Ligonier Valley Railroad - The Wilpen Disaster of 1912

The Wilpen Disaster of 1912

The worst disaster on the Ligonier Valley occurred at 3:40 PM (EST) on July 5, 1912, 2 miles (3.2 km) from Ligonier, on the Wilpen branch near the Wilpen Fair Grounds. A locomotive pushing a single wooden coach, northbound, collided head-on with a southbound freight train locomotive on a curve. The passenger coach, crowded with revelers returning from a holiday celebration, absorbed the brunt of the impact. In total, 26 people died and 29 were injured, including many children. The railroad relied on verbal orders to train crews, without signals, written orders, or written rules. According to the resulting investigation by the Interstate Commerce Commission, the dispatcher and passenger train conductor disputed whether a verbal order had been issued to wait for the passage of the freight train. Investigators were shocked that the railroad had been relying solely on oral instructions to avoid collisions.