A Rock Slide Throws a Northern Pacific Freight Into the River
An eastbound freight wreck near Bristol leaves one brakeman missing and two crewmen injured, delaying the southbound overland train.
An eastbound freight train on the Northern Pacific ran into a rock slide in a canyon three miles east of Bristol, a station between Cle Elum and Ellensburg, at 1 o'clock this evening. The engine and six cars were overturned, partly in the river. Brakeman Fitzgerald is missing. Engineer Hefhrlcks is badly cut about the head, and Brakeman Stanley received serious injuries. The wreck has delayed the southbound overland train several hours.
“Brakeman Fitzgerald is missing. Engineer Hefhrlcks is badly cut about the head, and Brakeman Stanley received serious injuries.”
Rock slides still close Cascade passes and strand freight today; this 1896 wreck is an early reminder that the mountain route was—and remains—a fragile lifeline.
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