Durand Union Station
P.O. Box 106
200
Railroad Street
Durand, MI 48429
Office Hours:
Tuesday to Friday
9 AM to 5 PM
Telephone:
(989)288-3561
Fax:
(989)288-3494
Email:
Durand Union Station
McCARTHY, James W.
39, born in Ireland, son of Timothy and Anna Stacy McCarthy,
buried in Battle Creek, Grand Trunk Trainmaster between Port
Huron and Battle Creek.
SANGER, Albert W.
41, born in Michigan, Special Agent for Grand Trunk, buried
in Jackson
LARGE, A. N.
Special Agent for Grand Trunk at Battle Creek, buried in
Jackson
GRIFFIN, William 36, born Canada, son
of John and Mary Griffin from Saginaw, Common Laborer
HOWLAND, Charles/Andrew
JOHNSON, Allen A very large man know as fatty Johnson
KERNS, Frank/Charles also called "Ringling" Had a sister
Mrs. Minnie Gaines in Bay City
KEYES, Joseph H. called "Back Door Red" Was initially
listed as James Keyes from a small town in Alleghany
County, Pennsylvania, identified August 21, 1903, from
family photographs but unable to remove his body even
with the use of a new metalic coffin
MANWELL, C. R.
STILLMAN, John Alias: Red McGuire, Animal Red and D.
Berron Gardner Worked in the menagerie
SMITH, George Blacksmith from Geneva, Ohio
THOMPSON, John - Peru, Indiana, age 36, died Harper
Hospital, Detroit. Died of shock from fractures to the
right leg and bruises
WILSON, JOSEPH A driver from Pittsburg, PA.
Unidentified:
Male, Tattoo on his arm
Male, ....Charles Red faced with an American flag & "C"
"H" tattoo on arm
Sources:
Durand Union Station Archives
G.Melain's Death Records as compiled by Mrs. Wayne
Roddy, 1980
Margaret Zdunic 1999
Wallace Circus Wreck
Durand - 7 August 1903
Except for circus trainmaster Frank Thorp,
the executives, acrobats, animal trainers and other
performers were riding in the Pullman cars toward the rear
of the second train section and escaped injury. "Most of the
dead and seriously injured were crew bosses, canvasmen,
stake drivers, teamsters and other roustabouts."
According to Stevenson air brakes had been in use for only
ten years before the circus accident and they were still
insufficient. A downgrade from Bancroft to Durand always
contributed to the speed. Yet, Stevenson did not understand
why the second train was going so fast as all trains had to
stop at the Durand crossing to take on coal and water. Steam
engines carried limited supplies and had to stop frequently.
Hotel Richelieu was used as a temporary hospital and morgue.
Two Grant Trunk officials, James Foley and John Hazel, were
pulled out of the wreckage and placed on a lorry which was
pushed down the tracks to the hotel. Others were carried or
moved on drays. The animals were buried about where they
lay, 1,500 feet west of the south Oak Street crossing.
This photograph shows a 1907 circus
railroad car, similar to those involved in the Wallace
wreck. In an interview before the Durand tragedy, the
sleeping cars were described as being fitted with stationary
berths, with all the comforts of home. The Wallace spokesman
went on to say that the new rail purchases in 1903 included
two sleeping cars, three horse cars, one storage car and
five flat cars.
G.E. Kies, a special agent with the circus said, "In the
rear car there were 48 after the wreck, men lying in a sound
sleep when the wreck occured. he engine on the second
section crashed through the caboose, lifting itself, and
crashed through upon sleeping men. Twenty of them lost their
lives in that car or died reaching the hotel. The sleeper
they were in was sent to us by the Illinois Central people
to replace a car that was wrecked in Shelbyville, Illinois
when we were mixed up in another accident on the 16th of
June. Two were killed in that wreck and they were sleeping
in the same car, in the same positions, as the men who were
killed last night."
Reverend Dennis Hayes of St Mary's Church, Durand baptized
and gave the Last Rites to all the dead and severely injured
men.
Grand Trunk Engineer Charles Probst
stated, "I did everything possible to stop the
train, but the air brakes failed completely. One
mile from Durand I was warned that the first train
had stopped and I applied the air to the brakes,
then reversed the engine and whistled for the hand
brakes." Probst's theory was that the air brake was
out of order, as he had had trouble with it before
that day.
The Jury concluded that the wreck might have been
avoided if the engineer had watched his air gauge
before him and if the cars had been properly
equipped with hand brakes.
The County Prosecutor was Selden S.
Miner.
F.A. Rankin, Detroit, Attorney for Grand Trunk.
Presiding Judge Frank Karrar also served as acting
coroner. A Justice of the Peace in Durand, he also
manufactured tin and sheet iron work at his business
on Saginaw Street, Durand.
Jurors:
Leonard Soper, Hotel Landlord
Eugene Nicholas, Former Railroad Worker Floyd
Derham, Miller Morrel Harrington, Businessman M.H.
Avery, Grocery Clerk William Putnam, Insurance Agent
Physicians:
Joseph Marshall, Frank S. Love, Ambrose Cowles and
Robert C. Fair, all of Durand. Newspaper accounts
indicate there were four additional doctors in
Durand, however, they remain unknown at this time.
Dr. Russel Wixom of Bancroft rode into town on a
pump car. Other Doctors came from nearby towns and
those from Detroit went home with over sixty injured
patients who were cared for at Harper Hospital.
HOWLAND, Andrew/Albert
Resident and Buried in Schenectady, New York. Mother's
name was Fanny Willis
KELLEY, John
Showman, buried Indianapolis, Indiana
LARSON, Lars/Lafe
buried Cambridge, Ohio, Six Horse Driver
LEARY, John
Boss of Ring, Springfield, Illinoi
McCOY, John
Buried Cincinnati, Ohio, body sent to his wife in
Ontario, Boss Canvasman of side show
PURCELL, John
Buried in Perrin, Indiana, Boss Canvasman
RICE, Robert
Boss Harnessmaker, Residence given as Geneva, Ohio and
Sand Lake, Michigan
SANDS or SANDERS, Charles
Buried Perrin, Indiana
ST. CLAIR, Harry - Reserved Seat Man
STEWART, John
Denver, Colorado, died at Harper Hospital, Detroit, 3
December 1903, age 31 years, died of shock following
surgery for a broken back. He was described as a
handsome and dignified man who loved to read. He was
orphaned with the deaths of his parents from
Consumption. When not with the circus he was a Gold
miner and worked in a gambling house for $3.00 a
day.
THORP, Frank S
37, August 5, born in Michigan, resided in Dundee.
Single, buried in Dundee, son of Frannie W. Thorp
Crew Trainmaster.
TILLY, Frank
Rising Sun, Indiana, died at Harper Hospital, Detroit
of ruptured bladder, internal bleeding and other
injuries.
TOFFLEMEYER
26, son of James Tofflemeyer, buried Orient, Iowa
WRIGHT, Robert
Showman for Wallace
YORK, Edward
38, Teamster, resident of and buried Terre Haute,
Indiana
* Wallace Circus Wreck * News from Harper Hospital * A Predawn Disaster *
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