The Romance of Norwalk

times the engineer merely opened the safety valve. Simul¬ taneously, several strong men rushed from the station, seized the back of the train and held it firmly, until the station agent could grab sticks of wood and thrust them through the wheel spokes. The passengers dismounted as soon as the train was in hand. When it was time to proceed again, the sticks were removed, the several strong men gave the train a good push and she was off ! Time and again the sections of the train parted company and the engineer found it necessary to walk back and tie the train together again. For that reason, crooked roads were the most popular. These gave the engineers a chance to look back and see if the cars were “all right.” The first trains through Norwalk were not so well pat¬ ronized as those of later years when the cars had been en¬ larged to carry some 60 passengers. At that time, the “height of luxury” featured a long car with a big stove in the middle or a small one at each end, tallow candles for light, tiny glass windows, only the center one of which could be opened, no screens and no ventilation. Dust and smoke swept the train, the poor springs nearly jolted the passengers through the windows, and the noise of the rackety wheels was so terrific that speech could not be heard. Traveling today is so luxurious compared with that of eighty years ago that it is difficult for us to imagine how the folks of yesterday could have stood the strain of going any farther than three or four miles from home. DRAWBRIDGE CATASTROPHE Hurled to their death in the swirling waters of the Nor¬ walk river when the train on which they were traveling across the South Norwalk bridge, rushed into an open draw, 44 persons were killed and 25 were injured, in the most disastrous railroad accident which had up to that time oc¬ curred in this country, on the morning of Friday, May 6, 1853. The facts in the case gathered from the Bridgeport Railroad Disaster, 1853 Unmindful of warning signals, a passenger train on May 6, 1853 dashed across the open draw of the South Norwalk bridge, hurling many to their deaths. TRANSPOR TA TION 223 Farmer of May 16 and 17, 1853 and printed in Hurd’s “History of Fairfield County” are as follows: “The train was the Boston express which left New York at 8 a. m. The New York and New Haven railroad crosses the harbor of Norwalk at South Norwalk, 1086 feet east of the depot. On the bridge over the channel of the harbor, and 153 feet from the next abutment there is a draw, which revolves horizontally upon a central abutment, and leaves, when open, two passages of 60 feet each. The bridge was under the care of William Harford, who was in the employ of the company as a bridge tender. “At the time of this occurrence the draw was open, and the draw tender was just about to close it. It had been opened about fifteen minutes before for the passage of the steamer ‘Pacific.’ The fact of the draw being opened was communicated to the train by a signal, which consisted of a red ball elevated upon a pole. Unless this ball was in sight, the trains were forbidden to go upon the bridge. The train did not stop at Norwalk, and being about eight minutes late, was hurrying on its way to make up lost time. The engineer was at his post, the conductor in the second passenger car, and unoccupied. The absence of the ball or signal was unnoticed, or if noticed, was unheeded. “The train passed the depot and around the curve at a speed not less than 20 miles an hour. When it reached within 300 feet of the draw, two sudden sharp alarms of the whistle were blown; the engineer Edward W. Tucker, the fireman and the brakeman leaped from the train, which rushed on into the open draw. The engine, tender, baggage car, smoking car and two passenger cars, together with about half of the next car, plunged some 20 feet into the watery pit below in one mass of wreck and ruin. Persons who were near and saw the catastrophe say that the noise of the crash and the wail of the struggling and dying pas¬ sengers were heartrending to a degree which language is utterly inadequate to describe. “The water being at full tide, nearly all in the forward 224 ROMANCE OF NORWALK car were drowned. The number of lives lost was 44, and 25 were rescued from the wreck alive but badly injured. The calamity caused great excitement and indignation meet¬ ings were held, one at Norwalk and another at New Haven. The legislature took the matter into consideration and adopted a resolution requiring all trains to stop at least one minute before passing any draw.” The drawbridge catastrophe was not the only train dis¬ aster to claim numerous lives in Norwalk. For years the trains ran through the streets of the city, flat on the ground, there being many grade crossings, sometimes protected by bells or gongs, more often not protected at all. One of the worst of these grade crossings passed through the center of South Norwalk, straight across Washington street, but on the ground. Accidents were frequent, loss of life great. Appeal for relief was made many times to the New York, New Haven and Hartford Co., the residents desiring that the tracks be raised off the street. For some time the ap¬ peals met with no response. The company had already been put to a great deal of extra expense while laying the rail¬ road through the city and was not on the lookout for any more. It should be recalled that in the beginning, when the company drew the plans for the road through this sec¬ tion of the country, the tracks were to run across East Nor¬ walk and down through Norwalk. But the “uptown” resi¬ dents protested violently, for they didn’t want the dust and noise. So the company was forced to bring the rail¬ road lower down, through East Norwalk and across into South Norwalk, a plan not at all to its liking for it neces¬ sitated the building of a great bridge across the Norwalk river from East to South Norwalk, which would not have been necessary through the Norwalk route. It was not until 1895 that the railroad tracks in South Norwalk were raised. The date could plainly be seen, cut in the bed of the east bound platform until two years ago, when the platform received another coat of gravel and tar. Today, express trains carry Norwalkers into New TRANSPORTATION 225 York in just one hour. Throughout the year there are a great many commuters whose number is augmented by several hundred during the summer months. • BANKS— CHURCHES Chapter XXII i Early Banking Transacted In General Store — Present Banks In Norwalk — First Catholics — Congregational and Baptist Churches — M ormonism — Episcopal Churches — Hungarian Institutions — Other Churches While stage coaches were replacing wagons; trains, stage coaches; and steamboats, sailboats, Norwalk was growing rapidly. In 1824, town leaders decided that the commun¬ ity had grown sufficiently large to support a bank, and in that year, the Fairfield County Bank, organized under state law, came into being. “Prior to 1824,“ wrote Eben Hill in “Norwalk 250 Years Ago” in an article on banking, “changes of money were ef¬ fected at the stores of dealers and loans were obtained from the more provident or more fortunate individuals in the community. Thus we find about 1800, that the firm of Eliph- alet Lockwood and Son was to a great extent the bank for Norwalk and vicinity. This firm had its store near the east end of the bridge in old Norwalk. It was largely engaged in the West India business, sending out in its own vessels, live stock, horses, manufactured lumber and so forth, and importing sugar, molasses and all West Indian products. Agents were located throughout the county and nearby towns in New York state and a large business transacted. The farmers and business men were quite generally accommo¬ dated with loans of money, notes being taken usually with¬ out security, the amounts being ordinarily from $50 to $200.” 226 BANKS— CHURCHES 227 NORWALK BANKS When the Fairfield County Bank was organized in 1824, Henry Belden was first president. In 1865, the institution became the Fairfield County National Bank. Later, with the Central Trust Co., it merged into the present Central Fairfield Trust Co., now at 59 Wall st. The second in¬ stitution to be organized was the Norwalk Savings Society in 1849 with Clark Bissell as president. The first deposit was made October 9, 1849 to the amount of $30. The bank is now at 48 Wall st. Albert R. Malkin is president. Other banking institutions in Norwalk in their order are: Bank of Norwalk, organized in 1857 with Ebenezer Hill as first president. The bank reorganized as a national bank in 1865 and is located at 5 1 Wall st. George L. Woodward is president. The South Norwalk Savings Bank was first known as the Mechanics Savings Society, when incorporated June 23, i860. It changed to its present name in 1869. D. K. Nash was first president. From 1868 to 1875, busi¬ ness was carried on in a drug store on North Main st. The bank is now housed at 135 Washington st. Alden Solmans is president. The First National Bank of South Norwalk, organized in 1864, was the first in town to organize under the Civil War measure establishing national banks. E. A. Beard acted as president during the organization, then L. H. Moore was named president. Russell Frost was the last president serving until the windup of the bank in 1901. In that year the South Norwalk Trust Co. commenced business in the same quarters. The Fairfield County Savings Bank was chartered in 1874 with William K. James as president. It is now at 67 Wall st. Dr. James G. Gregory is president. The Central Na¬ tional Bank was organized in 1876 with A. S. Hurlbutt as first president. It later became the Central Trust Co. Still later, with the Fairfield County National bank, both national banks, it was merged into the Central Fairfield Trust Co. The City National bank of South Norwalk was organized in 1882 with Robert H. Rowan as president. It 228 ROMANCE OF NORWALK