Wilmette Public Library Local History Digital Collection

W. Henry Huffman (1911-1997) oral history

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Track 6, Transcript p. 9-10: Track 6, Transcript p. 9-10
Transcription: Track 6 To the best of my recollection, the only person killed in Wilmette was the crossing flagman located at the Wilmette Avenue crossing. And his shanty and he, himself, were picked up and carried about eighty to a hundred feet in the air and then dropped. But to the best Henry Huffman, cont. p.10 of my recollection that was the only person killed. And it could have happened twenty minutes earlier -- everybody would have been on the streets coming home from church. M: Yes, that's right, too, the time was just right. But they still had a crossing guard in a little shack at Wilmette? HH: Nell, they had them at every location on the railroad. This, of course, was long before any mechanical gates or signals were in place on the railroad, so at each crossing of the tracks there was a crossing gateman or flagman and he mechanically lowered the gates and mechanically raised the gates. M: And he and his little shanty were - HH: And he and his little shanty were picked up by the tornado.
Creators: Huffman, W. Henry, 1911-1997, Interviewee; Maselli, Briggs
, Interviewer
Media Type: Audio; Image; Text
Item Type: Audiocassettes
Description: Interview with Henry Huffman by Briggs Maselli in Wilmette, Illinois, on January 24, 1977.

Abstract:
Wilmette 1918
Tornado 1920
New Trier High School
Northwestern Railroad history
Purdue Engineering School
Christmas parties of Mrs. Huffman
Place of Publication: Wilmette Public Library
Date of Original: 24 January 1977
Subject(s): Oral histories
Wilmette (Ill.)--History
Wilmette (Ill.) -- Residents
Personal Name(s): Huffman, W. Henry
Local identifier: R977.31 HU
Language of Item: English
Copyright Statement: Protected by copyright: Uses other than research or private study require the permission of the rightsholder(s). Responsibility for obtaining permissions and for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Copyright Date: 1977
Copyright Holder: Wilmette Public Library
Copyright Holder Contact Information: 1242 Wilmette Ave.
Wilmette, Il 60091
Recommended Citation: Huffman, W. Henry, 1911-1997, and Briggs Maselli. W. Henry Huffman. Wilmette, Ill: Wilmette Public Library District, 1977.
Contact: Wilmette Public Library
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