John P. Steil (1854-1927)
STEIL, BLITGEN, BECKER, MURPHY, FISK
Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 1/28/2011 at 20:05:05
Bellevue Herald, April 26, 1927
John P. Steil, 73, was killed by a heavy explosion from dynamite Saturday afternoon while blasting out stumps on the Cornelius farm about 9 miles west of Bellevue. Early Monday morning two neighbors went to borrow some dynamite caps from Steil who lived in a cabin on the place, and being unable to find him, they looked around and discovered the body. It is thought by neighbors that the accident happened about 5 o’clock Saturday afternoon as a particularly loud explosion was hears at that time and no more shots were heard afterwards. The body was found about 25 feet away from the hole in the ground where the charge exploded and theory is that Mr. Steil thought the charge was not going to explode and approached the stump too soon. The body was badly mangled. The top of the head was blown off, both arms were badly shattered, one leg broken and there were bruises all over the body. The dead man’s watch was found in the deep excavation, an odd circumstance, as the body was fully 25 feet away.
Coroner Ristine was called and a coroner’s jury was impaneled which rendered a verdict that Mr. Steil was accidentally killed by a heavy blast of dynamite. The body was removed to the home of Fred Blitgen, a nephew. John Peter Steil, the son of Jacob and Barbara Steil, was born in Germany in 1854 and came to America in 1861 with his parents and settled in Jackson county. He was a member of Saints Peter and Paul’s church at Springbrook. He is survived by three brothers, Nick, Peter and Fred; four sisters, Mrs. Lena Blitgen of Bellevue, Mrs. Margaret Becker of Maquoketa, Mrs. J. P. Murphy of Chicago and Mrs. Margaret Fisk of Goldhill, Oregon. Funeral services were conducted yesterday afternoon at 4:30 from Saints Peter and Paul’s church at Springbrook, the Rev. Father Knapstein officiating. Burial was made in the church cemetery.
Steil Family Grave
Jackson Obituaries maintained by Nettie Mae Lucas.
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