The "Worse Trolley Accident In Lancaster County" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading one of the many Facebook pages that I enjoy which tells the history of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  I came across a story that I thought I would try to research and write about it in my own words, but I was unable to find any other information about what was perhaps the worst trolley accident in the history of Lancaster County.  I found the story very interesting and thought that many of you who enjoy the history of Lancaster County as well as our country might also enjoy the story.  The story's title was "How millions of potato bugs conspired to cause the worst trolley accident in Lancaster County history."  It reads:

View of the Susquehanna River from Chickies Rock.

August 9, 1896 began like any other Sunday.  Towns- people attended worship services.  Families gathered at noon for a meal together.  As the day slipped into the afternoon, children swam in local creeks as adults sat on their front porches sipping lemonade.  That evening at Chickies Park (spelled Chiques at the time), overlooking the Susquehanna River, there was a sacred band concert of spiritual music.  Then, like today, Chickies Rock was a popular summer destination.  In fact, at the turn of the 19th century, there was even an amusement park near the overlook.  People could ride the hub and spoke network of trolley lines from almost anywhere in Lancaster County to visit.  Sadly, no remnants of this amusement park remain today.  

Photo circa 1894 which shows Pennsylvania Traction
Company car No. 2.  The destination sign reads, "Lancaster
and Columbia" and "Chickies Park - Marietta."

Towards the end of the concert, there was a severe storm which delayed the arrival of the trolley from Marietta.  It was common practice not to operate the trolleys during a thunderstorm.  When the four-wheel car No. 61 of the Pennsylvania Traction Company arrived after the storm, with Adam Foehlinger as motorman and Harry Hershey as conductor, the car was engulfed by passengers eager to get home.  The trolley's capacity was 28, but possibly 80 adults and children climbed aboard.  Every seat was quickly filled, then the aisles as was every bit of space on the front and back platforms.  About 10 pm, the overloaded car started its downhill ride towards Columbia.  At Klinesville, about a mile from Columbia, two women signaled to get off.  However, due to the weight of the car and the wet rails, the trolley was unable to stop at the crossing going an extra 150 feet before coming to a full stop.  

The red marking shows where the accident happened.
Chickies Park is center-right, to the north of Klinesville.
Columbia is bottom right.  Click on the image to enlarge.

The car was then backed up so the women could disembark.  Underway again, the trolley began to move forward on the steep slope increasing in speed.  Problems for the overloaded trolley worsened as millions of potato bugs swarmed over the rails making the overworked brakes ineffective.  The increase in speed caused the trolley pole to leave the overhead wire, cutting the electricity and plunging the interior into darkness.  With no brakes and in complete darkness, the passengers broke out into screams.  The trolley eventually hit 60 miles per hour.  On a curve, the wheels left the rails.  

The worst trolley accident in Lancaster County history
killed six and injured 68 people on August 9, 1896.

The car careened wildly across a road, snapping off a gatepost, then sliding on its side for 75 feet, striking a tree, then a trolley pole, and dropping over a 30-foot embankment.  It ended on its top, with the wheels and motor high in the air.  The accident killed six people including the mayor of Columbia, H.H. Heise, motorman Foehlinger and passengers William Piknerton, Henry Smith, W.J Ludlow and William Metzger.  In addition, another 68 people were injured.  After the accident, a safety switch was installed at Klinesville with all trolley cars required to stop there.  Damage claims from the tragic disaster aided by company mismanagement forced the Pennsylvania Traction Company, which had operated the line, out of business.  The Marietta to Columbia route was later folded into the Conestoga Traction Company.

As you have read, this was a terrible tragedy for Lancaster County   I was born in the mid-1940s, about 40 years after the accident happened.  In the 1930s, trolleys were being discontinued and by the 1940s the pattern continued until trolleys were obsolete by the end of the decade.  I was a young child when trolley transportation was stopped and most tracks were removed from the streets of Lancaster.  Never once did I ever hear about this terrible accident in nearby Columbia/Marietta.  The photographs that exist to document the story are amazing and the only link I have to what happened when I was a young child.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.