Fatal Train Wreck Near Pelham Manor in 1902

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On September 26, 1902 there was a fatal train wreck on the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line near Pelham. The conductor of the train, George Hart, was killed in the accident.

A brief account of the wreck appeared in The Sun on September 27, 1902. It read as follows:

"NEW HAVEN CONDUCTOR KILLED.
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Fatal Freight Accident on New Haven Road Near Pelham Manor.

PELHAM MANOR, N. Y., Sept 26. -- As the result of a freight wreck on the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, between Pelham Manor and Woodside early this morning George Hart, a conductor, living at 153 St. Ann's avenue, in The Bronx, was killed, and the rest of the crew had a narrow escape. It is said that the accident was due to an optical illusion.

Conductor Hart's train had just rounded a sharp curve beyond Pelham Manor when a locomotive, running light, came around the curve after it and ran into it.

According to employees of the railroad company, the tower operator gave the engineer the signal that the track was clear, with the understanding that he was to run cautiously. He went ahead slowly until a short distance he began rounding the curve. The curve made it appear to him that the freight was on another track, and he opened the throttle wide."

Source: New Haven Conductor Killed, The Sun, Sep. 27, 1902, p. 2, col. 5.

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