Sunday, February 2, 2020

An Interesting story of Old Texas

On October 18, 1915, at about 10:00pm, around 60-100 Mexican bandits derailed and burned the Saint Louis, Brownsville and Mexico passenger train number 101 six and a half miles North of Brownsville. The bomb attack on the two-passenger car train occurred as it was on its way from Harlingen to Brownsville. Spikes and fish plates were removed from the track and then the bandits used a wire cable to pull the rail to one side just as the train approached.


When the locomotive hit this section, it tipped over and plunged to its side in a ditch. The throttle of the engine pierced engineer H. H. Kendall’s chest. The engine had to be cut in two in order to remove his body. Train Fireman Woodall was badly scalded from the hot steam which escaped from the ruptured boiler but survived. The stopped train was then riddled with bullets before the bandits boarded it. The bandits then entered the cars and began robbing the passengers. In the ensuing confusion one of them shot Corporal Albert T. McBee. McBee was traveling with friends, as a passenger, and was unarmed. While others hid, or cringed on the floor, McBee stood tall. He was shot in the heart and killed instantly.



2 comments:

  1. Pancho Villa was captured by LT. George S. Patton

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    1. Patton was in on the hunt but they never caught Villa.
      There is a nice museum at the Pancho Villa State Park in Columbus, NM that covers the raid on Columbus and the chase into Mexico very well. The airplane exhibit on what the Army used was educational.

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