| Madison Street Bridge disaster | |
|---|---|
 The streetcar Inez raised after falling into the Willamette River | |
| Details | |
| Date | November 1, 1893 6:45 a.m. |
| Location | Portland, Oregon |
| Coordinates | 45°30′48″N 122°40′16″W / 45.5134°N 122.6712°W |
| Line | East Side Railway |
| Incident type | Streetcar ran off open drawbridge into river |
| Cause | Excessive speed, poor warning systems, icy track |
| Statistics | |
| Passengers | 18-20 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Deaths | 7 |
| Damage | Streetcar Inez destroyed |
The Madison Street bridge disaster occurred on November 1, 1893, in Portland, Oregon, United States, when a westbound streetcar drove off the open draw of the first Madison Street Bridge (since replaced by the Hawthorne Bridge). Seven people died. This remains the worst streetcar accident ever to occur in the city of Portland[1][2] and also the worst bridge disaster in Portland history.[3]
- ^ Labbe, John T. (1980). Fares Please! Those Portland Trolley Years. Caldwell, ID: Caxton Printers. pp. 101–102. ISBN 0-87004-287-4. LCCN 79-50502.
- ^ Thompson, Richard (2006). Portland's Streetcars. Arcadia Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 0-7385-3115-4.
- ^ Wood Wortman, Sharon; Wortman, Ed (2006). The Portland Bridge Book (3rd ed.). Urban Adventure Press. p. 6. ISBN 0-9787365-1-6.