Passenger Trains > Same Curve in Philadelphia September 6 1943

The  PRR Congressional derailed at the same spot 9-6-43 killing 79 passengers There was a hot box in that train which caused the derailment and a car was ripped in half hitting a catenary pole 

Seems one on the lead cars also hit a catenary pole last night   

Prayers go out to the passengers, families. And employees involved in this crash 


 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/13/15 09:49 by amtrakbill.

Just saw the horrible scene in daylight for the first time. Hard to even recognize the one car. As bad as it looks I suppose it could have been much worse.  The AP went so far as to report it as "one of the worst train accidents in U.S.history." But at this post indicates, its not even close...not even on this same piece of track. Exactly where does all this inaccurate information come from? I recall reading about train accidents back in the days of wooden cars where hundreds were killed in a single incident. 

Yes, and here is a link to that 1943 accident:

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Another-Deadly-Train-Derailment-Happened-at-Frankford-Junction-71-Years-Ago-303557531.html

http://nrhs1.org/images/Dispatcher_Sep_09.pdf

The ICC report from the 1943 accident is available on line under the PRR section ICC accident reports.  That derailment, while in the same location, involved a train operating at prescribed speed and with an observed journal box failure which caused a derailment before the train could be stopped.  Other than location, and some of the secondary damage such as catenary support damage to cars, it appears to be two different circumstances.

My aunt, long since deceased was on the Congressional Ltd.  I was told she spent three months in the hospital and was one of the few survivors in her car.  I remember the scars she carried on her legs.

Mexrail

amtrakbill Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The  PRR Congressional derailed at the same spot
> 9-6-43 killing 79 passengers There was a hot box
> in that train which caused the derailment and a
> car was ripped in half hitting a catenary pole 
>
> Seems one on the lead cars also hit a catenary
> pole last night   
>

Actually, it was a signal bridge.  Sliced through a P-70 from the right side floor to the left side letterboard.

TL

FOX NEWS this a.m. mentioned the 1943 accident. They said it was also an Amtrak train.
Rick

I hired on the PRR as a block operator in jan 1961. I was told this story by serveral old timers, that the operator at Shore tower the last tower the train passed was so affected by the wreck that he went to the police and confessed that he had killed a lot of people. the division superintendent and the division operator had to go to the police station and tell them he was not responsible.

>Just saw the horrible scene in daylight for the first time. Hard to even recognize the one car. As bad as it looks I suppose it could have been much worse.  The AP went so far as to report it as "one of the worst train accidents in U.S.history." But at this post indicates, its not even close...not even on this same piece of track. Exactly where does all this inaccurate information come from? I recall reading about train accidents back in the days of wooden cars where hundreds were killed in a single incident.

FWIW, it's within the bottom 30% of US passenger train accidents between 1831-1977, assuming AP is measuring the degree of severity by the amount of lives lost in an accident. The "worst accident" in US railroad history was a head-on collision which occurred on July 9, 1918 on the NC&StL (became part of N&W), within the city limits of Nashville, TN, resulting in 90 deaths. Since it happened during WWI with alll the War censorship, it wasn't widely reported, which means it still isn't widely known about today. Source: Shaw's book on RR accidents.

(snip)
>
> FWIW, it's within the bottom 30% of US passenger
> train accidents between 1831-1977, assuming AP is
> measuring the degree of severity by the amount of
> lives lost in an accident. The "worst accident" in
> US railroad history was a head-on collision which
> occurred on July 9, 1918 on the NC&StL (became
> part of N&W), within the city limits of Nashville,
> TN, resulting in 90 deaths. Since it happened
> during WWI with alll the War censorship, it wasn't
> widely reported, which means it still isn't widely
> known about today. Source: Shaw's book on RR
> accidents.

NC&StL became part of the L&N, now CSX.  Was not part of the N&W.

EtoinShrdlu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >Just saw the horrible scene in daylight for the
> first time. Hard to even recognize the one car. As
> bad as it looks I suppose it could have been much
> worse.  The AP went so far as to report it as
> "one of the worst train accidents in U.S.history."
> But at this post indicates, its not even
> close...not even on this same piece of track.
> Exactly where does all this inaccurate information
> come from? I recall reading about train accidents
> back in the days of wooden cars where hundreds
> were killed in a single incident.
>
> FWIW, it's within the bottom 30% of US passenger
> train accidents between 1831-1977, assuming AP is
> measuring the degree of severity by the amount of
> lives lost in an accident. The "worst accident" in
> US railroad history was a head-on collision which
> occurred on July 9, 1918 on the NC&StL (became
> part of N&W), within the city limits of Nashville,
> TN, resulting in 90 deaths. Since it happened
> during WWI with alll the War censorship, it wasn't
> widely reported, which means it still isn't widely
> known about today. Source: Shaw's book on RR
> accidents.

Curiously enough, another horrific accident occurred at Ivanhoe in Gary, IN, that same year. The Hagenbeck-Wallace circus train, traveling on Michigan Central tracks, was rear ended by another train, whose engineer fell asleep and ran two signals and apparently also failed to notice warnings placed by the flagman of the circus train, which had stopped because of a hotbox on a flatcar.

86 people died in the wreck. The last four passenger cars were of wooden construction and lighted by kerosene lamps, so a fire quickly ensued.

The show did go on, and the circus missed only two performances, thanks to other circuses that lent performers, animals, and equipment to Hagenbeck-Wallace. 

Curious on how long it took back in 1943 to get rail service back on after that terrible wreck?