Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-04
DEATH OF ) IN AUTO
!. |SBLAMED ON RACE
|. FOR RAIL CROSSING
B. & 0. Held Jointly Response
Bile for Lack of Safeguard
at KenSington.
TRAGEDY CLAIMS LIVES
OF FOUR IN ONE FAMILY
Walter M. Twombly, Wife, Son
and Daughter Killed With
Mrs. Grafton Holland.

An attempt to beat fast train at
grade crossing, and laxity of the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in not
providing adequate protection were
Jointly blamed today for the fatal ac.
cloent at kensington, Nd, shortly
atter midnight which virtually wiped
out the family of Walter NJ. Twombly.
special agent for the Federal Trade
Commission, and took the life of Mrs.
Grafton Holland. wife of a retired
farmer and a friend of the Twombly
family.
All five occupants of a light auto
mobile, returning from a card party
at Silver Spring, Md, were killed
when the vehicle was struck by the
st. Louis express of the B. & o..
laundering through Kensington at
speed estimated to be in excess of so
miles an hour.
Bell and Light at Night.
Although the crossing, in the heart
or kensington, is protected by
watchman for 12 hours a day. there
Is no protection after 61O pm. ex.
eept crossing bell and a warning
light, mounted feet high on a pole
The dead are:
Walter M. Twombly, 81 years old.
Mrs. Mary Twombly, his wife
Paul Twombly a son, 81 years old,
employed in the registrars office at
Georgetown University.
Elizabeth Twombly, a daughter, Is
years old, student at Holy Cross
Academy.
Mrs. Grafton Holland.
An inquest into the accident today
j n
/ ert M. Peter, jr., to be unnecessary.
| Meanwhile the bodies of the five vic
| tins are at Humphreys undertaking
establishment, at Rockville, where
they were removed soon after the
! tragedy.
| All the dead resided in the little
/ Maryland town located about five
miles north of the District line and
were prominent residents. The Twom-
blys were particularly prominent in
affairs of the Catholic Church Of the
| Holy Redeemer.
Returning From Card Party.
l More than two-score residents of
| the little town had attended the
card party at Silver Spring given by
! the knights of Columbus, and the
| Twomblys had asked Mrs. Holland to
I Clue nome WITH Inem.
| The Twombly home is north Of the
| railroad tracks and Mrs. Hollands
! home, where she lived with her hus-
band, retired farmer, and her three
/ daughters. is south of the railroad
| tracks. 1t was necessary to cross the
| tracks to take Mrs. Holland home.
There We're no eyewitnesses to the
| tragedy, although a party from Wash
| ington turned into Connecticut avenue,
block from the crossing, as the crash
occurred. few minutes after the
| train struck the light car, scattering
| the bodies 200 yards west of the cross
| ing, firemen from the Kensington
volunteer department were on the
| scene. They Immediately called DR..
| Eugene Jones, who examined the
bodies and pronounced life extinct.
| Miss Elizabeth Twombly, according
| to Chief Eugene Raney of the fire
department, was still breathing when
| picked up, but expired within less than
| a minute. DIR. Jones said the others
had probably been instantly killed.
| The body of Mr.. Twombly was found
! only a few yards from the crossing,
| clear of the wreckage of the automo-
i bile which lay in the middle of the
| tracks, it's headlights still burning
| brightly. The other bodies were far
| ther down the tracks.
Engineer Is Unnerved.
Members of the train crew stopped
the express and helped pick up the
bodies. Engineman Miller of Cumber.
| unnerved by the accident that he was
| relieved at Gaithersburg. few miles
farther on.
Paul Twombly was driving the car,
so far as could be learned, with his
sister beside him, while the three
elderly people rode in the back seat,
holding the card table which they.
had taken to Silver Spring.
Residents of the little town said that
Paul should have ben warned by the
sounding of the bell that a train was
due, but that probably he thought the
train was a local, due a few minutes
after IL o'clock, which stops at the
station.
The view east down the tracks
where the fast express thundered
through the night was cut off by a
grocery store erected recently, and
unheeding or not hearing the warming
bell Paul drove on to the track direct.
ly in the path of the speeding express.
according to accounts of the accident
reconstructed by residents.
At the same time they placed part
of the blame on the Baltimore & Ohio
for not keeping crossing watchman
on duty all the time, and not provid.
ing more adequate protection than the
bell and signal light. From am. to
6 pm. the crossing is protected by a
watchman in addition to the bell and
light The watchman operates a gate
on the north side Of the track. There
is no gate on the south side. Inrne.
diately south OF the crossing the road
turns sharply west to run into Con.
necticut avenue, a straight route to
Washington.
Crossing Before Legislature.
The Home and School Association
of Kensingt0n recently accepted an
offer made by the railroad company
to install warning flashing lights at
the crossing. The Kensington crossing
is one of those doomed to early ex.
tinction in a bill now pending before
the Maryland Legislature to raise
money by an increased gasoline tax
for embarrassing adjustment.
Neill Twombly. son, who is study.
ing for the priesthood in Philadelphia,
was expected to arrive In Kensington
today. lie and Kathryn. q. daughter,
who is nun In Peoria. Ill. are the
only surviving members OF the family.
The little Twombly home at 50 6t.
!. CONTINUED on Page 2. Column 81