Most folks around town have heard about the flood. A few might bring up the tornado. But hardly anyone talks about the train wreck that rattled Falmouth back in the fall of 1957, maybe because too many people have forgotten, or maybe because some would rather it stay buried under steel and silence.
On November 14, 1957, just before dawn, a freight train moving through the edge of Falmouth ran into trouble. A broken coupler caused part of the train to derail, leaving twisted wreckage blocking the other main track. You’d think there’d be warning enough to stop any oncoming traffic, but before anyone could act, a passenger train, The Flamingo, of all names, barreled into the scene.
The impact wasn’t just loud, it was the kind of sound that stops a town’s heart for a second. Three were injured: a porter and two other train service workers. Miraculously, no lives were lost. But it shook the town. The Flamingo was supposed to be a sleek, reliable line, not the centerpiece of a near-disaster.
Eyewitnesses at the time spoke in hushed tones about how fast things went wrong and how lucky it was that more passengers weren’t hurt. And just like that, within days, the story was cleaned up and the tracks were cleared. No lingering headlines. No memorial plaque. Just whispers and a few archived reports from the Interstate Commerce Commission confirming what happened.
What’s strange is how little this event is mentioned, even among those who pride themselves on remembering Falmouth’s past. Maybe it’s time to change that.
The train wreck of ‘57 is more than an old news clipping, it’s a reminder of how quickly things can change, how danger doesn’t always come with warning sirens, and how some stories still sit buried under the tracks we walk every day.