General > Worcester History

Does anyone remember when the jet crashed on Forest St?

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susan:
When it happened, I was about 10 or 11, and lived up the hill on Eagle Road. It would have been about 1957 or 58, I think.
As I remember, the poor pilot was aiming for Indian Lake, but crashed in front of one of the houses and I believe about 6 houses were destroyed by the resulting fire on either side of the street.

jim28518:
Remembering the crash as a kid. The Worcester radio stations had information within minutes on the crash.
As a kid with a bike and about age 13, went to the site. The roads were blocked (only used by fire and police).
So we parked our bikes and went to the several burned buildings, the fires were almost out.
As I remember only one house took the direct hit. Other houses along a path/route of the plane toward Indian lake didn't seem to be burned that bad.

Deerhawk:
Susan,
Where on Eagle Rd. did you live and what's your last name?
Jim....how about you, where did you live/last name?
I was in the back yard with my Mom. She was hanging out clothes on the line (no dryers)
The plane kept flying back and forth, doing barrel rolls (later it was found out there were friends or relatives on Sears Island that were trying to be impressed)
My mom said to me "that guy is crazy" just as the wing broke off and it crashed to the ground.
I was to young, but my older brother went down to the crash site and reported seeing a severed hand of the pilot with the wrist watch still on (might be a story)
Later the kids on Waycross St., just past Barnstable Rd. found a piece of the wing, about 4'x4' and dragged it home. The Military came in a helicopter that landed on Barnstable (then a dirt road) and confiscated the debris.
We had a piece of the plane (about the size of a silver dollar) in the kitchen "junk drawer" for years after.
Yep, I lived in the neighborhood

RobinPearson:
I remember it well. I thought it was later, but that's a long time ago. If it was late 50s, as Susan stated, I was living on (#12) St. Elmo Rd (across Pleasant St. from Richmond Ave). I remember riding by in the car seeing one house very badly burned, but still standing, and the houses on each side burned, but less badly. I don't remember any of them being torn down. We rode past there at least weekly. As well as I can remember they were restored ... but as I said, that was a long time ago.

I did a search on this, after yesterday's news of the crash in Virgina Beach.

I (fondly) remember going to the airport on sundays back then - to watch those 4-engine (gasoline) planes, start up and take off. I will never forget those "9 x5" engines starting up and ROARING to life, then taking off. ("9 x 5" means engines built with 5 sets of 9-cyllinder radials).

bob1942:
I vaguely remember the incident. We routinely traveled over this street on the way to Holden to visit relatives while we lived in Worcester. It has always irked me that I could never locate information about it.
I do remember that it happened on a hot summer day. Rumors had it that the pilot may have been trying to reach Indian Lake at the end of Forest Street. Many speculated that it was a good thing that he didn't because the lake was full of people swimming/boating etc. More than likely, countless deaths could have resulted from the tragic accident.

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