RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 24, 2019
KINSEARCHING
by
Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
This week we conclude furnishing selected data about people involved in railroad accidents listed in the FORTY-SEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE RAILROAD COMMISSIONERS OF THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE, 1891. The volume was published 1892 in Concord, New Hampshire, by Ira C. Evans, Public Printer. (Surnames are capitalized for emphasis. Some punctuation may be changed for clarity.) The accidents below occurred in 1891.
Page 180 - May 4 – H. G. LAMB, employé (sic),
brakeman, had face badly cut by flying glass caused by guage (sic)
breaking.
(Editor’s note: Place not stated)
May 4 – At Reed’s Ferry, William CUNNIFF, passenger, while in an intoxicated condition, jumped or fell from train No. 61 and was killed instantly.
May 6 – At Raymond, Samuel RAND, employé (sic) in woodshed at Raymond, had his hand badly cut by circular saw.
May 6 – At Nashua, L. M. STRANG, brakeman, had three fingers badly jammed while coupling cars.
May 15 – At Manchester, Moses DUSTIN, brakeman, fell in water course and car run (sic) over him; fractured his arm and forehead from which he died.
May 19 – At Concord, Homer W. SHIPPEE, coupler, had finger and half of thumb taken off while coupling cars.
June 4 – At Nashua, Joseph OBER, brakeman, had his thumb badly jammed while coupling cars.
June 6 – At Concord, James F. FINDLEY, brakeman, had his hand crushed by being caught between the deadwoods.
June 25 – At Manchester, David MARQUETTE had the forefinger of his right hand jammed while coupling [cars].
Page 206 – June 5, 1891 – At Troy, Joseph SMITH, freight brakeman, was getting out of the saloon car onto the side ladder and had his hip broken by striking the abutment of bridge.
June 22 – At Bellows Falls, Arthur PUNT, freight brakeman, had his arm broken while coupling freight cars.
June 24 – At Greenville, F. E. SADDERS, freight brakeman, was thrown from the top of a car to the ground; the brake-wheel came off; his injuries were slight.
June 25 – At Bellows Falls, Fred CASS, freight brakeman, while coupling freight
cars, had his skull fractured by being struck by a broken link.
The ANNUAL REPORT also contains findings of the Board of Railroad Commissioners when accidents, such as any concerning possible carelessness, were investigated. An example is the January 1892 report given by B. F. PRESCOTT for the Board at Concord. It appears on page 88 of the book.
“Frank TABOR, a foreman of a section on the Concord & Montreal Railroad near North Haverhill, was struck by a train and killed on the 10th day of December, 1891, at about 2:18 p. m., while working at a crossing about one fourth of a mile south of the North Haverhill station. Mr. Tabor and his assistants were engaged in removing the planks at a farm crossing, as is usually done in the fall or early winter, in order to prevent any obstruction to the snow plows. Express train No. 53 from Concord was approaching, running at a speed of about 30 miles an hour, as appears from the testimony of the engineer. Tabor was seen and the warning signals were sounded, but he did not give any heed to them. He was stooping at the time the locomotive struck him and was thrown into the ditch. The train came to a standstill as soon as possible and backed to the point where Mr. Tabor was found. He was taken on board in an unconscious condition and conveyed to Woodsville, where physicians were summoned, but he only survived a few hours. He was unmarried and lived in Haverhill. Tabor was a reliable, sober man and familiar with the running of the trains and must have known of the time of the approach of this train if it was on time. There was no carelessness on the part of the engineer who was running the express train, and he gave the customary warning when he saw Tabor upon the track. This is another instance of the risk men run who are employed upon railroads and who ought to exercise more watchfulness in avoiding danger.”
(End)