The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1917-03-03
FREIGHT HITS
PENNSY EXPRESS
Twenty Killed in Collision al
Mt. Union, Pal
WHOLE FAMILY WIPED OUT

Chester A. Minds, His Wife, Baby and
Five Members of Mrs. MiAds' Faml.
Iy Meet Death-Freisht Engineer 10
Blamed.
Twenty persons were killed, among
them Chester A. Minds, former Penn
foot ball star, his wife and baby and
five members of Mrs. Minds family, in
a P. R. R. wreck at Mt. Union, Pa.
Nine members of the Minds party, all
related, persisted.
Mercantile express No. 6, an all
steel train from Pittsburgh for Phila-
delphia and New York, on which those
killed were travelling, was struck by
a fast freight, moving In the same di.
rection, at the station of Mt. Union.
This town is on the Pennsy's middle
division, forty-three miles east OF AL
toona and twelve miles east of Hun
tingdon. .
All the dead, with the exception Of
a negro porter, were passengers. And
all were in one car, the Bellwood, a
sleeper, the last car on the train.
Every person in the Bellwood was kill
ed. There were no persons seriously
injured. The Minds were on their way
to the funeral of Mrs. Chester A.
Minds father, at Untica, N. Y.
F, The wreck occurred in a fog. Penn
sy officers believe the %engineman of
the freight ran past a signal set
against hint and a fagman says the
engine driver ignored the waving of
red lanterns. But the engineman in.
sists the signal showed a clear track.
The freight was loaded with food to
relieve the scarcity in eastern cities.
The dead are: Chester A. Minds, Of
Ramey, Clearfeld county. wealthy coal
operator; Mrs. Chester A. Minds, his
wife; Chester A. Minds, Jr., their
three-weeks-old baby; Richard Owen,
seven-year-old nephew of Mr.. Minds;
Dorothy Owen, six-year-old niece of
Mr.. Minds; Jean Owen, four-year-old
niece Of Mr.. Minds; Miss Maude
Minds, sister of Mr.. Minds; M. A. Ca.
fiisch, Confer. N. Y, brother of Mrs.
Minds; Miss A. F. Delling, Cleveland,
O., nurse in the Minds family; P. R.
flaming, P%latteville. Wis; a young
woman, believed to have been his
bride; an unidentified woman, who
may have been Mrs. Frances Daring,
a relative of Mr.. Minds: H. A. Roe.
fer, of Plattville. N. Y; Milton Hy.
mes, New York; Charles Levine, New
York; P. B. Poland. New York; G. NJ.
Medskei, New York; J. F. Kelly.
Brooklyn; F. w. Montgomery, Boom.
ington, ILL.,; N. Bright, negro porter OF
car Bellwood.
The express was twelve minutes late
when it reached Altoona. and a like
time behind its schedule when 1t ar.
rived at Mt. Union, one of its regular
stops. The express was delayed at
the Mt. Union station. It had been
standing there fifteen minutes because
the engineman had discovered the air
brake throttle didn't release the
brakes properly. The engineman and
the fireman were adjusting this when
the crash came.
laundering into Mt. Union, the pow.
erful freight locomotive, with its thir.
ty-five cars, struck the ear Of the
motionless express with a terrific
crash and grinding of metal, accom-.
panied by a volcanic kissing of escap.
ing steam from broken pipes.
The sleeper Bellwood was hurled
forward on the next car, the Bruce
vile, which r%ebounded and t~elescoped
the Bellwood, and split 1t in half. This
car and the Bruceville were the only
ones of the express to leave the
tracks. The freight locomotive and
six freight cars were derailed.