The Human Cost of Railroad Expansion
A laborer files a massive suit against his contractor after an injury on the Great Northern line costs him his leg.
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.
Charles Johnson brought suit in superior court against contractor J. A. McLean and the American Employers' Liability Insurance Company to recover $10,000 damages for the loss of a leg while working on the Great Northern railroad. Johnson's complaint alleges that while he was making a cut along a hill, a large boulder was dislodged and struck him, crushing his leg so that amputation was necessary. The plaintiff claims he was formerly an able-bodied man capable of earning $2 or $3 a day, but is now unable to work, and also seeks $2,000 for the pain and suffering endured during his three months in the hospital.
“The plaintiff claims that before he was injured he was an able-bodied man capable of earning $2 or $3 a day... but is now unable to make a living.”
This case reflects the brutal reality of the labor-intensive construction that defined the Pacific Northwest's growth. It highlights the early struggle of injured workers to secure liability payments from contractors and insurance firms, a precursor to modern workers' compensation laws.
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