Details of the Fatal Accident
| Place | Radstock (Foxcote), Somerset, England |
|---|---|
| Date | Monday 7th August 1876, just after midnight |
| Railway Company | Somerset & Dorset Joint Committee (LSW/Mid) Railway |
| No. of Fatalities | 15 |
| Cause of Accident | Head-on collision of two trains on single line. |
| Description | A combination of extra workings not in the working timetable, insufficient communication and poorly trained, inexperienced staff led to two trains to be set on a collision course on a heavily used single line. The victims included an 8 week old baby, his mother and 4 others, all residents of the Radstock area. |
Sources/Further Reading
- A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain (West Country), D. St. J. Thomas (1960)
- Red for Danger, L.T.C. Rolt (Sutton Publishing)
- The Bath Chronicle, 10th August 1876 (and the following five editions)
- The Somerset & Dorset Railway, D. S. Barrie and C. R. Clinker (1948)
- The Somerset Guardian, ?? 1862
List of Fatalities
11 of the 15 fatalities that have been identifed so far are listed in the table below together with brief notes on any other information found so far.
The last column shows the General Register Office (England and Wales), Statutory Register (Scotland), General Register Northern Ireland or Civil Registration for Ireland reference where this has been identified.
| Surname | First Names | Age | Occupation | Residence | Notes | GRO/SR/GRONI/GROIE Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHIVERS | Anna Maria | 38 | Radstock, SOM | Sister in law of George TUCKER, married to a watchmaker. | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 (listed as "female") | |
| GODFREY | Louisa | Radstock, SOM | Wife of William GODFREY | |||
| GODFREY | William | 30 | "Boots" at the Bell Hotel. | Radstock, SOM | Husband of Louisa GODFREY | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 |
| GOULDING | Louisa | 28 | Radstock, SOM | Married | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 | |
| GOULDING | William Charles | 23 | Cellerman | Radstock, SOM | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 | |
| KIDD | 40 | , | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 (shown as "female") | |||
| SAUNDERS | George | 27 | Cellerman | Radstock, SOM | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 | |
| SAUNDERS | Sarah Ann | 28 | , | Married | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 | |
| UNKNOWN | Railway guard | , | Guard of the train from Bath | |||
| WHITE | James | 40 | Waiter at the Waldegrave Arms, Radstock | Radstock, SOM | 1876/Sep Bath 5c 387 | |
| WILLS | Thomas Godfrey | 37 | Railway guard | , | Guard of the special train. |