BEECROFT, Mary 1909-1926

BEECROFT

Posted By: Tammy (email)
Date: 11/17/2010 at 12:32:33

Wellsburg Girl Fatally Hurt

Miss Mary Beecroft, 17, Wellsburg, died here late yesterday from injuries received a few hours before when the car in which she was riding was struck by an M. and St. L. train near Steamboat Landing. Her father, P. T. Beecroft, was critically injured.

--Iowa City Press-Citizen (Iowa City, Iowa), 9 October 1926

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Father to Survive Train-Auto Crash That Killed Girl

Thomas Beecroft, Wellsburg, Ia., is expected to make complete recovery from injuries caused Friday afternoon when a M. & St. L. freight train wrecked his coupe near Steamboat Rock, killing his 17-year-old daughter, Mary.

The girl was being taken to Steamboat Rock for consultation on her health. The cause of the accident is not known, since a clear view of the track is available for about half a mile.

Beecroft is a rural mail carrier out of Wellsburg. There are two sons and four other daughters. The mother also survives.

--Waterloo Evening Courier (Waterloo, Iowa), 9 October 1926

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Wellsburg Girl Meets Death At Railway Crossing

Tom Beecroft And Daughter Mary Struck By M. & St. L. Freight Train

Father Is Still In Hospital

Girl Dies on Way to Hospital; Funeral Held at Wellsburg Tuesday Afternoon

Tom Beecroft and daughter, Mary, from Wellsburg, were struck by a M. & St. L. freight train at the crossing a short distance east of Steamboat Rock early Friday afternoon. Mary was thrown from the car and carried for a distance of a few rods where she was picked up at the side of the track. The body was quite badly mangled. The most severe injury was at the back of the head which resulted in concussion of the brain. Mr. Beecroft, who was driving, remained in the body of the car, which was right side up through the wheels were broken under it. He was severely bruised about the head and on other parts of the body, though there were no broken bones. A deep gash was cut in the side of his neck which missed the jugular vein by a hair.

The train was stopped at once and both father and daughter were gathered up and taken by train to the hospital at Eldora. Mary, who was never conscious, breathed her last a few moments before the party reached the hospital. The terrific blow on her head and the loss of blood were the cause of her death. Mr. Beecroft, while he is in bad physical condition as a result of his injuries and the nervous shock, will recover, though it will be necessary for him to remain in the hospital for some time.

The train which crashed into the car came from the west and it is easily visible for a considerable distance. Mr. Beecroft can't remember why he did not see the train until it was ready to strike. The train was not going fast. Neither was the car, as Mr. Beecroft, who is a rural mail carrier at Wellsburg and who is on the road daily with his car, is regarded as a careful driver. The car was hit in the middle. It was carried to the cattle guards and dumped on the side of the track. It is a total wreck. Even the air was knocked out of all of the tires. The car belonged to N. R. Ashby. It was a Ford coupe. Mr. Beecroft took this car because it was enclosed and more comfortable for his daughter to ride in. They were on their way to Steamboat Rock where Mary had been receiving medical treatment from Dr. Caldwell.

Funeral services were held at the Christian Reformed church at Wellsburg Tuesday afternoon and they were attended by an immense throng of people.

Mary Beecroft was seventeen years old. She was a lovable girl and she was idolized by the members of her family and her schoolmates. She was taken sick last winter and was confined to her home for several months but her former good health was slowly returning. Her tragic death came as a severe shock to the many friends of the family in Wellsburg and vicinity.

--The Grundy Register (Grundy Center, Iowa), 14 October 1926, pg 1