William R. Plummer
Agency patch
Police Officer

William R. Plummer

Accident
End of Watch November 25, 1879
Age 65
Tour of Duty 11 yrs
The Vigil Panel 6 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Police Officer William Plummer was struck and killed by a train while making his rounds at the Pennsylvania Railroad depot in Tyrone, Pennsylvania.

He was checking several boxcars that were parked on a siding when an eastbound freight train approached. As he stepped off of the track he was struck by a westbound express mail train. It is believed the sound of the of freight train, combined with being on a sharp curve, prevented him from noticing the express mail train.

Officer Plummer had served as a police officer and night watchman for the Pennsylvania Railroad for approximately 11 years. He was a widower and survived by his seven sons and one daughter. He was predeceased by three other sons.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-RR-83DDA7EA
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

147 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Police Officer Plummer gave the Pennsylvania Railroad Police Department 11 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphpia community. Gone but never to be forgotten.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Philadelphpia, PA
Platform Identity pennpd.rr.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch November 25, 1879
Tour of Duty 11 yrs
Age 65
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Police Officer William R. Plummer is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In PA, 417 of 1,261 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.1% of this state's fallen. That is 33.1 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Pennsylvania Railroad Police Department, 22 of 36 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 61.1% of this agency's fallen.

Pennsylvania Railroad Police Department
22
of 36 officers
61.1% Accident
PA — Statewide
417
of 1,261 officers
33.1% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William R. Plummer's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How William R. Plummer Compares

Age at Death
65
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
11
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William R. Plummer is highlighted in Nov.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location