Great Northern Wreck at Marysville, WA 1969

In June of 1969, southward freight train operating to Seattle from Vancouver, BC rear-ended a local on the mainline at Marysville, WA. The local's power had cut off the train and was switching on the siding when the accident occurred. Engineer Joe Haegely and fireman Howard Dearing were killed on the local's power when freight cars and other debris from the wreck smashed off most of the locomotive's carbody. Apparently, the engineer of the southbound train was incapacitated by a prescription drug (the "official" FRA determination), the Alertor system had been cutout, and the train's crew failed to bring the out-of-control train to a stop! The local's conductor was not aboard the caboose during the impact that demolished it! GN locomotives #675 and #725 were destroyed in the crash and other equipment severely damaged. Animated photos are from the collections of Robert J Wheeler and Russell C Johnson, and were taken during the clean-up after the wreck.

R J Wheeler Photos

R C Johnson Photos