Ghosts of The Tay Bridge Disaster ~ a December Haunting

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silv'ry Tay!

Alas! I am very sorry to say

That ninety lives have been taken away

On the last Sabbath day of 1879

Which will be remember'd for a very long time.

Sunday 28th December, during a violent storm, the railway bridge over the River Tay collapsed plunging the Wormit to Dundee train into the river.

So the train mov'd slowly along the Bridge of Tay.

Until it was about midway,

Then the central girders with a crash gave way.

And down went the train and passengers into the Tay!

The Storm Fiend did loudly bray,

Beacuse ninet lives had been taken away,

On the last Sabbath day of 1879,

Which will be remember'd for a very long time.

All lives were lost, it's believed there were up to 75 people on board but only 46 bodies were recovered.

As soon as the catastrophe came to be known

The alarm from mouth to mouth was blown,

And the cry rang out all o'er the town,

Good Heavens! The Tay Bridge is blown down.

And a passenger train from Edinburgh,

Which fill'd all the peoples hearts with sorrow,

And made them for to turn pale.

Because none of the passengers were sav'd to tell the tale

How the disaster happen'd on the last Sabbath day of 1879,

Which will be remember'd for a very long time.

It's said that on the anniversary of the disaster the disaster is replayed at 7.15pm, a ghost train crashes into the river amidst the screams of passengers.

Poem: extracts from "The Tay Bridge Disaster"by William McGonagall,

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