Chicago, Illinois
Train Wreck
May
2, 1853
From the Democratic Press.
TERRIBLE ACCIDENT.
Collision at the Crossing of the Michigan
Central and Southern Michigan Railroad!
Sixteen Killed and a Large Number Injured !!
Monday evening, as the people of Chicago were
retiring to rest, a scene of appalling horror,
of excruciating suffering was occurring at the
crossing of the two Michigan roads, some eight
or ten miles from the city. The emigrant train
on the Central was coming in and the Express
train on the Southern going out when the two
came in collission [sic] under full headway, the
Express train passing through the other,
literally tearing it into fragments, and
strewing the killed and wounded together with
the wreck of the cars in heaps of indiscriminate
ruin. Three emigrant cars, and the locomotive,
tender, baggage car and one second-class
passenger car of the Express train received the
brunt of the shock, and their inmates were
nearly all either killed or wounded. One of the
first-class passenger cars of the Express train
was also thrown from the track, but fortunately,
none of those within it were very seriously
injured.
To give our readers some idea of the manner
in which the collision occurred, it is necessary
to state, that for some eight or ten miles from
the city, the Southern Michigan road lies west
of the track of the Central. At the distance
named, they cross each other at an acute angle –
the track of the Michigan Central lying east, or
rather south of the Southern for some miles,
when they again cross. It was at the first
crossing the accident occurred.
Immediately after the collision occurred the
locomotive of the emigration train was detached
and brought news of it to the city. In as brief
space as possible, DRS.
PALMER and CLARK were sent for and
conveyed to the scene of the disaster. These
gentlemen administered to the suffering with
their accustomed energy and skill. Towards
morning the survivors were brought back to the
city. Of the horrors of the night which they had
passed none but themselves know; but to them it
will be an ever present reality.
The place at which the collision occurred is
flat and swampy, and was covered to the depth of
several inches. Some of the passengers were
undoubtedly drowned. The locomotive and cars
that went over were partly submerged in the
water and mud, and some of the dead will hardly
be recovered until these shall have been
removed.
THE DEAD. -- The following embraces a
list of the dead:
THOMAS LAWHER,
Irish boy;
GOODLI WAGONER, German;
JOANNAH SILDOLPH,
German woman;
HEMAN SILDOLPH, her son;
JOHN HUNTER EARL, American boy; an
Irishman, unknown, supposed to have a wife in
this city; German child, name unknown;
SUSAN SCOTT,
of Little Falls, N. Y.;
STEPHEN D. GRAY, of Wheelock, Vt.,
aged 37 years; EDWARD
MISENER, about 16 to 18 years of age;
Man, unknown, with $71.45 in his pockets; Boy,
name unknown; Woman, unknown, with $32.81 in her
pocket; German man, unknown;
W. W. HAINES,
a German child about two years old. In all,
sixteen.
MRS. SCOTT
was accompanied by her husband. They had been on
a visit to Elgin, where two children and a
son-in-law reside. Her age was about
fifty-three. Her husband was sitting beside her
at the time of the accident. His feet were
caught in the timbers, and he narrowly escaped
being drowned. MRS. SCOTT may have been
seriously injured internally, but the
presumption is that she was drowned.
JOHN WILLIAMS
lived about two miles from Lake Station. He was
alive when brought to this city, but died about
1 o'clock P. M.
We have no definite information as to the
number of the wounded. We counted eight in the
depot at one time, most of whom were seriously
injured. From all we can learn, there must be at
least fifteen or twenty, several of whom can
scarcely recover.
The Quincy Daily Whig Illinois 1853-05-06
Submitted & transcribed by Stu
Beitler Thank you,
Stu!
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