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<p>More than 50 years before Sept. 11 became etched as a dark day in the nation&#8217;s history, it became one of the darkest dates in Wyoming Valley history.</p><p>On Sept. 11 1950, members of the Wilkes-Barre-based 109th Field Artillery were aboard a troop train en route to Camp Atterbury, Ind., after they had been mobilized for service in the Korean War.</p><p>A ruptured air-brake hose caused the train to stop around 5 a.m. in Coshocton, Ohio. The crew of a Pennsylvania Railroad passenger train, The Spirit of St. Louis, rear-ended the stalled troop train, causing catastrophic damage.</p><p>Thirty-three members of the battalion were killed and 278 aboard the troop train were injured, according to an Interstate Commerce Commission report on the wreck.</p><p>One of the survivors, Bill Wolman, 88, of Kingston, spoke with the Times Leader on Wednesday to share some recollections. He admits that with time they have dimmed.</p><p>&#8220;I remember being in the car, then after that it was fuzzy,&#8221; Wolman said of the crash. &#8220;Next thing I remember is being on the ground helping put wounded soldiers into the ambulances.&#8221;</p><p>Wolman said he suffered back and shoulder injuries in the crash.</p><p>He did not end up seeing overseas service, being discharged not long afterward for an unrelated medical condition.</p><p>Wolman is not sure how many survivors are left, but he suspects &#8220;not too many.&#8221;</p><p>A monument outside the armory on Market Street pays tribute to the lives that were lost, who are remembered by the 109th each year.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">This Times Leader front page from the evening of Sept. 11, 1950 shows how breaking news of the 109th Field Artillery wreck was reported to local readers on the day of the crash. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/web1_109thwreck-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>This Times Leader front page from the evening of Sept. 11, 1950 shows how breaking news of the 109th Field Artillery wreck was reported to local readers on the day of the crash. </caption0><photoCredit0>Times Leader archives </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Roger DuPuis</p><p>rdupuis@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

109th train wreck survivor recalls Sept. 11, 1950 tragedy