Merritt Westbrook
Born: August 19, 1898 1 in Jasper co., Iowa
Died: April 18, 1935 in Waterloo, Black Hawk Co., Iowa
Buried: Lot 93, plot 4
Married: Jeannette DeKoning on 15 Jun 1926 at Newton, Jasper Co., Iowa 4
Children: Duane and Charlene
Parents: W. Shurr and Elta (Rider) Westbrook 1
Newton High School Football, 1919
Former Newton Man is Killed
Transfer Crane Strikes Merritt Westbrook in Head This Morning
Waterloo, Ia., Aprl 18 --AP--Merritt Westbrook, 38, formerly of Newton, was killed at 5 a.m. today, when he was struck in the head by a transfer crane in the foundry at the John Deere Tractor Co. plant.
He suffered a fractured skull and died almost instantly.
Westbrook, who leaves a widow and two small children, had been employed at the tractor plant since last November.
Merritt Westbrook was a graduate of Newton High School.
Mr. Westbrook's surviving relatives include his widow, two children, Duane, 8, and Charlene, 5, his parents, Mr. and Mrs. W. S. Westbrook of near Newton and an aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. C.B. Westbrook, Newton.
Mr. and Mrs. W.S. Westbrook, Miss Imogene Westbrook and Mrs. C.B. Webstrook left for Waterloo early this morning. No funeral arrangements have been announced. ~ Newton Daily News, Thursday, April 18, 1935, page 1
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To Hold Rites Satruday for M. Westbrook
Funeral services for Merritt Westbrook, 36, of Waterloo, former local resident, will be conducted from the Murdoch funeral home in Newton Saturday at 2 p.m. by Dr. John W. Bickett, pastor of the local United Presbyterian church. Burial will be made in the Sugar Grove cemetery.
Mr. Westbrook, graduate of the local high school, was killed Thursday at 5 a.m., when he was struck in the head by a transfer crane in the foundry at the John Deere Tractor Co. plant at Waterloo. He suffered a fractured skull.
Surviving relatives include his widow, Mrs. Jeanette DeKoning Westbrook, two children Duane, 8, and Charlene, nearly 5, his parents, Mr. and Mrs. W.S. Westbrook of near Newton, his maternal grandfather, C.O. Rider of Colfax, and seven ants and three uncles. ~ Newton Daily News, April 19, 1935, page 9.
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Former Nashua Resident Killed in Accident at John Deere Co.
Merritt Westbrook, former resident of Nashua, was almost instantly killed Thursday of last week, when a portion of an overhead crane in the core department of the John Deere foundry in Waterloo, came loose from its track and fell on him. He suffered a fractured skill and died within a few minutes.
Mr. Westbrook and his wife and son and daughter, lived in Nashua for more than a year, moving to Waterloo last fall, after he secured employment at the Deer factory.
He was born near Newton, 36 years ago, and a graduate of the high school at that place. Funeral services and burial were held at Newton Saturday. ~ The Nashua Reporter, Nashua, Iowa, Wednesday, April 24, 1935., page 1
Duane Westbrook
Born: April 11, 1927 in Newton, Jasper Co., Iowa
Died: November 12, 1999 in Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa
Buried: Lot 93, plot 3
Married: Betty
Children: David and Dale
Parents: Merritt and Jeannette (DeKoning) Westbrook
Veteran: Korean War
Obituary: Duane Westbrook
Duane Leonard Westbrook, 72, of Newton died of a heart ailment Friday at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines. Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Monday at Christian Reformed Church in Newton, of which he was a member.
Burial will be at Sugar Grove Cemetery near there.
Mr. Westbrook was born in Newton and had lived in Newton and Jasper County all his life. He was a farmer and an Army veteran of the Korean War.
Survivors include his wife, Betty; two sons, David of Newton and Dale of Pella; a sister, Charlene McGregor of Reasnor; and one grandchild.
Friends may call after noon today at Reese Funeral Home in Newton.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Jasper County. ~ The Des Moines Register, November 14, 1999.
1. "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZ2D-2PW : 12 December 2014), Merritt Westbrook, 1917-1918; citing Jasper County, Iowa,
2. Obituary of Shurr Westbrook
3. Note: 1930 U.S. Federal Census finds Merritt, age 31 born in Iowa, living in Iowa>Black Hawk Co.>Waterloo>District 26>Dwelling 2 -- with wife Jeannette, age 26 born in Iowa with mother and father being born in Holland; and son Duane age 2 years, 11 months born in Iowa.
4. Ancestry.com. Iowa, Marriage Records, 1880-1940 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.