Inspired by Prompt: OLWG#418- Just below Alamo Bay
There is a dock at Alamo Bay whose pilings are covered with barnacles and green slime, is splashed and bathed in the fetid waters of non-stop and the air at the Pier
smells like one of the garbage trains that passes through town twice a day.
But the Dock at Alama Bay, whose official name in Pier 64
isn’t famous for it’s smell, or the train that jumped the tracks in 1910 and ended up in the Bay.
I know this story because I haunt that dock- I like to go up to take my lunch there every Wednesday and Friday, rain or shine the Pier is my home away from home.
First of all, let’s talk about the train at the bottom of the Bay. The train stopped being a train and became a tomb at 6:43 am on November 5th, 1910 when it sank to the bottom of the Bay.
In life it had been a circus train and all of the animals were trapped in their cages – tigers, lions and an Elephant named Flora- the engineer, the circus performers and the world famous Magician The Amazing Benadanti ( who was an Escape Artist of all things )were trapped in their cars and they are all still down there, at least that is what people say because none of the animals or the people ever floated up and washed ashore which is what happens when such a tragedy strikes.
But years and years after- and to this very day ( which is May 5, 2025 ) someone standing on the dock will look down into the water because they will hear a thump, sometimes a knock sometimes they look down because they feel like they need too and they always see
Shoes.
Sometimes it’s one shoe, sometimes there are a half dozen matching shoes and sometimes they don’t match, but what you can see right away is that the shoes aren’t old.
They aren’t covered with slime or seaweed. The shoes are always newish looking.
But what they all have in common is one thing.
There are feet in those shoes.
I will tell you a secret about something else that is there, just below the cold, fetid water of Alamo Bay- sometimes you can hear a growl, sometimes you can hear metal grinding against metal and when you do it’s probably best to step back from the railing and I’d advise you watch your feet as you do.
I like to look up history from TNKerr’s prompts – and I almost did… You did though and I found this; “There was indeed a significant circus train wreck on November 10, 1910, at Alamo Bay, Texas. This accident, involving the Ringling Brothers Circus, resulted in multiple deaths, including one reported as a circus man, and several injuries, including injuries to animals.” Apparently in reality there were some survivors. But I still like your story!
Thank you for visiting my fiction one.
My Grand Uncle was an engineer and I used to hear a lot of stories about train crashes- but the Circus crash stories stayed with me because of the animals. Thank you for reading my story and stopping by!
Those events just fit together perfectly!
Very compelling. Thank you!
Gosh yes, never heard this tale, but I am going to look it up. Great writing got me totally absorbed.
I wrote this based on some true events- first of all there is a Pier in Down Town Seattle that is sort of infamous becauase floaters have washed up and end up around the dock and pilings. The feet in the shoes in a real thing, but it’s happened Salish Sea in British Columbia, Canada, and here Washington https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish_Sea_human_foot_discoveries , The train wreck is based on a true story from 1918 – here’s the link: https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2088 . One of my releatives worked for the railroad at the time so I grew up on that story. I’m glad you liked my story!
Wow, I guess I can google it but it this a true story or tale?
The Circus train, the feet in the shoes and the Pier are all true events. I just sort of mashed them together- the Escape Artist is a character that has shown up in my earlier stories.:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish_Sea_human_foot_discoveries
https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2088
So, yep it’s my own story- sort of.
Thanks for the link, no wonder I got confused looking it up.
Very good mash-up!