As a child I watched cartoons where characters were bound with rope and tossed onto the railroad tracks. I never realized that this actually happened – and it happened quite often.
Hi everyone. This is Elizabeth from Strange Ago and today we are going to take a look at a few news reports about people who were tied to the tracks.
1. Safe Combination
First, we have the brave George Burdette. He was a car tagger in Mississippi, 1910, when two robbers broke into the train station one winter day and demanded George give them the combination to the safe. George refused to reveal the combination and was tied to the tracks.
The poor man was doomed to the oncoming train until an older man spotted him. As fate would have it, George was rescued just in the knick of time. [Source]
2. Lost a Foot
In 1940, Missouri, John Henry Hollendon was robbed by three men. When the villains were finished with their thievery, they tied John to a railroad track.
Not soon afterwards, a train came barreling towards him. In a mad panic, John managed to free all but one foot. He rolled off to the side, one foot still tied to the rail, and the passing train sheered it off. [Source]
3. Lost More Than a Foot
So far, we’ve had one guy make a safe escape and the other lose a foot. George Underwood of Missouri, 1920, was not so fortunate.
However, he was able to tell a reporter what had happened. He said:
“An hour or so after dark, as I was walking to the station to catch a train… two men with a touring car forced me into the car and took my watch and $70. They drove south, and one of the men said ‘Let’s kill the “blankety-blank.”’
“‘No,’ returned the other. ‘We will tie him to the railroad track.’
“We stopped once at a pile of barbed wire and one of the men got several long strands of it. We stopped again and I was forced to get down on the track. A few minutes later while I was struggling to escape, I heard the rumble of the approaching train. I tried to scream, but rags in my mouth throttled my voice. As the engine came within a few rods of me I threw all my strength into another attempt to escape. My right hand was free at last and I tore the gag from my mouth, screaming. Then I loosened my right leg and swung partly free from the track, but my left foot and hand were too tightly bound to be released.
“Something seemed to sting my entire body. I suppose I fainted for a time, but soon I was screaming again. Finally someone came from somewhere and helped untie the barbed wire which was still partly strung around my body.”
George had lost both his left hand and his left leg. [Source]
4. Brutally Attacked
In 1907, a Pennsylvania farmer and his son were brutally attacked by highwaymen. According to a newspaper report:
“[Frank] Mason was driving along a lonely country road preceded a short distance by his son and another team. Two men jumped for Mason after the son had passed and demanded his money. Mason showed fight and was battling with the robbers when his son, missing his father, turned back, and was almost instantly knocked unconscious. The older man, infuriated by the treatment of his son, renewed his fight and was beaten into insensibility with stones. His body was then dragged to the railroad track and tied to the rails.
“Regaining consciousness, Mason realized his predicament and began to struggle to release himself. He was unable to release the cords and had almost abandoned hope when he heard the rumble of the approaching flyer. With one last desperate effort he managed to free himself and crawl from the track just as the headlight of the engine sent a gleam along the rails where he had been lying.
“After resting and recovering from a state of collapse, Mason dragged himself to a farmhouse and told his story. The son was found lying unconscious in the road, and was revived with difficulty. Both men will recover, though their injuries are serious. Mason says he recognized his assailants, and last night warrants were sworn out for their arrest.” [Source]
