407:, one dining car, five Pullman sleeping cars, and one coach. All fifteen cars were standard heavy weight (all-steel) cars. The train derailed while moving at a speed of 59 miles per hour (95 km/h). It continued diagonally across other tracks approximately 400 feet (120 m) before being stopped by a rock embankment. Eleven of the cars derailed and most sustained major damage. The fourth car came to rest on its side on East Main Street which ran parallel to the tracks. The remaining four cars remained on the track and had minor damage. The two train-service employees killed were the engineer and the fireman, J.Y. Smith. All of the four parallel tracks were blocked by the wreckage. The engine's boiler exploded upon striking the rock wall, sending fragments up to a quarter-mile (400 m) away.
568:
the river farther south and filling in the old channel. The fourteen month construction project reduced the bend from 7° 24′ to 1° 30′ and allows trains to continue through the bend at normal speed. 6,300 feet (1,900 m) of roadbed were reconstructed on an embankment averaging 65 feet (20 m) in height separating the roadbed from the river. Creating a 20 feet (6.1 m) deep, 150 feet (46 m) wide new channel for the river required blasting and excavation of 138,000 cubic yards (106,000 m) of rock and was the largest part of the project. The project cost $ 2.5 million. According to the railroad, the improvement was planned immediately after the accident but due to shortages of material and manpower caused by
28:
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584:, an annual award presented to American railroad companies in recognition of outstanding safety achievements. There was speculation that engineer Earl, a senior engineer with an excellent record, exceeded the speed limit on the curve because of the competitive pressure the passenger railroads were receiving from the
213:
at 6:50 p.m. with approximately 250 passengers on board with a scheduled arrival in
Chicago at 1:10 p.m. on April 20. It made its first stop in Albany, arriving fourteen minutes late and after switching engines, as the original engine was "not steaming well", was an additional seven minutes
567:
to advocate through the paper's editorials for the elimination of the sharp curve, where two people died decades earlier in the 1903 crash. Prior attempts were not implemented due to cost. A realignment to reduce the angle of the curve was completed on
November 19, 1947, which required diverting
382:
themselves began with J-1a 5200, built in 1927. However, 5315 was a member of the J-1e subclass built in 1931 for the railroad. It was also the first in the J-1e subclass to be produced. Until larger locomotives came along in the 1940s, J-1e 5315 along with the rest of the
477:
estimated that 4,000 people converged at the scene. Wreckage blocked direct vehicular access to the crash site, requiring rescuers to take a three-mile (4.8 km) detour between the site and the hospital a half-mile (800 m) away. At the state capitol,
428:
were tested at Albany and were working properly. The brakes successfully slowed the train at prior points of required speed reductions. An investigation into the derailment was undertaken by officials of the railroad, inspectors of the
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gave the story a two-column headline on page one on April 20, and on Sunday, April 21 it was still on the first page with a huge panoramic photograph of the wreck site. Photographs of the crash were published in the 2010 book
415:
The train was traveling 74 miles (119 km) per hour before it began to slow down at the curve. A surviving employee in the engine warned the engineer that the train was traveling too fast, but the engineer closed the
214:
behind schedule upon leaving Albany at 10:09 p.m. The train was operated by 65 year old engineer Jesse H. Earl, who had been an engineer since 1906 and was one month from retirement. It was proceeding to a stop in
445:. There was initial speculation that the roadbed may have been weakened by heavy spring rains but this was not cited in the final report. The track itself was in very good condition, having been laid the prior summer.
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were used to free victims. Rescue operations were made more difficult by rain, sleet and snow that began in the early morning hours of April 20. Injured victims were sent to hospitals in Little Falls,
1190:
230:. There it derailed in a violent crash at about 11:33 p.m. Engineer Earl initially survived the accident but died from his injuries before he could be extricated from the wreckage.
190:, United States. The accident was later found to have occurred due to excessive speed on the Gulf Curve, the sharpest on the Central's lines. It killed 31; an additional 51 were injured.
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70:
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were the largest locomotives used for high-speed passenger service on the
Central. The remaining cars were, in order, one express car, one baggage car, two coaches, four
1089:
501:
for entering the US illegally, were in the last car and were uninjured. (Another source says they were being transported to Canada, from where they entered the US.)
743:"Interstate Commerce Commission Washington Report of the Director Bureau of Safety Accident of the New York Central Railroad Little Falls, N. Y. April 19, 1940"
588:. He may also have been worried about being put further behind schedule once reaching Utica because one of the Pullman cars, with passengers destined for the
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of a newspaper train, consisting of three cars of New York City newspapers bound for upstate cities, occurred on the same curve and killed the engineer and
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directed the State Police and Public Works employees to "give all possible aid". The last body was pulled from the wreckage on April 21. Thirty-five
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247:
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The accident happened 2,895 feet (882 m) east of the Little Falls train station where the tracks run parallel to the north shore of the
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437:. In addition to excessive speed, the sudden closing of the throttle contributed to the crash due to effects of momentum of water in the
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246:, the sharpest curve in the New York Central system, a 7-degree bend, where the speed limit was 45 miles per hour (72 km/h). A
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Prior to this crash, the New York
Central had gone 13 years without a passenger fatality. The year before, it had received the
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Dozens of other trains were delayed in the days following the wreck; the site was bypassed by routing trains, including the
176:
A train crash with fatalities occurred shortly after 11:30 p.m. on April 19, 1940, when a first-class westbound
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1051:
Train Wrecks, Crashes, & Disasters The
Incredible True Stories of the Worst Wrecks in Railroading History
441:, and of the sudden compression of the slack between the cars, both factors causing the engine and tender to
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in 1990 at the junction of River Road and Route 5 mounted to a boulder (43° 2.563' N, 74° 50.943' W).
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714:
Grohdahl, Paul (May 14, 2015). "Haunting echoes of horrific 1940 Little Falls train wreck".
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Twenty-First Annual Report of the Board of
Railroad Commissioners of the State of New York
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Killed: 26 passengers, 2 Pullman porters, 1 train porter, 2 train-service employees
473:, Herkimer, Utica, and Ilion as well as to hotels, private homes and churches. The
239:
912:
Railroads
Triumphant: The Growth, Rejection, and Rebirth of a Vital American Force
600:, would have to be switched out of the train there to join a different northbound
538:
Injured: 47 passengers, 1 Pullman porter, 2 dining-car employees, 1 other employee
222:
at 11:07 p.m., it was a further two minutes behind schedule. It then passed
997:"Central's New Gulf Cutoff Operating; Main Bed of the Mohawk River is Shifted".
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858:"Fast Train is Wrecked, Newspaper Special Runs Off Track on New York Central".
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Grigsby, John N. (April 23, 1940). "Little Falls Normal Again After Wreck".
1001:. New York: New York Central Department of Public Relations. December 1947.
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at 11:25 p.m. and entered Little Falls, the only incorporated city in
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suddenly instead of applying more braking and the train derailed. The
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The crash caused John
Crowley, publisher of the local newspaper the
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and other nearby towns. Bonfires were set for illumination and
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A memorial marker was erected by the Gulf Curve
Chapter of the
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The wreck was on page one of newspapers across the country.
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Accidents and incidents involving New York
Central Railroad
778:"Death Toll in Little Falls Railway Crash Exceeds Thirty".
363:
The train was pulled by a 316,000-pound (143,000 kg)
1033:
Night of Disaster: The New York Central Gulf Curve Wreck
218:
originally scheduled at 11:31 p.m. When it passed
572:, the project was postponed until the end of the war.
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Railway accidents and incidents in New York (state)
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254:, at which time a speed limit was imposed there.
825:. Cornwall Books/Associated University Presses.
937:"3 Groups Hold Joint Hearing on Train Wreck".
1083:
8:
1031:Parker, Lucinda M.; Taylor, Davad A (1990).
972:Perkins, Susan R.; Hopson, Caryl A. (2010).
262:
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876:. Albany: State Legislative Printer. 1903.
17:
793:"Catastrophe: Wreck of the Lake Shore".
435:New York State Public Service Commission
677:
683:
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453:Rescuers responded from Little Falls,
287:NYC 5315 Class J-1e (4-6-4) locomotive
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201:may have been trying to make up time.
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888:Passenger Train Consists of the 1940s
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21:Little Falls Gulf Curve crash of 1940
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268:April 19, 1940
1211:1940 disasters in the United States
661:List of American railroad accidents
614:National Railway Historical Society
209:The train departed New York City's
391:sleeping cars (named respectively
14:
1136:Norton Fitzwarren, United Kingdom
890:. Wayner Publications. p. 2.
843:"Rail Disaster at Little Falls".
757:originally accessed from this URL
1216:Derailments in the United States
1161:
1156:
847:. Amsterdam, NY. April 20, 1940.
666:List of rail accidents (1930–49)
640:
626:
374:type in service since 1931. The
197:23 minutes behind schedule; the
26:
1053:. Landmark Productions. 1992.
551:Images of America Little Falls
431:Interstate Commerce Commission
293:(identity unknown) Baggage car
290:(identity unknown) Express car
133:Excessive speed on sharp curve
1:
1016:. Pittsburgh. April 22, 1940.
32:Commemorative plaque erected
916:. Oxford University Press.
782:. Troy, NY. April 20, 1940.
1232:
1124:Little Falls, New York, US
689:"Lake Shore Limited Wreck"
564:Little Falls Evening Times
311:Pullman sleeper-lounge car
193:The 15-car train had left
34:near accident site in 1990
1201:Herkimer County, New York
1186:Railway accidents in 1940
1151:
1098:Railway accidents in 1940
656:1940 in the United States
376:New York Central Railroad
357:
283:
184:New York Central Railroad
114:New York Central Railroad
25:
1196:1940 in New York (state)
1130:Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, US
821:Haine, Edgar A. (1993).
530:Casualties and reporting
1012:"Wreck at Gulf Curve".
634:New York (state) portal
976:. Arcadia Publishing.
974:Images of Little Falls
908:Martin, Albro (1992).
489:nationals en route to
211:Grand Central Terminal
188:Little Falls, New York
59:Little Falls, New York
999:The Central Headlight
939:Chicago Daily Tribune
495:United States Marshal
475:New York State Police
86:43.04162°N 74.84866°W
1014:The Pittsburgh Press
512:Commodore Vanderbilt
507:20th Century Limited
493:in the custody of a
350:Pullman sleeping car
344:Pullman sleeping car
338:Pullman sleeping car
332:Pullman sleeping car
326:Pullman sleeping car
317:Pullman sleeping car
305:Pullman sleeping car
299:Pullman sleeping car
602:Adirondack Division
524:West Shore Railroad
516:Water Level Limited
264:
91:43.04162; -74.84866
82: /
862:. August 28, 1903.
860:The New York Times
716:Albany Times Union
545:The New York Times
518:between Utica and
424:reported that the
320:NYC 560 dining car
278:Lake Shore Limited
179:Lake Shore Limited
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1172:
1142:Hommelvik, Norway
1111:Location and date
983:978-0-7385-7388-5
941:. April 23, 1940.
797:. April 29, 1940.
608:Historical marker
590:northern New York
497:, who were being
483:Herbert H. Lehman
467:acetylene torches
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745:. April 19, 1940
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1035:. The Authors.
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747:. Retrieved
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570:World War II
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557:Realignment
520:Schenectady
405:Poplar Dome
397:Poplar Arch
385:NYC Hudsons
315:Poplar Dome
303:Poplar Arch
89: /
65:Coordinates
1180:Categories
1126:(19 April)
1120:(12 March)
672:References
514:, and the
426:air brakes
369:NYC Hudson
324:Lake Bruin
248:1903 crash
244:Gulf Curve
151:Passengers
138:Statistics
124:Derailment
77:74°50′55″W
74:43°02′30″N
50:11:33 p.m.
1132:(31 July)
592:towns of
471:Frankfort
443:jackknife
422:conductor
258:Equipment
242:, on the
205:Departure
620:See also
586:airlines
526:tracks.
499:deported
480:Governor
455:Herkimer
433:and the
418:throttle
234:Location
199:engineer
55:Location
1100: (
749:May 11,
694:May 14,
604:train.
487:Chinese
393:Red Ash
389:Pullman
297:Red Ash
252:fireman
167:Injured
102:Country
40:Details
1057:
1039:
980:
920:
510:, the
449:Rescue
439:tender
403:, and
380:4-6-4s
195:Albany
159:Deaths
143:Trains
522:over
463:Ilion
459:Utica
411:Cause
372:4-6-4
276:#19,
273:Train
220:Fonda
216:Utica
130:Cause
1167:1941
1154:1939
1102:1940
1055:ISBN
1037:ISBN
978:ISBN
918:ISBN
795:Time
751:2016
696:2016
596:and
154:~250
110:Line
45:Date
378:'s
1182::
947:^
896:^
831:^
803:^
764:^
755:-
724:^
704:^
680:^
553:.
461:,
457:,
399:,
395:,
170:51
162:31
1104:)
1091:e
1084:t
1077:v
1063:.
1045:.
986:.
961:.
926:.
759:.
753:.
718:.
698:.
146:1
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