Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-07-26
Auto Went Over Embankment
Near Blue River.
Noted Driver Met Death While Coming
to Lane aster on Reliability Tour
Last Thursday.

The general details of the accident in
which he lost his life, are without a
doubt. known to most of our readers
as the metropolitan papers devoted
from one to four columns in their Fri
day editions to the tragic occurrences
These accounts were all more or less
inaccurate because Of the necessary
haste with which the information
was obtained by the reporters who
we're with the party.
Leslie A Clark, of this city who
was riding in the car with Strang
until the latter death has written
the following account of the accident
for the Herald which our readers may
accept as being entirely accurate
Last Thursday we left Lacrosse
about O'Clock i'll the morning, the
whole party being in the best of
spirits and making nice run to
Richland Center where we stopped for
dinner. The party consisted of
Lewis Strang, Joe Jagersburger, ore
of the Case driving team, J. W.
Tufts of Milwaukee. and myself. We
stayed perhaps an hour in Richland
Center when we started for Lancaster
where we were to spend the night.
We were hurrying ahead SO as to be
in Lancaster to take care of the cars
at the night control.
The point where the accident &C.
CURED was on an island between the
two bridges on the Wisconsin river
about mile and onehalf from
Blue River After crossing the first
bridge we noticed top buggy ahead
of US. Mr.. St1ang blew the horn and
the driver of the team turned out for
us as far as safety would permit and
waited for us to pass. Our car had
dropped back to lower speed, to about
five miles an hour. and our front
wheels were up about even with the
buggy when the bank started to give
way.
We had such confidence in Mr..
Strang's driving that we thought he
could save the car, and he did manage
to get the front wheels by but when
the rear wheels struck the soft ground
the car went over like flash, [ was
the first to leave the car, jumping on
the upper side and slid down the
bank after the car unhurt, while MI.
Jagersburger and Mr.. Tufts jumped Oh
the lower side and rolled just out of
the way Of the machine.
Mr.. Strang stayed at the wheel in
the hopes that he could right the car
so that it would go down the bank on
all four wheels but he was unable to
do so with his weak arm which he
had broken in race at Kenosha
about the middle of June. The car
turned completely over and fell On
his head crushing the life out of him
almost instantly.
With the help of Mr. Hubbank, the
driver Of the team, we righted the car,
picked up the now Iifeless body of
Lewis Strang. taking it on to Blue
River. where it was left in care of
one of the party until it could be
shipped to his home at Amsterdam,
New York where his three sisters are
living.
1t was reported that he had been
respondent during the trip and was
planning some way in which to end his
life, but this was not true for he had
been jolly and happy throughout the
trip and he had just told us that be
would like to introduce Mr.. Jagers
burger and himself that evening at
the Orpheum Theatre, as We had ar
ranged to show the pictures Of the In
dianapolis auto races in which they
both had taken part. This was to
have been his last day with us OH the
trip as the Case people had phone2 for
him that he was needed at the factory
at Racine Mr.. Jagersburger was
to have taken his place and driven for
us the remainder of the trip. Strang
was % years old and was know as a
"Speed Demon to whom a mile a
minute was nothing He was the
winner Of many races. one of which
at Indianapolis, was made at the speed
of a 119 miles an hour. 1t seems
strange that he should have been
killed while going at the rate of 4
miles an hour when he has had so
many accidents while going at the
speed of from 60 to 100 miles.
We pulled the car out of the ditch