Orrick lost a leg as a child in St. Louis to a streetcar accident. After the accident, Johns' family had to give up their home on Cabanne Place and move across the tracks to Maple avenue. Johns spent six months in bed recovering from the amputation and spent his time reading and developing a love of writing and publishing. The trolley company was deemed liable for the accident and the family was awarded a small sum. The accident spurred George Sibley Johns to advocate for improvements to the trolley system. He started a newspaper campaign to have the trolleys install better brakes and put fenders on the cars.