Fred Newbury Jr.
Fred Newbury b. September 19, 1926, Sesser, Franklin County, Illinois; d.
September 4, 1960, buried Maple Hill Cemetery, Sesser, Franklin County,
Illinois; m. Louise Lovings.
The Southern Illinoisan, Tuesday, September 6, 1960
Extracts from the article: Holliday Weekend Accident Toll
2 Killed, 40 Hurt In Area Wrecks
Picture Included [DEATH SCENE The body of Fred Newbury Jr., Sesser, lies in
the back seat where the victim was thrown by the impact of a Sunday morning
crash. State Trooper Noble Starnes, right, checks license numbers on the
smashed vehicle. The car slammed into a tree. (Note: This picture actually showed a
body in the car. Most of the driver side of the car is missing..)
A 33-year-old Sesser disabled World War II veteran was killed early Sunday
morning when the car he was driving left the highway and smashed into a tree.
Killed was Fred Newbury, Jr., the father of two small children. The accident
occured on the Herrin-Freeman Spur road, about five miles north of Herrin. Two
passengers in the Newbury car were injured. They are Robert Smith, 26,
Benton, and Fred Stewart, 27, Sesser. Stewart is a wheel chair patient on pass
from Hines Veteran hospital, Chicago. They are both in "fair condition" at
Herrin Hospital. Earl Hayes who lives a short distance from the accident heard the
car hit the tree. "It sounded like a big wind coming down the road," he
said. Hayes came out of the house and saw the car. He ran up the road and called
Earl Smith who called authorities. Smith is a cousin to Robert Smith, the
accident victim. They had not seen each other in a year. Jack Hargis, 39, Orient
who was driving home, saw the accident and helped Smith and Stewart to the
Hospital. Hargis said Smith was lying on the ground near the wreckage when he
drove up. State Trooper Noble Starnes, said Newbury was apparently driving at
a very high rate of speed, hit the railroad crossing and probably lost
control of the car. The front part of the car top was sheared off. The hood was
knocked of and landed about 15 feet away. Hayes mailbox post was sheared even
with the ground. The railroad track crossing is about 300 feet south of the
tree. There were no skid marks on the highway, Starnes said. Witnesses said the
accident occurred at about 5 a.m. Williamson County Coroner, Adolph Fluck,
Marion, said he will wait until Smith and Stewart are in better condition to
set an inquest. Newbury's death brought Williamson County's total to 11 deaths
on the highways in the county this year. Newbury leaves his wife, Louise;
children Debra and Thomas at home: parents, Mr. Mrs. Webb Newbury of Sesser:
sisters, Mrs. Middred Merkel of Lowell, Ind.; and Mrs. Juanita Morgan of Mt.
Vernon: brothers, Albert of Rolla, Mo.: Earl of Washburn; Arthur of Renssler,
Ind.; and Bobby of Sesser. Funeral services were at 2 p.m. today in the
Brayfield Funeral Home of Sesser. The Rev. Bill Christoff, pastor of the First
Baptist Church , officiated. Burial was in Maple Hill Cemetery in Sesser.
The Southern Illinoisan, Wednesday, September 21, 1960
INQUEST IN WRECK FRIDAY IN HERRIN
An inquest into the death of Fred Newbury, Jr., 33, Sesser, will be
conducted at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Herrin City Hall by Williamson County Coroner
Adolph Fluck. Mr. Newbury a disabled World War II veteran and father of two
small children was killed September 4 on the Herrin-Freeman Spur road when his
car left the highway and smashed into a tree. Robert Smith, 26, Benton and
Fred Stewart, 27, Sesser, passengers in Mr. Newbury's car, were injured. Mr.
Newbury apparently lost control when he hit railroad tracks at a high speed. The
tree was 300 feet north of the tracks.
The Southern Illinoisan, Sunday, September 25, 1960
Accident Ruled In Traffic Death
A Williamson County coroner's jury returned an accidental verdict Friday
night into the death of a 33-year-old Sesser man. Fred Newbury, Jr. was killed
when the car he was driving left the road and smashed into a tree at 5 a.m. on
Sept. 5, (sic.) on the Herrin-Freeman Spur road. The accident was 3 miles
south of Freeman Spur. Testifying at the inquest were state trooper, Noble
Starnes of Christopher, Robert Smith a passenger in the car, and Mr. and Mrs.
Earl Hayes and Earl Smith, who live near the scene of the accident. Robert
Smith, 26, Benton told coroner Adolph Fluck that he was riding in the center of
the front seat. Newbury was driving and Fred Stewart, 27, Sesser, was on the
right side. Smith said he had been to Colp with a group of Benton men but
became seperated from them and started walking home. As he was walking along the
highway, Stewart and Newbury picked him up. He said he was almost asleep and
remembers passing over a railroad track which is about 300 feet south of the
tree and then striking the tree. Stares testified that apparently Newbury was
driving too fast for conditions of the road.
Source: Listed within
Date: Listed within
Submitted by: Robert Loman
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