On April 6th, 1901 the James Street Bridge over the Oswego Canal collapsed. A trolley car carrying around 40 people was crossing the bridge at the time and fell front first into the mud and debris. Fortunately, the water in the canal had been emptied a week earlier, presumably for repairs. Thirty-seven people were injured, some seriously, but remarkably no one was killed. Bystanders immediately began assisting people out of the wreckage until the fire department arrived on the scene. News of the accident spread quickly and it was estimated that thousands of people were drawn to the scene over the next several hours.