The Great Train Wreck of 1856
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The Great Train Wreck of 1856 occurred near Camp Hill (present-day Fort Washington), Pennsylvania on July 17, 1856. It was referred to as "The Camp Hill Disaster" by the people of Montgomery County and "The Picnic Train Tragedy" in the city of Philadelphia. It was the worst railroad catastrophe in the world until the 1870s, and indeed, one of the single worst events of its time, having an impact that rivals that of September 11, 2001 in the modern era.
Two trains traveling on the same track in opposite directions collided, killing between 59 and 67, and injuring over 100.
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[edit] History of the North Penn RR.
In 1851 considerable interest was manifest for the construction of a railroad connecting Philadelphia with the Lehigh coal region. This resulted in the incorporation on April 8, 1852, of the Philadelphia, Easton and Water Gap Railroad Company. The title of the company was changed by act of April 18, 1853, to the North Pennsylvania Railroad Company. It was formally opened Monday, July 2, 1855, by an excursion from the Cohoquinoque Station, at Front and Willow Streets, to Fort Washington. The railroad served as a great spur to local commerce, transporting both produce and people, and led to increased prosperity for the area. Local farmers could now ship their produce to markets further from home at low cost.
[edit] Two trains collided on a single track
Reports by The New York Times on July 18, 1865, suggested that 1,100 people were on an excursion train operated by The North Pennsylvania Railroad, although there may have been as many as 1,500. It was known as the "picnic special" and was due to arrive at Wissahickon Station in Fort Washington at 6 a.m. It left Cohocksink depot at Master Street, Germantown Avenue and Thompson Street at 5:10 a.m., 23 minutes late, in part because there were so many passengers aboard.
St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in the Kensington section of Philadelphia was sending their Sunday School children on a picnic to Shaeff's Woods, a sprawling grove in Fort Washington. It was one of the hottest and most humid days of the year and the children looked forward to a full day at the park. Reverand Daniel Sheridan was in the lead car with the oldest children. The rear cars carried women and the youngest children.
The locomotive was called Shakamaxon (named in honor of Kensington's pre-industrial name) and was operated by engineer Henry Harris. The locomotive was known for having low steam pressure, and was under a strain to pull between 10 and 12 cars with so many passengers. It had to make periodic stops to regain enough pressure to continue.
At the Wissahickon Station, another train waited for the excursion train to pass on the single track line that was opened on one year and 15 days earlier. Shakamaxon was late, but they did not use telegraphs to communicate throughout the various stations and had no idea that the train left late. There was a customary 15 minute waiting period for regularly scheduled trains, but the picnic special was an excusion train, which confused matters. At 6:15, 20 passengers from Gwynedd pulled out of the station behind the Aramingo, which was engineered by William Vanstavoren.
The engineer of Shakamaxon was confident he could make up for lost time. He knew of a passenger train, pulled by the Aramingo, due to be coming in the opposite direction on the same single track, but calculated they could use the siding at Edge Hill to safely pass each other. As he neared a blind curve just past Camp Hill Station, the train was travelling slightly downhill. He blew the whistle almost continuously, however the doppler effect was not widely known at the time. Due to the primitive communications of the era, neither engineer knew exactly where the other was.
Shortly after the Shakamaxon locomotive passed the Camp Hill Station (later known as Sandy Run Station and then Fellwick Station, now closed), the tracks curved, creating a blind spot. Aramingo was rounding another curve and also had a blind spot. They caught sight of each other as the two blind curves met, but it was too late. The trains collided at 6:18am. The trains met between the present Trenton cut-off of the Pennsylvania Railroad where it crosses over the Bethlehem branch of the Reading Railroad, about a block north of the former Fellwick station.
The boilers made direct contact and the impact caused an explosion heard five miles away. The sound of crashing woodwork, the hissing of steam, the screams and piteous moans of the victims succeeded the first deafening noise of the terrific impact. The three forward cars of the picnic train were smashed to pieces. The Shackamaxon was derailed and the explosion caused a fire to spread among the wooden cars. The impact did not kill most of the victims; rather most were caught in derailed cars that were on their side and in an inferno.
Children and women who occupied rear coaches and escaped serious injury jumped out, screaming in a frenzy of fear and grief. A crowd gathered quickly from neighboring towns, for the blaze could be seen for several miles. The heat of the burning wreckage was so intense that though protruding arms and legs and other parts of bodies could be glimpsed through the flame and smoke, it was impossible to approach to attempt a rescue.
A small brook ran rearby. The Sandy Run creek carved its way through the Wissahickon Valley, and had served as a source of refreshment for Revolutionary War troops in the Fall of 1777, under the command of General George Washington. The creek was about 25 feet below the level of the new tracks, meanandering along the length of the train.
A bucket-brigade was formed and equipped with tubs, buckets, pails, kettles and other utensils supplied by the farmers, with all madly running down to the edge of the stream. But the effort to aid in this way was merely pitiful. The Congress Engine and Hose Company of Chestnut Hill shortly reached the scene and in a little while subdued the flames and began to extricate the victims.
John Spencer of Camp Hill, an eyewitness, who lived within sight of the collision; gave the following account at a coroner's investigation: "I was looking out of my shop window and saw the train approaching. I saw the down train first, just coming through the cut above Camp Hill station. It was slacking off as much as it could when it came through there. I had just time enough to turn around and saw the up train coming under the bridge at Camp Hill station. It was pretty smart. They were running about as they cleverly could. I heard the whistle on the train coming up before it reached the bridge... I could not see that the speed of the up train diminished between the time I first saw it and the time of the collision... eleven of the bodies of the dead were carried to my shop."
Also, it is reported that a man rode on horseback through the Montgomery County countryside and shouted to the residents: "Bring your camphor bottles, balsam and lint; there has been a horrible accident."
Mrs. Mary J. Ambler quickly gathered first-aid materials and covered the distance of two miles on foot. The service she rendered in caring for the injured was so conspicuous that after her death in 1868, the North Penn Railroad changed the name of the station near her home from Wissahickon to Ambler. Eventually the town was named for Mary Ambler.
Meanwhile, the tragic news reached the city and spread through the parish. Men rushed from the factories, women ran sobbing through the streets. At the stations, they had to be restrained by police when they attempted to use the hand-cars. Coaches were attached to the locomotive remaining in Philadelphia, but they were given over almost entirely to Sisters of Charity, nurses and physicians.
The Daily Evening Bulletin reported: "the most horrible sight of all, was that of the burning cars – for in a few minutes after the collision, the fire spread rapidly through the broken remnants, burning and roasting to death many men, women and children. The groans and shouts of wounded and those held by the rescuers were of a character to appall the bravest heart.
Henry Harris, engineer of the picnic special died in the accident as did the Reverend Sheridan. The devastation was so extreme that many bodies were never found, and those that were, were so burned that they could not be identified.
The conductor of the Aramingo, William Vanstavoren, apparently felt he was to blame for the accident. Vanstavoren escaped uninjured, returned to Philadelphia, officially reported the accident and then went to his residence at 169 Buttonwood St. (near 10th St.) and committed suicide by taking arsenic. However, he was later absolved of any blame. A jury placed the blame on the engineer of the Shackamaxon picnic special for his "gross carelessness".
[edit] The [known] dead
- REV. DANIEL SHERIDAN, age 35
- James Canlin, age 17
- Lawrence Dillen, age 50
- Michael Burns, age 17
- John Bradley, age 14
- Henry Corr, age 50
- Miczael O'Brien, age 17
- John Sloan, age 13
- Harry Harris, age 30
- John Dugan, age 17
- James Devine, age 11
- Francis McCort, age 21
- Patrick Kelly, age 16
- Lewis Rivell, age 10
- Francis Walls, age 21
- Thomas Kelly, age 16
- Daniel Marlow, age 9
- John Dudsen, age 21
- Hugh Tracey, age 16
- Mrs. Gunn, age 60
- James Roy, age 20
- James McIntyre, age 16
- Theresa Callahan, age 18
- James Gallagher, age 20
- Neilus Coakley, age 16
- Sarah McGee, age 18
- Edward Hall, age 20
- Edward Flanigen, age 16
- Mary Short, age 16
- Patrick Kearney, age 19
- John McVey, age 15
- Catharine McGurk, age 16
- William T. Barnett, age 18
- James Hackey, age 15
- Annie Lilley, age 16
- Bernard Green, age 18
- Hugh Campbell, age 15
- Rose Ann Mulholland, age 15
- John McAleer, age 18
- William McGuigan, age 15
- Catharine Coakley, age 14
- Bernard Ronegan, age 18
- Michael Hagerty, age 15
- Ellen Clark, age 14
- John McGuire, age 18
- John Ryan, age 15
- Caroline Croener, age 13
- William Streets, age 18
- Hugh O'Neal, age 14
- Mary McArlane, age 13
- William Dugan, age 17
- James Quigley, age 14
- John Grilbeu, age 17
- Patrick Flanigen, age 14
Two days after the accident, the Pennsylvania Inquirer said, "The most eager interest is still shown in all that relates to the awful tragedy of Thursday."
The North Penn Railroad took steps after the accident to provide financial benefits for the injured and for survivors of the victims. They issued shares of stock to these persons if they would accept it and gave them money if they would not take the stock. It is said that the shares eventually paid worthwhile dividends. The railroad closed down operations on the Sunday following to honor the victims.
[edit] The Great Wreck changed the railroad industry
The Aramingo was scheduled to leave Ft. Washington at 6:15 unless there was a train due from Philadelphia, in which case the Aramingo was to wait 15 minutes for the Shackamaxon to appear before departing. Instructions to the conductor of the Shackamaxon, Albert F. Hoppel, said the regular train, the Aramingo, will wait 15 minutes for the excursion train, the Shackamaxon, and should the excursion train get more than 15 minutes behind, they must be kept out of the way of all regular trains. The instructions were ambiguous, for Vanstavoren interpreted them to mean that he was to wait only for regular trains.
Two days after the Great Wreck, The New York Times published a scathing editorial exhorting railroads to be more safe. Namely, trains travelling in two directions should never share the same tracks. More broadly, there were several other changes implemented, such as the use of the telegraph to inform other stations of late trains, as well as communicate instructions. The number of passengers on trains became a major concern, especially as it applied to children. And engineers soon learned of the doppler effect.
