W. J. Ellmore, Obituary/Death NoticePorter County obituaries and death notices . . . .
W. J. Ellmore
CHESTERTON CHIPS
Last Sunday a little old man arrived in Chesterton, footsore and weary from the east. He remained around town during the day, and the next morning started on his way west. He carried a medium sized satchel in one hand and a staff in the other, and took the Lake Shore railroad tracks for his pathway. On his way he met a gang of Lake Shore section men and asked how far it was to Chicago, and pleasantly passed the time of day with the men. Resuming his journey, he had just crossed the bridge over the Calumet river, when the east-bound fast mail, due here at 9:15 o'clock a .m., came thundering along. With his mind bent on that train he stepped off the track and on to the south track. The last car of the mail train had not passed the man when the Elkhart accomodation, west bound, struck him. Death was instantaneous and the remains were horribly mangled. The engineer, who saw the unfortunate man too late to stop the train, pulled the whistle wide open, but the noise of the passing mail train prevented the victim from hearing it. The accomodation was stopped, the remains picked up and taken to Dunes Park, and Undertaker Lundberg sent for. They were brought to Chesterton and placed in the morgue, and Coroner Ketchum notified. On Tuesday the inquest was held in the undertaking rooms, and Engineer Horace Webber, Fireman Frank Gustafson and Conductor C. F. Rexinger of the accomodation were present and gave their evidence. Paper's in the dead man's satchel indicated that his name was W. J. Ellmore, of Waterloo, DeKalb Co., Indiana. He was about 60 years old, 5 feet six inches in height, wore full gray beard, gray hair, weight 110 pounds. No money was found either on his person or in his satchel. His appearance indicated education and respectability and his person and clothing were neat and clean. The injuries her received are given as follows: back of head crushed, both legs broken, and shoulder blade broken. The coroner attaches no blame to the railroad crew of the railroad company. The railroad company sent a dispatch to Waterloo Monday afternoon, which was answered by the dead man's brother as follows: "Treat him as a stranger, and bury body where you please." Undertaker Lundberg coffined the remains in a pauper's casket, and Tuesday afternoon hauled it out to the potter's field and buried it. So ends the life of one man.
Newspaper: The Chesterton Tribune
Date of Publication: June 18, 1898
Volume Number: 15
Issue Number: 10
Page: 5
Column(s): 5
Key to Newspaper Publication Locations:
Newspapers Published in Chesterton, Porter County, Indiana
Chesterton Tribune
The Tribune
Westchester Tribune
Newspapers Published in Valparaiso, Porter County, Indiana
Porter County Vidette
Practical Observer
Valparaiso Practical Observer
Vidette and Republic
Western Ranger
The obituaries and death notices appearing on this website have been transcribed exactly as they were originally published in the newspaper.
Please note that we do not provide photocopies or digital scans of obituaries and death notices
appearing on this website.
Obituary/death notice transcribed by Steven R. Shook