We live in an age when, thankfully, serious rail accidents in the UK are a rarity. That wasn't always the case. During the late 19th century and early 20th in less technologically advanced times, there were regular incidents, sometimes involving significant losses of life.
One particularly horrific accident in our region unfolded at St Bede's Junction, Jarrow, in December 1915 when a collision involving three trains left 19 people dead and 81 injured. Another serious malfunction, culminating in subsequent fatalities, took place this week in 1907 on the outskirts of Gateshead.
The 4pm edition of the Evening Chronicle on March 26 carried the breaking news headline: 'Railway Disaster Near Felling - Leeds express runs off the lines'. It was an unseasonably warm day - with the folk of Tyneside looking forward to the imminent arrival of spring - when the regular Leeds to Newcastle express train came hurtling along the line through Gateshead towards its Central Station destination.
