The Penn's Grove record., 1911-07-14
EXPRESS WRECK
COST II LIVES
Worst Disaster in Recent His,
tory of New Haven Road.
DEAD ENGINEER is BLAME
Scores of Passengers Were Injured
Among Them Being Several Mem
bers of the ST. Louis National
League Baseball Team.

Bridgeport, Conn. - Twelve persons
were killed and fifty injured in
one of the most disastrous wrecks
on the New Haven railroad when
the heavy night train, known as
the ,Fedral Express running between
Washington and Boston, left the rails
at the Fairfield street embankment
while running at fifty miles IN hour
or more, and crashed down twenty-five
feet into a stone abutment. OF the
train, which consisted of six Pull
mans, a day coach and one baggage
coach, only three cars were left on
the track. Some of the Pullmans were
smashed to pieces and caught fire,
and the bodies of some of the dead
were burned almost beyond recogni-
ton.
Among the passengers were twenty
two members of the st. Louis Nation
al League baseball team on the way
from Philadelphia to Boston. They
were in two Pullmans at the real of
the train which remained or the
track. None of the players was in
jured.
At least $50 persons were on the
train at the time. Some of them
were from Washington, some from
Philadelphia, and some from New
York.
When the werck occurred six of the
49, eI1or;.r COWS nacipo ? tho
train rolled off a viaduct thirty feet
in height at Fairfield avenue. One of
the ears fell squarely on top of an
other and crushed it as hough it had
been an egg shell.
All of the $50 passengers had been
injured to some extent. Most of those
on board were prominent in one way
or another.
The injured, many OF theri beyond
all medical aid, were removed to st.
Vincent's hospital, Bridgeport, and
the Wright hospital. Persons near
the scene of the catastrophe threw
open their homes to TIE less severely
hurt.
Tn train was an hour late and vas
running fast to make up for lost time
when it approached the viaduct at
Fairfield venue. The time of the
wreck was placed at $50 o'clock a.
m. Thre S a tower at the Viaduct
from which signals are given to pass
ing trains. What happened when the
Federal Express came along will prob
ably not be known until after an Off
cial investigation. Either the tower.
man threw a crossing switch which
swung the train from one track to an
other, or the train ran into an open
switch and was hurled from the rails.
There was first a rumble and then
a great roar and crash and the heavy
tarin plunged down the embankment
400 feet beyond the trestle. The loco
motive, one of the biggest on the
road, smashed into a great stone
abutemnt, shattering huge pieces of
rock from it and throwing it many
yards away. First the baggage coach,
then the Pullmans followed the loco
motive, and the ears were piled one
| OIL dl1CIItSI Ill q tdASlCo liohH
The work of Identification was
necessarily slow. Most of the pas
sengers in the sleepers were asleep
and wore only thir nightclothes, and
tire wer no marks to til who they
were. Others were burned beyond
recognition.
Til following is a list of the known
dead:
Christie, C. w, Philadelphia.
Curtis, Arthur NJ, New York, engi-
neer of the Federal Express.
Rogrs, Mrs. Gwendolyn, and infant
son, of Washington, D. c.. Mrs. Rog-
ers was travelling with her husband,
Sergt. George E. Rogers, U. S. A., and
two children, second child u%ninjured.
Ryan, Walter A., New York, fireman
of the Federal Express.
Saunders, George, Norwich, Conn.
Wallcott, Helena B., Washington, d.
c.. wife of Charles D. Walcott, secre-
tary of the Smithsonian institution.