Author Topic: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12  (Read 27071 times)

John Scott

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #15 on: October 06, 2016, 07:37:52 AM »
The undoubted forensic skills of this group are certainly on show. To assist further, I have cropped out the less vital parts and re-posted the result. (I am happy to e-mail a high resolution scan of the whole thing to anyone who wants one.)

I think I see bridge guard rails, to the left. I am not sure what the red-coloured parallel but separated boards are, just to the right of the locomotive cab roof. I am not sure that I can identify more than, perhaps, a couple of women amongst all those men – were women not encouraged to ride on country narrow gauge trains, back then?

I have consulted my copy of the Gospel according to St. M. (1959 edn.) and I see the reference, on page 184, to “those made-in-Germany coloured postcards” (are there more than one card of this wreck?). Moody reports that “according to local recollections it was a Fourth of July excursion train”. That does not tally with the date on this card.

Perhaps the day will come when there is an archaeological dig at the derailment site (or a bridge-building project) and there will be uncovered lumps of coal, gold watches and all sorts of other valuables that became dislodged in 1905.

John Scott

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #16 on: October 06, 2016, 07:42:25 AM »
Sorry, I posted the wrong image, just now. here is the cropped one.

Greg Klein

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #17 on: October 06, 2016, 08:27:20 AM »
Once the leaves fall, would there be any identifiable features through the trees for a comparison photo?

James Patten

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #18 on: October 06, 2016, 08:56:25 AM »
The wreck is known as the Mason's Wreck.  I don't think there were any women along, because Mason's is a men-only organization.

Phil McCall

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #19 on: October 06, 2016, 03:38:14 PM »
I would guess that the red board near the passenger's feet is what is left of the east side truss after the train knocked it off. The original railroad was, to use the old Seinfeld expression, "excessively careful with money" and probably wouldn't have paid for guard rails on the bridge.

Mike Fox

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #20 on: October 06, 2016, 05:42:15 PM »
Consider that this was a b&w image originally. Colors may or not be correct. That red wood should actually be a weathered grey piece of wood
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John Scott

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #21 on: October 11, 2016, 05:08:42 AM »
Had I been better progressed with my reading, I would have realised, sooner, that Masons' Wreck is well described and clearly illustrated in "Two Foot to Tidewater" by Jones and Register, a book to be recommended.

Philip Marshall

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #22 on: October 11, 2016, 09:53:00 AM »
But it's good to see the postcard finally, and also to have some confirmation of the date of the wreck.

Mike Fox

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John Scott

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #24 on: October 28, 2016, 05:48:19 AM »
Well done!

Bill Baskerville

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #25 on: October 28, 2016, 11:50:49 AM »
Another interesting thing is how deep the locomotive is into the water.  Either the water was a lot deeper than I have ever seen, or it dug really far into the stream bed.  I wouldn't think it would have been able to dig that far into the existing stream bank.  There must have been a lot more water then than now.
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James Patten

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #26 on: October 28, 2016, 01:21:04 PM »
I wonder how the engine crew (especially the fireman) got out alive, unless they bailed beforehand.

Wayne Laepple

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #27 on: October 29, 2016, 07:37:46 AM »
Perhaps the locomotive dammed up the stream.

Bill Fortier

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #28 on: October 29, 2016, 08:03:21 PM »
Curse those puny pixels. What I thought was a stovepipe was the displaced board of the brakeman's platform on that car.

Here's the other other photo.



This is the downstream side, so I'd attribute the water depth to a generous wet season rather than the engine damming the stream.

John Scott

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Re: Head Tide Wreck of 1905-09-12
« Reply #29 on: January 15, 2021, 06:57:41 AM »
In the third post of this thread, Mike Fox drew attention to the former name of Trout Brook - Carleton Brook (according to the spelling shown on the postcard).

I remember some recent discussion about the name to be given to the (temporary) northern terminus that is being created at Route 218. It will be the destination, for some time. According to my knowledge, a final decision has yet to be made.

I wonder whether consideration has been given to naming the terminus "Carleton"?

JBS