The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1891-02-21
Killed by q Snowflake.
On Friday of last week, at alb

On Friday Of last week, at about
5 o'clock P. NJ, an accident hap
pened at the Trapper mine, about
% miles from town, by which B. Y.
Hampton and Charles Spear lost
their lives. Mr.. Hampton was su-
perintendent of the mine and Mr..
Spear was the company's black
smith. They had been in the mine
together and had come out and
started to the cabin when overtaken
by snowslide in which both were
killed. The slide passed close to
the tunnel and it 10 not probable
the men had gotten more than 100
feet from where they left it when
they were caught in the fatal slide.
Two miners, named Roddy O'Ray
and John Lynch, were at work In
the tunnel, but no one witnessed
the catastrophe. But on coming
out of the tunnel they saw the track
of the terrible avalanche, and think
ing harm might have befallen their
comrades they began looking for
them. Their tracks in the snow
we're soon found and the fact dis
covered that they did not go beyond
the snowslide. Realizing the worst
they began sounding in the snow
with their shovels and soon sue
ceeded in locating the bodies, which
were completely buried and only
about twelve feet apart. Exhuming
them as speedily as possible, the
body of Spear was found to be
warm, and they were at once re-
moved to the cabin and every posi-
BILE effort made to resuscitate them
but of course to no purpose. Hamp-
toms body was bruised and one OF
his legs broken. The body of Spear
showed little external injury. The
bodies of the dead men were kept
at the cabin until Sunday morning
when it being thought the storm
had sufficiently abated to make a
trip to town possible, Scott Collins
Roddy O'Ray and John Lynch
started to town to convey the SAD
intelligence to the friends Of the
unfortu mates and procure help te
bring the bodies in, leaving Johr
Anderson, Hans Berndt, John Nc
Cam and Charles Brown to watch
with the dead. The trip was per
ilous one but was successfully made
the courageous trio reaching herr
about 1870 Sunday night, having
travelled about % miles over rough
country, buried under three feet o
fresh snow.
On Monday morning the sad new
was gently broken to Mrs. Hamp
ton and then sent broadcast owe
the town, carrying sadness to all
But then came the test. Men ant
teams were needed to 60 out to tn
mine and bring in the bodies. Dan
ger lurked on every hillside betweel
the town and the mine, and at al
most any time on the whole rout
all who ventured might be entombe
, in snowy graves. Yet volunteer
were not lacking From all oye
the country came men willing an
: eager to enter upon the hazardou
journey, thinking only of their dut
to their dead friends andcoworker'
Preparations were made quickly
' possible, and on Tuesday mornin
, at about 9 o'clock a company c
D brave men numbering Is or 20, an
| four teams, started to the MINI
$ &. McPheters furnished 6 horse
: j. F. Griffin 2, J. L Holman 4, Ge'
Metzler 2, Clark & Tague 2, Coco
ing Bros. 2, Greenhow & Rumse
> 2, VIM. Mccoy 2. l. l. Lewis l, 10
Perkins 1, John Easley 3 and D.
Newman 4. making in all 81 horse
!, Four sleighs, one of which We
l drawn by six horses, were take1
! These were driven by G. McPheter
e w. II. Reynolds, Ed Harringto
and Sid..Venable. At about 3 o'cloc
f on Thursday afternoon the partlt
I returned: without accident, havin
| the bodies in charge, and as tt
Q train was waiting the body
. Hampton was Immediately shippe
n to Salt Lake city for intermen
r whittier his wife and six childre
f had already gone. The body
poor Charley Spear will be burlf
in the Ketchum Cemetery when Il
n storm subsidies. So ended in fea
$ full tragedy two more human live
!. beloved by their friends, contemne
2 by the great world for the advanc
t ment of which they ventured al
: lost all.
= WHEN the news Of the death
= Hampton and Spear reached So
Lake B. Y. Hampton, ST., father
.e deceased, J. V. Hampton, his brot
If er, Mrs. Hartenstein, sister to MI