O'NEILL, John D. (1862-1921) & Julia A. (1866-1921)

ONEIL, ONEILL, MALONEY, MAHONEY

Posted By: Joey Stark
Date: 4/28/2012 at 11:07:44

"The Fairfield Ledger-Journal"
October 27, 1921
Page 1, Column 7

HUSBAND SAFE CAME TO AID OF HIS WIFE
Mr. and Mrs. John O'NEIL (sic - O'NEILL, throughout) Taking Short Cut Struck By Burlington Freight

Stepping back from safety to the assistance of his wife, John O'NEIL (sic) met death with her when a fast freight on the Burlington struck them at the station here last night.

They were locked in each other's embrace when the engine struck and were thrown together onto the platform. Mr. O'NEIL (sic) lived about fifteen minutes, and Mrs. O'NEIL (sic) died an hour later at the County Hospital.

They had been attending services at St. Mary's Catholic church and were hurrying home to avoid the rain, taking a short cut across the tracks at the station platform. They saw the approaching train -- a through freight, westbound -- but misjudged the distance and thought they could get across the track. Except for the fact that Mrs. O'NEIL (sic) stumbled and fell, they probably would have made it safely.

Although the train was right upon them and it meant certain death, Mr. O'NEIL (sic) did not hesitate, but sprang to his wife's assistance and had her raised from the rails and in his arms when death came. Neither was thrown far and neither much mutilated.

The accident occurred at 9:10 o'clock and was seen by Ira Bonnett, who at first thought to call to them of their danger, but feared that distracting their attention might snatch away their slight chance of escape.

Engineer L. B. Long and Fireman R. Wallace were in charge of the train and J. L. Cline was the head brakeman. Members of the crew saw the danger and a whistled warning was given when the engine was fifty or seventy-five feet away, but to no avail. The train was stopped as quickly as possible, but the engine by that time had run past Main street. The train was backed to clear the street, the cars cut at Court street and the crew hurried to pick up the injured pair.

E. F. Simmons, coming south on Court street, arrived just after the accident and called Butler's ambulance to hurry Mrs. O'NEIL (sic) to the hospital. Mr. O'NEIL's (sic) body was taken to the undertaking rooms.

Funeral services for the couple will be held at St. Mary's church Friday morning at 9 o'clock.

*Transcribed for genealogy purposes; I am not related to the person(s) mentioned.

Note: Buried in Evergreen Cemetery, Fairfield, in Lot 2nd.213. Julia's maiden name is noted as MALONEY in a cemetery reading done in the early 1990s; it is also MALONEY in the 1978 obituary of their daughter Mary and in the 1925 Jefferson County, IA, census for Mary. It is noted as MAHONEY in the 1925 Jefferson County, IA, census for their son Peter, and as MAHONEY in Peter's obituary. It's not certain at this point which is correct.