Gwendolyn Harriet Burrows b. April 9, 1890 Grass Valley, Ca. d. June 9, 1907 Los Angeles, Ca. She was 17 years old.
There isn't a family tree that doesn't have at least one tragedy in it. Ours is no different. I knew the story of Gwendolyn Burrows and her death at age 17 in a railway accident, but I didn't know all the facts until several weeks ago when I came across several newspaper clippings Cousin Gay (Hansen) had saved. The clippings fill in many details of the event, as well as give a very sensationalized and detailed account of Gwendolyn's death. Newspaper journalists at the time were not above embellishing and adding crude details to gain readership. Tabloid journalism had touched the lives of the Burrows family. In fact, the family had experienced a similar situation with the suicide of Alexander Burrows, Gwendolyn's father, in San Francisco in 1904. His death was described in gruesome and explicit detail; he was a prominent lawyer in the northern California area, and was well known in Grass Valley. Readers of the day certainly the right (or expected to know) what happened! I can't even begin to imagine how this next tragedy affected the rest of the family.
The accident of June 9, 1907, happened while Gwendolyn and her mother, Elizabeth Hurd Burrows (widow of Alexander Burrows) were living in Los Angeles to be near Maud Burrows Morrill, Elizabeth and Alexander's oldest daughter. Gwendolyn and Elizabeth Jane were living, according to one clipping, in an apartment on Flower Street, between Fourth and Fifth in Los Angeles. Gwendolyn was working at Bullock's Department Store, located on Broadway and Hillstreet.
The clipping (there is nothing to identify the source, but it must have been a Los Angeles paper) gave some wonderful details about the family situation in particular. These details were provided by a W. E. Sayre, who was identified as an "escort" to Gwendolyn. Here are some excerpts...
"....Escort Tells of Tragedy...."As soon as we righted the car and lifted Miss Burroughs up she gave one gasp and was dead without saying a word. Those who were injured were hurried away in automobiles by people who passed, but I could learn nothing more. It was all so terrible. I want to hurry to the house to break the terrible news to her mother.." The article went on to explain that..."Miss Burroughs had only recently come here from Grass Valley, Cal. She was the second youngest of seven children, three of them married. She made her home recently with her widowed mother....Because of her good looks and perfect physique a number of theatrical managers asked her mother to permit Miss Burroughs to go on the stage, but the mother resolutely refused tempting offers."
"Taught Sunday Class.....Mrs. Burroughs yesterday paid a visit to a married daughter at 829 East Forty-sixth Street; some of the family went to Long Beach, while Miss Gwendolyn, escorted by W. E. Sayre of 430 East Forty-eighth Street, a former railroad man, took a ride out to Eagle Rock Valley, where the sad fate over-took her.
Miss Burroughs taught a class in the pro-Cathedral on Olive Street and also sang in the choir there. She was a lovable young woman, who during her short stay here made many friends.
G. E. Morrill (Edwin, Maud's husband), a relative of the dead woman, whose place of business is at 630 South Spring street, hurried to the undertakers last night on behalf of the family of Miss Burroughs." 'It is indeed pitiable', said he. 'Miss Gwen was the main support of her mother who lived with her. Only a few nights ago, while members of the family were together, they discussed the folly of not carrying more insurance to avert possible trouble....The young woman was remarkably good looking and of good form, and most girls would have yielded to the offers made to her to go on the stage. She had a fine singing voice, too. It will be an awful blow to her mother.' "
Another clipping extolled Miss Burroughs' beauty and personality..."Miss Burroughs, who was instantly killed, recently came to Los Angeles from Grass Valley. Those that knew the young woman say that her beauty was only equaled by the sunniness of her disposition. She had accompanied Mr. Sayre to Eagle rock Valley, and it was said that the two young people have been close friends ever since she came here. The report that she was engaged to Mr. Sayre could not be confirmed last night, nor could it be denied".
Eagle Rock Valley was a quiet farming community in the 1880's and through the 1900's. It now boasts fine Victorian farmhouses and exquisite Craftsmen homes that were built at the turn of the century. It is located between Glendale and Pasadena, just minutes away from downtown Los Angeles. It is now the home of Occidental College.
https://waterandpower.org/museum/Early_City_Views%20(1900%20-%201925)_3_of_8.html
1911 photo taken at the intersection of La Roda Ave. and Colorado Blvd. The spacious dirt roads show the east/ west direction of the trolley tracks. Courtesy of Water and Power Associates, Historic Photos of Los Angeles.
According to the book Pioneers of Eagle Rock (Eric H. Warren, Frank F. Parrello Arcadia Publishing March 2014) developers saw the potential of this quiet little agricultural valley and began buying land, advertising it as "The Switzerland of Los Angeles" (Nearer to Hollywood! Higher than Highland Park! More Beautiful Than Either!) and began selling property for subdivisions consisting of 5,000 square foot lots. The extension of the Los Angeles Railway to Eagle Rock in September of 1906 facilitated rapid growth.
Perhaps Gwendolyn and Mr. Sayre took an excursion to view the area with thoughts of building their dream home in the future. Or it was just planned as a day trip on the new Eagle Rock Valley Line. It is hard to say.
The book continues with a story by a local resident, May Blumer. She recorded that in 1909 she returned to Eagle Rock to stay...."After some years and a trip back to Iowa I was back, married to a California boy and we began looking for a home, and I remembered the Valley and the friendly ladies of that day. And by then, there were many finished streets with a streetcar from Los Angeles along Central Avenue (now Eagle Rock Boulevard) turning on Colorado Boulevard and running to Townsend Avenue then reversing the seats and the trolley and retracing the trip...
Usually it proceeded at a reasonable rate of speed so that riders from the north slope, hearing it grind around the corner could finish the last bites of breakfast and walk leisurely down to board it on its return trip. But when it was making up time it came back down-grade at a fast clip. And once (at least), it rounded the corner too fast and went over and skidded along its side. Luckily it was not crowded that day but some passengers were severely injured, including Mrs. George Kingdon."
May Blumer apparently did not read or remember the details of the accident, which was the very same accident that Gwendolyn Burrows was killed in on June 9, 1907. Mrs. George Kingdon was indeed injured, as she is mentioned in one of the articles.
What exactly happened? Gwendolyn was not the only casualty of the accident. Another clipping describes the wreck...."Two people, a man and a woman, were killed outright and fourteen others were injured shortly after 6 o'clock last night when inbound car no. 38 of the new Eagle Rock Valley line jumped the tracks at Colorado and Center streets, Eagle Rock, and turned over on its side after skidding along the ground for thirty feet.
The car, which was running at high speed, left the rails on a sharp curve. About twenty-five passengers were aboard the car, and that more were not killed is considered remarkable. The wreck was the worst in the history of the Los Angeles Railway Company--operating yellow city cars, only--since that of December 24, 1905, when a car ran away down Second street hill and crashed into two other cars at Second and Spring Streets.
Police Detectives Roberds, Ritch and McNamara made an investigation of the accident and stated in their opinions the wreck was caused by a poorly equipped roadbed at the curve where the car left the rails....According to the statements of the injured, the car was being run at terrific speed when the accident occurred. No one could state exactly how fast they believed the car to have been running, but approximate estimates were made from fifteen miles an hour to twenty-five.
An investigation by police detectives last night shows that the car left the track directly in the middle of the curve. The westerly rail, on the inside, was found to have been packed with loose sand and gravel to the height of the car rail. The print of the flange of the car wheel was easily distinguishable last night. It showed plainly that the car wheel had ridden so high that the flange was higher than the rail."
According to W. E. Sayre, one of the injured, (continued the long article), the car left the north end of the Eagle Rock branch shortly after 6 o'clock. The speed, according to Mr. Sayre, was not especially fast on the straight car line. "At the curve?'' he says, "the car was being driven at considerable speed. I was seated in the same seat with Miss Burroughs when the car left the track. She got up from her seat and started toward the rear of the car. That was the last I saw of her until her body was pulled from underneath the wrecked car. Her body was badly mangled, and her features crushed beyond recognition".
The article continues to share information about the other casualty, a Mr. Vint, whose death was "especially pathetic" as his aged mother, living at 227 North Hill Street, was prostrated with grief when told of her son's death. Fourteen other survivors were listed along with their addresses, and the specific injury sustained in the accident. The conductor, J. Kimpton, was slightly cut and bruised.
Further statements from passengers and witnesses attested to the rate of speed of the car. The most telling statements came from Eagle Rock residents themselves... "Statements were made regarding the roadbed of the company's tracks. The police were given information to the effect that the cars were allowed to run at a terrific and dangerous rate of speed around curves. Miss Ada Richards, principal of Eagle Rock school personally stated that the cars are run 'recklessly' ".
A more sensationalized account of Fred Vent's death (along with the misspelling of his name), was found in a very long article that recounted the whole incident in graphic and most likely not wholly accurate details. He "evidently lost his life by jumping...it seems that when he saw the car overturning he leaped through the open window, hoping to escape, but his body was caught beneath tons of steel and wood and literally cut in two...great splotches of blood and gore stained the roof of the car, showing where the unfortunate's frame had been ground underneath the car". The story goes on in more graphic detail about the victim's last breath, but I'll end it with the statement, "The attendants declared it to be one of the worst cases of dismemberment they had ever seen". Gwendolyn's death was treated with the same courtesy.
John Harris was the motorman driving the car that evening. He was identified by name, and by his number (414) in the lists of the Los Angeles Railway in one article. He was described as working in his trade for three years, and was not familiar with the Eagle Rock run, as most of his time had been spent on the University line. He was handling the valley car only as an extra to meet the increased Sunday traffic. He was five minutes late when he left the end of the Eagle Rock line at Townsend and Colorado avenues, and was endeavoring to catch up with his schedule by making all the speed possible. Sadly, his inexperience with the run as well as suspicious track maintenance caused this tragedy.
This tragic accident resulted in the loss of a beautiful girl with much promise in her future. It took away a possible fiancee for Mr. Sayre, a sister to many siblings (including my Great Grandmother Vere), and a daughter to my Great Great Grandmother. After the death of Alexander Burrows in 1904, this tragedy probably seemed overwhelming.
Gwendolyn was buried at the Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles. By 1910 her mother Elizabeth Burrows was living with Maud and Edwin Morrill in Oakland, California. Elizabeth's youngest daughter Gladys (17 years old) was also living with the family. Elizabeth would eventually move in with Gladys and her family later on, helping to raise her grandchildren while Gladys was sick. Gladys died in 1929 of tuberculosis, leaving four young children. Roy Burrows (Gwendolyn's older brother) would lose his 13 year old daughter to appendicitis in 1930.
Gwendolyn and Gladys, taken in 1906. Gladys was 13 when she lost her older sister. Picture shared by Milton Davis on Ancestry.com.
All families go through loss and the Burrows family was no exception. Some losses could be considered tragedies. I think Gwendolyn's death was indeed a tragedy.
Relationship Reference: Me->Margaret Hansen Boothby->Harold Hansen->Clara Vere Burrows Hansen (older sister to Gwendolyn Burrows)->Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows m. Alexander Burrows
1909 Los Angeles Railway Car, courtesy of Water and Power Associates. Los Angeles began with some of the most up-to-date railway and mass transportation systems in the United states, which allowed unchecked growth from the city to more rural areas. Sadly, with the advent of the automobile and the highway system, mass transportation rapidly declined. You could say that was a tragedy also.
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