Walter L. Main Circus train - Tyrone, PA
N 40° 42.992 W 078° 12.303
17T E 736077 N 4511047
The line is gone, but the site has been preserved for remembrance. This is along Vascoyoc Hollow Road.
Waymark Code: WM146B1
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 04/28/2021
Views: 3
There is a memorial here, with an informative plaque, benches, and landscaping. The peacefulness of today conflicts with the story of animals and people in distress.
From the memorial:
At about 4:30 A.M., the Walter L Main great circus train ran out of control as it descended the Tyrone Mountain, shot out over the curve and wrecked at McCann's Crossing. All but the sleeping cars left the track.
Most of the crew in the derailed cars were killed. A field hospital was set up where the school now stands to care for the injured. Local residents joined in the hunt for the wild animals, all of which escaped into the countryside and mountains. A bengal tiger, later shot, bounded over the fence at a nearby farm where Hannah Friday was milking a cow. Hannah escaped, but the tiger killed the cow. Seventy-two horses were either killed or injured in the wreck. All the animals that were not shot were finally accounted for. The snakes were never recovered.
A memorial was held at the site of the wreck. Then everyone came to Tyrone where wonderful people with open arms offered their homes to the heart-broken ones of the circus. Every evening throughout the summer, in appreciation, the circus bands played concerts. The circus reorganized with new wagons, acts, horses and other animals on East 12th Street in Tyrone.
About the circus: (
visit link)