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FATAL ACCIDENT NEAR LOWGILL STATION On Monday an inquest was held before the Mr C.G.Thompson, coroner on the body of George Nelson who was killed on the railway, on Saturday last as deposed in the following evidence. Robert Nelson of Far Cross Bank , Kendal deposed that deceased, George Nelson was his brother. he was 27 years of age and unmarried . He was a labourer of the London and North Western Railway Company. Robert Armstrong , engine driver, of Carlisle deposed, I was the driver of the passenger train which left Carlisle at 10-45 on Saturday morning last, we were due at Tebay at 12-13 leaving at 12-18. We did leave about the time, we had not to stop between Tebay and Oxenholme. When we reached about a 1/4 mile south of Lowgill station, I saw a man walking in the four foot at the east side of the railway , he was going southwards, I sounded the whistle , when we got to about twenty or thirty yards of him deceased turned to the right and looked sideways, he never stirred but stood stock still. I had no time to attempt to draw up and the engine struck him with the buffer and I saw his hat fly up in the air and nothing more after that. We stopped as soon as we could and went back, and deceased was found with his head on the opposite metal, He was quite dead and very much mutilated, I examined the engine before starting again and found marks of blood on the side where he was struck , no portion of the body were adhering to the engine . we should have been going at the rate of over forty miles an hour when deceased was struck by the engine. Henry Swainbank of Beckfoot, Firbank, deposed I am 14 years of age, about half past twelve o`clock on Saturday last I was in Lowgill School yard standing on the wall when I saw a train going south. I heard two loud whistles and very shortly afterwards saw a hat flying up in the air , I ran and told the men at Lowgill Cottages. the steam was shut off and the train brought to a stand. Edward Hoggarth, of Dowby Bank , deposed that he knew the deceased by sight and was in his company on Saturday last for about half an hour at the Scufton (sic) house beer shop, witness could see that deceased had had some beer but was not drunk. George Betts, of Kendal foreman over the extra gang on a ballast train, deposed the deceased was one of my gang , He joined the gang at Oxenholme on Saturday morning last between seven and eight o`clock, He remained on the ballast train untill we stopped near Lowgill station about a quarter and twenty past ten, when he got off and proceeded in the direction of the public house , I asked him where he was going and he replied up there, I told him if he got any beer he was not to join me any more that day, my gang and myself went to Ingleton. Wm Ellis of Lowgill, platelayer , deposed , I was the first person to reach the body of the deceased on Saturday last , he was lying on his back face upwards, his head was against the inside rail and his body within the four foot on the west side of the road on which the train was running. I assisted to remove the body , deceased`s right leg was off and his right arm partly off, the back part of his head was gone , I believe a part of deceased`s leg has not been found , deceased was quite dead when I first saw him. The jury returned a verdict of accidently killed by being knocked down and run over by passenger train on the London and North Western Railway . Westmorland Gazette Saturday 10
Dec 1881 |