November 13, 1829 Niagara Falls Sam Patch free-jumps into the Falls, dying as a result Patch, who was reported to be around 20 years old, had been a daredevil for quite sometime and reveled in entertaining others by jumping from great heights. His fateful jump had not been his first, but rather his third, from… Continue reading “Such is fame”: young man jumps to death performing stunt at Niagara Falls
Tag: accident
Boiler explosion at telephone company kills 21 and injured 95
October 3, 1962 New York, New York A boiler in the New York Telephone Co. building explodes, killing 21 and injuring 95 While employees of the New York Telephone Co. ate lunch on October 3, the building’s boiler reached critical temperatures and exploded, killing 21 and wounding nearly 100. It was later found inspectors had… Continue reading Boiler explosion at telephone company kills 21 and injured 95
The Illustrated Police News: an execution; man watches as sharks eat the bodies of his wife and children; man kills children, self after losing job; a bee attack leads to death of woman
The Illustrated Police News Published August 27, 1887 The stories in this issue include: * The execution of Israel Lipski, hanged for the murder of a 6-months-pregnant woman named Miriam Angel who was killed by forcing her to drink aqua fortis (nitric acid). Lipski was found under the bed where Angel’s body rested, with acid… Continue reading The Illustrated Police News: an execution; man watches as sharks eat the bodies of his wife and children; man kills children, self after losing job; a bee attack leads to death of woman
Several cases of misfortune, including a hornet-assisted suicide and two babies burned after brother plays with matches
August 27, 1934 The Evening News (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) runs several stories of misfortune The stories (clippings below) are: Two girls under the age of three died in a barn fire after their older brother (4) ignited hay while playing with matches. A boy (6) watching a steam shovel excavate was killed when the scoop accidentally… Continue reading Several cases of misfortune, including a hornet-assisted suicide and two babies burned after brother plays with matches
First motor vehicle causality, killed by car speeding at a “reckless pace” of 4 mph
August 17, 1896 Croydon, Surrey, England Bridget Driscoll becomes the world's first motor vehicle casualty Driscoll (44) was walking with two companions — her teenage daughter and a friend — when driver Arthur James Edsall drove towards the group at "a reckless pace, in fact, like a fire engine". (According to a mechanic, the car's… Continue reading First motor vehicle causality, killed by car speeding at a “reckless pace” of 4 mph
