The Johnstown, Pennsylvania platform collapse occurred on September 14, 1866 during President Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle electioneering tour through the eastern and midwestern United States.
 "Appalling calamity at Johnstown, Pa., on Friday, Sept. 14th, caused by the falling of a railroad bridge crowded with the citizens of the town, during the visit of President Johnson" (Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, Oct. 6, 1866) | |
| Date | September 14, 1866 |
|---|---|
| Location | Johnstown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Type | platform collapse |
Collapse
editA temporary platform was built over the drained Pennsylvania Canal along the Pennsylvania Railroad route past the Cambria Steel Company, so that the residents of the town could greet the presidential train.[1][2] By 11 a.m. that Thursday morning, some 2,000 people had gathered.[3] Under the weight of 400-some people surging forward to see war heroes Ulysses S. Grant and David Farragut, the platform collapsed, dropping the crowd 20 ft (6.1 m) into the channel bed.[4][1] According to a 1907 local history by Henry W. Storey, six people were killed and 387 people were injured.[4] The New York Times in 1866,[5] and 2021 Johnstown Magazine report stated that 13 were killed.[2]
In addition to the initial drop, said to be 20 to 23 feet,[6][7] "a second part of the scaffold collapsed onto the first as rescuers were attempting to assist the injured from the first collapse."[2] Among the severely injured were the town's doctors, and some 300 people were estimated to have limb fractures and other substantial injuries.[1]
Responses
edit
The train engineer insisted that the presidential train had a clear track for a limited period of prearranged time, so, leaving one aide behind to assist,[1] Johnson's train "barely halted before heading for the Pennsylvania capital," a departure that did no favors for his already unpopular presidency.[8] One local Republican commented that Johnson had "manifested anything but a humane feeling" by departing so quickly.[1] Grant and George Custer were visibly horrified by the disaster, and "the 1866 tragedy weighed heavily on [Grant], and he often referred to it throughout his remaining days."[2] Johnson donated US$500 (equivalent to $10,405 in 2023) to the relief efforts; Gen. John W. Geary donated US$200 (equivalent to $4,162 in 2023).[6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e Boulard, Garry (2008). The Swing Around the Circle: Andrew Johnson and the Train Ride that Destroyed a Presidency. pp. 140–141. ISBN 978-1-4401-0239-4.
- ^ a b c d Gindlesperger, James (2021-12-15). "Swing Around the Circle tour tragedy". The Tribune-Democrat. Johnstown Magazine. Archived from the original on 2023-08-05. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- ^ Henderson, Lyndee Jobe; Jobe, R. Dean (2004). Johnstown. Arcadia Publishing. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-7385-3493-0.
- ^ a b "CHAPTER XIX: FALL OF THE PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD PLATFORM". Archived from the original on 2023-08-05. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- ^ "Accident at Johnstown, PA.: A Bridge Containing a Thousand People Gives Way" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-02-24.
- ^ a b "The Johnstown disaster". The Ebensburg Alleghenian. 1866-09-20. p. 3. Archived from the original on 2023-08-05. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- ^ "The Accident at Johnstown". The Evening Telegraph. 1866-09-20. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2023-08-05. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- ^ "In Johnstown, Pennsylvania, disaster strikes for hundreds when a viewing platform collapses". House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College. Archived from the original on 2023-08-05. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
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