I've found two period references in newspapers to confirm some elements of the story.

While a short reference from the Fitchburg Daily Sentinel (November 30th, 1900), p. 7 notes that a man named John Ladner "engaged in breaking down a log pile" perished after "running in front of a moving pile of logs" he had been working on and that "Three of the logs moved toward him, and rolled over his body," a more full report is found in The Bangor Daily News (November 30th, 1900), p. 1:

MADISON MAN CRUSHED TO DEATH BY LOGS

MADISON, Me., Nov. 29 [1900] -- John Ladner, aged about 35 years, one of the crew of men engaged in breaking down a log pile for the Great Northern Paper Co., at this place, was killed about 9 o'clock this morning while running in front of a moving pile of logs after he had started the pile on which he and several other men were at work. After the immense pile of logs became loosened several of them struck another pile in front of which he went for safety but three of the logs moved toward him and rolled over his body. His skull was crushed and his face terribly cut. He was unconscious when taken from under the logs and died in twenty-five minutes. He was unmarried and a well known citizen of this town.