Deadly accident in Cross Creek, 1968, Rossville, Kansas

Dublin Core

Title

Deadly accident in Cross Creek, 1968, Rossville, Kansas

Subject

Transportation accidents

Description

Death rides the highway
Tragedies: Above is the station wagon, loaded with nine occupants, which plunged into Cross Creek. Three died. The lower picture shows the car in which the single occupant died in a one-car accident Saturday.

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Two separate one-car accidents took four lives in a three-day period on Highway 24 between St. Marys and Rossville last week.

The first accident occurred Thursday evening when a station wagon with nine passengers hit a bridge abutment and plunged into Cross Creek at Rossville's west city limits.

Dead in this accident were Mrs. Ada Wright, 27, Syracuse, driver of the station wagon, and two of her children: Kristie Marie Wright, 2, and Carl G. Wright, 4.

The body of Carl was not recovered until Friday afternoon.

Also injured in the accident were Frankie Wright 8, Raymond Wright 9, LaVonna Wright 5, and Joy Hazlett, 16, all of Syracuse; and Berlin Wagoner, 22, Lakin.

The second fatal accident occurred Saturday evening about two miles east of St. Marys when a car driven by Nathaniel Ware, 45, Topeka, left the highway and struck a utility pole. Ware's body was thrown out of the car.

Witnesses said Ware was attempting to pass another car when he apparently lost control of his vehicle.

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A very tragic accident occurred last Thursday night when a station wagon driven by Mrs. Ada Wright, 27 of Syracuse, Ks., plunged off the bridge and into Cross Creek at Rossville. There were nine people in the station wagon; two children thrown out into the water; Kristie Marie, 2 years old and Carl Wright, 4 years old were dead when found. Mrs. Wright died before reaching the hospital. The four other children; Raymond, 9; Frankie, 8; LaVonna, 6 and Llewellyn, 5 suffered multiple bruises and abrasions. Also injured were Joy Hayzeltt, 16, of Syracuse and Berlin Wagoner, 22, of Lakin, Kans. They were reported in serious condition at Stormont Vail Hospital. Mrs. Wright was on a trip from Syracuse to see her husband who was working in Kansas City, Mo. Searchers found the bodies of the two children hours after the accident. Harvey Bonher, Shawnee County undersheriff said excessive speed was the cause of the accident. Sheriffs officers reported the vehicle was estimated to be traveling 80 miles per hour when it rounded the curve at the west edge of Rossville.

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Rossville
Are inured in one-car accident
Mrs. Rae Trimble
Mrs. Francis Davis and her daughter, Candace, 10, were injured in a one-car accident near Rossville Saturday.

The Davis car was westbound on US-24 west of Rossville when Mrs. Davis lost control of the vehicle on any icy bridge and the auto skidded into a ditch, the Kansas Highway Patrol said.

The mishap occurred at approximately 11:20 a.m., officers said.

Mrs. Davis and her daughter were taken to St. Francis Hospital in Topeka, where both were admitted for observation of possible head injuries.

Stitches were taken in a cut on Mrs. Davis' head and her daughter sustained multiple bruises, hospital officials said. -The Capital.

Creator

St. Marys Star, St. Marys, Kansas
Shawnee County Reporter, Rossville, Kansas

Publisher

Rossville Community Library, Rossville, Kansas
used with permission

Date

October 31, 1968 (SCR)
December 26, 1968 (SMS)

Rights

All rights reserved

Format

newspaper

Identifier

RCL0426a
RCL0426b

Item Relations

This item has no relations.