A Young Man's Last Ride: Edward Kowald and the Cost of Hopping Freight
Edward Kowald, 23, tried to hop a freight to Newport after quitting work at Penrith. He fell, lost both legs, and died the next morning—joking with friends until the end.
Edward Kowald, 23, was run over and lost both legs at Penrith about 1 o'clock Thursday afternoon. Kowald had been employed by the King Sash & Door Co. at Penrith, but had quit work and was on his way home to Maddox, Mont. He attempted to board an eastbound freight to come to Newport, but slipped and fell under the wheels, several cars passing over him before the train could be stopped. He was brought to this city, where Drs. Phillips and Boudwin attended to his wants, and he was taken to a Spokane hospital, as there was no place to keep him here and no nurses in the town. Kowald displayed remarkable nerve after the accident. He never lost consciousness, nor did he utter a cry or moan, but joked with his friends who accompanied him to Newport. His relatives were notified, but as they live 50 miles from a post office no word is apt to be received from them for several days. Kowald was operated upon at St. Luke's hospital. Both legs had to be amputated above the knees. He regained consciousness after the operation but died at one o'clock Friday morning.
“Kowald displayed remarkable nerve after the accident. He never lost consciousness, nor did he utter a cry or moan, but joked with his friends who accompanied him to Newport.”
In 1907, a remote lumber-town injury could mean a freight ride to a distant hospital and no family at the bedside. Kowald's death belongs to the long record of dangerous extraction and rail work that built the Northwest—and to the safety net that did not yet exist.
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