1956 — Oct 3, Two Automobiles collide head-on near Muncie, IN — 10

–10 Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC. “Indiana Auto Wreck Kills 10 Persons.” 10-4-1856, p1.
–10 Logansport Pharos Tribune, IN. “Ten Persons Die in Crash Near Muncie.” 10-4-1956, p.1.

Narrative Information

Oct 4, Associated Press: “Muncie, Ind. (AP) – An automobile carrying nine Muncie residents, eight of them members of one family, smashed head-on into a Keystone, Ind., man’s car last night, crushing the life from all 10 occupants. It was believed to be the worst automobile accident in Indiana history. The crash occurred six miles west of Muncie. Coroner Eugene Eissman said state police told him Beal’s car, traveling southwest at high speed, hit Burns’ car and pushed it 88 feet down the road

“The victims were identified as: Fred D. Beal, 32; his sister, Loetta Beal; their mother, Mrs. Marie Clark, 60; Seal’s wife, Lillian, 30; their daughters, Inez, 8, Chestina, 6, Vickie Lynn, 5, and Claudia, 4; Jesse W. Price, 37, all of Muncie, and Thomas B. Burns, 36, Keystone…..” (Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC. “Indiana Auto Wreck Kills 10 Persons.” 10-4-56, p. 1.)

Oct 4, United Press: “Muncie, Ind. (UP) – Indiana’s worst automobile accident in history killed 10 persons Wednesday night, including four young sisters, in a head-on collision in a highway. Nine of the dead were jammed together in one car. They were [from] Muncie… The 10th victim was Thomas Bryan Burns, 35, Keystone, Ind. The accident happened seven miles southwest of here in Ind. 67, a main highway between Muncie and Anderson, at about 10:13 p.m. CDT. A family of six was wiped out as the cars crashed together with such force one of them was hurled 88 feet from the point of impact.

“The dead included Mrs. Loretta Beal Witherspoon, 46, who state police said was expecting a baby within two months….Mrs. Witherspoon’s brother, his wife, their four daughters, the children’s grandmother and a friend were killed. There were no survivors in either car.

“State police said there was ‘evidence’ of alcohol’ in the car driven by Fred Beal, 32, into which nine of the victims were crowded….Policeman John Nicewander said skid marks at the point of impact indicated the car driven by Beal apparently swerved across the westbound lane over the center line and crashed into Burnes’ eastbound car.

“All the victims except one were killed instantly, Nicewander said. Lillian Beal died shortly afterward on the operating table of the Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie.” (Logansport Pharos Tribune, IN. “Ten Persons Die in Crash Near Muncie.” 10-4-1956, p.1.)

Sources

Daily Times-News, Burlington, NC. “Indiana Auto Wreck Kills 10 Persons.” 10-4-1856, 1. Accessed 11-5-2012 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=37780609

Logansport Pharos Tribune, IN. “Ten Persons Die in Crash Near Muncie.” 10-4-1956, p.1. Accessed 11-5-2012 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=85059525