New Year’s Eve, the last day of the year. As we all know, it is the holiday when people get together with families and friends, share resolutions, and light fireworks to bring in the new year. But 80 years ago, this would not be the case out on the Great Salt Lake in Utah for a deadly train crash took place on that day.
In the early morning hours of New Year’s Eve December 31st 1944, two trains operating as No. 21, the Westbound Pacific Limited, were preparing to proceed onward to San Francisco with the First 21, the 18-car passenger train, running ahead of the Second 21, the 20-car mail-express train. The Pacific Limited normally ran as a long singular train but it was split in two on this occasion. The First 21 was being pulled by Southern Pacific 4425, a GS-3 Class 4-8-4 “Northern” Type locomotive, while the Second 21 was being pulled by Southern Pacific 4361, an MT-4 class 4-8-2 “Mountain” Type locomotive. Running 38 minutes late, the First 21 departed from Ogden, Utah at 4:38 AM while the second 21 departed at 4:50 AM 12 minutes later.
Things wouldn’t go according to plan however because 17 miles west of Ogden at Bagley along the Lucin Cutoff, a stalled freight train was dealing with a hotbox which would force the two trains to slow down and come to a stop. The First 21 would slow down to 8 mph until stopping when the flagman of the freight train would give the signal. Meanwhile, the Second 21 was speeding at 50 mph in hopes of making up for lost time.
Although engineer James Mcdonald of the Second 21 applied the brakes upon noticing the First 21, it was too late. At 5:14 AM, the Second 21 slammed into the back of the First 21. The last several cars of the First 21 were telescoped into each other while the first few cars of the Second 21 piled into No. 4361 crushing the locomotive’s tender with some sliding into the water and mud.
48 people had died while 81 people were injured with 2 more later dying in the hospital thus bumping the death toll up to 50. Among those who had died were 35 military personnel that were returning home after serving in the Second World War, the death toll also included James McDonald and the flagman of the First 21. Two military hospital cars of the First 21 would be used to take care of the injured passengers until rescue trains from Ogden would arrive at the scene.
During the investigation, it was revealed that the main cause of the wreck was failure to properly control the speed of the Second 21 in accordance with signal indications. While the engineer did apply the brakes, it was said that he “died” due to sudden shock or heart failure. Another factor that caused this wreck was heavy fog which resulted in the fireman of the Second 21 to miss the first stop signal before seeing the second stop signal.
Those who were injured were taken to nearby hospitals such as the Bushnell General Military Hospital in Brigham City. Although there is currently no further information regarding what happened to No. 4361 after the wreck, the locomotive alongside the last few cars of the First 21 and the first few cars of the Second 21 were probably scrapped due to being severely damaged. As for No. 4425, the locomotive was left unharmed and would continue to serve the Southern Pacific until being retired on May 14th, 1956 and later scrapped on July 13th of that year in Los Angeles. None of the 14 GS-3s nor any of the railroad’s 4-8-2s were set aside for preservation when the Southern Pacific ended revenue steam operations in January 1957, although a driving wheel from No. 4422 was salvaged and is at the Railgaints Train Museum in Pomona, California.
The Pacific Limited would continue to run until October 1st, 1947. As for the Southern Pacific, it would continue to use the Lucin Cutoff until 1996 when the railroad became part of the Union Pacific whose trains still continue to use the Lucin Cutoff to this day. It has been 80 years since this wreck occurred and it still holds the title of being Utah’s worst train wreck but rear-end collisions between trains still unfortunately have occurred over the following years and of course before then.
This was made in honor of those who lost their lives and survived this train wreck, I wish you all a Happy New Year.
Models and Route by: Trainz-Forge, K&L Trainz, Jointed Rail, Auran, and Download Station
