Year: 1872




sloE.-The nitro-glycerine magazine of
the Roberts Torpedo Company, some ten
yards from the track of the Allegheny
Valley Railroad, about one-half mile
above Scrubgrass, exploded at halfpast
nine O'Clock Saturday morning. The fore
man, Mr.. r. A. Wright familiarly known
as Doc" Wright, the Torpedo Com
pany's agent for the Scrubgrass district,
accompanied by Mr.. Harry Noble, the


Western Tn on Telegraph operator at
Scrubgrass left that place early in the
morning in a sleigh to visit the magazine
The purpose of their visit was to procure
some of the nitro-g with which to
6Il some cases that Mr.. Wright intended
exploding in wells that day


| The facts of the explosion, or by what
mischance it occurred, can never be known
till the great day when all things shall be
revealed. The last seen of the men they
were in perfect health and spirits, and en-


teriDg the sleigh they drove gayly on


their way to meet a sudden and awful
death. As they had taken a hatchet
with them it may have been possible that
the explosion resulted from careless at
tempt to open one of the cans.


The magazine, as has been stated
above, was situated about one-half up the
river from Scrubgrass, and ten yards from
the railroad track. The place was uufre-
quented, and located with view to the
safety of the neighborhood should an
explosion occur. At the time of the
accident it contained eighty thirty-fve
pound cans of the explosive agent, an
amount sufficient to sweep Oil City out Of
existence should it explode in one of the
! business streets.


The shock was like that of an earth
quake accompanied by sharp peal of
thunder. The OIL City accommodation
train, due at Scrubgrass at 900, pulled
out at $50, and had advanced about one
hundred yards on its way when the terrific
explosion occurred, shaking the solid
ground on all sides The concussiOn SEEM
ed to strike the wheels of the locomotive
and cars, and for q moment to cheek its
headway. The glass in the windows was
shattered to fragments, and the frightened
passengers were impressed with the belief
that the boiler of the locomotive had
| blown up. The conclusion seemed to 90
dIagOnaliy across the river, and evidently
followed the course Of the same for some
distance. The inmates of a house nearly
opposite were badly shaken up. The
house rocked as though in the grasp of
fearful hurricane, the clock vas thrown
from the stand, the crockery from the
shelves, and the inmates rushed out IN
great terror to find the cause OF the
unwonted phenomenon. 1t was distinctly
felt at Parker's Landing, aud by
gentleman on horseback at the Martin
Farm, six miles from that point. An Oh
City gentleman, who was at the Sands
wells at the time, heard the explosion dis
tinotly. He states that it was so loud
that the workmen thought a boiler had
exploded near at hand. 4 little boy
standing near called out that It was
thunder. This point is fully twenty miles
from the scene Of disaster. aud how terrific
the explosion was can readily be imagined.


The ground where the magazine had
stood was torn up as by some convulsion OF
nature. The trees and bushes around |
were scattered and divested Of their limbs. |
and the tops of large old trees were twisted |
off as if they had been mere twigs. The |
site looked as if q whirlwind had
enveloped it and exhausted its power for |
harm.


As soon as the explosion occurred men |
from Scrubgrass aud the neighborhood |
rushed for the magazine. a terrible scene
met their view; but without waiting to |
examine the site, they proceeded to search |
for the bodies Of Wright and Noble. They |
were literally blown to fragments, and |
only occasionally could bit of flesh
bone or clothing be found. Up to one
O'Clock in the afternoon the only remains
found would scarcely fl cigar box. Bits
of clothing were found on trees and bushes
surrounding the cave on the river bank
used for the magazine. So complete was
the work of the destroyer it is supposed
the bodies were blown into atoms which |
fell in the river At the time our
left the spot the search was
being carried on, but with no hopes OF
success,-OH City Derrick.