Racine Junction, WI Train Wreck, Mar 1891

A BAD RAILROAD WRECK.

SEVEN CARS DESTROYED BY FIRE AND ONE MAN KILLED.

MILWAUKEE, Wis., March 25. - A serious wreck occurred on the Northwestern Road at Racine Junction last night, by which one man was killed, two dangerously hurt, and three others more or less injured. A mail car, baggage car, and five freight cars were destroyed by fire. The pecuniary loss is estimated at $50,000. The collision occurred at midnight between a north-bound Chicago and Northwestern passenger train and a south-bound freight train on the same line. The latter train consisted of sixty-four cars and was under such headway that it could not be checked sufficiently to allow side-tracking. Both trains came together on the main track at the station. Following is a list of the vicitims:

WILLIS ANDREWS of Fond du Lac, fireman on freight train, killed.

MARTIN RAE of Milwaukee, freight engineer, probably fatally injured.

DENNIS E. BURKE of Milwaukee, passenger engineer, dangerously injured.

I. T. DE SILVA of Chicago, express messenger, badly bruised.

JOHN GROBBEN of Milwaukee, passenger fireman, badly scalded, and died soon afterward.

J. BOWER of Evanston, Ill., assistant express messenger, burned and cut.

In the safe of the American Express Comapny was $10,000 in currency for Northern banks from Chicago. So intensely hot did the fire become that when the safe was opened at noon to-day half the currency was found burned to ashes and the other half partially burned. The express company will lose about $5,000 of the money, enough being saved of the other half to insure its redemption. Several thousand dollars' worth of jewelry was melted and run into one lump. The United States Express Company also lost a large amount of money. Not a pound of express or mail matter was saved.

The New York Times, New York, NY 26 Mar 1891
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Transcribed by Tim Taugher. Thanks, Tim!