An obituary describing the accidental death of Mr. Williamson:
"KILLED IN AN EXPLOSION; FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE LEWIS SAVAGE FARM YESTERDAY.
T. S. Williamson meets instant death while running an engine. The Sad Affair probably due to the fact that the boiler became dry whereupon cold water was turned into it - the engine, an Old One, was wrecked. At 10 o’clock yesterday morning a 13 horsepower threshing engine, used to supplying power for a woodsaw on the Lewis Savage farm four miles northeast of this city, exploded, instantly killing T. S. Williamson, the engineer in charge, and stunning John Hart, another employed on the Savage farm. Williamson’s body was hurled 150 feet through the air by the explosion, striking in his flight a picket fence, two rods of which were destroyed. The explosion bruised the unfortunate man’s body, smashed the face, and cut the skull, and the head was fearfully scalded. Death was instantaneous. The explosion blackened the trees, grass and the surrounding buildings. It wrecked the engine entirely, blowing out the entire crown sheet, shattered the front door, and threw every bit of fire and wood out of the fire box. The two men were engaged in sawing wood, and had a little before 10 o’clock, over 90 pounds of steam up, but just before the explosion, Hart, the survivor states, the steam was down to 80 pounds. About 10 minutes before the accident, Hart called Williamson’s attention to the fact that the water gauge showed no water. Williamson soon after stepped around to the pump, and was seen to work with it a moment, it having given trouble for some time, and he is supposed to have turned water into the boiler, the water having evidently gone down to a dangerously low stage. Leaving the pump he again stepped around in front of the engine, when the explosion came. The force of the steam carried the unfortunate man 150 feet through the air, as stated above, killing him. Eye witnesses to the explosion state the spout of steam at no point rose higher above the ground than 10 feet, shooting out straight from the boiler to the point where the body of the engineer was found. Hart, who stood somewhat to one side of the force of the explosion, was thrown about ten feet against the house. He was stunned for a moment and sustained a cut on the temple, but did not lose consciousness. He was one of the first to hasten to the side of the engineer to render assistance, if any were needed, but found all efforts useless. The front end of the engine is entirely wrecked, the balance wheel of the woodsaw nearby is shattered, and the pulley knocked into splinters. The force of the explosion knocked out a portion of the weather-boarding of the farm house, twenty feet away. The force ran the engine ten feet forward into a workshop near which it stood. The engine is an old one, having been in use by Mr. Savage for about fourteen years. The boiler, however was said to be in good repair, and did not leak. For the last few years it has not been used for threshing purposes, but was utilized in running a woodsaw and a straw baler. People working about it have several times been warned that it was unsafe. It was a Russell engine, and the boiler was said to have a capacity of 150 pounds though it was set to blow off at 100 pounds. It is believed that the pump had not worked for some time, and that the boiler was entirely dry, thus causing the explosion. Williamson was 30 years old and had been an employee on Mr. Savage’s farm for the past seven or eight years. He was a very careful and painstaking employee, thoroughly trustworthy and reliable. He was married fifteen months ago, to Miss Minnie B. Fuller, of Armeda, Michigan, who survives him. He leaves a brother in Michigan. Deceased was a member of Court Sherwood Forest No. 19, Order of Foresters, of this city, and that order will meet at 2 o’clock this afternoon and arrange for the funeral. The date for the funeral will be fixed as soon as the brother of deceased, who has been telegraphed the sad news, is heard from. Coroner D. F. Lane went out to the scene of the explosion yesterday and decided that, under the circumstances an inquest was unnecessary. The accident brings to mind a bill introduced at the last session of the Legislature, providing for a thorough examination and the licensing of all engineers in this state, and a thorough system of inspection of engines, which, had it become a law, might have prevented this accident, as, at the very least, the engine would probably have not been allowed to run." -Oregon Statesman Nov. 8, 1901
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