
both legs crushed.
Ryan, S. H., rear. brakeman; arm
shattered
Shurtleff, Elijah, West Lebanon.
n. H, engineer of freight train; in
jured internally by jumping.
Aid to the Injured