A Chaotic Collision on Front Street
A frightened team of horses triggered a multi-vehicle pileup that left a bakery delivery wagon in splinters.
An exciting runaway occurred on Front street yesterday morning, which might have resulted much more seriously than it did. A team attached to a lumber wagon, while standing on the Commercial Mill wharf, became frightened at some object and dashed up to Front street, turning toward Mill. Another team became frightened at the runaway and it also started off at a breakneck pace. Meydenbauer's delivery wagon was standing in front of the bakery and was run into by the first team and entirely demolished, the horses attached to it adding to the general confusion by starting a runaway on their own account. Front street was crowded with vehicles at the time and it is a wonder that no other wagons were demolished. As it was, the various teams were gradually gathered in, the last of them being caught on Mill street in front of Lowman's bookstore.
“Front street was crowded with vehicles at the time and it is a wonder that no other wagons were demolished.”
In an era before automated traffic control, 'runaways' were the most common form of road violence, often causing significant property damage in the dense, narrow streets of 19th-century downtown Seattle.
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