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Chase County Sketches
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KNUTE ROCKNE MEMORIAL
By Jay Blankenship
"Knute Rockne" Shrine, Bazaar, Kansas
Knute Rockne and seven other passengers
were killed in an airplane crash near Bazaar, Kansas, on March 31, 1931. The crash site is located
two and one-half miles southwest of Bazaar.
The plane, a TWA tri-motor, was enroute from
Kansas City, Missouri to Wichita, Kansas. Three
persons witnessed the crash. They were Clarence
McCracken, Arthur Baker and Edward Baker.
Besides Knute Rockne those in the plane were
Robert Fry, pilot; Herman J. Mathias, co-pilot;
John Happer, representative of General Sports Co.,
Inc.; Waldo B. Miller, representative of Aetna Life
Insurance; C.A. Robrecht, President of Robrecht
Brothers Co.; H.J. Christen; and Spencer Goldthwaite, advertising manager.
Two memorials were erected. One is located
at Notre Dame University, South Bend, Indiana and
the other is located at the crash site. Both honor
one of the greatest coaches of all time.
An estimated 1,500 automobiles visited the
crash site on Sunday after the tragedy. Chase County Sheriff, Pete Deering, deputized Roy Beedle to
guard against looting.
Rockne crash to be featured on History Channel.
The 1931 crash of the Fokker F-10 passenger plane carrying Knute Rockne and others will be one of the deadly and controversial engineering failures featured on Modern Marvels: Engineering disaster on the History Channel on Nov. 10.
The program uses 3-D animation, forensic engineering experts and footage of the actual disasters to understand what went wrong and how the disasters have led to improvements.
The Rockne piece will be the second of five short stories lasting 8-10 minutes on the Wednesday, Nov. 2, program. The program will air at 9 p.m., said a Chase County Historical Society news release.
Easter Heathman of rural Bazaar, one of the first to the site of the 1931 crash, and the Chase County Historical Society will be featured in the program. The Chase County portions of the program were shot on location on Sept. 9, 2005.
Chase County Centennial, 1872 - 1972
by your Chase County Host, Lorna Marvin.
Please submit your historical sketches.
| Chase County Host Lorna Marvin | 
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Background and KSGenWeb logo were designed and are copyrighted by
Tom & Carolyn Ward
for the limited use of the KSGenWeb Project.
Permission is granted for use only on an official KSGenWeb page.
The USGenWeb Logo was designed by Linda Cole.
Last updated 11/10/2003
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