The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-10-10
VERDICT OF JURY.
Coroner's Men Inquire Into
McConneII's Death.
Mtny Witnesses Tell Their Stories of
the Bad Accident at the
Library Building.

An inquiry into the death of Will
lam Mcconnell, who received his fatal
injuries at the library building
catastrophe on Saturday afternoon last
was conducted at the board of trade
rooms in the city hall Wednesday I'M
der direction of Coroner Kennedy and
County Attorney Wilson. The jury
was made up as follows: A. ]. Busch.
A. g. Meyer, John Nyquist, s. g..
Burgess, Rudolph Bierbauer and
George Boynton.
The Knights of Pythias and Hi
brennan lodges of Faribault, of which
Mr.. O'Connell was a member, are TAX
ing an active interest in behalf CT his
widow and four small children. He
was man of thorough education and
WIS teacher by profession, but took
up the work of carpenter on &C.
conunt of his health. He stood high
in the community, and the rights of
his family are to be looked after by
the organizations to which he be-
longed, as we'll as by basiness men of
Faribault Mrs. O'Connell was also
a teacher She is left with a good
home, but very little other means.
A committee of the Faribault
Knights of Pythias lodge, consisting
of P. J. Moran, ex-representative in
the legislature and prominent bust
ness man, and M. M. Shields, editor
and proprietor of The Pilot, and M.
Leadon, representing theAncient Order
OF Hibernians, arrived in the city last
night to look after the interests of the
family OF the deceased. III. L. Luther.
an attorney and vice chancellor of the
Faribault lodge of Knights of Pythias,
is here.
The committee this morning en-
gagged the services of Attorney A. E.
Clark, who is chancellor commander
of the Mankato lodge of Knights of
Pythias, to look after the case in this
city. The insurance company with
which J. B. Nielsen & Co. have a
blanket indemnity policy of $40 ono to
cover accidents to their employees.
will be expected to pay the usual
damages.
All of the above named gentlemen
were in attendance at the inquest.
James McMurtrie was the first wit
ness to be SWORD. He is the superin-
tendent in charge of the construction
of the library building. He told the
jury what his duties at the building
are and that he was employed Dy the
library board. He did not know Will
lam O'Connell by name, but knew
that such a man was employed there
as a carpenter. O'Connell was putting
in ceiling joists that held the upper
floor. There were two iron beams
that supported the roof aside from the
walls of the building. The walls sup
ported the beams The beams were
about thirty feet long and twenty
inches deep. They were six inches
across, like all steel beams. They
weigh sixty five pounds to the foot
The ends of the beams set in the
walls. The beams were put up ten
days or two weeks ago. The afternoon
before the accident the men were
working on the arches that were to
support the roof. Mr.. McMurtrie testi
fed that he was on the roof about two
minutes before it fell, was called out
into the street, and had no more than
reached the street when the crash
came. He said that the north wall
had been wet ever since it was put
up, the numerous rains and the damp
ness from the freshly laid brick arches
keeping it damp. The beam had been
laid about ten days before. There was
no apparent defect in the wall before
the accident He stated that the beam
did not project into the fue, and that
all the work on the north wall had
been. done according to the plans and
as contracted He stated that the fue
was offset little at the point where
it met the plate under the beam. in
order that the plate might not project
into the fue. This left part CT the
plate projecting over the part of the
fue below the offset. but the beam
rested on the solid wall, and did not
come out over the f1ue as did the plate
on which it rested.
Gustave Nelson, carpenter engaged
on the work of placing the rafters,
stated that they made holes in the
north wall for the rsfters to set in,
and that while they made holes about
two feet each side of the beam, there
were none made any nearer to it or
in the chimney, but that they made
what is called a header to get past
the chimney and the beam.
J. B. Nielsen, the contractor, was
called. He said that the beam that
fell was twenty-four feet long, weigh
ed sixty-fve pounds to the foot and
was six inches wide at the base. The
north wall was twenty inches thick.
and the beam set into the wall eleven
inches and rested on plate fifteen by
twenty inches. Mr.. Nielsen said that
in his opinion the proximity OF the
beam to the Hue was one of the causes