Ninety-six souls lost. Can you imagine? That’s the chilling legacy of Wellington Washington. This unassuming spot in the Cascade Range witnessed the deadliest avalanche in US history.
Right here before us stood a bustling railroad community. Wellington thrived. It connected Spokane and Seattle via the Great Northern Railway. Its location at the west portal of the Cascade Tunnel made it a vital hub. This was until the infamous 1910 avalanche.
Imagine a severe blizzard. Eleven feet of snow fell in a single day. Two trains were trapped in the depot for days. Passengers and crew were stranded. Then came the unimaginable. A lightning strike triggered a massive avalanche. A wall of snow half a mile long thundered down Windy Mountain. It buried the depot and the trains.
The impact was catastrophic. The trains were thrown 150 feet downhill. Ninety-six people perished. Passengers. Railroad employees. The town was devastated. The scale of the loss was simply overwhelming.
The aftermath was somber. Wellington was renamed Tye. The unpleasant memories were too much to bear. The depot was closed. The town was eventually abandoned and burned to the ground.
Today only remnants remain. Twisted metal. Fragments of the past. These are part of the Iron Goat Trail. This poignant reminder stands as a testament to nature’s raw power. It also memorializes the tragic loss of Wellington. Remember those 96 lives lost. Remember Wellington.