TERRIBLE TRAIN WRECK AT PREBLE, NEW YORK

Empire State Express, "Sam Sloan."

Another view of Engine No. 6, "Sam Sloan."

The Cortland Democrat, Friday, December 6, 1895.

A TERRIBLE WRECK.

The D. L. & W. Express Thrown From the Track Sunday Night at Preble.

ENGINEER AND FIREMAN KILLED.

A BAGGAGE AND A MAIL CAR, TWO PASSENGER COACHES AND THREE FREIGHT CARS BURNED—THE SLEEPER SAVED.

It was Evidently the Work of Train Wreckers—The Switch Locked Open—The Engine and Tender Wrecked—Wrecking Trains From Syracuse and Cortland on the Ground Early.

   The New York and Philadelphia express train on the D. L. & W. road due at Preble at 11:01 P. M. was completely wrecked at that station Sunday night, the engineer, George Young, was instantly killed, and fireman Webster Roof was so badly injured that he died not long after being taken from the wreck.

   The train, which does not stop at Preble, left Syracuse at 10:10 and is one of the fastest on the road. The grade is heavy from Syracuse to Apulia and trains usually make up the time lost in climbing this grade after leaving the latter station. At Tully the train was four minutes behind time and the engineer pulled the throttle wide open after turning into the straight track this side of that village, expecting to be on time at Cortland. It is estimated that the train was running at the rate of nearly sixty miles an hour when it struck the switch just south of the water tank at Preble. The switch had been fastened open and the train flew like lightning upon the siding, the engine telescoping three out of seven empty freight cars that stood on the siding before it pitched over on its left side and came to a stop some 40 feet from the north end of the passenger station. The freight cars were smashed and thrown to the right of the track and the express and baggage cars telescoped the engine and were in a heap. Fortunately the smoker and coach left the track but remained upright. The sleeper did not leave the track and was pushed back on the track away from the others. The tender slipped over the engine and dumped its load of coal on the fire box adding more fuel to the fire.

   The express and baggage cars caught fire from the firebox of the engine and were soon burning fiercely. The passengers, of whom there were about fifty, were all helped from the coaches, none of them being seriously injured. Every berth in the sleeper was occupied but no one was injured. The fire soon communicated with the smoker and coach and as there were no facilities for putting out the fire, the three freight cars, the express, baggage, smoker and coach were soon reduced to ashes.

   Fireman Webster Roof was found under the timbers of the express car. He cried loudly for help and the rescuers released him. He was conscious although a cut in his head had broken the skull. He was carried into the waiting room at the station and his wounds were dressed by Drs. Hunt and McDonald, the local physicians. As soon as possible after the wreck, wrecking trains were ordered by telegraph from Syracuse and Cortland and station agents along the line were directed to notify all the employes [sic] and section hands to board these trains as they passed the several stations. The train from Syracuse reached the scene at 3 A. M., and the Cortland train arrived at 2 A. M. A train was also made up at Syracuse to take the passengers to Binghamton. It arrived at Preble at 3:45 and fireman Roof was put on board and brought to Cortland. He died soon after being placed on the car and the body was delivered to Beard & Peck when it arrived here and was sent to Syracuse on the 10:00 A. M. train.

   The charred remains of engineer Geo. Young were found at about 5 o'clock almost embedded in burning coals near the fire box. The head, both arms and one leg were gone. Later, a part of the skull and a few bones were dug out and all were sent to Syracuse.

   The road has two tracks from Tully to Cortland and the south bound trains run on the west track and the north bound on the east track. The wrecked train was going south on the west track. The station at Preble is located on the north side of the highway running from that village east to the little hamlet called Baltimore and is on the west side of the double tracks. About thirty rods north of the station is a water tower standing close by the west track and some thirty feet north of the tower is a small building used as a tool house. Some twenty feet south of the water tower is a switch, which is used to turn trains from the west track on the siding which passes south on the west side of the station, crosses the highway and joins the west track again a few rods south of the road.

   The switch just south of the water tower is of the Latham Ball pattern. Near the end of the lever that operates the same is a heavy ball or weight cast as a part of the lever. When the ball rests on the long flat timber under it, the switch is closed and cannot be opened except by raising the lever. To prevent anyone opening the switch by raising the lever, an upright iron rod about two feet in length is fastened at the lower end to the lever and at the upper end to the upright standard that carries the signal. This end of the rod is locked to the standard by a strong padlock that is not easily unlocked except one has the proper key.

   At 9:20 Sunday night, John Grace, who lives with his family in the north end of the station house, went to the switch and found the signal light burning all right and the switch locked shut as he had left it earlier in the evening. Immediately after the wreck an examination of the switch showed that the upper end of the rod had been broken, the padlock was gone and a bar fork had been used to fasten the lever up and a piece of hemlock joist about four feet long had been used to assist in holding the lever in an upright position. This locked the switch open. Take the board and the fork away and the lever drops and locks the switch shut. There is no doubt but that the switch was locked open by some miscreant after 9:20 and before the train came along. The water tower stands so close to the track that the engineer could not see whether the light was burning or not until he was too near it to prevent an accident. A brake equalizer taken from a pile of old iron near the tool house was evidently used to break the switch rod. There were marks on the equalizer when found near the tool house in the morning, showing that it had recently been used. The padlock was found a few feet south of the switch soon after daylight

   The following diagram will give a pretty good idea of the station and its surroundings:

   The engine was completely stripped of its mountings, the forward trucks were gone, and the front end of the boiler was broken completely out. The steam chests were badly broken and the tender and cab were burned up. From the station almost to the water tower the ground was covered with immense heaps of iron of all descriptions and these were twisted into all sorts of shapes. The wrecking trains were fully manned and the work of cleaning the debris was vigorously prosecuted, notwithstanding the rain storm that continued all day Monday. Before night a train load of flat cars was loaded with car trucks, wheels, brakes and irons of all sorts. The engine had been righted up, placed on the switch and a set of trucks put under the forward end, and attached to the train of flat cars she was towed to the shops in Syracuse.

   The engine was the "Sam Sloan," known as No. 6, and this is not its first experience of the kind. A few years ago it ran into a freight train on a siding at Rock Cut near Jamesville and was badly damaged. It was rebuilt and again put on the road and has done good service ever since. The disaster at Rock Cut was caused by a boy employe, who became rattled at the approach of the train and opened the switch just in time to turn the flying passenger train on the siding where it ran into the freight. The engineers and firemen of both engines were killed as a result of the boy's mistake.

   A new store house 30x40 feet, situated just west of the tracks, caught fire and was burned together with 600 barrels of apples which were in the same. The building and contents were owned by H. C. Crofoot and station agent W. W. Wright. Neither building nor contents were insured.

   Ex-Sheriff Miller, who had been spending some days with friends in Truxton was notified and drove over the hills and was on the ground early in the morning. Officer Sevenoaks of Syracuse came down on the wrecking train, and Deputy Shirley of Homer was there at an early hour. Several supposed clues to the guilty parties were run down by the officers but in every case the suspected parties were able to prove themselves innocent of the crime. Mrs. Sullivan, wife of the station agent at Little York, saw two men at that station at 1:30 in the morning. They seemed to be uncertain as to which way they should go, but they finally started off down the track towards Homer. It is not known who they were and they have not been traced. Sheriff Hillsinger, ex-sheriffs Van Hoesen and Miller of this place, deputy Shirley of Homer, detectives O'Brien of Syracuse, and Van Alstine of New York, and inspector Frank K. Baxter of the state railroad commission of Utica are all working on the case. It is also understood that the Pinkertons have men on the ground.

   The Bowery Girls, a theatrical company, was on the train and the baggage car contained a large lot of scenery belonging to them. It is believed that the scenery in this car acted as a sort of cushion and prevented a much greater catastrophe, as passengers in the smoker, coach and sleeper say that the concussion was not sufficient to throw them from their seats or to injure them by being thrown against the seats in front. The scenery was saved.

   Most of the mail was taken from the mail car, some of it more or less damaged by fire and possibly some of it may have been destroyed. James Dalton, the baggageman, was tossed about some in the car but was not injured.

   Coroner W. J. Moore of this place was notified and arrived early on the scene and empanelled the following jury: Morris F. Spore, foreman; Lorenzo Allen, A. A. Knapp, Philander Manchester, Duane Vandenburgh, John Ackles, Edwin Wilbur, John H. Gay. Seth Hobart, Day Harter, C. J. Sheppard, A. H. Vosburgh.

   The jury viewed the bodies of the engineer and fireman and the inquest was adjourned to yesterday morning at 10 o'clock and is now in progress.

   Every train that pulled into Preble station on Monday brought and carried away a load of people who came to view the wreck. Farmers from a considerable distance drove in for the same purpose.

   Engineer Young was about 35 years of age, unmarried and was counted one of the most reliable engineers on the road. Fireman Roof was about 40 years old and leaves a wife and four children. Another crew had this run, but Young and Roof changed off with the regular engineer and fireman and thus met their death.

   Horace J. Woodmansee, Harry Greenman, Maurice O 'Connell, Mrs. R. B. Fletcher, Miss Margaret L. Townsend, Miss J. V. Sheeley, and Miss Fannie M. Galusha of Cortland were passengers on the train. They came home on the special that left Preble at 3:45 A. M.

CAUSED ONE MORE DEATH.

   NEW YORK, Dec. 4—Edward Clifford, who played a leading character part in "A Bowery Girl," died at his home in [Scraitbery], N. J., yesterday morning, from a shock received in the railway accident near Preble, Cortland county.

   When the accident occurred Mr. Clifford was asleep. He was thrown heavily, and it is believed he sustained internal injuries. Monday he complained of severe pains in his body. He played his part that night, and after the performance, went to his home. About 3 o'clock Tuesday morning he became very ill and died soon afterward.

The E. C & N. Railroad.

   Work has been resumed again on the new road and unless unforeseen complications arise it is expected that it will be pushed to completion. Contractor Benson commenced work on Tuesday with a gang of men near Solon, filling in behind the masonry of the bridges over Trout creek. The engine is hauling ties to the point on the Conable farm where track laying was discontinued two or three weeks since. The work will be resumed in two or three days at this point and continued until the farm of Frank C. Welch is reached near McGrawville, when the material will be hauled around his premises and tracklaying from that point will be pushed on towards Solon. It is believed that a decision in the Welch case will be reached next month and that it will be favorable to the company is the opinion of good railroad lawyers.

   Mr. Bunday [or Bundy] arrived here yesterday morning prepared to push the work along as rapidly as possible.

   The Commissioners in the condemnation proceedings of the railroad company against the Randall estate in this village have arrived at a decision and have awarded the latter the sum of $600 per acre for the three and [a half] acres of land to be taken by the company. This matter being disposed of, the company will proceed to lay a switch over this land south to the tracks of the D. L. & W. company. Everything looks favorable now for the road and if the weather permits it will not be long before track will be down to Gee Brook [at Cincinnatus].