Bridge Disaster Time Line

Bridge Disaster Time Line of Events

Date	Time	Event
Friday 12/29/1876		Northeast Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania are hit with a blizzard strength lake effect snow storm dropping blinding, heavy snows all day and into the evening. Recorded high temperature for the day is 27 Degrees, Farenheit and the low, at the height of the disaster, was 16 Degrees, Farenheit.
	3:00 pm	Pacific Express departs Erie, Pennsylvania, 2 1/2 hours late, and with the assistance of 4 pusher locomotives.
	6:52 pm	Pacific Express passes LS&MS Depot in Conneaut. Conneaut telegraph operator alerts the Ashtabula telegraph operator, Telegraph Office Manager, John P. Manning.
	7:24 pm	Pacific Express passes eastbound heavy freight.
	7:27 pm	Pacific Express rounds curve near east bank of gulf and approaches the Ashtabula Creek Bridge.
	7:28 pm	Engineer Daniel McGuire on the lead locomotive "Socrates" hears a "crack" from the bridge and notices his engine appearing to run up hill on the bridge and the trailing engine "Columbia" sinking.
		Top side lug on second angle block from west abutment on south truss shears off with a loud "crack" and causes the buckling outward of the three I beams, forming the south portion of the bridge's upper chord, which were continuous at that point. This action causes the bridge deck to begin to sink as the lead locomotive "Socrates" passes over it.
		Engineer McGuire pulls his locomotive's throttle wide open in an effort to gain the west abutment.
		South bridge truss begins to fall away starting at the second panel point from the west abutment as the locomotive "Socrates" passes onto the west abutment. The bridge deck begins to lean to the south.
		The tender of the "Socrates" and the trailing locomotive "Columbia" derail as a result of the leaning bridge deck.
		North truss begins to lean to the north as a result of the sinking bridge deck.
	7:29 pm	The tender of the "Socrates" attains the west abutment derailed. Its coupling to the locomotive "Columbia" breaks. Conductor bell rope to the cab of the "Socrates" breaks. Engineer McGuire closes his throttle and begins to stop his engine. While blowing the whistle of "Socrates" in an effort to call for help, McGuire looks back in horror at what he sees.
		Locomotive "Columbia" falls to the south side of the west abutment, slides down the fill adjacent to the abutment.
		North truss begins to fail and lands slightly to the north.
		First express car strikes forward and downward landing at the foot of the west abutment.
		Locomotive "Columbia" lands upside down, falling onto the first express car.
		Second express car and two baggage cars fall to the south side of the bridge and form a line across the ravine with the rear baggage against the east abutment.
		Wooden bridge deck and track fall straight down.
		First passenger coach lands in an upright position in the middle of the river near the bridge wreckage.
		Second passenger coach strikes around at an angle and turns on its side on top of the bridge wreckage on the North. It is crushed and broken in the fall.
		Smoking car strikes across the second passenger coach smashing it, and then fell on top of the first coach crushing it down.
		Drawing room car "Yokahama" leaps clear of the east abutment, and lands on the ice to the left of the bridge, 80 feet out.
		Sleeper "Palatine" lands beside the "Yokahama" to the right.
		Sleeper "City of Buffalo" strikes across the two in mid air and knocks the "Yokahama" on its side, crushing it thru its whole length. The "City of Buffalo" comes to rest landing on its forward end with its rear end high in the air resting on both the "Yokahama" and the "Palatine".
		Sleeper "Osceo" lands near the Palatine in the middle of the river.
	7:30 pm	Telegraph Office Manager, John P. Manning, inside the Ashtabula Station's baggage room hears the whistle of the Socrates. He states to the other men at the station "Here comes No. 5". He walks out onto the station platform and looks toward the bridge. He sees the headlight of the "Socrates" and a man swinging a lantern in front of the train.
	7:31 pm	John P. Manning runs down the station platform, toward the man swinging a lantern, nearly to the brick water tank, thinking "What's the reason for this man stopping that express?" He discovers the man swinging the lantern is car repairer Tim Sullivan. Manning hears Sullivan shout "No. 5 is off the bridge." Manning at first doesn't understand since he can see the headlight of "Socrates". After stooping down, Manning discovers a light coming from the flats under the bridge as if something was burning. Manning runs back to the station and exclaims "No. 5 is in the creek!" Everyone at the station runs toward the wreck. Manning starts toward the wreck then, mindful of his duty, returns to his post.
	7:33 pm	All survivors of the wrecked "Pacific Express" who can escape from the wreckage, do so quickly.
		Ashtabula Telegraph Office Manager John P. Manning sends an emergency flash message to all stations and headquarters that the bridge at Ashtabula has collapsed and that Train No. 5, the "Pacific Express" has been wrecked in the chasm below.
	7:34 pm	Mr. Henry Apthorp, Superintendent of Telegraph Repairs of the LS&MS, saloon keeper of one of the hotels, Michael Tinley, foreman of the fire engine "Lake Erie", James Manning, engineer of the station pump engine, and Charles Philbrook, the LS&MS Ashtabula Head Painter arrive on scene to aid to survivors of the wrecked "Pacific Express".
	7:37 pm	Flames begin to rise. Flames spread from car to car.
	7:40 pm	The entire wreck is a flaming pyre. Passengers are seen trying to flee only to perish by flame. Screams and shrieks of agony are heard coming from the burning mass and then followed by silence.
		Alarm bell at the "Lake Erie" Fire Company of the Ashtabula Volunteer Fire Department, located at Lake Street and Depot (West 32nd), is being sounded.
		Henry Apthorp assumes command of the scene.
	7:50 pm	The citizens of the village of Ashtabula arrive on scene and begin to assist survivors of the wreck to safety.
	8:05 pm	The station agent, Mr. Strong, arrives on scene, He asks Mr. Apthorp "What shall we do?" Mr. Apthorp replies "Get men to help up the wounded."
	8:15 pm	Firemen from the Ashtabula Volunteer Fire Department arrive on scene with their hand fire engine "Protection" and the steamer fire engine "Neptune". NOTE: Hand fire engine "Lake Erie" located near the station, closest to the wreck, never leaves quarters.
		Fire Chief G. W. Knapp asks the station agent "Where shall we apply the Water?" The reply echoing Mr. Apthorp's order "We want to get out the wounded, never mind the water." The station agent is asked a second time a short time later. His reply is "We don't want water, we want to get out the wounded . . . . . Get all the men to clear a road to the wreck."
	8:30 pm	Firemen still await orders to put out the fire. Eyewitnesses have seen living still in the wreck. The fire chief still yields to the orders of railroad officials. Buckets of water put into use by citizens of Ashtabula, not by the firemen and against the orders of railroad officials, to try and put out the flames.
	9:00 pm	Steps leading down to the station pump house are cleared. Passengers who were not critically wounded climb the stairs and receive refuge at hotels, saloons, and homes in proximity of the station.
	10:00 pm	A path is completed from the wreck to a wagon trail south of the wreck scene and wounded passengers are removed by sleigh. Passengers that died and were recovered from the wreck were layed along the banks of the Ashtabula River in proximity to the wreck itself and left. Critical victims are placed in sleds and hoisted up the west side of the gulf and are taken to hotels and homes near the station to be cared for by Ashtabula doctors.
	11:00 pm	Firemen are ordered to return to quarters with their fire engines, leaving the wreck still burning.
		Citizens return home with a sense that the bodies were left to be burned by design.
		Robbers begin to pillage and murder wounded passengers for their valuables.
	11:20 pm	Robbers descend upon the wreck scene and the dead in search of relics and valuables.
Saturday 12/30/1876	12:00 am	Wreck scene is abandoned except for an expressman guarding valuables in a safe.
		Fire at the wreck continues to burn consuming the bodies of the victims trapped within the wreck.
	1:15 am	Train arrives from Cleveland, Ohio, with the LS&MS Superintendent, the Assistant Superintendent, the Train Dispatcher, and five surgeons from the Homeopathic College.
	6:00 am	Train is loaded with wounded and departs for nearest hospital located in Cleveland. Note: "Columbia" Fireman Peter Levenbroe dies enroute to Cleveland.
	8:00 am	LS&MS begins clean up on the wreck of the Pacific Express. The remains of the dead are taken to a primitive morgue set up in the freight house across the tracks from the passenger station.
	9:00 am	Ashtabula Firefighter Fredrick W. Blakeslee photographs the wreck and dead of the Pacific Express.
	12:00 pm	Citizens of Ashtabula are chosen to serve on the Coroner's Jury to independently investigate the cause of the failure of the Ashtabula River Bridge and the fearsome fire which followed.
	-	The Chicago Tribune and Cleveland Leader publish newspaper accounts regarding the bridge disaster. The disaster is named by the media "The Ashtabula Horror".
Sunday 12/31/1876	3:00 am	Ashtabula Telegraph Office Manager John P. Manning goes off duty and heads home after being on duty in the telegraph office for nearly 48 hours straight.
Friday 1/5/1877		First local account of the bridge disaster appears in the newspaper article "The Disaster" published in the Ashtabula Telegraph.
Friday 1/12/1877		Ohio Legislature appoints joint committee to investigate Ashtabula Bridge Disaster.
Thursday 1/18/1877		Wooden Howe Truss bridge completed and placed into service. This bridge replaced the wrought iron bridge which fell.

Please note that the time line is a work in progress by the Ashtabula Railway Historical Foundation. Times listed are estimated and based upon eyewitness testimony given to the various investigations that followed the disaster.

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