| FATAL RAILROAD COLLISION AT MUIR |
| FATAL RAILROAD ACCIDENT |
| Collision at Muir --- Four Killed and Fifteen to Twenty Wounded |
| _______________ |
| This was the head line in the Ionia Sentinal on September 5,1873. On a foggy morning around ten minutes to five the 29th of August, the Detroit & Mil- waukee night express going west, lost a drive wheel due to a broken axle. The train was left standing about one mile east of Muir. The engine involved was No.1 the General Cass, a 4-4-0 type built in 1855. Conductor Knill sent brakeman McNeil to Muir to telegraph St. Johns to stop the through freight there, but it had already gone through. There were no night operators at Pewamo or Fowler so the telegraph was of no further use. Conductor Knill than sent the bag- gageman, George Darby and brakeman W.P.Brown to flag the train. These men went back to the west end of Stony Creek bridge which later measured to be 2,658 feet from the rear of the express. Torpedoes were placed on the track some distance east of the flagmen. The flagmen were requested by section foreman McMillian to go further back, but they replied, "Who's doing this flagging?" or words to that effect. The freight engineer saw the signal and whistled down brakes not less than 1,000 feet east of the place occupied by the flagmen, which would make a distance of from 2/3rds to 3/4 of a mile in which to stop the train. The freight train was running at a high rate of speed, which was only slightly checked before reaching the express. The engineer and fireman of the freight, after |
| reversing the engine, repeatedly whistling down brakes, putting on the brake of the tender, and opening the sand-box, leaped off the train and escaped uninjured. There were 30 heavily laden freight cars behind the loco- motive, Ontario, another 4-4-0 type locomotive,as it rushed into the rear end of the express, composed of two emigrant cars placed behind the sleepers. The Ontario drove into the rear emigrant car clear to the cab, tearing up the floor, raising the roof and spreading the sides, but leaving some seats at the forward end still intact. All the emigrants but two or three at the forward end, had been alarmed and had cleared the car. Those few remaining were hurt but not fatally. The next car ahead, also filled with emigrants was totally demolished. It was mashed into a space of eight feet between the sleeping car and the one the Ontario had plowed into. Fifty-five Germans and Swedes were in that car, about thirty remaining inside when the collision occurred. An Icelander, Mrs. Andrus Hed and daughter were instantly killed. Mrs.Fretchmarick and infant son, emigrant Icelanders, instantly killed. These were the four killed. About fifteen injured and of these eight were still in Muir. The sleeping car was somewhat damaged. No person remained in that or the car ahead. Half of the material of the demolished car was driven with teriffic force past the sleeping car on the north side of it, shooting parrallel to it and struck three persons who were leaping from the rear of the passenger car next ahead of the sleeping car. |
| West view of the wooden trestle over the Maple River. This trestle was built in 1867. Brakeman McNeil had to negotiate this bridge to reach Muir Station to telegraph St.Johns. The village of Muir is in the background. This photo was taken in March, 1904 during a big spring freshet. Photograph from Lyons Historical Society. |
| East view of Muir Station where brakeman McNeil telegraphed St.Johns to stop the through freight with no success. Engine No.10, the St.Johns, is standing at the station. This locomotive is also a 4-4-0, the same as the Cass and the Ontario. Photo, Gordon Leydeksen collection. |
| South view of Stony Creek bridge. Built of iron and called a Howe truss, it was built in 1870. Brown, Darby and McNeil stood here trying to flag the through freight. Photo taken March, 1904. Photograph from Lyons Historical Society. |
| A coroner's jury was impanelled at Muir and this is the testimony of Frank K.Knell, the conductor: "We broke an axle of a driving wheel, which delayed us sometime. I telegraphed to Detroit for another engine, and received a message to take the engine of No.13, the through freight, which afterward ran into us. As soon as we broke down, I sent James Brown, a brakeman, back along the track with a red lamp, with instructions to stop anything coming. About ten minutes afterward I got a red flag out of the baggage car, went into the sleeping car with it, gave it to Mr. Schermerhorn, the sleeping conductor, and told him to take the flag back to Brown, while I got some flag signals out of my trunk, and went back and took the red flag myself. Schermer- horn went back to the train. I found Brown a little west of the iron bridge over Stony Creek. Brown was not half far enough and I told him to go over the bridge and not let the train run into us. I also told him to take a stone in his hand and if the engineer didn't see the red light to throw the stone through the cab window. I walked a little way toward the bridge, put the signals down by the track, and spoke to Brown again about going back further. When I turned back he was crossing the bridge. I came back to the engine. George Darby, the baggage man, was passing water to the engine to put out the fire. I took the pail out of his hand, told him to get another red flag from the engine and go back and if anything should happen that they didn't see the red flag, he might go far enough to stop them with the second. Brown might have walked back a mile and a half or two miles. I listen to hear them whistle down brakes. I heard them whistle, and remarked again it was all right, for they saw the flag. He whistled four or five |
| times. In a minute or two afterward I heard the fog signals go off and judging from the sound I thought he was coming a great deal too fast, but thought he would reverse his engine and stop suddenly. Presently I saw he couldn't stop without striking the train and cautioned a lot of passengers in the rear of the train to get out of the way. I than ran toward my engine to put the engineer on guard. When about halfway along the train I looked back and saw they were going to strike pretty heavy and ran down the bank to save myself. I saw the end of the sleeping car crushed in. My boy was in the end berth asleep. I then went to see Brown and the others to see how far they had been back. I saw the engineer of the freight train on top of the cars about the middle of his train and made some remarks about his coming so fast. I saw Brown and asked him how far back he had been and he said he had been back to the fourth telegraph pole east of the bridge. I told him he should have been a damned sight further and supposed he was. From the time I heard the freight train whistle until the collision occurred it could not have been more than three minutes. In my judgement the coming train was not running at less speed than twenty miles an hour. I didn't notice whether the engine was reversed or not. The rule is when one train follows another and the former is detained to send back a signal not less than 800 yards. The grade where the collision occurred is light. A train running at the rate of fifteen miles an hour, when the brakesmen are at their posts and the engine reversed, ought to stop within a quarter of a mile. The rails were wet at the time of the accident, which made stopping difficult." This information came from the Ionia Sentinel and the Railroad Commissioners Report of Dec.31,1873. |
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