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Page 34 December 2016 The Catoctin Banner Newspaper www.TheCatoctinBanner.com Published by www.EPlusPromotes.com
1915 The Wreck of the Blue
Mountain Express, Part 1
by James Rada, Jr.
Note: This is the first of two articles about the wreck of the Blue Mountain Express between Thurmont and Sabillasville in 1915.
On June 25, 1915, the Blue Photo Courtesy of Thurmontimages.com believed the other had been ordered
Mountain Express, bound for to take the siding to allow his train
Hagerstown, pulled into the Western Train wreck at High Bridges, taken June 24, 1915. This view shows the east bound engine; the to pass, …all-steel cars helped
Maryland Railroad Station in other had been moved. minimize loss of life,” the Adams
Thurmont about twenty minutes County News reported.
late for its 5:10 p.m. stop in town. “Bloom had been doing this a section of single track that ran for
Apparently, the train had had a for a while and knew his job, just over two miles. The two engines hit. The impact
hotbox that needed to be repacked but, today, he was having trouble crumpled some cars and knocked
while the train was in Union Bridge, communicating to the east. A storm Around 5:30 p.m., local residents others off the High Bridge, over
according Charles Eyler in George earlier in the week had knocked heard the familiar sound of the Blue Owens Creek, and into the ravine
Wireman’s book, Gateway to the down a telegraph line. Add to that, Mountain Express’s train whistle, one hundred feet below.
Mountains. the general confusion of a very but instead of stopping, it continued
busy day and Bloom lost track of blowing. People knew something Seconds before the crash, Fireman
In Thurmont, the train hurriedly countermanding an order that gave was wrong and rushed to where they Vendergerst, on the Baltmore
took on water and dropped off the Blue Mountain Express the right heard the whistle. Unlimited, “made a thrilling leap for
Baltimore’s afternoon newspapers of way,” according to the Adams safety,” according to the Frederick
for delivery. The stop was short, in County News. On the tracks, it’s not certain how News. It did him little good. He was
hopes of making up some lost time. soon the engineers saw the trouble found later with a broken back and
From Thurmont, the next coming at them. The eastbound legs broken in several places. He was
The express was made up of a stop was Sabillasville. Outside of Baltimore Unlimited came head taken to the hospital in Hagerstown.
Pullman Parlor Car, three coaches, Thurmont, the Blue Mountain to head with the westbound Blue
and a baggage car. “Although it was Express started up the mountain on Mountain Express. “It is presumed R. B. Taylor of Westminster was
primarily a freight line, the Western that the engineers of both trains sitting in the smoking car when he
Maryland became famous for the felt the train slowing. He thought
excursion trains it ran to the Blue the engineer might be applying the
Ridge, and for the Blue Mountain emergency brake.
Express, said to have been the finest
train in the East,” Wireman wrote. “I thrust my head out of the
window and beheld a terrifying
Meanwhile, in Hagerstown, the sight,” Taylor told the Hagerstown
train dispatcher, Edgar Bloom, was Herald Mail. “The engine and
busy trying to keep trains moving tender of the Blue Mountain was
along the stretch of track that he over the bridge, while the baggage
watched over. Of the 180 miles under car was smashed in, part of it falling
his supervision, all but 20 miles were into the ravine behind the engine
single track. That meant if two trains and tender.”
were coming from different directions,
he had to notify the nearest station to Uninjured, Taylor grabbed his
have one train pull off onto a siding things and headed for the door,
until the other train passed. along with the other passengers in
the car.
He was one of the lucky ones.
1915 The Wreck of the Blue
Mountain Express, Part 1
by James Rada, Jr.
Note: This is the first of two articles about the wreck of the Blue Mountain Express between Thurmont and Sabillasville in 1915.
On June 25, 1915, the Blue Photo Courtesy of Thurmontimages.com believed the other had been ordered
Mountain Express, bound for to take the siding to allow his train
Hagerstown, pulled into the Western Train wreck at High Bridges, taken June 24, 1915. This view shows the east bound engine; the to pass, …all-steel cars helped
Maryland Railroad Station in other had been moved. minimize loss of life,” the Adams
Thurmont about twenty minutes County News reported.
late for its 5:10 p.m. stop in town. “Bloom had been doing this a section of single track that ran for
Apparently, the train had had a for a while and knew his job, just over two miles. The two engines hit. The impact
hotbox that needed to be repacked but, today, he was having trouble crumpled some cars and knocked
while the train was in Union Bridge, communicating to the east. A storm Around 5:30 p.m., local residents others off the High Bridge, over
according Charles Eyler in George earlier in the week had knocked heard the familiar sound of the Blue Owens Creek, and into the ravine
Wireman’s book, Gateway to the down a telegraph line. Add to that, Mountain Express’s train whistle, one hundred feet below.
Mountains. the general confusion of a very but instead of stopping, it continued
busy day and Bloom lost track of blowing. People knew something Seconds before the crash, Fireman
In Thurmont, the train hurriedly countermanding an order that gave was wrong and rushed to where they Vendergerst, on the Baltmore
took on water and dropped off the Blue Mountain Express the right heard the whistle. Unlimited, “made a thrilling leap for
Baltimore’s afternoon newspapers of way,” according to the Adams safety,” according to the Frederick
for delivery. The stop was short, in County News. On the tracks, it’s not certain how News. It did him little good. He was
hopes of making up some lost time. soon the engineers saw the trouble found later with a broken back and
From Thurmont, the next coming at them. The eastbound legs broken in several places. He was
The express was made up of a stop was Sabillasville. Outside of Baltimore Unlimited came head taken to the hospital in Hagerstown.
Pullman Parlor Car, three coaches, Thurmont, the Blue Mountain to head with the westbound Blue
and a baggage car. “Although it was Express started up the mountain on Mountain Express. “It is presumed R. B. Taylor of Westminster was
primarily a freight line, the Western that the engineers of both trains sitting in the smoking car when he
Maryland became famous for the felt the train slowing. He thought
excursion trains it ran to the Blue the engineer might be applying the
Ridge, and for the Blue Mountain emergency brake.
Express, said to have been the finest
train in the East,” Wireman wrote. “I thrust my head out of the
window and beheld a terrifying
Meanwhile, in Hagerstown, the sight,” Taylor told the Hagerstown
train dispatcher, Edgar Bloom, was Herald Mail. “The engine and
busy trying to keep trains moving tender of the Blue Mountain was
along the stretch of track that he over the bridge, while the baggage
watched over. Of the 180 miles under car was smashed in, part of it falling
his supervision, all but 20 miles were into the ravine behind the engine
single track. That meant if two trains and tender.”
were coming from different directions,
he had to notify the nearest station to Uninjured, Taylor grabbed his
have one train pull off onto a siding things and headed for the door,
until the other train passed. along with the other passengers in
the car.
He was one of the lucky ones.
