G

CYRIL GALLAHER DIES INSTANTLY; THROWN 40 FEET

A Bismarck man was killed almost instantly Sunday afternoon when a westbound Northern Pacific passenger train struck his dairy truck at the Twelfth St. crossing.

He was Cyril J. Gallagher, 46, who lived at the Seventeenth St. Trailer camp. Formerly of Hazen, he had been working for Yegen’s dairy here as a truck driver for the past two and one half months.

It was Bismarck’s first traffic fatality in 1,190 days, the last one occurring on Oct. 12, 1946, when John Kehoe, 36, Cando, was killed in a two-car collision on Memorial highway. It was the first traffic fatality in North Dakota in 1950.

Gallagher’s two-ton Mack truck, loaded with cans of milk, was going north across the Twelfth St. crossing at 2 p.m. Sunday when it was struck by the Northern Pacific diesel-powered train No. 3 as it pulled into Bismarck. Gallagher, taken to the hospital by the Lawlor Ambulance Service soon after the collision, died on the way. A physician at the hospital said there were few visible external injuries.

Acting Coroner William S. Murray said Monday an inquest will be held sometime this week.

The dead man’s truck, completely demolished by the diesel locomotive, was thrown nearly 40 feet by the impact. Its cargo of milk was splattered over the scene of the wreck and the engine.

Authorities said they do now know the cause of the accident, but Gallagher apparently didn’t see oncoming train when he started across the tracks.

Engineer Mike Kamia, 65, Jameswtown, said he saw the truck pull up to the crossing as the train neared it, but that he thought the driver would stop. When the truck kept coming, it was too late to stop, Kamia said.

Both the engineer and the Fireman V.A. McDaniel, also of Jamestown, said the crossing signals were working. The engineer said the train was traveling within “prescribed speed limits” when it hit the large truck. Kamia stopped the train after the collision. Police said the warning signals were working then.

Chris Yegen, manager of the dairy, said he did not think frosted-up windows had cut Gallagher’s vision, as the truck was equipped with frost shields.

Gallagher was born Oct. 9, 1903, at Hazen, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Jack J. Gallagher, Hazen. He attended Hazen schools and was married to Clara Schumacher, Napoleon, Dec. 20, 1930, at Hazen. He was employed by the U. S. Army Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation before accepting employment with the Yegen Dairy. He attended St. Mary’s Catholic church in Bismarck since moving here.

He leaves his widow; a daughter, Mary Kathryn; his parents, and the following brothers and sisters: Quentin T., Minneapolis, Minn.; Eugene, Bismarck; Mark, Portland, Ore.; Catherine, Lodi, Calif.; and Albro, Hazen.

The body is at the Hall funeral home. Funeral services will be held at St. Martin’s Catholic Church in Hazen and burial will be in the church cemetery. The time and date have not been set.

A rosary will be recited Monday at 8 p.m. at the Hall funeral home by relatives and friends.

~Source: The Bismarck Tribune, Monday, January 16, 1950