William H. Flagg1,2,3,4,5,6,7

M, b. 24 October 1840, d. 27 March 1913
     William H. Flagg was born on 24 October 1840 at Lawrence Co, NY.. He was the son of Barzelo Flagg and Sarah Wilson. He came from New York to Battle Creek in 1848. He enlisted in Co. C, 2nd MI Infantry on 19 April 1861. He married Abigail Rose Burch, daughter of Carolus Horace Burch and Nancy Henrietta Jones, on 25 December 1868 at Battle Creek, MI.. He was appointed Chief of Police in 1885 at Battle Creek, MI..8 He spent his winter months in St. Petersburg, FL. after his retirement.
One day while fishing off the pier, he was accidently struck by the St. Petersburg pier "sail car." It was a unique railroad flat car, equiped with a wind powered sail, used to move ice from the ice plant to the fish house on the pier. The wind was too strong and operators were unable to stop it, as it went past its normal stopping point and into a group of fishermen on the pier. William was unable to move out of the way and the run-away sail car struck him and killed him.9 He died on 27 March 1913 at St. Petersburg, FL., at age 72.

Citations

  1. [S1673] Battle Creek Newspaper article.
  2. [S1895] 1880 Calhoun Co, MI. Census, Battle Creek.
  3. [S1161] 1900 Calhoun Co, MI Census, Battle Creek.
  4. [S1163] 1910 Calhoun Co, MI Census, Battle Creek.
  5. [S3389] Battle Creek Journal, Calhoun County Souvenir, photograph.
  6. [S3390] Hobart & Mather, Biographical Review of Calhoun Co, MI., p. 538.
  7. [S3481] Washington Gardner, History of Calhoun County, Michigan, p. 1116.
  8. [S3389] Battle Creek Journal, Calhoun County Souvenir, p, 150.
  9. [S2731] St. Petersburg Newspaper article, courtesy of Tom Pavluvcik.