It was the largest man-made explosion to ever happen until the atomic bomb. The home that Vincent Coleman had left that morning was only 2000 feet from Ground Zero. He was also very active in his railway union. His last message was: "Hold up the train. Vincent Coleman, whose actions were captured in a Heritage Minute video, is being honoured at a ceremony in Halifax on Wednesday. The Coleman house was wrecked and then burned by the explosion. Image credits: CAFinUS. The train that Vincent Coleman stopped from entering the area had 700 people on board. Ammunition ship afire in harbour making for Pier 6 and will explode. McSweeney said … "Hold up the train. Patrick Vincent Coleman was a train dispatcher for the Canadian Government Railways who was killed in the Halifax Explosion, but not before he sent a message to an incoming passenger train to stop out of range of the explosion. In his wallet that morning, tucked beside some raffle tickets for the Victory Bond drive, was a clipping about an upcoming union meeting in Montreal. It is also very important to remember that Coleman's message had a second, arguably more important effect. Clearly Coleman knew the explosion was imminent and that he was staring death in the face. Coleman worked for what everyone in Halifax called the "Intercolonial Railway" or "ICR" even though it had been renamed "Canadian Government Railways" in 1916. Conductor Gillespie had a narrow escape from death. Today he is remembered as one of the heroic figures from the disaster. People poured out of the offices in that part of the city to watch. He stands with a number of heroes of the Halifax explosion such as Horatio Brennan, a heroic tugboat captain who died trying to pull Mont-Blanc away from the city. The rapid railway response allowed heavy equipment and construction crews to mobilize in Halifax with remarkable speed. The Halifax explosion is considered to be one of the largest artificial non-nuclear explosions. He died in the Halifax explosion which, for those who don't know, "In addition to people dying, lots of people lost their vision because they were looking out the window. On that day, Coleman and his co-worker, Henry Dunstan got word that a ship caring explosives was docked in Halifax Harbor. Coleman died in the explosion as did his office manager, William Lovett, and his stenographer, Florence Young. Fortunately, it was running a few minutes late and was far enough from the explosion so the blast inflicted only broken windows and minor injuries. Ammunition ship afire in harbor making for Pier 6 and will explode. He contacted them then said these last words. Working only a few feet from the harbour with its busy piers , his job was to control the massive rail traffic generated by the crowded wartime harbour of Halifax. May be reproduced for personal and study purposes only. The Coleman artifacts form a special part of the Museum's permanent exhibt on the Halifax Explosion. Barron, Leon, retired Dominion Atlantic railway brakeman, telephone interview about station order boards and train crews. A single telegram saved the lives of hundreds on Dec. 6, 1917 — the day two ships collided in the Halifax Harbour, setting off an explosion that decimated the city. It was crushed by the blast and buried in debris from the railway yard as tidal waves rose from the harbour and roared back and forth across the Richmond yards. Train dispatcher Vince Coleman sacrifices his own life to save a train from the Halifax Explosion. It is a priority for CBC to create a website that is accessible to all Canadians including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. HALIFAX - He is the ultimate hero of the Halifax Explosion: Vince Coleman saved a trainload of passengers at the cost of his own life. Once Vince Coleman was told he automatically remembered that there was a train coming from New Brunswick come towards the explosion. The French munitions ship Mont-Blanc had caught fire after a collision. Vince Coleman. Vince Coleman’s widow, Frances, also survived. Her two olde… The American relief trains did not arrive until two days later. Coleman was especially worried about Passenger Train No. Come for an hour or stay for the day. He ran back into his office and started the telegraph to stop the train," Jim Coleman explained. This help, in the vital first hours was absolutely critical to the fate of for hundreds of lives as a snowstorm the next day slowed everything down. "People just didn't talk about it and now, 100 years later, people are talking about it and wanting to learn more about it. It would be the biggest and most devastating explosion in history until the invention of the nuclear bomb. "As a result of his actions, the other telegraph people were able to relay the message on and helped improve the expedition of the aid that came in. 10, that was his intention and he clearly halted all the other inbound freight and passenger trains. Canadian Government Railways Timetable Dec. 1, 1917. Pier 6 and the ship vanished in a column of flame. They were transferred to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in 2005. Eileen Coleman's Dress Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, M2004.54.1, Gift of Janette Snooks Coleman's wife Frances suffered serious back injuries. Suddenly a naval sailor burst through the door. Coleman's telegraph key, recovered from the wreckage of the station.Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, M2004.50.103a. Good-bye boys.” Coleman died at They represent the many heroes of that day, the firefighters, the soldiers, sailors and the many ordinary men and women across the city who rushed into burning and collapsing houses to save family, neighbours and strangers. [My grandfather] tried to clear the people away, there were school children, away from there. When a … 10 and save the 300 people aboard? According to MacMechan, the train was past the point where it could be stopped because it had already passed the Rockingham station, the last station before Richmond. Website developed and maintained by Nova Scotia Communities, Culture and Heritage Contact Us Social Media, ormer Curator of Marine History (April, 2014), Vincent Coleman and the Halifax Explosion, Travelling Exhibit MS St. Louis: Ship of Fate, Teaching With Small Boats Alliance Conference, Nova Scotia Communities, Culture and Heritage. Pier 6 and the Richmond rail yards after the explosion.MMA, Charles A. Vaughan Collection, MP207.1.184/47, N-14,020. Images or text not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without permission from the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. By: Misaki Chan Vincent Coleman was born on 13 March 1872, in Halifax, Nova Scotia He has a wife named Frances Coleman and 4 Childrens . Ammunition ship afire in harbour making for Pier 6 and will explode. People were coming in from all over to help out. Calgarian Jim Coleman never met his grandfather, railway dispatcher Vincent Coleman, but he's come to learn a lot about the man who died to save the lives of many. However a recent railway history, Built for War: Canada's Intercolonial by Jay Underwood, records an article in the December 7, 1917 Moncton Transcript newspaper which indicates that Coleman did stop the train: "Conductor Gillespie Had a Marvelous Escape From Death—Conductor Gillespie, who went to Halifax on No. 10 are safe. 9 Express from Halifax. The sailor had been sent ashore by one of the naval officers responding to the blaze, one of the few people who knew of her deadly cargo. A single telegram saved the lives of hundreds on Dec. 6, 1917 — the day two ships collided in the Halifax Harbour, setting off an explosion that decimated the city. Instead of running off, he stayed behind He inspire me because he's brave,smart, quick thinker... Vince Coleman & the Halifax The 'ordinary man' who died for strangers when Mont-Blanc exploded, INTERACTIVE | Experience the Halifax Explosion in 360º video, Landlord of hastily evacuated apartment block calls collapse warning 'absolute lie', Alberta unveils $1.4B plan to drive innovation, boost energy industry, diversify economy, CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices. Please credit the Nova Scotia Museum, Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage. 6/12/1917 The Halifax Explosion: a Canadian city devastated 06/12/2017 09/12/2017 ianmoore3000 1917 Canada , First World War , Halifax , Halifax Explosion , Vince Coleman The east coast Canadian port of Halifax is an important centre for the shipment of war materials to Europe. Good-bye boys.”. Coleman started to leave with his boss, William Lovett, the chief clerk at Richmond but then Coleman turned back to use the telegraph key to send his famous message. Here’s a reenactment detailing Vince Coleman’s involvement in providing aid during the catastrophe. The kitchen sink crashed down on two year old Eileen Coleman, badly cutting her neck and leaving her little blue dress spattered with bloodstains that you can see to this day. Today marks the 100th anniversary of the Halifax Explosion, December 6, 1917. ", Audience Relations, CBC P.O. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered on CBC Gem. He alerted the entire Intercolonial to this catastrophe. Eileen Coleman's DressMaritime Museum of the Atlantic, M2004.54.1, Gift of Janette Snooks. Without warning the munition ship exploded into flames a few hours later. HALIFAX - Exactly one century after he died, mustachioed train dispatcher Vince Coleman's status as the ultimate Halifax Explosion hero will be cemented Wednesday. He was 11 years old when it happened," he said. Coleman was killed in the Halifax Explosion in 1917 that claimed the lives of 2,000 and injured 9,000 more. He sent orders to the countless trains feeding freight into the ship filled wharves of North End Halifax as well as routing the heavy wartime passenger traffic passing into the North Street Station and the vital troop trains and hospital trains from the Pier 2 ocean liner terminal. As Coleman relieved the night dispatcher at the telegraph, off in the distance there was a muffled crash, followed by a column of black smoke rising above the rows of parked freight cars in front of the station. Apr 16, 2018 - 1280. Vincent Coleman's penMaritime Museum of the Atlantic, M2004.50.103c, YMCA Emergency HospitalM.M.A., Kitz Collection, N-15,034. Vincent Coleman, the harbour ferry, begins service near Halifax Explosion site | National News | kelownadailycourier.ca Did Coleman really stop Train No. Today he is remembered as one of the heroic figures from the disaster. "When the ships collided, there was a huge fire aboard the ships. Within minutes it was due to pass along the approach tracks to the North Street Station directly in front of the blazing Mont-Blanc. It wasn't really spoken about.". The Coleman house was wrecked and then burned by the explosion. It had about 300 people aboard and was due in Halifax at 8:55 am. Vince Coleman Halifax Explosion-Vince Coleman, a railway dispatcher, sacrificed his life in order to warn an incoming train of the imminent Halifax explosion. Unaware of the Mont-Blanc’s cargo, crowds gathered to see the fire. For more information about the Halifax Explosion visit The Canadian Encyclopedia. He left his wife Frances looking after their young two-year old daughter Eileen, dressed in a cheerful blue dress handmade by Frances. HALIFAX — Exactly one century after he died, mustachioed train dispatcher Vince Coleman’s status as the ultimate Halifax Explosion hero will be cemented Wednesday. I think we, as part of Canadian history, should look back and be very proud of those people. The record is unclear. My father talked about it. Each station agent would have quickly moved the station order boards, those semaphore blades you once saw mounted on the side of stations, dropping them from the vertical "All Clear" position to the horizontal "Stop!" Coleman was a dispatch operator working at a Halifax, Nova Scotia, railroad on December 6, 1917. SS Mont-Blanc , a French cargo ship laden with high explosives , collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in the Narrows, a strait connecting the upper Halifax Harbour to Bedford Basin . His grandson is set to speak at the event, which marks the 100th anniversary of the day a Norwegian vessel and a French cargo ship collided, killing nearly 2,000 people and injuring 9,000. Vince Coleman (train dispatcher) P. Vincent Coleman (1872 - December 6, 1917) was a train dispatcher for the Canadian Government Railways (formerly the ICR, Intercolonial Railway of Canada) who was killed in the Halifax Explosion. Coleman's wallet and raffle ticketsMaritime Museum of the Atlantic, M2004.54.2, Gift of Janette Snooks. Guess this will be my last message. Observing the burning ship just prior to the explosion, both he and his co-worker decided to run from what they knew would be a life-threatening situation. Patrick Vincent Coleman (13 March 1872 – 6 December 1917) was a train dispatcher for the Canadian Government Railways (formerly the ICR, Intercolonial Railway of Canada) who was killed in the Halifax Explosion, but not before he sent a message to an incoming passenger train to stop outside the range of the explosion. He warned everyone that the burning Mont-Blanc was full of ammmunition and about to explode. "He stopped the train but he didn't have enough time to get away from the area, and he lost his life as a result.". 10 was gathered from interviews of passengers and crew by Archibald MacMechan in 1917 and published in Graham Metson's 1978 book The Halifax Explosion December 6, 1917. On Wednesday, a ferry … Article content. The newspapers of the day recorded slight variations on the exact wording of Coleman's message but its content is consistently reported as: “Hold up the train. Guess this will be my last message. Vince Coleman was also the subject of a Heritage Minute and was a prominent character in the CBC miniseries Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion. "Most of my friends didn't know anything about my grandfather. Rows of boxcars were vaporized while others were hurled through the air. "They were all heroes. Otherwise the lines would just have gone dead and hours would have been wasted figuring out what was wrong in Halifax. It was a split-second decision about the fate of train passengers bound for Halifax. Jim Coleman said, for many years, people avoided talking about the disaster, including his grandfather's contribution. HALIFAX — Exactly one century after he died, mustachioed train dispatcher Vince Coleman’s status as the ultimate Halifax Explosion hero will be cemented Wednesday. Today he is remembered as one of the heroic figures from the disaster. Image credits: Historica Canada. He says, that the explosion blew the windows out of the train at Rockingham some 4 miles from Halifax. This is how rail traffic was controlled in 1917. Such was the case that December morning in Halifax, when Vince Coleman, a railway dispatcher working less than a mile from the explosion, learned what the Mont-Blanc was carrying. Coleman no doubt died instantly at his telegraph key. Image credits: CAFinUS. But in recent years, there's been fresh interest, he said. The home that Vincent Coleman had left that morning was only 2000 feet from Ground Zero. HALIFAX — He is the ultimate hero of the Halifax Explosion: Vince Coleman saved a trainload of passengers at the cost of his own life. "He had a choice, he had a decision to make and I think he made the right one — to stay and save the people," Jim Coleman told The Homestretch Tuesday. A few years previously he was commended for helping to stop a runaway train. The choice is yours with an Annual Pass. Seconds later, the ship would explode and set off the 3,000 tons of explosives inside. The morning of December 6, 1917, Railway Dispatcher Vincent Coleman went to work from his home on Russell Street in the neighbourhood of Halifax's North End known as Richmond. He worked not in the grand brick passenger station on North Street but in the deceptively small wooden station in the middle of the Richmond rail yards. .. More specifically, Mr. Coleman worked for the Canadian Government Railways company during WW1. position. You can still see water stains in his wallet at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic today. Bang, bang, bang, all the way to Truro the order boards would drop bringing all Halifax bound trains to a halt as soon as they approached their next station. Articles belonging to telegraph operator Vince Coleman are among the artifacts from the Halifax Explosion displayed at the Maritime Museum of Atlantic in Halifax … A sailor appraised train dispatcher Vince Coleman of the danger, and rather than flee, Coleman warned incoming trains: “Hold up the train. The Heritage Minute and other sources contain historical inaccuracies in that Coleman is shown warning others in the area surrounding the depot station of the impending explosion. A few days later, searchers found Vincent Coleman's body in the wreckage of the Richmond rail yards. These were the last words of Vince Coleman, the train dispatcher who met his end on December 6, 1917, in the Halifax Explosion. Vincent ColemanNova Scotia Archives, 230.1, N-6198. The same year, the Coleman family donated Vincent's wallet and Eileen's dress. 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