THE MUD RUN DISASTER!

    THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2024

       THE MUD RUN DISASTER!

   October 10th marks the anniversary

of a terrible tragedy that happened right

here in northeastern Pennsylvania. Some

10,000 people from Scranton, Wilkes-Barre,

and the greater Hazleton area gathered in

Hazleton on October 10th., 1888 for a

temperance rally in Hazleton. Many of

those participating were Irish immigrants

seeking to destroy the stereotype image

of the Irish as drunkards. When the rally

ended about 5,000 of those attending

boarded one of eight special trains which

would transport them from Hazleton through

a part of Carbon County and then north to

Wilkes-Barre and Scranton. The 7th of those

trains stopped at the Mud Run Station, a small

isolated station in Kidder Township, Carbon 

County. The engineer believed he had plenty

of time until the 8th and final train  caught up.

He was wrong! The final section of train 

appeared as the engineer of unit 7 was oiling 

his locomotive and the two trains collided!

The old passenger cars, made of wood in those

days, were smashed to pieces and immediately

caught on fine! 64 people died in the wreck

and another 50 were injured! It remains one 

of the worse railroad accidents in U.S. history.

And it happened "right in our backyard" on

this date in 1888. Most people around here

known little or nothing about it and the history

behind it. I thought you ought to know...and

remember! Hope you're well and that all your

NEWS is good!