St-Hilaire train disaster

Background. The Grand Trunk Railway operated in Quebec and Ontario, with headquarters in Montreal. On June 29, 1864, a passenger train traveling from Quebec City to Montreal carried between 354 and 475 passengers, many of whom were German and Polish immigrants. The train approached a swing bridge over the Richelieu River near the present-day town of Belœil, Quebec.

Incident. The train fell through an open swing bridge into the Richelieu River after the crew failed to obey a stop signal. The disaster resulted in the death of 99 people, primarily German immigrants. The site of the disaster was the railway bridge between Belœil-Station and Mont-Saint-Hilaire, which remains the location of the worst train disaster in Canadian history.

Aftermath. William Burnie, the locomotive engineer, was convicted of negligence on July 16, 1864, and sentenced to 10 years in prison. On October 5, 1864, a grand jury placed full responsibility on the Grand Trunk Railway for negligence in failing to ensure trains stopped before crossing the bridge. However, the company was only given a reprimand for inadequate supervision.