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Chase County Kansas Obituaries


1863 - 2005



McDonel, Otis E.

Otis E. McDonel, a young man probably 25 or 26 years of age, was killed by the eastbound Santa Fe passenger train No. 118 at 1:30 Saturday morning when his motor car was struck and demolished by the engine near Bader just west of Elmdale.

McDonel had both legs broken and was injured internally. He was brought to Strong City by the train crew and given immediate medical attention by Dr, Jacob Hidden, the local Santa Fe physician, but died shortly after arriving at Strong City. He was in a semi-consious condition and was unable to give authentic information concerning himself or his relatives.

Letters found in his pockets, however, showed that he has a wife living at Lima, Ohio. One letter bore a return address of "Ethel McDonel, 607 W. Wayne St., Lima, Ohio, and another had the same return address with the exception that the street number was 420 W. Wayne."

McDonel was driving a Dodge car which bore Kansas tag number 57086 and other papers about his affects showed that he had spent some time in Eldorado, Kansas. The body was brought to the McKenzie-Sawtell Undertaking rooms in this city where he is being held until word can be received from his wife or relatives. Messages were immediately sent to Lima, Ohio, and also Eldorado, in an effort to advise his wife and friends of his death.

In answer to the telegrams sent to Ohio, last Saturday, following the death of Mr. McDonel, a message was received by McKenzie-Sawtell Saturday evening from the dead man's brother, H. A. McDonel, of Elida, Ohio, saying that he and another brother would arrive here Monday. They did so and accompanied the remains of their brother back to Lima, Ohio, Monday afternoon, on Santa Fe train No. 6.

According to the brothers of the dead man, the latter had left Ohio, about a year ago for the Butler county oil fields and had spent most of the intervening time there. Last March, he had made a short visit to Ohio, to see his wife and brothers, but returned to Butler county again.

A pathetic incident of the tragedy was the fact that Mr. McDonel had left Eldorado only the day before, enroute for his home to his wife and relatives in Ohio and was traveling at night probably in order that he could reach his destination as quickly as possible. He had been working as a pumper and guage in Butler county for the past few months.

Chase County Leader News, Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, Oct 9, 1917.



Chase County Death Notices and Obituaries,
compiled and abstracted from the Chase County Courant and Chase County Leader Newspapers
by Lorna Marvin
Please submit your obituaries and death notices.



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