Woodstock Railroad Accident
Files
Dublin Core
Title
Woodstock Railroad Accident
Subject
Woodstock (Va)
Railroad
Description
This photograph most likely shows a locomotive of the B&O Railroad that had been involved in a wreck in Woodstock Virginia.
Local reports indicate that the wreck occurred on August 27, 1892. A northbound train, pulled by engine Number 199, a “camel type” locomotive that dated to before the Civil War.
Sometime during the late 19th century Engine Number 199 came under the direction of John T.A. “Red” Deck. He would be operating the locomotive as it left Harrisonburg around 10:00AM on that August morning pulling 16 cars. As he entered Woodstock and rounded the curve near what is now Benchoff Drive, he spotted the aptly named cow “Bossy” astride the tracks. Red’s attempts to frighten the cow with his whistle failed and he ordered his brakeman, atop the cars, to begin applying the brakes. However, they were unable to stop in time and the locomotive struck the cow and was thrown from the tracks. The engine and cars plowed down the bank near Spring Hollow Creek and came to rest in a pile of splintered wood and metal.
Several members of the train crew survived. Red Deck was able to save himself by jumping as the train left the tracks and then by outrunning it. Head brakeman Frank Laughlin, riding atop the cars, jumped down the opposite embankment and was dazed but uninjured. Conductor W.M. Swain not only was able to jump from his car, but he also grabbed his signal flag and ran south to stop an oncoming passenger train before it reached the wreck. J.W. Fisher, the rear brakeman, and passenger R.E. Stoneburner of Edinburg, were in the caboose when the wreck happen also escaped by jumping and helped extinguish the fire in the locomotive so an explosion did not occur.
The only fatality was the fireman, Lemuel Wine who was crushed by the engine. It took several hours to recover his body which was sent to Fravel and Feller’s funeral home in Woodstock. They did what they could to repair the body and sent it south to Harrisonburg around 10:00PM. He left behind a wife and one child.
On the day of the incident, the annual Fisher’s Hill Confederate Veterans Reunion was being held. The railroad hastened to clean up the accident to ensure special trains filled with veterans were able to reach the site. A few hours after the crash, the line was once again reopened. Hundreds of locals, and visiting veterans, flocked to the site over the next several days to see the destruction. In this photograph we can see these spectators, and numerous workers alongside the destroyed engine, which had been moved onto hastily laid track beside the main line before its removal. Eventually the picture ended up in the hands of William F. Lichliter, a B&O manager at the Strasburg Junction during this period.
Local reports indicate that the wreck occurred on August 27, 1892. A northbound train, pulled by engine Number 199, a “camel type” locomotive that dated to before the Civil War.
Sometime during the late 19th century Engine Number 199 came under the direction of John T.A. “Red” Deck. He would be operating the locomotive as it left Harrisonburg around 10:00AM on that August morning pulling 16 cars. As he entered Woodstock and rounded the curve near what is now Benchoff Drive, he spotted the aptly named cow “Bossy” astride the tracks. Red’s attempts to frighten the cow with his whistle failed and he ordered his brakeman, atop the cars, to begin applying the brakes. However, they were unable to stop in time and the locomotive struck the cow and was thrown from the tracks. The engine and cars plowed down the bank near Spring Hollow Creek and came to rest in a pile of splintered wood and metal.
Several members of the train crew survived. Red Deck was able to save himself by jumping as the train left the tracks and then by outrunning it. Head brakeman Frank Laughlin, riding atop the cars, jumped down the opposite embankment and was dazed but uninjured. Conductor W.M. Swain not only was able to jump from his car, but he also grabbed his signal flag and ran south to stop an oncoming passenger train before it reached the wreck. J.W. Fisher, the rear brakeman, and passenger R.E. Stoneburner of Edinburg, were in the caboose when the wreck happen also escaped by jumping and helped extinguish the fire in the locomotive so an explosion did not occur.
The only fatality was the fireman, Lemuel Wine who was crushed by the engine. It took several hours to recover his body which was sent to Fravel and Feller’s funeral home in Woodstock. They did what they could to repair the body and sent it south to Harrisonburg around 10:00PM. He left behind a wife and one child.
On the day of the incident, the annual Fisher’s Hill Confederate Veterans Reunion was being held. The railroad hastened to clean up the accident to ensure special trains filled with veterans were able to reach the site. A few hours after the crash, the line was once again reopened. Hundreds of locals, and visiting veterans, flocked to the site over the next several days to see the destruction. In this photograph we can see these spectators, and numerous workers alongside the destroyed engine, which had been moved onto hastily laid track beside the main line before its removal. Eventually the picture ended up in the hands of William F. Lichliter, a B&O manager at the Strasburg Junction during this period.
Source
Lichliter Collection: Photograph Series
Publisher
Shenandoah County Library
Date
1892
Contributor
Cohen, Bob. "The 1892 B&O Wreck at Woodstock, Virginia." The Sentinel, Third Quater 2010, pages 29-31.
Rights
Not to be reused without permission.
Format
Photograph
Citation
“Woodstock Railroad Accident,” Shenandoah County Library Archives, accessed May 3, 2024, https://archives.countylib.org/items/show/5921.
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