Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-05
ID. c. MAN DRIVES
| CAR FROM WHARF
Death of E. J. Tighe Held
"ProbabIy Accidental" by
Norfolk Coroner.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

NORFOLK, Va, october edward
J. Tighe, IS, Of 27o1 Fourteenth street,
Washington, was drowned in the
waters of the Elizabeth River when he
drove his automobile overheard from a
wharf, probably accidentally" accord
ing to the death certificate signed to-
day by DR.. c. D. j. Macdonald, city
coroner, who has ordered an inquest for
october IA.
The body of man taken by divers
from his sedan, sunk 80 feet deep in
the harbor waters off the foot Of Water
street, was positively identified during
the afternoon by his wife Mrs. Adele
Tighe, who arrived at Virginia Beach
last night to meet her husband, who
had been there several days. He drove
the 20 miles from the beach into Nor
folk, leaving shortly before she arrived,
and after registering at two Norfolk
hotels died when his machine plunged
overheard early this morning.
Mrs. Tighe. driving with friends, left
by motor for Washington late today and
Norfolk & Washington steamboat to
Washington, where funeral services will
be held.
Tighe, police learned, arrived at Vir-
ginia Beach Wednesday and had spent
Wednesday as a guest of the Cavalier
Hotel, only to check out and register in
turn at-three other Virginia hotels He
spent some of his time with friends and
last night shortly after o'clock left
for Norfolk, expecting to return in time
to meet his wife, who was to arrive at
about 8 O'Clock at night.
That, so far as police could learn was
1fyhn I'm
saw him. Mrs. Tighe was delayed and
did not arrive at the beach until later.
Registered at Two Hotels.
Meantime, Investigations have shown
Tighe registered at the Atlantic Hotel
shortly after 9 o'clock, only to check
out short time later, receive his money
back and register at the Southland
Hotel at 1000 o'clock, according to
Detective Mathews, who was assigned
to the case
At 1855 this morning, not half an
hour before his car plunged from a
dock, Patrolman r. A. James tagged
his automobile, which bore District of
Columbia license plates on TaZewell
street, which is in the non-parking fire
zone area after / pm. A few minutes
later he met a man, he said, who, ap-
parently rather bewildered, asked the
off1cer If he had seen his automobile
James said he told the man, whom he
later identified as Tighe, that his ma
chine was on Tazewell street with a
tag on it. The man, he said, explained
he was stranger in Norfolk and had
misplaced the street on which he left
his automobile.
A short time after that Patrolman
Cooper saw a large sedan cruising
around in the warehouse section of the
water front, deserted at that hour, but
paid little attention to It, Then, in
vestigations disclosed, S. j. Britt, rail-
road Waterman, saw a similar machine
drive up to the dock on Matthews street
and halt just in time to avoid running
from the dock into a barge that was
tied up there.
Waterman Makes Investigation.
Britt. some distance away, saw the
machine back up and turn into Water
street, proceeding through the gates
that led to the dock and disappear.
He heard no crash, but walked on up
to investigate and found scars on the
dock timbers where the tenders of the
car had scraped in going over, and
another rusty streak evidently made
when the muff1er scraped. and still
another place that was smeared with
grease as If the drip pan had struck.
Sounding with rock tied on the end
OF a line, the car was soon located, but
police were unable to procure a diver
for the work of lifting it until the Nor
folk Navy Yard opened at am. The
time Of the accident was placed at be-
tween 2 and 2:30 am. Two watches
on the body Of T1ghe had stopped,
wrist watch at 2:18 and a pocket
f1-of r7 nh NxyaC
the water, at 1888. The car, bearing
the body of the driver, remained sub
merged until 10 o'clock when it was
brought to the surface by w. H. Clarke,
civilian diver, attached to the Nor
folk Navy Yard. Tentative identifica-
ton was made through an automobile
registration that he carried on an in
side pocket. He had on his body $102
besides some silver, the money being
one 500 bill and two ST. bills These
were all the effects he had except few
golf tees.
The car was brought to the surface
about noon and was found to be badly
SCARED, but not materially damaged
mechanically by the dive. The dock
at the place is some feet above the
water line, and the water is about 30
feet deep.
Car in Upright Position.
The diver reported that the car
was sitting upright on the bottom sunk
down in the silt almost wheel deep.
He found the body in a driving posi-
ton, but huddled against the top. The
glass was down about inches in the
front door beside the drivers seat.
Tighe Is an automobile salesman.
DR.. Macdonald signed the death GER
tificate, allowing the body to be taken
to Washington, after a brief inveStiga-
ton, saying that additional facts, If
any, could be brought out at the in
quest. which has been delayed a week
longer than usua! because Detective
Leon NowitZky, coroner's investigator,
is on furlough. Nowitzky, however, is
at work on the case
1t was entirely possible, they said, for
the driver to have mistaken the dock
entrance for street leading out of
the city and to have driven overheard
before he realized his error Gates that
guard the dock were open. Bright
lights were on the building just inside
the dock and it was possible that a
car If being driven rapidly might go
over before O driver realized his plight.
FIRST SMOKER HELD