The Woman Who Stopped the Express
A quick-thinking resident of Ballard prevented a catastrophic train wreck by spotting danger from her bedroom window.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
In the early morning hours, Mrs. Nellie Sullivan saved a freight train from disaster at the Ballard crossing. Mrs. Sullivan was in her bedroom when she was startled by an unnatural light. It was the reflection from the railroad tracks, and a glance through the window showed her that the tracks were burning. Hearing the approach of the express train, the woman, without stopping for shawl or shoes, ran to the bridge, snatched a burning brand from the track, and put it out just in time to save the approaching train from a terrible disaster.
“Mrs. Sullivan, without stopping for shawl or shoes, ran to the bridge, snatched a burning brand from the track, and put it out just in time.”
Railroad safety and the potential for infrastructure disaster remain persistent anxieties in Seattle, particularly in transit-heavy corridors like Ballard and Interbay. While modern signal systems have replaced the 'unnatural lights' of 1899, the story underscores the long-standing role of local residents as the primary watchdogs of their neighborhoods.
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