GOD
BLESS
AMERICA
SHE JUMPED THE TRACKS
BOOK FOR SALE
The book:
SHE JUMPED THE TRACKS.
(I have a few left to support this website.)
$49.99 + shipping
Click the "Buy Now" button above and you can pay
with your credit card or PayPal account.
Phil Lea
868 Benton Station Road
Benton TN 37307
423-506-4000 cell
Email
me
(If your computer won't let you
click on the link above, open your email program and type-in: info@drwebman.com )
(I would like to thank John Ascher for writing this book. It
has been a great reference for my website.)
The Louisville & Nashville Railroad train had picked up speed through the
mountains but wasn't running as smoothly as it had in flatter country. The men,
sleeping or preparing for bed, knew the train was behind schedule. But they
still thought it was going too fast. That's when they heard the crack.
And seconds later, the train was ripped in half. The engine, tender and four
cars plunged 50 feet below. Twelve died instantly.
Many more died in the next few days.
It was the troop train wreck of July 6, 1944, the nation's second worse train
disaster during World War II.
Think of the absolute worst place in the world for a train wreck, and you'll
have a picture of the Jellico Narrows in Campbell County, Tennessee. (It looks like something out of a model train layout.)
The gorge cuts down 50 feet to the Clear Fork River, a rocky and shallow
current capped in white. Limestone, peppered with trees and scrub and mud, line
the descent. A road follows the gorge up above on one side, with the train
tracks on the other side. The tracks occasionally dart through tunnels or veer
off away from the gorge.
But where the wreck occurred, the tracks are right on top of the gorge.
It is reported that 1,006 fresh recruits were on
the train headed to "points South" the destination was classified
because of the war.
The recruits, having finished basic training, were on their way to their
first assignment to an Army unit at Fort Benning in Georgia. The train stopped
in Corbin, Ky. before starting through the mountains at Jellico, near the
Kentucky-Tennessee border.
The relief engineer was supposed to take over at Corbin, but he never showed
up. The first engineer, Lyle Rollins, was reportedly angry about having to continue with the train.
"He was very mad and possibly under the influence of alcohol," a
witness was quoted. In addition to the engineer's condition, a steep grade before the
Narrows gave trains a boost of speed. Thanks to the engineer and the grade, the
train was speeding by the time it reached the Narrows first sharp curve.
Dave Harkness, then principal of Jellico High School, recalled that a soldier
told him, "One of the fellows on the train said we could never make it,
then we just went off and the cars piled up."
The river was a jumble of twisted metal, smoke, flames, steam and bodies.
When the locomotive plunged over the side of the gorge, it took with it its
tender and four cars. The kitchen and baggage cars burned, and two coach cars
turned over and burned at the gorges brink.
The engineer and others died
because they were pinned underwater. Others burned to death from
the steam. Some bodies were trapped under the cars, other bodies laid-out
over the flat rocks. Some survivors had to cross the river barefoot and stood
there shivering. Those pinned were screaming.
"When we got there it was just an awful mess," a local resident
recalled years later. Leo Lobertini was one of the first on the scene. He and
his brother took their truck to the wreck, picking up as many miners as would
fit in the truck.
Dr. Ned C. Watts didn't know the wreck had occurred until "a young man
wearing only underwear briefs who was shouting" flagged him down. Watts
hospital had only one phone, so staff went to neighboring houses to call other
doctors only to discover that Watts was the only doctor available. He spent
several hours as the lone doctor at the wreck.
The rescue effort was a shoestring affair. Hundreds of Campbell County
residents flocked to the scene to help. They made the first rescues, using block
and tackle slings to hoist the wounded up the side of the gorge to the road. It
often took up to ten men to hoist a body up to the road. Some brought welding
torches to free the trapped soldiers.
A trucker who was passing through stopped to take a load of injured soldiers
to the hospital. He came back and took several more loads. Volunteers continued
to comb the river for dead and wounded.
Later in the night, doctors from nearby towns Corbin, Lafollette, Middlesboro
and Williamsburg joined Watts. They went from car to car giving morphine
injections to the trapped men. One soldier received plasma transfusions. Many
soldiers, their faces bleeding and dirty, waited for their more seriously
injured comrades to be taken away before they received care themselves.
The ambulances joined the rescue effort two hours after the train derailed.
They waited at the road for the injured and took them to hospitals in five
nearby towns.
Early the next morning, an Army major arrived to take over leading the rescue
effort. But the county's work was just beginning. Most of the injured had been
rescued by midnight, but there were still dead to be recovered and wounded to
look after.
That morning, more organized efforts were put in place. Boy Scouts went door
to door collecting shoes, clothes and sheets for the soldiers. Red Cross units
served food on the Jellico hospitals lawn. A local restaurant closed in order to
assist in preparing the food. Assembly lines were set up to make sandwiches, and
local volunteers transported the food to the rescue site. Local groceries were
emptied of bread.
Some help was not as organized. Many residents took in soldiers for the
night, giving them food, a place to bathe and a place to sleep.
The volunteers who had worked all night carrying the bodies out of the gorge
eventually built a makeshift dam to lower the water level to retrieve bodies.
They continued to work through the next three days.
In all, 34 men died in the wreck and 75 were injured (some survivors went on
to fight in North Africa, according to Watts). The wreck received scant national
press at the time (the New York Times, for instance, ran three short stories).
There used to be a historical marker at the wreck's site, but that has been
stolen. In 1993, Jellico area residents paid for a monument in downtown Jellico.
The unobtrusive granite block lists the names of all those who died in the
wreck, along with Jellico's other losses from war.
But the people who really remember the wreck are those who saw it and heard
it.
Jim Tidwell, chairman of the organization that built the monument and a
participant in the rescue effort, wrote a letter to the editor of the Jellico
newspaper in which he described what he would remember when he thinks of the
wreck:
"I will see the troop train casualties stretched out on the rocks in
the Clear Fork River and hear the ambulances once again as they wailed out
screams, carrying the injured to the Jellico Hospital. I will see the engineer
who was pinned under water with his hair waving at the surface. I will see a
soldier who was finally freed from the wreck after several hours, sit down on a
rock in the river, ask for a cigarette and then die. I will see the doctors
working from coach to coach injecting morphine to ease the pain of those
trapped."
(Tidwell has since passed away.)
Others who were personally involved in the wreck are dying, their memories
dying with them.
I want to tell their stories before they are all gone!
 |
Click
HERE
to see Emails & Letters from
Soldiers who were in the Troop Train Wreck,
their families and others. |
|
KNOXVILLE JOURNAL SUNDAY,
JULY 9, 1944
Army Releases Jellico Casualty List
Jellico Troop Train Accident
July 6, 1944
NAME
HOME OF RECORD
WAR DEPT. FILES INFO
ALQUIST, Russell J. of Paducah, Kentucky - ID: 35844994, Branch of Service: U.S. Army, Status: DNB
BAIRD, Robert H. of Canton, Ohio - ID: 35845004, U.S. Army, Hometown: Stark County, OH, Status: DNB
BETTAG, Leonard J. of Evansville, Indiana - ID: 35814845, U.S. Army, Vanderburgh County, IN,
Status: DNB
BOSWELL, Charles B. of Paducah, Kentucky - ID: 35844993, U.S.
Army, McCracken County, KY, Status: DNB
BRITZKE, Charles of La Porte, Indiana - ID: 35903820, U.S.
Army, La Porte County, IN, Status: DNB
BROWN, Jack C. of Louisville, Ohio - ID: 35845014, U.S.
Army, Stark County, OH, Status: DNB
BUCHANAN, James W. of Buttonsville, West Virginia - ID:
35845033, Randolph County, WV, Status: DNB
CATHEY, William R. of Paducah, Kentucky - ID: 35844988, US.
Army, McCracken County, KY, Status: DNB
CLAPP, Charles T. of Paducah, Kentucky -
CLARK, Donald J. of North Canton, Ohio
CLARK, James N. of Paducah, Kentucky
CLEMMENS, Wayne E. of Warren, Ohio
CLINGERMAN, Robert C. of Elkins, West Virginia
COLE, Raymond of Brazil, Indiana
EAVES, George E. of Orwell, Ohio
GOREY, William N. of Pataskala, Ohio
HILL, Donald E. of Canton, Ohio
HILTON, Eugene L. of Menett, Missouri
KIESLING, Raymond B. of Canton, Ohio
LILLIE, Raymond B. of Warren, Ohio
MASLINE, Don P. of N. Canton, Ohio
MATTIX, Dale Jr. of Akron, Ohio
McCHESNEY, William E. of Akron, Ohio
MILLER, Richard W. of Toledo, Ohio
PARKER, Ray W. of Trenton, Ohio
PAUMIER, Austin E. of Louisville, Ohio
REICHLE, Herbert of Bedford, Ohio
SHIPBAUGH, Joseph G. of Canton, Ohio [ID: 35845027 , U.S. Army, Status:
DNB]
WICKLINE, John R. of Orient, Ohio
WISBERGER, John R. of Akron, Ohio
WOOD, Ray Jr. of Kevin, Kentucky
WRIGHT, Clarence M. of Minerva, Ohio
YAPP , Raymond W. of Paducah, Kentucky
Engineer, John C. (Lyle)
Rollins
(He drowned and it was said you could see his hair just under the water.)
Brakeman, John Wm.
Tummins
(Was scalded by the steam, and spoke the words: "She Jumped the Tracks"
before he died)
Front Row, left to
right:
Virgil Marshall (died 1999)
Virgil Eversole |
Is is reported that all in this picture were on the train, but in
different cars. Virgil Eversole held his brother-in-law, Jimmy
Lizer, by
the hair of his head out of the water to keep him from
drowning. This pulled all the muscles in his shoulder, causing him to
be discharged from the Army and sent home.
|
Back Row, left to right:
Emory George (Jimmy) Lizer (still living)
Bumgard (Baumgard Bomgard Bomguard) (spelling?)
Billy Parker (died in hospital)
Art Wilson |
[NOTE: Are there any more pics of any of these
brave, young men out there??????]
There is one book on this incident:
She jumped the tracks: America's tragic stateside 20th century military
disaster.
by: John P. Ascher, N.p., M.J.A., 1994. 220 pp.
World War II Memorial Website: http://www.wwiimemorial.com
My dad, Edward (H. E.) Lea, was station agent/operator for the L&N at a
nearby depot and walked down to
the wreck site.
My dad: H. E. Lea / Edward Lea
Want to visit the area?
I would first go to downtown Jellico and see the monument.
Then I would drive to the site of the wreck
DRIVING DIRECTIONS:
-
(Coming from North of the Tennessee / Kentucky line......) Take
I-75 South
-
Cross the Kentucky/Tennessee line
-
Take the 25W Jellico Exit 160
-
Turn North (West) on Hwy 25W and go approx. 2 miles to
Jellico (the monument is in a parking lot downtown)
-
(To go to the wreck site) Go back South (East) on Hwy 25W
approx. 6-10 miles to where the river is narrow, close to the highway on
your left (AND, the railroad tracks are just on the other side of the
river)
-
Look for the plaque on the big rock down in the river.
(This road is narrow, curvy and there's not many places to pull over, so
drive slowly and be careful.)
NOTE: If you want a SCENIC DRIVE, get on 25W as soon as you
can!
MAP Of Jellico, Hwy 25W and the Troop Train Wreck site.
Jellico is at the red star on the left side of this map & the wreck site is
on the right side.
(NOTE: If you're driving from South of the Kentucky/Tennessee
line, Go North on I-75 and then follow directions #3 - 6 above)
Click HERE
for online driving directions to Jellico. (fill in your address)
Monument in Jellico Tennessee to those who died in the Troop
Train Wreck.
(The plaque above reads:)
|
SHE JUMPED THE
TRACKS
On July 6, 1944,
L&N Train no. 47 carried a U.S. Army troop from Fort Benjamin Harrison
in Indianapolis, IN southward to an unknown destination during World War
II. The train derailed at 9:05 p.m. at this location on R.R. marker 203.4,
hurling the engine and four train cars into the Clearfork River 90 feet
below. The disaster produced 135 casualties leaving 36 dead in the twisted
mass of flesh and steel. The words denoted at the top of this sign, are
the famous last words of the train fireman John Wm. Tummins, who was
aboard the ill-fated train. Badly burned and severely
injured, he was asked
what caused the wreck. "She jumped the track", he said,
"she just... jumped the tracks.". Soon after speaking these
words, Tummins died. The actual cause of the accident remains a mystery to
this day.
This sign has been
dedicated November 11, 2001 by Boy Scout Troop 456 from Jellico, TN in
honor and memory of those who tragically lost their lives in this horrible
accident. |
|
1944 Newspaper clipping on Luther Case
July 8, 1944 Newspaper clipping
SURVIVORS
(There were almost 1,000 Survivors and I would
like the names and photos of each one.)
| |
- Pvt. Robert L. Andrew, Mercer County,
Celina, OH
- Jack Arnett from Royalton, KY
- Cooper Balbridge, Akron Oh
- Paul Barlow, Kingwood, W Va
- Clarence Bates (no address listed)
- Bob Baynes, 7517 Quail Vista Lane, Citrus Heights, CA 95610,
916 723 8001 - (Click HERE
to read his 09-13-2005 email to me.)
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Homer Beacer / Homer Beaver / Homer Beever, (sp?) Columbus, OH
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Pvt. Lester Billings (injured), R 2
Sidney, OH
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Pvt. Harley Bernard "Bernie" Blakely, Sidney, OH 45365
- Pvt. Floyd E. Brehm, R.1, Celina, Ohio, (current: 419-942-1647, 1401 State Route 29, Celina, OH 45822)
- LeRoy Breitenstein
(no address listed)
- Howard Broeman, Louisville Ky
- Bumgard / Bumguard (sp????)
- Arthur (Art) Burns, Minerva, Ohio
- Charles Carroll, Minerva Ohio
- Luther E. Case, Wilshire, Ohio -
(click HERE to see a clipping)
-
R. B. Casey, Louisville, KY
-
Robert Charles Chaney
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Dave Clay, Greenfield, OH
- James Mitchell Cline, 1205 Hampton Ave,
Paducah Ky (son of Mr & Mrs Henry Cline of 14th & Monroe Sts)
- Chester R. Collins, Huntington WV
- Lester A. Cobb, Rockford, Ill
-
Raymond Combs - (Click HERE
to read his story.)
- Roy Cooper (seriously injured),
(son of Mr & Mrs Roy H. Cooper), 233 S. 31st St. Paducah, Ky
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Pvt. Ivan Corverston (injured), (husband of:
Virginia Howell Converston (sp?), RR 2 Sidney, OH
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Jay Creamer, Orient, OH
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Pvt. Richard L. Crouch, R. 1
Coldwater, Ohio
- Louis DeWitt, Wabash Ind
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Pvt. Walter W. Diller, Coldwater, Ohio
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Pvt. Clarence E. Donovan, Celina, Ohio
- Thomas Downs (no
address listed)
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Clarence L. Eckstein, Mercer County, Ohio (Click HERE
for his story)
- Pvt. John W. Elliot, Minerva, Ohio
- Virgil Eversole, (husband of Beatrice,
brother-in-law to Jimmy) No Industry?/Lizer, Oh (Virgil passed away in 1999
- Click HERE
to see his story)
- Chalmer E. Fields (husband of Virginia Schiff Fields)
S. Ohio Ave. Sidney, OH
- Forest Findley, R. 3
Celina, Ohio
-
Paul P. Fischer, Massillon, OH
- James Fricker (no address listed)
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Robert J. Funk, Wood County, Ohio (Click
HERE
for email story)
-
Pvt. Daniel H. Goettemoeller, R.1
St. Henry, Ohio
- Joe P. Hackworth, Charleston Oh
- Marvin R. Hamm, (no address
listed)
- Alva Hanna, Columbia Ohio
- James C. Henke (no address
listed)
- Fred Hughes (no address listed)
- Everett Johnson, Chesapeake Ohio
- Fred W. Jones, Steanes? Valley Ky
-
Houston Butler Kelley, Ashland, Ky (Click HERE
for his story)
- Wesley Krantz, Gary , Ind
- Robert Lewis / Robie Lewis / Robbie
Lewis (sp?) (no address listed)
-
Pvt. Wallace Lewis, Canton Ohio
- John Lightfritz, Canton Oh
- Burnett Little, Middlesport, Ohio
-
Emory George "Jimmy" Lizer, Canton Ohio, Husband to Hazel Lizer,
Brother-in-law to Virgil Eversole, (Click HERE
to see his story)
- Joe Malano (no address listed)
- Elmer Marshall, Fullerton Ky
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Virgil Marshall, Parkersburg, WV
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Harold McCombs, Quincey, OH / Quincy Ohio (sp?)
- Junior A. McGirr, Alliance Ohio
- Charles McKay, Sylvania Oh
- Loran McKee, Alliance, Ohio
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Pvt. Paul J. Moeller, Rt 6 Celina, Ohio
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Thomas Moore, Frener, KY
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Ray Murphy, Sidney, OH
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Richard J. (Dick) Murtz, Alliance, OH , (Sad news. Dick passed away
11-25-2005 at 4:32 PM)
-
Pvt. James F. Nevergall, Rt 1, Mendon, Ohio
- Harry N. Orihood, New Holland Ohio
- Owen Oswald (Oswald Owen ?), Hartfield, Ohio
- Corporal James C. Page, 12275 South Springboro
Road, Battle Ground Indiana 47920 (Click HERE
for his story)
- Ray Parker, Jr., Trenton, Ohio
- Pvt. Oscar Paumier, Louisville, Ohio
-
Stanley Pawlikowski (no address listed)
- Nevel F. Phelps (no address
listed)
-
Robert Prindle, Ashville, OH
- Paul Probst, Circleville, Ohio
- Thester Proctor, Lewtown Ky
- Robert Reed, Alliance, Ohio
-
Elvis H. Renfrow (no address listed)
- Frank Reynolds, Florence Ohio
- Charles Rhodes, Jr., son of Mr
& Mrs Charles Rhode, Sr., Rt. 5 Paducah Ky
- Lt. Duncan Robertson, New York
- Jack Ruff, Minerva Ohio escaped
injury
- Joseph Scott, Covington Ky
- Golden Shaffer
(no address listed)
- Robert (Bob) Shaub, Johnston Ohio
-
William E. Sherman, Pataskala, OH
- Lester Sickafosse, Canton, Ohio
-
Edgar M. Smalley,
1919-1989, , (son of Mr &
Mrs D R Smalley) Celina, Ohio (Click HERE
for his story)
-
Francis W. Smith (no
address listed)
-
Charles Spears,
Proctorsville, OH (alt: Proctorville, Ohio)
-
Earl C. Stewart, 123 Plantation
Way, Hawthorne FL 32640, 1-532-481-3238 (Click HERE
for his story)
-
Dan Struble, Gary,
Indiana
-
Orville Swigart, Dayton
Oh
-
Charles Tangi, Alliance
Oh
-
Austin Taunier of
Louisville (Ohio?) (critically injured)
-
James Tucker, Jr.
(seriously injured) (son of James Tucker, Sr.) Rt 6 Paducah, Ky
-
William C. Vaughn,
Huntington WV
- Pvt. Harold Vantilburg, (son of Mr.
& Mrs. Boyd Vantilburg), Center Township, OH
- Pvt. Lewis C. Wallace, Canton, Ohio
- Franklin Wattere
(no address listed)
-
Anthony Weber (no address
listed)
- James Wesner, Alliance, OH
- Herbert Wheeler, Liberty, KY
-
Arthur Leroy Wilson,
Waynesburg, O - (Click HERE
for his story)
- William Yellic (alt. spellings: Yelic & Yelle), Massillon, OH
(Click HERE
for his story)
- Pvt. Jerome H. Zehringer, Fort
Recovery, OH. (Sep 16 1925 -Aug 4, 2003)
- George Zimmerman, husband of: Ruth
Alice Zimmreman) (sp?), Port Jefferson Rd. Sidney, OH
- Pvt. Leonard Zumberger, (son of: John
Zumberger), Ft. Loramie, OH
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Survivor:
Jack Arnett
Royalton, KY
2006 contact info:
Jack Arnett
P.O. Box 4
Wheatfield, IN 46392
219-956-3012 (1944 photo of
Jack wanted) |
Survivor:
Bob Baynes
7517 Quail Vista Lane
Citrus Heights, CA 95610
916 723 8001
Click HERE
to read his 09-13-2005 email to me.
|
Survivor:
Pvt. Harley Bernard "Bernie" Blakely
Sidney, Ohio 45365Click
HERE
to read his account of the wreck.
Pvt. Blakely was 25 and severely
injured in the wreck, but survived.
He has since passed away. |
Survivor:
"Bumgard"Does anyone know
this man?? |
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Survivor:
Robert Charles Chaney
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Survivor:
Clarence L. Eckstein
Mercer County, Ohio
Click HERE
for his story
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Injured
Survivor:
Virgil Eversole
Husband of Beatrice Eversole
Brother-in-law to Jimmy Lizer
Ohio
(Virgil passed away in 1999)
Click HERE
to see his story
|
Survivor:
Chalmer Fields
Sidney, Ohio
(As of 8-23-2006 he was still
living and still in Sidney OH) Click
HERE
for his story
|
Survivor:
Robert J. Funk
originally from Wood County, Ohio Click
HERE
for email story
Click
HERE
to see a transcription of a 2007 recording he made for me.
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Survivor:
Houston Butler Kelley
Ashland, Ky
Click HERE
for his story
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Survivor:
Emory George "Jimmy" Lizer
Canton Ohio
Husband to Hazel Lizer
Brother-in-law to Virgil Eversole
Click HERE
to see his story
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Survivor:
Virgil Marshall |
Survivor:
Richard J. (Dick) Murtz
Alliance, OH
(Sad news. Dick passed away
11-25-2005 at 4:32 PM)
Click HERE
to read his 02-24-2005 email to me.
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Survivor:
Corporal James C. Page
12275 South Springboro Road
Battle Ground, Indiana 47920Click HERE
to read a 2008 letter about Corporal Page |
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Survivor:
Edgar M. Smalley
1919-1989
(son of Mr &
Mrs D R Smalley)
Celina, Ohio
Click HERE
for his story
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Survivor:
Earl C. Stewart
123 Plantation Way
Hawthorne FL 32640
1-532-481-3238
Click HERE
for his story
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Survivor:
Arthur Leroy Wilson
Click HERE
for his story
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Survivor:
William Yelic
Click HERE
for his story
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Click
HERE
to see a copy of a I.C.C. Report on the wreck
at http://www.drwebman.com/trooptrainwreck/icc_report
|
Click
HERE
to see Emails & Letters
from people who were in the wreck, their families
and others. |
|
Webmaster................
Phil Lea
868 Benton Station Road
Benton TN 37307
423-506-4000 cell
Email
me
(If your computer won't let you click on the link
above, open your email program and type-in: info@drwebman.com )
Why not make a Donation / Contribution to keep this website
going??????.............
Phil Lea
868 Benton Station Road
Benton TN 37307
423-338-2310 home
423-506-4000 cell
(If your computer won't let you click on the link above, open your email program
and type-in:
)
LETTERS & EMAILS THAT I'VE RECEIVED
as a result of My Tribute to
the.......
WWII Troop Train Wreck of July 6, 1944
www.TroopTrain.com
GOD BLESS AMERICA
SURVIVORS
Below are letters, emails and reports I've accumulated on this tragic troop
train wreck
Phil Lea
868 Benton Station Rd
Benton TN 37307
|
Date: Mon, 28 May
2007 17:54:38 -0400
Subject: Pictures of James E. Clark
From: "MARK MOORE" <MMOORE118@COMCAST.NET>
CC: alvabrenda@worldnet.att.net
Mr. Lea,
My wife found your website recently when one of my children was
doing
research for an 8th grade Tennessee History research paper. My son
had
chosen the train wreck because my grandfather was one of the ones
killed in
the wreck. My wife noticed that my grandfather's picture was missing
so I
decided to e-mail you a couple of the pictures that mom had given
me.
My wife prefers the group picture over the other. If you would crop
him
out of that picture that would be our preference. Thank you for the
time you
have spent putting the website together.
Sincerely,
Mark Moore
From: Cynthiaries8@aol.com
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 08:52:20 EDT
Subject: email from www.TroopTrain.com
In regards to the Troop Train accident, this was forwarded to me by
my daughter-in-law. Joseph G. Shipbaugh of Canton, Ohio would have
been my former father-in-law. I was married to his son (who was 4
years old at the time of his death) and we had 4 children before his
death in 1975. His wife Ruth is still living at the age of 87. She
re-married after his death and had 2 more children. Joseph would
have had 6 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
I will see if I can provide you with a photo.
This was very informative, and I have forwarded it to my children,
so they can read about it. My oldest son visited the site in Tenn
one year when he was on vacation.
Let me know if there is any other info that you would like to have.
Sincerely
Cynthia Shipbaugh Ries
North Canton, Ohio
The following article was written
by Ray Smith and published 05-22-2007 at:
www.oakridger.com
July 6, 1944: Oak Ridge responds to a troop train wreck
Author(s): D. Ray Smith Historically Speaking The Oak Ridger Date:
May 22, 2007 Section: Community
Editor’s Note: This is the first in
a series on this topic.
In late 1942, under the most unique and unusual circumstances, a
city was born almost overnight, and 3,000 people had to find another
place to live to accommodate the huge industrial effort to obtain
sufficient quantity of Uranium 235 for an atomic bomb. Oak Ridge was
born. In 1943 the city grew at an amazing pace never before seen.
The Oak Ridge community was a gated city, a “Secret City,” as it was
not on any map and badges were required of all who sought to enter
the military area known to various people first as the Kingston
Demolition Range, then the Clinton Engineer Works, and The Manhattan
Project in Tennessee, and finally Oak Ridge.
The local people had no idea what was going on. They wondered about
these unusual people coming to live where their small communities
once proudly stood. Yet the surrounding communities knew by word of
mouth that something very important was being done there and that it
had to do with the war effort. Occasionally the surrounding
communities interacted with the new and most unusual “Secret City,”
and often officials in surrounding cities exchanged communications
with the military officers there.
This unusual collection of young energetic and educated individuals
were placed in the midst of several communities of Appalachia that
had been settled starting a century and a half ago by a mixture of
people seeking freedom and independence without the crowded
conditions of the coastal cities. They took the land from the
Cherokees through various treaty negotiations and by just living on
the land they wanted. Over the years, a proud heritage had developed
in the area which was typified by the Overmountain Men’s victory at
King’s Mountain.
A fiercely independent people who were, at the same time, strongly
patriotic toward the young United States lived in the ridges and
valleys of East Tennessee. It is these people who were removed in
November and December 1942 with little notice and less consideration
to make way for the new wave of highly educated and singularly
focused people, the main leaders of whom knew their effort was
dedicated to winning a race for the very life of the planet.
These few individuals, both the leaders and the primary scientists
and engineers, understood the stakes. They knew the awful danger the
world faced if they could not be the first to create an atomic bomb.
Many other workers came only knowing that whatever it was that was
being done in this secret location was extremely important. It is in
this setting that the following story of uncommon valor in the face
of danger and response to the need for help is set.
In researching the 1944 train wreck which is the subject for
Historically Speaking, I had two primary sources for this material:
Bill Sergeant, the person who personally went to Jellico late in the
night as one of the leaders in the response from Oak Ridge to the
Jellico Troop Train Wreck on July 6, 1944; and Scott Chippendale, a
volunteer with the Oak Ridge Chapter of the American Red Cross.
Bill provided information about the troop train wreck and recalled
for me the tremendously strong impressions he received about the
enormous damage done by the train wreck. He quickly told me that the
night he spent there helping organize the assistance remains a vivid
memory firmly planted in his mind.
During the research for this column, I found a Web site that is
dedicated to the memory of the famous troop train wreck:
www.trooptrain.com, titled “My Tribute to the… WWII Troop Train
Wreck of July 6, 1944” by Phil Lea of Benton, Tenn. This Web site is
extremely informative, with photographs of many of those who died as
well as several of the survivors of the train wreck. Phil has also
done an excellent job of documenting the train wreck.
This project has grown significantly and will require more column
space than I first imagined. I hope you will enjoy the final product
as much as I am enjoying learning the details about the train wreck
and the response by Oak Ridge. It is yet another source of great
pride in our city’s support for our neighbors that started during
the earliest months of the Manhattan Project’s Clinton Engineer
District.
Some details about the ill-fated train and the awful wreck will help
put perspective on this disaster, often mentioned as one of the
nation’s major troop train accidents and placed in the top 25 United
Sates railway accidents of all time. The overwhelming response by
the citizens of Jellico and surrounding communities will make you
proud to be a part of this special part of our country.
A southbound Louisville-Nashville passenger train derailed at
approximately 9 p.m. on Thursday evening, July 6, 1944, and plunged
into the approximately 50-foot-deep Clear Fork River gorge at a
place known as the Jellico Narrows. The train, No. 47, a south-bound
second-class passenger train, consisted of steam engine No. 418,
four Pullman tourist cars, one Pullman kitchen car, one Pullman
troop-sleeping car, two Pullman tourist cars, one baggage car, three
Pullman troop-sleeping cars, one Pullman kitchen car, two Pullman
troop-sleeping cars and one baggage car, in the order named. All 16
cars were of steel construction.
The train was transporting new army recruits (the exact number is
unknown to me as my research has found numbers ranging from 400 to
1006) from Virginia to Camp Croft, S.C. However, this was not common
knowledge, as the exact destination of the train was kept secret.
In Cincinnati, a strange thing happened that surprised the riders in
the last tourist car. A new locomotive, number 418, backed up to the
car that was the last in line when they arrived. Some of these
riders may well have chosen the last passenger car because of it
being the last one and thus thought by some to be the safest place
to ride on a train.
Then in Corbin, Ky., another change may have taken place. Engineer
John C. (Lyle) Rollins and fireman John William Tummins, both of
Etowah, Tenn., had both just completed a 16-hour shift, and after
the required eight-hour rest were now working this train back toward
Tennessee. They could not know they had boarded and were running
their last train. One reference indicated that another engineer was
scheduled to have replaced Rollins at Corbin but did not show up.
Later, Tummins would indicate that something happened at Corbin,
Ky., that upset Rollins.
The change in terrain along the railroad right of way coming south
out of Kentucky and entering Tennessee is dramatic. The Kentucky
portion of the track is rather level with few curves and none of
them with significant enough degree to present a hazard to a train
traveling at a rather high rate of speed.
However, the curve where steam engine No. 418 left the track, taking
four additional railcars with it to the bed of Clear Fork River and
derailing four more railcars, is said to be the worst curve in the
entire L&N railroad line. The curve is a specified 10 degrees
(actually measured to be a little over an 11-degree curve) and is
the point at which a train coming south at a high rate of speed
(above 35 mph) would be expected to naturally wreck.
In the coming weeks we will examine the various investigations into
the reason for the train wreck and the response Oak Ridge made to
the disaster. We will look at an FBI investigation into sabotage,
two accounts of the Oak Ridge Manhattan District response to the
disaster, the Interstate Commerce Commission report, and several
newspaper accounts of the epic event. We will also look at the Red
Cross response and the history of the origin of the Red Cross in Oak
Ridge.
From: Bengecld@aol.com
Date: Tue, 22 May 2007 16:54:41 EDT
Subject: email from www.TroopTrain.com
I was eleven years old and lived in Morley, Tn. About four miles
from the train wreck.
My Dad took my brother and I to a movie in Jellico And arrived at
the train wreck around
10:p.m just minuets after . 25 W was blocked and we had to stay all
night
It was a Double header (2 Engines).
Claude Benge
From: "Ray Smith" <draysmith@comcast.net> Add to Address Book Add
Mobile Alert
To: drwebman@yahoo.com
Subject: email from www.TroopTrain.com
Date: Wed, 16 May 2007 22:35:40 -0400
Phil,
I am Ray Smith, historian in Oak Ridge , TN. I write a weekly column
for our local newspaper, The Oak Ridger. From: "Ray Smith" <draysmith@comcast.net>
Add to Address Book Add Mobile Alert
To: drwebman@yahoo.com
Subject: email from www.TroopTrain.com
Date: Wed, 16 May 2007 22:35:40 -0400
Phil,
I am Ray Smith, historian in Oak Ridge , TN. I write a weekly column
for our local newspaper, The Oak Ridger. www.oakridger.com The
column is known as Historically Speaking. You can see example
articles by going to the newspaper web site and searching for
“Historically Speaking.”
I am now writing a column on the historic train wreck at High
Cliffs, TN near Jellico , TN. Your web page is a gold mine of
information. I plan to reference your web page in the newspaper
article. I need about three photographs to illustrate the columns. I
plan to publish the story in about two or three weekly columns.
Could you please send me some high resolution images that I might
use in the newspaper? In particular, I would like to have images of
the wreck site and Brakeman, John William Tummins. Of course, I
would credit you with providing the images for my use.
The column is known as Historically Speaking. You can see example articles
by going to the newspaper web site and searching for “Historically
Speaking.”
I am now writing a column on the historic train wreck at High
Cliffs, TN near Jellico , TN. Your web page is a gold mine of
information. I plan to reference your web page in the newspaper
article. I need about three photographs to illustrate the columns. I
plan to publish the story in about two or three weekly columns.
Could you please send me some high resolution images that I might
use in the newspaper? In particular, I would like to have images of
the wreck site and Brakeman, John William Tummins. Of course, I
would credit you with providing the images for my use.
Ray Smith
On March 12th, 2007 I received the nicest letter
from Joy McKinney and two pictures of her brother, Charles T. Clapp
| |
|
3-9-07
149 Dreyfus Rd.
Berea, KY 40403
Dear Sir:
I am writing in the regards of the Troop Train Wreck
of 1944. We have been to the scene of the accident
twice & we also saw the memorial in fact we took
pictures as I told you on the phone Charles Clapp
was my brother he too was scalded to death & it
meant so much to see where he lost his life & also
to know that there is still people out there who
care enough to have a memorial in their homes. We
would have liked to have been able to read the
writing on the rock but couldn't get close enough. I
am enclosing two pictures of Charles & if you still
have one of your books please send it to me and I'll
send a check back for it. Since I have seen where
his life was taken it's like a weight is lifted off
of my shoulders & I know he is at rest.
Thanks again
for caring about our Service
boys & girls.
Joy E. McKinney |
|
|
Mr. Lea,
Just visited your Tribute again. It has been two years since I looked
at it. The emails you received were quite a surprise. I am the youngest
child of Ray W. (Billy) Parker. He was from the Canton area, not Trenton as
reported, having grown up in Waynesburg. Dad and Mom were living in
the Moreland addition near Waco at the time of his death. I have an older
sister and brother. Having been born six months after Dad's death, I
am also Billi Parker. I have attached a newspaper clipping my Grandmother
saved. Until finding your wonderful site and tracking down and talking to John
Ascher, we had so little information. Through your site I have found
one of the wreck survivors living just an hours drive away. He has become a
valued friend.
Thank your for your tribute.
Billi Parker Friese
Concord, CA
August 23, 2006
Dear Mr. Lea,
Enclosed is a picture of my Grandfather, Chalmer
Fields. He was in the Troop Train wreck in Jellico, Tennessee. He is
still living in Sidney, Ohio. I can remember the story of the wreck
that he told to me as a child. In June we visited the Troop Train
Wreck Memorial in Jellico and took pictures of his Great-Grandsons
standing in front of it. Please add his picture to your website.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Julie Huelskamp
bjhuelskamp@aol.com
To:
From: "Nancy McNamara Schnebly" <nanmcnamaravo@mac.com>
Subject: email from www.TroopTrain.com
Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2006 13:37:52 -0700
Dear Mr. Lea,
I am directing a play called "See Rock City" by Arlene Hutton and the
train wreck of July 6, 1944 is mentioned in the story line. So, I
searched on the internet to learn more about it and was brought to
your website.
Thank you so very much for providing this wonderful tribute to the
men who died | | | |
