Then and Now
Automobile / Train Accident

August 21, 1906 This is a photograph of the first automobile fatality recorded in East Brookfield. The accident took place on August 21, 1906 at a grade crossing where the North Brookfield Branch Railroad crossed West Main Street at the intersection of West Main and North Brookfield Road. The automobile was described as a Stevens-Duryea Touring and was carrying six passengers at the time. There were five injuries and one fatality. The cause of the accident seemed to be shared by the driver of the car and the railroad. As a result of this accident and to prevent further incidents, the railroad provided flagmen at the crossing.

I bet there are many who remember the trains to North Brookfield.
(from the collection of William Bullard, courtesy of Dennis LeBeau)

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