Geo. T. Lattimer |
| Posted 2008-02-24 by Judy Wight Branson |
| Newspaper Unknown April 21, 1892 Thursday night at 12 o'clock, Geo. T. Lattimer, fireman on No. 19. Pacific express, eastbound, commited the greatest act of heroism that is accorded man to do. He voluntarily gave up his life for the passengers in his care. The circumstances were especially distressing and doubly heroic when it is known that Lattimer leaves a young bride of only a few months in Tucson. Thursday night No. 19. was slightly behind and running ahead of schedule speed to make up the waste. Twenty-six miles east of Yuma, near a small flag station called Lingtra, she ran into a band of cattle, ditching the engine, baggage. express and mail car and one passenger coach. Fireman Geo. T. Lattimer was instantly crushed to death under the ponderous engine. Engineer Holiday was badly bruised about the chest and was likewise badly scalded. A. L. Pritchard, route agent, W. A. Smith, Wells; Fargo's messenger, and Baggageman Sullivan were all more or less injured. Among the passengers, though many were badly shaken up, there was the same old story sent out over the wires, "nobody hurt-fireman killed." The accident was so sudden that the passengers appeared not to realize what had occurred until the terrible fact dawned upon them that a man lay mangled and dead in his efforts to save their lives. The engineer and fireman could have escaped injury if they had jumped from the train, but in doing so they would have sacrificed the lives of many passengers. The accident was simply unavoidable and it is to the credit of the brave engineer and his unfortunate fireman that the wreck was not any worse. The body of Lattimer and the injured were sent to Tucson early yesterday morning, a track having been built around the wreck. At Tucson the platform was crowded with railroad men waiting for a glimpse of their unfortunate brothers. The young wife, so suddenly widowed, was almost prostrated with grief and appeared hardly to realize the awful catastrophe. |
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