N&W in 1911--Speeder accident

[NW Mailing List]

Ronce means bramble, i.e. brier, in French.  Vert is French for green.
So the name Roncerverte is derived from the French word(s) for Greenbrier.
Toney Minter

NW Mailing List wrote:

> Bluefield Daily Telegraph

> April 12, 1911

>

> GASOLINE SPEEDER CRASHES INTO TRAIN

> ------

> Murray Jones, Railroad Employe Making Inspection Trip, Receives Injuries That

> Prove Fatal

>     Rushing along on a gasoline speeder used by signal maintainers yesterday

> about noon, Murray Jones crashed into the rear of a local freight standing

> at Cedar and received such severe injuries that he lived but a short time

> after he was taken to the Y. M. C. A. building at Williamson.  It is

> estimated that the man was running his speeder over thirty miles an hour

> and was perhaps working on some part of the machinery when he came upon

> the train so suddenly that he could not bring his machine to a stop in

> time to avert the smash which caused his death.  The speeder was

> demolished.

>     Jones's remains were taken to Ronceverte on train No. 3 and he will be

> buried at his home there.

>     The man was in the employ of the railroad company and was making an

> inspection trip when the accident occurred.  The speeders, which are

> geared high enough for men using them to get out of the way of any trains

> which may be following, are used at times in great bursts of speed and

> chauffeurs frequently drive them at a speed greater than fifty miles an

> hour, according to the reports of railroad men.  Several men have been

> injured from time to time while riding the cars and only recently one of

> the officials of the road received a broken arm when he ran into an open

> switch which the negro [sic] who was riding with him saw, but did not

> speak of because he said he thought his boss "had ought to know all them

> things and if he could take a chance he guesses a poor old 'nigger'

> could."

> ------

> [It's interesting that the reporter wrote that the remains were taken to

> Ronceverte on No. 3 because Ronceverte, WV, is on the C&O.  Apparently the

> remains were transferred from No. 3 to the C&O at Kenova.  Incidentally,

> Ronceverte is on the Greenbrier and I heard long ago that "Ronceverte" is

> French for "Greenbrier," but I could not confirm this using Google

> translation.  Anyone know?]

>

> Gordon Hamilton________________________________________

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-- 
Toney Minter         E-mail:tminter at nrao.edu
Head of GBT Science Operations
NRAO - Green Bank    Phone: +1 304 456 2275
1 Observatory Road   Fax:   +1 304 456 2170
PO Box 2             WWW:   www.gb.nrao.edu/~tminter
Green Bank WV 24944

"In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice
there is." -  Yogi Berra