Forest Park in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train Wreck
22 June 1918
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
1. Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train Wreck Marker
86 souls perished when an empty troop train ran a signal and crashed into the rear of the Hagenbeck-Wallace circus train as it was stationary at Ivanhoe Tower Hammond, Indiana
This group of 56 grave markers are dedicated to unnamed, unclaimed and unrecognizable men and women that perished in this train wreck and subsequent fire
This grave marker is provided by the Circus Historical Society and in memory of circus historian Thomas J. Dunwoody
Erected by The Circus Historical Society.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Disasters • Entertainment • Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical date for this entry is June 22, 1918.
Location. 41° 51.033′ N, 87° 49.111′ W. Marker is in Forest Park, Illinois, in Cook County. It can be reached from Cermak Road (22nd Street) 0.8 miles west of Harlem Avenue (Illinois Route 43), on the right when traveling west. The marker is in the Showmen's Rest section of Woodlawn Cemetery, about 500 feet west of the Cermak Road entrance to the cemetery.
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Chicago. It is also in the American Midwest. Globally, it is in North America, on the Great Lakes, in the Western Hemisphere, in the Western World, and in the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 15 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Veterans Memorial (about 800 feet away, measured in a direct line); 9/11 Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Pfc. Christopher A. Sisson (approx. 0.3 miles away); Veterans Memorial Gazebo (approx. 0.4 miles away); Anshe Chodorkov Cemetery (approx. 0.6 miles away); Veterans Park (approx. 0.6 miles away); World War II Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Chenstochow Holocaust Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Jewish Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Pinsk Holocaust Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Holocaust Memorial
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
2. Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train Wreck Marker
Graves of the victims of the wreck are in front of the marker; Cermak Road (22nd Street) is in the background.
More about this marker. This marker is part of a special section of graves called Showmen's Rest, which is dedicated to circus performers. The area is marked off by five statues of elephants.
Regarding Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train Wreck. The Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus was the third largest circus in the country at the time of this disaster. On June 22, 1918, its train, comprising mostly wooden cars lit by oil lamps, was traveling through Hammond, Indiana, with about 400 performers when it paused for maintenance work around 4 a.m. Then, an empty troop train pulling Pullman cars, despite many signals indicating a train ahead, plowed into the circus train at about 35 miles an hour, destroying the circus train's caboose and four cars in the back. Many of the performers were killed instantly before the train
Chicago Daily News Collection, Chicago History Museum, June 1918
3. Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train Wreck
A photographer for the Chicago Daily News captured this shot of the smoldering aftermath of the Hagenbeck-Wallace train accident, including derailed cars and a crowd of people standing nearby.
Showmen's Rest at Woodlawn Cemetery in Forest Park had just months earlier been purchased by the Showmen's League of America as a burial ground for circus performers. It became the final resting place for close to 60 of the victims of this train accident.
Also see . . .
1. Circus Historical Society official site. (Submitted on May 7, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
2. Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus train crash stuns Chicago. From the Chicago Sun-Times in 2021 (free signup may be required)
Excerpt: 'To add to the holocaust,' the paper reported, 'water was unobtainable and the fumes of the gas and intense heat of the flames made it impossible for volunteer resources to approach within 150 feet of it. The crew of the circus train and the men of the troop train available worked heroically, but there was so little they could do.'(Submitted on May 7, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
3. The Hammond Train Wreck of 1918 Killed Scores of Circus Performers. From Smithsonian
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
4. Gravesites of train wreck victims
The numbered gravesites of unknown victims are in front of the memorial to the train wreck. Pictured are stones for three "unknown males."
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
5. Showmen's Rest
This large elephant statue, dedicated by the Showmen's League of America, sits near the center of Showmen's Rest, a section of graves dedicated to circus performers. It is a short walk from the Hagenbeck-Wallace memorial. Four smaller elephant statues mark the corners of the plot at Woodlawn Cemetery.
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
6. Showmen's Rest
This marker sits at the center of the Showmen's Rest section of Woodlawn Cemetery, in front of the largest of the five elephant statues and behind the flagpole. The inscription reads: "Showmen's Rest - In Memory - The Showmen's League of America maintains this plot, and has erected this monument in memory of the departed showmen who lie here."
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 7, 2024
7. Showmen's Rest elephants
Four smaller elephants with "Showmen's Rest" engraved on them mark the four corners of the rectangular plot of land dedicated to the gravesites of circus performers. These two are on the left (east) side of the plot.
Courtesy of Library of Congress, circa 1905
8. Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus
This poster shows portraits of Carl Hagenbeck and B.E. Wallace.
Credits. This page was last revised on August 13, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 7, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 2,204 times since then and 677 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. submitted on May 7, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.
