Ansberry - John
Source: Crawfordsville Sunday Star, November 21, 1898
A Terrible Accident At the Indiana Fence company on Thursday at 4 p.m. happened the most terrible accident ever occurring in this city and the first fatality at the plant. John Ansberry, aged 22 years, an employee, was shifting a belt and by some means it became fastened about his shoulders and he was drawn up and around the shaft whirling at a rate of hundreds of revolutions a minute and without a moment's warning he was beaten to a pulp and every bone crushed. He only shouted once as he felt himself drawn up and his sufferings were ended almost as soon as they begun. The workmen ran to the engineer and the engines were shut down but the poor lad only breathed a moment and was dead. He never realized what killed him, it was so quickly done. The heavy timber to which the shaft was attached was torn from its fastenings and the heavy nails torn out. The limbs and arms of the boy were torn lose from the trunk and the back of the head crushed to a pulp. His features were mercifully uninjured. He was the son of Mr. and Mrs. William Ansberry, and was unmarried. He was one of the most reliable workmen at the factory and was careful and competent. He was a member of the commandery of the Knights of St. John and was a most excellent young man. His awful death was a shock to the whole community and to the friends who knew him best. His parents were prostrated with grief. Several years ago his sister Mary was burned to death by her clothes catching in flames from an open fire, at Bainbridge, and a brother a few years ago died from a morphine in mistake for quinine. He has two brothers and a sister. The funeral occurred from St. Bernard's Roman catholic church Saturday morning, the stricken Knights of St. John taking part on the services. The floral designs were beautiful, one was a massive thing, a clock face bearing the token "The Sad Hour," above the legend the hands on the dial stopped at 8:40. The flower-bearers were young girls. There was an escort of sixty employees from the Indiana factory and as the shops were closed from the time of the accident for the rest of the week there was a full attendance of the men employed at the factory from the manager and proprietor to the watchman. - thanks to Kim H
Source: Crawfordsville Weekly Journal Friday, 25 November 1898
The first fatal accident in history of the Indiana wire fence and nail factory occurred last Thursday afternoon shortly before 4 o’clock, the victim being John Annsberry, aged 22 years. Annsberry operated a nail machine and was employed in the west nail room. Just before the accident occurred the belt slipped off the pulley on the line shaft and it was in endeavoring to readjust this belt that the young man met his death. He took the belt off the nail machine pulley and in this way considerable slack was obtained. He stood beneath the line shafting and endeavored to throw the belt over. He missed and the belting fell on the other side of the room squarely on the rattler belt. In an instant the slack was taken up and young Annsberry was caught in the loop. He was whirled up ten feet off the floor to the shafting and whirled about this like a button on a string, his legs dashing against the heavy planks to which the hangers were fastened, and literally battering them to splinters. The men who witnessed the accident hastily rushed to the engine room and in a remarkably short time the engine was stopped, not before the poor boy had been whirled at least fifty times about the shafting, however. He was taken down immediately but was quite dead. It is altogether probable that his death was instantaneous with his striking the shafting. His legs were simply beaten off and the lower part of his body was frightfully torn. His head, however, which had been up close to the shafting, was not even bruised. Those who saw the accident state that the young man realized his fate the moment the belting started to draw him up. He turned deathly pale and screamed and Frank Hightower ran to seize him to try and help him but he was too late. The body was taken down at once and Coroner Barcus held an inquest, he arriving soon after the accident. The body was then taken to Barnhill’s undertaking establishment where it was prepared for burial. Later it was taken to the family residence on East Franklin Street.
John Annsberry was a popular and sober young man and was a favorite at the factory. He was quiet and industrious and his tragic death greatly depressed all connected with the establishment.
The unfortunate young man was a son of William Annsberry and resided with his father and two sisters. The family has been a most unlucky one for years and suffered more from accidents and deaths than usually falls to the lot of any half dozen families. A few years ago a daughter was burned to death and a son died from accidentally taking an overdose of medicine. Another son had a foot cut off in a railroad accident, and still another one died of spotted fever after a terrible agony of six weeks. About two months ago Mrs. Annsberry died and now comes another affliction to the home. Mr. Annsberry himself was injured a few weeks ago by the falling of a scaffold at the Bischof building, but was soon able to resume work again.
Note : Age 22 in obituary is probably a type-o -- closer to 32 years of age.
1870 Montgomery county Indiana Census Wm Ansberry35 Mary Ansberry34 John Ansberry7 Thomas Ansberry5 Mary Ansberry3 William Ansberry9/12
Note 2: WPA Death index says age 33