Young Boy Killed by Electric Streetcar
A tragic streetcar accident claims the life of an 11-year-old child in Fairhaven.
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.
The first fatal accident on the Fairhaven & Whatcom electric railway occurred about 10:30 today, when Matt Johnson, Jr., the young son of Mr. and Mrs. Matt Johnson of Whatcom, aged 11 years, was run over by a car on Harris Street, near Sixth, in this city. He was playing ball with some companions on the street and ran in front of the car when it was only two or three yards away. It was impossible to stop the car in time, and the boy was thrown beneath the wheels; both legs were cut off above the knee. He was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died about 3 o'clock this afternoon.
“He was playing ball with some companions on the street and ran in front of the car when it was only two or three yards away.”
This tragedy highlights the dangers inherent in the rapid implementation of industrial infrastructure like electric railways in residential neighborhoods. It echoes contemporary conversations about street safety and the integration of transit in the urban landscape of modern Bellingham.
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