John Francis Kane
Circa 1902
Illinois
John Francis Kane was born 24 Mar 1882 in Tonica, LaSalle County, Illinois. He was the 9th child of James Cornelius Kane and Julia Agnes McCormick. He started his career with The Chicago and Northwestern Railroad about 1900. Below is a photograph from the Chicago Daily News, dated March 21, 1934, that recalled the horrific train crash of April 7, 1904. John "Jack" Kane was a flagman on the eastbound No. 6 train when it was struck by a mail train.
The text at the bottom reads:
The death chant of the Souix rose in weird cadences above the cries of the wounded and the hiss of escaping steam and young men of the tribe did a death dance as Indian victims of this spectacular wreck awaited removal from the Chicago & North Western right of way on April 7, 1904. The engine of a fast mail train is shown wedged firmly into the coach which was carrying the Indians from a Nebraska reservation to New York to appear in a wild-west show. The collision occurred in a fog west of Melrose Park. The dead were Philip Iron Tail Jr., Kill Head and Thomas Comelast. William Sitting Bull, son of the famous chief, was among the thirty injured.
My great granduncle was one of organizers of the Trainman's Club at the Chicago and Northwestern Depot in Chicago. It was a place for the "trainmen" to relax during their daylong wait to take their trains out in the evening after a morning arrival.
He was also a representative for The Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen, and was seriously involved in the organization.
Related link:
*Photographs and article courtesy of Lucile Kane
