New-York tribune., 1910-09-22
Local Car in Head-0n Collision
with Extra Near Fort
Wayne.
ORDER WAS misunderstood
Said To Be Most Disastrous
Accident in History of Electric
Railroad Operation-En-
tire Town Mourns.
- 60 = e Trisune !

ERtA W dNur. I01--
persons were killed and seven were serf-
ously injured in head-On collision be-
tween two interurban cars on the Tort
Wayne & Button Division OF the Fort
Wayne & Wabash Valley line to-day
The scene OF the wreck. said TO be the
most disastrous in the history Of cleo
trio railroad operation. was eighteen
miles south Of Fort Wayne. seven miles
from BIuffton and half mile from
ktngsland- The accident occurred on n
sharp curve just north Of Kingsland.
which prevented the crews of both cars
from having warning Of danger until an
instant before the crash
The cars which rushed together were
an empty southbound limited which had
been dispatched 70 KingsIand 10 bring
in the crowds 10 the Allen County Fair.
in progress ar Fort Wayne. and crowd
ed nOrthbOund local. bringing holiday
crowd 70 the city Most Of the victims
were residents Of BIufftOn. and the en-
tire town is in mourning
THE DEAD
ARCHBOLD. Blanche JOHNSON. J.. NarsIe.
Ossian KING, Frank. and wife,
Button NELSON. X RIuFton
Burton REED. John battery z.
BROWN Lloyd Bluf- 5th Artillery New
BROWN son Of Lloyd RoBINsOx. : H.
BURG4N W D. SAWYER. J.. Brunton.
Bluffton- SAYLER- Miss Pearl
CRoTsE. = Biuffton- SMITH. John. and WIFE
DAUGHERTT Mary Montpelier
DEB4CH. Daniel. Pc Cruz l. '-'-
r6F 5TqIsuT IND sW4gTz ! gHioHaa.: s4.,.:
FOLK. Mrs Hiram T4MM. = B. Warren.
GORDON. T. Blunton THOMAS :. Warren
HARLEY. Mrs. Myrtle, THOMPSON Dr : z.
daughter OF Mrs FOX ann Arbor. Mich
HOFFMAN. ]. Marion .TRIBOLET. John W.
HYDE A E. Penn Burton
vine- TRTBoLET Miss Bertha
JUSTUs. L G. Blur Two unidentiaed men
ton. general manager Unidentified woman
BIuffSon. Geneva & wALSER R. BIufrton
Celina Traction Line ZI1f8fER. o. Button.
The collision is said TO have been
caused by misunderstanding Of an order
in regard TO the southbound extra cars
taking a switch near KingsIand. so that
the northbound car could pass H.
The southb0und car. dispatched as a
limited. was running at high rate Of
speed. The northbound local also was
running fast, and several minutes be-
hind it was scheduled the Indianapolis
Fort Wayne limited The curve on
which the accident occurred prevented
the uotOrnen OF the two cars from see
ing what lay before them. When the
crash came. so terrific was the tmpacr
that the heavy limited car tore its way
half through the local car. crushing il
as though il were an eggsheH-
From a car filed with nerrymakers
the local train was transformed into a
charnel house A dozen passengers
were thrown. dead and dying on both
sides of the tracks. but the greater num-
Der were crushed beneath the wreck
Bruised and bleeding men who had bare
Iy escaped death crawled from the
debris. and with no thought OF their own
injuries began the work OF rescue.
Conductor Prevents Second Wreck.
Amid the confusion and the horror E
A. SpiIlman. conductor Of the local train.
preserved a cool head Almost at the
moment when he crawled. bruised and
bleeding. from the wreck. he thought or
the Indianapolis limited, which was fol-
lowing. He seized flag and dashed
down the track and around the curve
A quarter Of a mile further he stopped.
planted the flag and toppIed over in a
faint. The act saved a second and prob
ably worse wreck
There were two physicians on the
train at the time. one succumbed TO
the terrible injuries he received a short
time after the wreck The other set
heroicaIIy 10 work. But there was no
means of carrying on the work. and
many were pinioned under the wreckage
and could not be extricated before death
came TO their relief. The other physician
rendered what first aid he could without
appliances and equipment for emergency
use. Appeals for medical aid were sent
to Fort Wayne and 20 Button The
traction company prepared a special re-
hef car with all diligence and hurried it
10 the scene. and Blufton physicians
made haste in automobiles.
Story OF the Crash.
John R Boyd. OF Marion. Ind. vas
probably the only passenger aboard the
I'll fated local car who escaped without
bruises from the wreck
L decided 20 avoid the crush" said he.
in the crowded car and got down on
the steps After We had passed kings
land and were rounding a curve. I saw
the limited bearing down on US about
two hundred yards away at terrific
speed We were going about fifteen
miles an hour our car suddenly gave
A Iunge forward Our speed increased
to fully twenty-five miles an hour al
most. in a moment The limited. bearing
down on US at forty miles an hour. was
now not a hundred feet away I saw
what was coming and jumped
There was a spIintering crash and a
dull grinding The big local car seemed
TO climb on the heavier loaded ear. and
from it's pilot to within six feet OF the
rear swept over the coach, taking II
almost clean That anything alive could
have survived that terrible sweep of
splintered and twisted steel is a miracle
Following the crash there was a
period OF appalling stiffness and then
rose the shrieks and Eroans OF the
wounded We who sur. wed and had
cot out OF the wreckage set about 10 do