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stop him?" Johnson sounded the emergency whistle, but there was no one at the rear of No. 4 to hear it. The train passed on the assumption that the clear train order board indicated that the line ahead was clear. Also, the engineman and conductor failed to visually inspect the train register at Shops
Junction to ascertain as to whether No. 1 had yet arrived. That was required by operating instructions issued by the railroad's management prior to the wreck.
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Shortly after 7:20 a.m. the two trains collided at
Dutchman's Grade near White Bridge Road. It is estimated that the westbound train was traveling at about 50 mph (80 km/h), while the Nashville-bound train was running at 60 mph (100 km/h). Many of the wooden cars were crushed
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and lax enforcement of operating rules led to the worst passenger train wreck in U.S. history. Had the tower operator properly left his signal at danger, had the conductor monitored his train's progress rather than entrusting it to a subordinate, or had the crew inspected the train register at Shops
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delegated the responsibility of identifying No. 1 to the remainder of the crew. While collecting tickets, the conductor mistook the sound of a passing switch engine with empty passenger cars as No. 1. The crew either made the same error or were negligent in properly identifying the train.
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from the tower's train order signals, indicating all was clear. As he stopped to record the train in his logs, Johnson noticed that there was no entry showing that the opposing train No. 1 had passed. Johnson reported to the dispatcher who telegraphed back, "He meets No. 1 there, can you
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operators, all of whom failed to properly account for the presence of train No. 1 on the line. The ICC also pointed to a lack of a proper system for the accurate determination of train positions and noted that the wooden construction of the cars greatly increased the number of fatalities.
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Meanwhile, train No. 1, pulled by locomotive No. 281, also a G8a class 4-6-0 ten-wheeler built by
Baldwin in 1905, was heading into Nashville from Memphis. Containing one baggage car, six wooden coaches, and two
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Both trains required the use of a single-track section approximately 10 miles (16 km) long in the western portion of
Nashville. According to contemporary practices, the inbound train (No. 1) retained the
294:, at 7:00 a.m.; and the No. 1 from Memphis, about half an hour late for a scheduled arrival in Nashville at 7:10 a.m. At about 7:20 a.m., the two trains collided while traversing a section of
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416:(ICC) listed the dead at 101, though some reports had the death toll as high as 121. At least 171 people were injured. Many of the victims were African-American laborers from
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Junction as required, the accident would not have happened. The wreck provided the impetus for most railroads to switch to all-steel passenger cars.
592:"Interstate Commerce Commission, Report of the Accident Investigation Occurring on the NASHVILLE, CHATTANOOGA AND ST. LOUIS RAILWAY, NASHVILLE, TN"
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and Rafe Van Hoy told the story of the wreck in the song "The Great
Nashville Railroad Disaster (A True Story)". The song was recorded by
57:
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376:. This was not a passenger stop but rather the junction where the railroad's mainline track to Memphis narrowed down to just one track.
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At 7:07 a.m. on the day of the accident, the
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway ("NC&StL") train No. 4 departed
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in June 1948. #282 was also sold and scrapped in April 1949. None of their sisters, from #280 to #286, survive either.
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The locomotives involved in the wreck, #281 and #282, were rebuilt in 1919 and continued in service throughout the two
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As No. 4 approached the interlocking tower at Shops
Junction, tower operator J. S. Johnson showed a clear
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In its official report, the ICC was harsh on the NC&StL. A combination of poor operating practices,
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It was to have been the last trip for the engineer of the
Nashville-bound train before his retirement.
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665:, (the chapter entitled,"Wipe The Clock and Pray"), Copyright 2001 Dain L. Schult, TLC Publishing".
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line known as "Dutchman's Curve" west of downtown
Nashville, in the present-day neighborhood of
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until their retirement in 1947 and 1948 respectively. After their retirement #281 was sold and
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in U.S. history, though estimates of the death toll of this accident overlap with that of the
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in
Nashville, bound for Memphis. The train, pulled by locomotive No. 282, a G8a class
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or hurled sideways. The sound of the collision could be heard two miles (3 km) away.
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To this day, the crash remains the worst railroad accident in American history.
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The two trains involved were the No. 4, scheduled to depart Nashville for
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Accidents and incidents involving Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
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548:
Wood, E. Thomas (July 6, 2007). "Nashville now and then: Off the rails".
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of witness to aftermath of the crash (Link inactive as of June 13, 2012)
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The Day the Whistles Cried: The Great Cornfield Meet at Dutchman's Curve
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The Day the Whistles Cried: The Great Cornfield Meet at Dutchman's Curve
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27:
1918 rail transport disaster in Nashville, Tennessee, United States
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648:"N. & C. Wreck Near Nashville Takes Toll of Dead and Hurt".
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While train No. 4 traversed the double-track section, the
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in 1905, consisted of two mail and baggage cars and six wooden
29:
620:"121 Persons Are Killed And 57 Injured In Train Collision".
420:
and Memphis who were coming to work at a gunpowder plant in
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at 7:09 a.m., thirty-five minutes behind schedule.
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St. Croix, New Brunswick, Canada / Vanceboro, Maine, US
263:, United States. Two passenger trains, operated by the
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of steel construction, train No. 1 had departed
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2007 News article with links to audio recollections
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Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis-The Dixie Line
639:Kilen, Mike (July 5, 1998). "That Mournful Sound".
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1130:Railway accidents and incidents in Tennessee
475:ever since the 1980 merger between both the
265:Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
199:Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
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80:Learn how and when to remove this message
43:This article includes a list of general
540:
471:, is still in use under the control of
1140:Transportation in Nashville, Tennessee
763:Rogers Pass, British Columbia, Canada
7:
1125:20th century in Nashville, Tennessee
781:Aisgill summit, Westmorland, England
844:Guyandotte River, West Virginia, US
607:Bureau of Transportation Statistics
879:Exeter, New South Wales, Australia
49:it lacks sufficient corresponding
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996:Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne, France
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609:National Transportation Library.
570:. Ideas into Books. p. xv.
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862:Ais Gill, Westmoreland, England
467:The track, now located west of
355:four hours earlier, and passed
1019:Little Salkeld, United Kingdom
725:Railway accidents in the 1910s
596:Interstate Commerce Commission
414:Interstate Commerce Commission
307:Interstate Commerce Commission
1:
683:Text of 1918 local news story
528:Andria–Corato train collision
255:occurred on July 9, 1918, in
1002:Shepherdsville, Kentucky, US
481:Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
469:Saint Thomas - West Hospital
1166:
932:St Bedes Junction, England
757:Wellington, Washington, US
435:In the 1970s, songwriters
1135:Railway accidents in 1918
1085:
949:Boston, Massachusetts, US
661:by Dain L. Schult, a/k/a
450:I've Got Something to Say
253:Great Train Wreck of 1918
99:
95:Great Train Wreck of 1918
18:Great train wreck of 1918
827:Ditton Junction, England
337:Baldwin Locomotive Works
305:An investigation by the
1031:Nashville, Tennessee US
984:Houten, the Netherlands
804:Indianola, Nebraska, US
598:. 1918-08-16. p. 7
523:Lists of rail accidents
119:; 106 years ago
64:more precise citations.
1049:Brooklyn, New York, US
920:Quintinshill, Scotland
775:Novato, California, US
769:Spring Creek, Iowa, US
751:Nairn, Ontario, Canada
566:Thorpe, Betsy (2014).
821:Corning, New York, US
349:Pullman sleeping cars
335:ten-wheeler built by
169:36.12944°N 86.84806°W
1025:Hammond, Indiana, US
955:Herceghalom, Hungary
885:Carrbridge, Scotland
672:Thorpe, Betsy. 2014.
622:Nashville Tennessean
515:United States portal
277:Malbone Street Wreck
972:Edinburgh, Scotland
908:Guadalajara, Mexico
174:36.12944; -86.84806
165: /
1066:Vigerslev, Denmark
1037:Weesp, Netherlands
798:Hopkinstown, Wales
473:CSX Transportation
447:on his 1980 album
311:interlocking tower
292:Memphis, Tennessee
1120:1918 in Tennessee
1107:
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856:Bramming, Denmark
850:Chumhill, England
731:Location and date
550:NashvillePost.com
287:, the same year.
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117:July 9, 1918
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16:(Redirected from
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652:. July 9, 1918.
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429:human error
422:Old Hickory
300:Belle Meade
216:Human error
172: /
148:Coordinates
62:introducing
1114:Categories
881:(13 March)
777:(8 August)
771:(21 March)
602:2023-08-02
535:References
458:World Wars
374:roundhouse
323:Departures
221:Statistics
160:86°50′53″W
157:36°07′46″N
124:1918-07-09
45:references
1027:(22 June)
887:(18 June)
858:(26 July)
765:(4 March)
759:(1 March)
408:Aftermath
396:Collision
381:conductor
261:Tennessee
257:Nashville
208:Collision
142:Tennessee
138:Nashville
70:July 2011
1033:(9 July)
986:(7 June)
922:(22 May)
823:(4 July)
806:(29 May)
487:See also
479:and the
462:scrapped
418:Arkansas
363:Approach
357:Bellevue
353:McKenzie
318:Incident
285:New York
281:Brooklyn
195:Operator
134:Location
443:singer
341:coaches
242:Injured
185:Country
129:7:20 am
122: (
109:Details
58:improve
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389:signal
234:Deaths
226:Trains
47:, but
1101:1920s
1088:1900s
333:4-6-0
213:Cause
1059:1919
1012:1918
965:1917
942:1916
895:1915
872:1914
837:1913
814:1912
791:1911
738:1910
572:ISBN
412:The
251:The
114:Date
279:in
245:171
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