1902 Pittsfield Streetcar Incident

1902 traffic collision October 2026 September 2024 1902 Pittsfield Streetcar Incident The Street railway journal (1902) (14780989053).jpg Theodore Roosevelt's carriage after the collision 1902 9 03 Pittsfield, Massachusetts, U.S. Traffic collision 1 3 Euclid Madden Manslaughter Guilty Six-month jail term and $300 fine The 1902 Pittsfield Streetcar Incident was a collision involving President Theodore Roosevelt, who was traveling in a horse-drawn carriage in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. A speeding electric streetcar under the control of motorman Euclid Madden and conductor James Kelly hit the presidential carriage as it crossed the trolley tracks, jettisoning Roosevelt, who was injured. The accident resulted in the death of William Craig, Roosevelt's Secret Service agent, and injured Secretary to the President George B. Cortelyou. Governor Winthrop M. Crane was lightly bruised.Taylor Stephen J. September 22, 2015 When Theodore Roosevelt was Hospitalized at St. Vincent's https://blog.newspapers.library.in.gov/theodore-roosevelt-hospitalized-at-st-vincents/#:~:text=The%20story%20actually%20begins%20on,set%20of%20trolley%20car%20tracks. 2024-09-06 Hoosier State ChroniclesLandrigan Leslie 2019-02-13 The Pittsfield Streetcar Driver Who Nearly Killed Teddy Roosevelt https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/the-pittsfield-streetcar-driver-who-nearly-killed-teddy-roosevelt/ 2024-08-06 New England Historical Society en-us Background In late 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt embarked on a tour of New England to build support ahead of the 1902 midterm elections. On September 3, Roosevelt gave a speech at the City Park, then visited former senator Henry Dawes. The carriage left Dawes' home around 10:00 AM, accompanied by a mounted escort en route to the Pittsfield Country Club for another speech.Cohen Jared https://www.google.com/books/edition/Accidental_Presidents/E2PHDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Accidental presidents: eight men who changed America 2019 Simon & Schuster 978-1-5011-0983-6 New York London Toronto Sydney New Delhi 185–188Berfield Susan https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Hour_of_Fate/Gse-DwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 The hour of fate: Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, and the battle to transform American capitalism 2020 Bloomsbury Publishing 978-1-63557-249-0 New York London Oxford New Delhi Sydney 163–167 The President rode in a landau, an open-top carriage seating four, pulled by four gray horses. President Roosevelt sat in the back seat beside Massachusetts Governor Winthrop M. Crane, while George Cortelyou, Secretary to the President and former Secretary to President McKinley, sat alone in the front seat facing the rear. On the left side of the carriage's front bench, livery owner David J. Pratt of Dalton, Massachusetts, drove the team of horses, with Agent William Craig seated on the left side of the elevated seat.landau2015-07-14 The Trolley and the Barouche http://www.historynuggets.com/nuggets/2015/7/14/the-trolley-and-the-barouche https://web.archive.org/web/20160428161250/https://www.historynuggets.com/nuggets/2015/7/14/the-trolley-and-the-barouche 2016-04-28 2024-08-07 History Nuggets en-USSource (historynuggets.com) is a personal blog with sensationalized narrative and factual errors, including incorrect carriage terminology and misidentification of driver and agent seating positions. August 2026 At the same time, Trolley No. 29 conducted by James Kelly and driven by motorman Euclid "Luke" Madden was moving along South Street, also toward the Country Club, with 35 passengers.Lewis William https://www.google.com/books/edition/Through_the_Heartland_on_U_S_20_Massachu/O9A4sMXVjcUC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=euclid+madden&pg=PT351&printsec=frontcover Through the Heartland on U.S. 20: Massachusetts: Volume I: A Historical Travel Guide March 26, 2007 PublishAmerica 9781462624591 Some accounts claim that motorman Euclid Madden sped up the trolley in order to beat the President to the country club, while Madden's own testimony was that it was proceeding on schedule. Contemporary reporting in the Street Railway Journal stated that the trolley was geared for no more than 15 mph, was on an upgrade, running with power off, and that passengers attested it was not speeding.landau Accident thumb|The Street railway journal (1902) (14780989053) At approximately 10:15AM, Roosevelt's motorcade was travelling along South Street when the mounted troopers assigned to protect him noticed the approaching trolley. As the streetcar turned onto the street with the presidential carriage, the driver rang the trolley bell and attempted to stop. Two cavalrymen flagged down the motorman, ordering the trolley to stop, but it nevertheless collided with the back left wheel of the carriage, smashing the carriage's back and striking the front wheel as well. The impact sent the carriage into the air briefly. William Craig yelled for the president to “Look out! Hold fast!” before they were both thrown off the wagon. Craig was thrown under the streetcar and killed instantly while Roosevelt was thrown out and hit his head on the sidewalk. Cortelyou sustained serious injuries. Governor Crane escaped uninjured.September 4, 1902 Roosevelt in coalition The Gazette 1 Pratt, the driver, struck his head, resulting in a fractured skull. One carriage horse was also killed in the collision. Aftermath thumb|Hometown Heritage marker commemorating the 1902 accident, located on South Street in Pittsfield, Massachusetts The motorman of the streetcar was confronted by Roosevelt immediately following the incident.Bailey Thomas Theodore Roosevelt: a literary life Joslin Katherine 2018 ForeEdge, an imprint of the University Press of New England 978-1-5126-0166-4 Lebanon, Pa The driver was taken to the House of Mercy, a cottage hospital in Pittsfield.Drew Bernard A. 2018-05-04 Bernard A. Drew Our Berkshires: Dalton's David Pratt: Horses and stage dramas https://www.berkshireeagle.com/opinion/columnists/bernard-a-drew-our-berkshires-daltons-david-pratt-horses-and-stage-dramas/article_c4847f4f-3984-5696-aa9b-aef9ea1368ad.html 2025-03-06 The Berkshire Eagle en Roosevelt initially continued with his tour of New England as originally scheduled, continuing on to Lenox, but by the end of the day cut the rest of the tour short and returned to Sagamore Hill by presidential yacht to recuperate. Three weeks later, he returned to the campaign trail in the Midwest, starting in Detroit. This tour was also cut short in Noblesville when Roosevelt's leg wound from the collision became infected. He was taken to St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital for surgery, which was successful. A trial was held in January 1903. Motorman Euclid Madden and conductor James Kelly of the streetcar both pled guilty to manslaughter. Kelly was released, but Madden was sentenced to six months in jail and fined $300, US 300 1902 0 eq.Boltwood Edward https://books.google.com/books?id=e4IlAQAAMAAJ The History of Pittsfield, Massachusetts: From the Year 1876 to the Year 1916 City of Pittsfield 1916 95–96 enOwens Carole 2018-03-20 CONNECTIONS: An accident brings a president to the Red Lion Inn https://theberkshireedge.com/connections-an-accident-brings-a-president-to-the-red-lion-inn/ 2025-03-05 The Berkshire Edge en-US District Attorney Dana Malone was responsible for Madden's prosecution.May 8, 1903 Opposes Pardon for Madden.; Attorney Insists on Punishment for the Man Who Upset the President's Carriage. https://www.nytimes.com/1903/05/08/archives/opposes-pardon-for-madden-attorney-insists-on-punishment-for-the.html 2010-04-14 The New York Times References CONNECTIONS: A horse-drawn carriage and a trolley collide, leaving President Theodore Roosevelt thrust onto the pavement and a Secret Service agent dead Carole Owens March 19, 2024 The Berkshire Edge https://theberkshireedge.com/connections-a-horse-drawn-carriage-and-a-trolley-collide-leaving-president-theodore-roosevelt-thrust-onto-the-pavement-and-a-secret-service-agent-dead/ President Roosevelt in a Trolley Accident The Street Railway Journal 1902 XX Street Railway Publishing Co. New York 348-350 https://archive.org/details/streetrailwayjo201902newy/page/n371/mode/1up?q=Roosevelt Category:Road incidents in the United States Category:Pittsfield, Massachusetts Category:Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt Category:1902 in Massachusetts Category:1902 in rail transport Category:September 1902 in the United States