Colfax Power Plant Tragedy

DONOVAN, DOYLE, GRAINS, HARTLEY, JORDAN, LARRISON, MEIER, MORRISON, PRICE, RATCLIFF, ROWLES, RUSSELL, STAYNER, TURNER, WAITLAND, WOOD

Posted By: JCGS Volunteer
Date: 2/12/2018 at 14:15:24

Tragedy Strikes At The Power Plant by Lee Schmidt
(Part of a series of articles about local history written by Lee Schmidt)
The last event reported in the previous article was that a Sioux City Corliss steam engine had been purchased and would be installed in the very near future. That event was dated December 3, 1885, and followed a serious breakdown of the original engine. I should explain that the dates of the papers found in the notebooks compiled by Dr. Alice Turner are written by pen on each article; I do not know by whom or when. The following event dated March 27, 1895 involved the new Corliss engine. Mrs. Doyle in her account about the power company dates the following event March 24, 1894. It would have seemed to be that it would have had to happen in March of 1896, since the engine was purchased in Dec. 1895. I then went to the cemetery records and found that his tombstone lists his death date as March 24, 1895. Therefore, I must conclude that, for some reason, the dates of the events listed in the notebook about the power company were a year off at that time. It is such incidents as this that add to the interest of deciphering events of the past and trying to keep them in their correct order.
The Tribune recorded it in the following words; Colfax was the scene last Sunday night of a horrible accident, the particulars which are as follows: “Dick Russell, engineer at the electric light plant, while oiling the machinery, fell into the drive wheel of the new Corliss engine and was instantly killed. The electric light company has been putting in a large engine and Mr. E. Larrison, of Sioux City, has been superintending the job. The new machinery somewhat crowded the old building and the large drive wheel was located within fifteen inches of the wall. An opening in the wall was made for the purpose of oiling the shafting while the machine was in operation, but it seems that the engineer did not deem it necessary to go outside the building and contrary to the orders of the superintendent, several times crowded in between the wall and the wheel. The new machinery was started up yesterday afternoon, and everything moved nicely. At about half-past twelve the engineer again went between the wall and the wheel to oil the engine and it is supposed that he became overbalanced and fell into the wheel. His body was carried around the big wheel and thrown out the opposite side. Nearly all his clothes were torn from him and his body frightfully mangled. Mr. Russell was a man about 30 years of age, steady, sober and industrious. He leaves a wife and three children who have the sympathy of the entire community. Mr. Russell was the son-in-law of Nathan Price, who some two years ago was killed by a vicious mule. These two horrible deaths in this family in so short a time is very hard on the surviving members of the family and heartfelt sympathy of everyone will go out to Mrs. Russell and her children.”

The March 27, 1895 Clipper reported: Shocking Accident Engineer Dick Russell of the Electric Light Plant, killed in the twinkling of an eye.
In the Clipper account this additional information was given. Since the space between the flywheel and the wall was so narrow, a window had been placed in the wall between the powerhouse and the Morrison and Hartley Implement Company and permission was given to pass through their building to oil the rotating shaft while it was in operation. The new engine had been put into operation that Sunday evening and at about 9:30 p.m. Mr. Larrison, the installing engineer, had retired to the hotel for the night, at 12:50 a.m. Wm. Grains, also an engineer at the electric light plant retired to the storeroom for a short nap but had been there but a few minutes when he was aroused by several loud reports and the light going out. He immediately shut down the engine and, joined by George Meier who had heard the reports while serving as night operator at the nearby Rock Island depot, they found the mangled body of Dick Russell. It seems that shortly after Mr. Grains retired, Dick Russell was seen to go in between the wheel and wall by a stranger by the name of Chas. Donovan who happened to step up to the door of the power house at that time. In attempting to turn around, Mr. Russell was struck by the flywheel which was rotating 82 times a minute and immediately disappeared, followed by a crash and the lights went out. Services were held at the Methodist Church and he was laid to rest in Oakhill Cemetery.
In Mrs. Doyle’s account we find this dated June 8, 1894. The Spring City Heat, Electric Light and Power Co. presented a petition to the city council asking for a franchise to operate a plant in the city of Colfax. September 3, 1894, a franchise granting to Wesley Jordan, his heirs, associates, etc., a permit to operate an electric light and heat plant and street railway in the city of Colfax, was considered by the council. Ordinance passed by city council. Mr. Jordan’s idea was to run an electric railway out to the old Mineral Springs Hotel. We were unable to find what discouraged him, but nothing further was done along this line by him.
From a March 1899 Clipper: The proposition of the Electric Light Company to raise the price of street lighting for the city thirty three and one-third percent over the rates provided for in the contract which has been in vogue since the establishment of the plant here, was received and referred to the proper committee. This proposition was shaved to an increase of only sixteen and two-thirds percent after the council awarded the pumping contract. If any increase is made in the price we think the company should be required to give bonds to furnish sufficient light from the lamps so that it will not be necessary for those desiring to locate one of the lights on a dark night to take a lighted candle along with him.
Then in April 1899: The directors of the Colfax Electric Light and Power Company held a meeting yesterday in this city. Those present were Pierce Ratcliff, Pres., Sioux City; Jacob Waitland, Superintendent, New Sharon; and resident members, Geo. D. Wood, W. M. Rowles and J. M. Stayner, Sec. The contract with the city for the operation of the waterworks and for street lighting was approved and quite expensive improvements considered for the near future.
Also in April 1899: The city council has contracted with the electric light company to do the pumping at the city water works and has appointed J. M. Stayner water commissioner. This action by the council will, we think, meet with the approval of our citizens as it means quite a saving to the town. Commissioner Stayner will have his office in the rooms over the Colfax Bottling Works.
And the final entry for this decade was in October 1899. The CRI & P railway company have recently arranged with the Colfax Electric Light Power Company to put in at the Walnut street crossing of their Colfax street crossing of the Colfax track an arc light capable of illuminating the crossing sufficiently to enable persons driving or walking toward the tracks in the night time to see every object on or near the crossing. The innovation was recommended by Agent Lippincott, who realized the necessity for it and did all in his power to induce the company to do it.
If you think the Colfax Electric Light and Power Company had problems during the first decade of its existence, you will be anxious to see what it faced in its second decade. In the next several articles we will look at another major development that practically split this town in two during the decade of the 1890’s, the expansion of the school system. To me, it was almost unbelievable what the town went through to build the schoolhouse that we know as the grade school, which was torn down just a few years ago.
Source: The Jasper County Tribune, Colfax, IA; Thursday, July 18, 1991