George Cecil Breneman 1912-1928

BRENEMAN, TUCKER, ENKE, LEWIS, DUNCAN, MCCONAHAY, MCGREW, RICHIE, RUSTON, CARR, PINE, MOORE, WEBER, GIFFEY, KELLY, FOSTER, BELL, JAMES, SHEARER, DUNCAN, HANKINS, SIMONS, ADAMS, WASSON, FISHER

Posted By: Connie Street, volunteer
Date: 9/23/2004 at 18:58:41

George Breneman is victim of Auto Accident Sunday evening / Car overturned Sunday afternoon / Popular Young man

George Breneman, Jr. son of Mr. and Mrs. George Breneman of this city, died at 6:15 Sunday evening, from injuries received about 4:30 that same afternoon in an auto accident on the Blue Grass road about four miles north of Winfield.

George, who was known to most everyone in the community as "Toodles" Breneman and Ted Tucker had spent the afternoon at Winfield and were returning home on the Blue Grass road. They were making the trip in a Ford roadster the property of Ted Tucker, who was driving.

As they approached the intersection of the Blue Grass road with the Wapello road near the Ernest Enke home, a car suddenly drove in front of them from the east. To avoid hitting the car, Tucker gave his car a shift to the right, He was not traveling at an excessive speed, but the sudden turn threw the tire from the left front wheel and the car flopped completely over on its top into the ditch at the side of the road. Breneman and Tucker were both pinioned beneath the car. The driver of the car whom they had succeeded in missing, stopped his car and assisted Earl Lewis and Gene Duncan, who were a few hundred feet behind Tucker, also returning from Winfield to extricate the two young men from the car. It was seen at once that Breneman was the most seriously injured and he was carried into the Ernest Enke home, where Dr. J.T. McConahay was called from Winfield and Dr. McGrew from this city.

Relatives of the young men were also notified and in a short time a crowd had gathered. An examination revealed that the shoulder of George Breneman was severely crushed with attendant internal injuries to his lungs. He retained consciousness however and pleaded with those who waited on him not to worry his mother with word of the accident. His brother, Albert, and others were soon with him and a few minutes before six o'clock he was placed in the J.C. Richie ambulance which was called from this city to be brought home but suffered a serious hemorrhage and died after going about three fourths of a mile. It then devolved upon Rev. and Mrs. W.E. Ruston, who had been at the scene of the accident to break the news of his tragic death to his parents.

His tragic death was not only a terrible shock to his parents and brothers and sister, but to the entire community.

George Cecil Breneman was born in Columbus Junction February 4, 1912 and died July 9, 1928, at the age of 16 years, 5 months and 25 days. He grew to young manhood in this community and two years prior to the day of his funeral, August 1, 1926, he united in full membership with the Central Presbyterian church in this city, in which he had been for many years a regular attendant at the Sabbath school.

In school he pursued his studies with success and would have entered school this fall as a member of the sophomore class, He was held in the highest esteem by his classmates and teachers and in the home he was particularly devoted to his mother. They were frequently together and few young men anywhere were ready to take mother to a picture show or to a social or entertainment than was "Toodles" Breneman.

The writer was among the first to arrive at the scene of the accident and remained in the room with him until the ambulance arrived which was to bring him home and during this brief hour, although he suffered no one knows how much, his thoughts were centered almost entirely on his mother and shielding her from the news of the accident.

He is survived by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Breneman, his sister Miss Marie Breneman and brothers Albert and Gerald. He is also survived by his aged grandmother, Mrs., E. J, Breneman of this city.

The funeral services were held at the home at 2:30 Wednesday afternoon and were conducted by Rev. W. E. Ruston. The floral offerings were unusually beautiful and profuse and the entire yard surrounding the home was filled with grief stricken classmates, friends and neighbors.

Mrs. W.A. Carr and Mrs. Wm. Pine sang a duet "It is not Death to Die" accompanied by Miss Effie Kelly. Two special numbers were also given by a male quartet, Messrs. J. Fred Moore, Farrel Weber, Carl Giffey and Burle Ruston, who sand: "The Church in the Wildwood" and "Sometime, Somewhere, " accompanied b Miss Kelly.

The flower girls were Misses Marie Foster, Evelyn Bell, Margaret James and Marine Shearer.

The pallbearers were Gene Duncan, Clell Hankins, Gerald Simons, Harold Adams, Ellard Wasson and Kenneth Fisher. Interment in the cemetery at Columbus City.

From the collection of Gladys Cutkomp. Newspaper nor date available.