Video: 'Selected Original - 77 Dead In Long Island R. R. Crash (1950)

(Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday, November 22, 1950, 6:29 p.m. EST) — 78 commuters were killed and another 363 injured tonight when two eastbound trains collided on the Long Island Rail Road’s Main Line between the Kew Gardens and Jamaica stations in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York City.

The first train, taking New York City workers and Thanksgiving eve travelers to their homes near Hempstead, had stalled on the tracks.

Although a flagman had signaled a warning with red lamps, the engineer of the next train coming up the line misinterpreted a signal, and the 12-car Babylon Express rear-ended the Hempstead-bound train.

The official cause of the crash was determined to be the disregard of the “Go Slow” signal by the Babylon train’s engineer, who died in the crash. He had instead reacted to the “All Clear” signal half a mile ahead.

It was the worst railway accident in LIRR history, and one of the worst in the history of New York State.