Fatal accident on railway line Croft on Tees 1964 Thomas SNAITH

[Keith Sherwood]

Hi Everyone,
Can someone tell me where I could possibly read in a local newspaper of the time about the apparent accident on the railway line at Croft on Tees some time in the year 1964 that resulted in the death of Thomas SNAITH.  If I have the correct individual, according to the 1939 Electoral Register he was a railway employee and was born in 1894.
Many thanks in advance for any pointers…
Keith

[Roobarb]

Hi Keith, the Evening Gazette covers the area, or possibly the Northern Echo. Hope you manage to find what you're looking for.

[maddys52]

There seems to be an article about the accident and inquest in the Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer on 22 October 1964. I don't have a subscription so can't see the whole article.

"... They returned a verdict of accidental death on Mr. Thomas Snaith, 70, of Railway Cottages, Hurworth Place, Croft, who was said to have been worried about his poor eyesight. He was walking on the track "facing the traffic", using it as a short cut, when killed 200 yards from his home. ..."

[Keith Sherwood]

Many thanks for taking the time to focus on this request of mine, Roobarb, and also to Maddys2 for turning up that important fragment of the report that very much gives the gist of what was a tragic accident.  Will try and see whether I can get to see the whole article…
Keith

[Jool]

Hi Keith, I cannot post the full article here as you have posted on a "lookup requests" board which doesn't allow attachments.

I can add this to what maddys has already posted.   Thomas Snaith was described as a retired ganger and the accident happened near Croft Railway Station.  The driver of the train, a London-Edinburgh 70mph express, said he first saw the man on the track 400 yards away, blew his horn, but the man's attention seemed to be distracted by a train coming the other way.

[AlanBoyd]

Jool has given you the gist of it, but here is the full text, just in case there is a detail that matters.

22 October 1964: Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer

SHORT CUT ENDED IN DEATH
A retired ganger who was struck by a 70 mph express near Croft Railway Station, Co. Durham, might not have died if, at the crucial moment, his attention had not be diverted by a train coming in the opposite direction. A Darlington inquest jury heard this yesterday.

They returned a verdict of accidental death on Mr. Thomas Snaith 70, of Rallway Cottages, Hurworth Place, Croft, who was said to have been worried about his poor eyesight. He was walking on the track "facing the traffic," using it as a short cut, when killed 200 yds. from his home.

Mr. Norman Stephenson, of Leam-Lane Estate, Gateshead, the driver of the 10.10 a.m. London-Edinburgh express which hit Mr. Smith, said he first saw a man on the track 400 yds. away. He blew his horn to tell him to step clear but the man's attention seemed to be distracted by a train coming the other way.

[AlanBoyd]

Here is a large scale OS map from 1972. Croft Station is adjacent to Station House and just north of the bridge. My guess is that Railway Cottages is a reference to Railway Terrace running parallel to the railway on the east side and south of the bridge.

https://maps.nls.uk/view/188866876#zoom=5.6&lat=7346&lon=8568&layers=BT

[Keith Sherwood]

Joel and Alan Boyd,
Thank you both so much for providing all the extra details of this tragic accident, while I was having my nightly sleep.  And for the link to that map of the relevant area, Alan.
I see that one of those cottages is a small holiday let today…
Keith
I find it interesting too that even in this newspaper report the surname SNAITH becomes SMITH when quoted a second time in the same article. I have come across several instances when searching for this family of this common mistranscription.

[AlanBoyd]

I find it interesting too that even in this newspaper report the surname SNAITH becomes SMITH when quoted a second time in the same article. I have come across several instances when searching for this family of this common mistranscription.

As soon as I read this I assumed that I had made a mistake (my post was my own OCR of the original, with a very small number of edits), but I have checked the image and it is indeed Smith at the second appearance.