13th September 1906
Soldier is killed picking flowers from a train
Flowers frequently grow alongside train lines, but few are picked because they’re kept safely out of harm’s way thanks to locking doors, sealed windows and fencing along the trackside. That wasn’t always the case and, in 1906, The Leeds Mercury reported that a soldier had been killed in Jersey while attempting to pick flowers from a moving train.
“The feat can be performed with safety on certain English lines,” it explained. However, “the more usual method… is to stroll ahead of the train and, having gathered a bouquet, either to walk back to meet it or wait for it to come up.”
One can only imagine how the timetables would have accommodated the need for trains to pick up such amateur horticulturalists as and when they appeared.
The soldier’s death came four years after a bishop’s daughter had lost her life on Jersey’s tracks.
FREE Jersey history newsletter
Don't miss our weekly update on Jersey's fascinating history. We promise never to sell your data to anyone else, and there's a super-easy unsubscribe link on the bottom of each email so you can leave whenever you want.
Other events that occured in September
Jersey Airways plane crashes in a field
- A Jersey Airways plane came down in a field after taking off from Heston. It was the airline’s fifth accident in a month.
- Read more…
The Superb is wrecked on Minquiers
- Despite good visibility and flat seas, the captain of the Superb still managed to drive his steamer onto Minquiers.
- Read more…
Jersey lifeboat crew rescues stricken yacht
- Jersey's lifeboat crew received awards for a brave rescue of the six-member crew of the Bacchus in September 1973.
- Read more…
The BBC broadcasts first edition of Spotlight
- The launch of Spotlight, the BBC’s local news bulletin for the Channel Islands, was more of a name change than anything else.
- Read more…