News Article 08/12/1915

HEIDEBRINK

Posted By: County Coordinator (email)
Date: 9/8/2008 at 20:18:23

CLAUS HEIDEBRINK SUDDENLY DIES NEAR NEIGHBOR’S GATE

Believed Over-Exertion In Trying to Get Car out of Mud Hastened the End—Was Coming Home—Body Found in Morning by Chas. Woods

(Lyon County News – August 12, 1915)

The body of Claus Heidebrink of George (Lyon county, Iowa) was found by Chas. Woods southwest of town about four miles early Tuesday morning. Mr. Heidebrink was lying face down on the grass along the roadside and but a short distance from the gate. Death was due to heart failure.

Mr. Heidebrink’s death is believed to have resulted from overexertion, which affected his heart. His car was seen standing a little more than a quarter mile east, and the evidence was plain that Mr. Heidebrink was returning home from his farm shortly after the hard shower visited that neighborhood and the roads, being very muddy, were in poor shape for a car. Mr. Heidebrink’s car had slid off the crown of the road and into the little ditch that was on the left hand side.

Only one chain was on the rear wheels, the other having been broken, and it is supposed that Mr. Heidebrink worked hard to get the car started again and found it impossible, so decided to let it remain where it was and walk either back to Mr. Woods’ place or on to his own farm to spend the night.

The cushions were turned over and the lights put out. The car was then out of the main part of the road. Mr. Heidebrink walked straight down the road and as he neared the Woods place he swerved to the right whether purposely or not is not known. As he stepped of into the grass, he stumbled and fell, lying fact down. Death, doubtless, came to him a the moment he stumbled, for there was no trace of a struggle of any kind.

The time of his death must have been about ten o’clock, as he left the farm shortly after nine. He stopped at the schoolhouse to put on chains, and Mr. Woods’ family heard his car pass and thought at the time he was having trouble with it as the engine was heard to race from time to time.

Joe Scholte was taking his brother, Henry, out to Dan Hansmann’s and passed the car about 10:30. They supposed it had been stalled and the driver had gone to some of the farm homes near, and so thought nothing of the occurrence. At the time, they passed Mr. Heidebrink’s lifeless body was resting in the grass where it was found the next morning.

Mrs. Heidebrink was visiting in South Dakota at the time and the death of her husband came as a great shock to her and the children.

Coroner Joe Brucken and county Attorney Fisher came down and decided no inquest was necessary, as Dr. Bouslaugh found no wounds of any kind on the body and everything indicated heart failure. Funeral will probably be held Friday.

See obituary at http://iagenweb.org/boards/lyon/obituaries/index.cgi?#166277