January 1916: a tragic month

Everyone who has worked for the railroad knows that danger lies just around the corner even in today's work environment. It was even more true 100 years ago when all the safety practices in place now did not exist.

January 1916 did not start off well for the railroad community when two car inspectors, Samuel Simons and Oliver Charlet were crushed while inspecting a car on one of the Coal Chute Tracks in the McCook yard when "the breaking of the coupling on a car of coal that was being hauled up the steep incline to the coal chute when half way up, letting the heavily loaded car run down, and an automatic switch turned it on to the track on which the empty cars were the two unfortunate men were inspecting". (McCook Republican, 01/07/1916)

Mr. Simons died at the scene and Mr. Charlet passed away three hours later after being taken to the Cooperative Hospital for treatment of his severed legs.

Both men had been born in Holt County Missouri, Samuel moving to McCook in July 1899 and Oliver in the fall of 1905. Both were married and had children.

"The funeral services were held in the Methodist church Wednesday afternoon and was attended by so many that the church was crowded to overflowing." (McCook Republican)

Less than three weeks later, McCook was again rocked by the death of three more railroading citizens when on January 23, 1916, passenger train No. 7 (the local between Oxford and Lincoln) and an extra freight, "collided head on in a cut on a curve, three miles east of Mascot, while both were running at a high rate of speed, resulting in the death of both engine crews, and a brakeman and injuring some of the train crews and passengers". (McCook Republican, 01/26/1916)

James Duffy, engineer on the passenger train as well as his fireman, Lee Fogg, both of which were from Lincoln, were killed. Three local men, John Eckman, engineer, C. W. Moll, fireman, and Carl Neubauer, head brakeman on the freight train died also.

If the events of the day could be any more tragic, riding in the caboose of the freight train as the rear brakeman was Carl's brother, Frank Newbauer. "The fact that there had been a collision was soon known in this city, and the news spread rapidly, casting a gloom over everyone and sorrow for the widows and orphans, whose husbands and fathers had been called by death so suddenly and violently.....Frank assisted in, and until the arrival of the specials, did much of the directing in the work of endeavoring to rescue the bodies of the unfortunate men who were covered by the wreckage." (McCook Republican 01/26/1916)

Carl Newbauer was only 25 when he was killed, leaving behind a host of siblings and his parents in Hildreth where he was buried. John Eckman, born in Sweden in 1879, came to America in 1883, moving to McCook in 1900. He began his career with Burlington Railway as a fireman and was promoted to engineer in 1903. Though a McCook resident, after the funeral service his body was taken to the depot and traveled by special train to Oxford where he was buried in the cemetery north of town. He was 35 and left behind a wife and young son, Max, plus numerous other relatives.

Five men dying on the job in such a short time undoubtedly left a mark on McCook's railroad community and the population as a whole.

Southwest Nebraska Genealogy Society's monthly meeting will be this Saturday, 110 West C Street, Suite M-3 beginning at 1:30 p.m.. The public is welcome to attend.