Glenn Heckman train accident (1930)

HECKMAN, HECKMANN, DRESSLER, BAUMGARTNER, HUFF

Posted By: Ken Akers (email)
Date: 2/25/2012 at 12:51:48

Audubon County Journal (IA)
Thursday, May 15, 1930, pg. 1
Glenn Heckman
Hurt in Accident

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Car Hit by Rock Island Flyer
Near Anita. Narrowly
Escaped Death.

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Glenn Heckman, 19, of Anita was
seriously injured Monday morning
when the car he was driving was
struck by a Rock Island flyer at a
crossing about two miles west of
Anita on a side road just off primary
highway 32.

Only for the fact that he was help-
ing push another car out of a mud-
hole near the scene of the crash, a
younger brother, Ralph Heckman,
ought to have been injured or killed.

The latter was being taken to work
at the Audubon township creamery
by Glenn when the accident occurred.
Their car became mired in a mudhole
in the road which has recently been
graded after a new bridge was put
in a short distance south of the cross-
ing and after aiding Harry Dressler,
Anita mail carrier, and another man
in getting their cars out of the mud-
hole, the elder Heckman youth drove
his car up in order to make way for
the Dressler machine to pass while
the younger of the two brothers re-
mained out of the car to clean a
spade they had been using. Glenn
pulled onto the track and as he did
so he heard the train whistle as it
rushed down upon him. According
to witnesses, he slowed up the car
for an instant as it was on the tracks
and then sped it up in an effort to
get it clear of the locomotive.

The train struck the car just back
of the center of the body, hurling it
some 75 feet to the west of the road.
Heckman was thrown clear of the
car and landed about 25 feet from
the wrecked machine. He was placed
on the train and taken to the Atlan-
tic hospital, where he is recovering.

He suffered a bad fracture of his
left arm, one hip was dislocated and
he received bad head injuries in ad-
dition to numerous bruises and lacer-
ations.

None of those at the scene of the
accident saw the train until it whistled
when almost upon the car. They
did not hear it whistle prior to that,
it was stated by Ralph Heckman.

The youth's mother, Mrs. Retta
Heckman, and another son, Gerald,
were in Atlantic at the time visiting
their daughter and sister, Mrs. Elsie
Baumgartner of Anita, who under-
went an operation recently at the At-
lantic hospital.

The car driven by Heckman, a
Chevrolet coupe, was badly damaged.

Note: Glenn and Ralph's parents were Karl August Heckman (1873-1919) and Retta Leva Huff (1880-1966).