Runaway Livery Team,
Equivalent To Today's Car Accident

July 4, 2026

Imagine living before the motor vehicle. Today we have car accidents, but even with only a horse and a buggy, accidents still happened! Here are some headlines taken from the Marceline newspaper archives.

Newspaper Articles

Brookfield Budget: James M. Howk, a farmer living about 8 miles north of this city had his neck broken and was instantly killed by being thrown out of his buggy in a runaway Thursday afternoon.

Mr. Howk, wife and sister, Miss Bertha Howk had started to drive north toward Garner to visit his brother-in-law, Mr. Shouse. He was driving a team of fractious colts. As they were going down a steep hill the neck yoke broke, allowing the tongue to drop to the ground and the buggy to run up on the horse which caused them to runaway. The tongue caught in a bridge at the foot of the hill, upset the buggy and threw Mr. Howk out on his head into a ditch. In the fall his head struck a log, crushing it and breaking his neck. Mrs. Howk escaped uninjured, but Miss Bertha was slightly bruised.

The funeral services were held yesterday afternoon at 2p.m., at his late residence. He was 32 years old and a highly respected citizen.

Mrs. Minter, of Brookfield, met with an accident Monday afternoon which resulted in her death. She and a Mrs. Standfield were out driving when one of the buggy wheels dropped into a rut and was broken. The horse became unmanageable and before assistance could arrive, ran away, throwing both ladies out of the buggy, killing Mrs. Minter and badly injuring Mrs. Standfield.

Two very serious buggy wrecks occurred near the first bridge west of town last night.

There were a number of rigs returning from the Brookfield Fair. In one of them Ura Kunkler, Noble Ficklin and Ed Swager.

It seems something broke about their buggy and the team ran away. Just at the point where the road is too narrow for safe passing the runaway team struck the buggy in which was Charley Maddox and Miss Staples, both of whom were thrown from the buggy. A minute later the runaway team dashed into a double seated rig occupied by Will Davis and Steve Wallar and their wives. The impact drove the carriage forward breaking the tongue, and the team jumped and luckily broke the double-tree and ran free of the rig. This was all that saved the occupants from almost certain fatalities, as there are two dangerous turns just this side.

Davis and Wallar hurried to the assistance of Maddox and Miss Staples. The young lady was not seriously hurt, but Charley was unconscious all night, but seems to have recovered this morning.

A runaway on the Howell Street crossing of the Santa Fe railway came near ending disastrously, Monday afternoon. W. H. Raub, driving a livery team, started to cross the track near the reading room, when a tug became loosened and the tongue of the vehicle dropped striking a rail. The horses meeting with this obstruction plunged, throwing the occupants out. Mrs. Tom Logan and baby and Mrs. Oscar Minich were in rear seats of the buggy and escaped with slight bruises. Mr. Raub was not so fortunate, the vehicle passing over him, one of the wheels striking him just above the hips.

He was taken to the office of Dr. W. A. Cater and his injuries, principally bruises, attended to. It was at first believed that he was internally injured, but Dr. Cater pronounced the injuries while painful not serious.