MEETS DEATH UNDER WHEELS

When Section Boss Holt of the M. & O. road was going to work Monday morning with his gang of men, they found the remains of a man scattered along the track down near DeSoto. There was nothing but small pieces of what had once been a man, and the section boss immediately sent word to the authorities at Blair that a man had been run over by a train, and his remains could be found along the right of way down near DeSoto.

Sheriff Mencke and Stanley Pierce drove down to the scene of the accident and returned with the remains, which had been scattered along the track for over half a mile. The unfortunate fellow had been literally ground to pieces under the wheels of a train, but which train could not be told. From the direction the remains were scattered it was evident that the train had come from the north, and that was all that could be learned. The largest piece found was that of the chest from the shoulders down to the hips, and this was cut and mangled so badly that the parts inside were crowded out and strung along the track. No head could be found for the body, but pieces of the skull were picked up.

There was nothing left of the body that could be used for purposes of identification, but the clothes (or what was left of them) were brought to Blair with the remains, and they offered the clue to the unfortunate man’s identity. The report had sprung from some place that the man killed was undoubtedly a baker that had been working for J. S. Roberts in Blair for the past year and a half and who was known to be a habitual patron of the saloons at Calhoun since Blair went dry. The report, however, could not be confirmed at the bakery, although Mr. Roberts stated that his baker had left the shop between seven and eight o’clock Sunday morning and had not been seen since. Further information was gleaned from Mr. Roberts that F. S. Bigelow had telephoned up from Calhoun that he had seen the baker down there in a very intoxicated condition and carrying several bottles of beer in his coat.

When the remains were brought to Pierce’s undertaking establishment, a coat and hat were identified by Mr. Roberts as belonging to his baker, and it was thus that the rumor was substantiated.

The fellow’s name was Charlie Hagen, and he came here about a year and a half ago. He formerly lived in San Francisco where he lost his wife and family in the earthquake. He was a good workman and his only fault in Mr. Roberts’ eyes was his intense love for booze. He has a brother-in-law by the name of Steve Deering living in Omaha, and a brother in the bakery business in Cincinnati, Ohio where his folks live.

There was no inquest held over the remains which were turned over to the Eagles lodge for burial. The unfortunate man was forty three years old the 8th of this month. The funeral was held Tuesday afternoon from Pierce’s and the remains laid to rest in a cemetery lot purchased by the Eagles for this purpose.

The sleeves of the coat which the poor fellow had worn were tied at the lower end and when Hagen was seen in Calhoun he had the sleeves of his coat stuffed with bottles of beer. The supposition is the he was considerably jagged before leaving Calhoun and getting tired or thirsty when this side of DeSoto he sat down on the track and fell asleep.

The engineer and fireman on the morning passenger train from the south noticed clothing strewn along the side of the track and stopped the train to investigate. Conductor Geo. Carter walked a short distance from the train and finding the coat with the sleeves tied at the ends decided that some boys had rigged up a dummy and had placed it up a track. Upon reaching Blair the fireman declared that he had noticed blood and pieces of flesh along the track, and word was sent to the freight crew following the passenger to be on the lookout near DeSoto. But in the meantime, however, what had been left of Hagen had been discovered by the section boss and word sent to Blair with the above result.

~~~Obituaries courtesy of the Nebraska Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Blair, Nebraska Public Library~~~

Note-Most likely Mr. Hagen is buried in Potter's Field located within the Blair Cemetery. The death date was calculated.