Note: Graphic headline from 1906 newspaper is shown in this post.
You might wonder just why anyone would put themselves in this situation? Well, clover is is good way to improve soil health and prevent weeds. It can also be used as a crop for livestock to forage on. It's a practical crop depending on the needs of the farm. But sometimes farming can be deadly. Such was the case for my great-granduncle Christian Shelly (1837-1906). You may recall, I wrote about the tragic death of his father, Michael Shelly. I'm not ready to call it a family curse...yet...but tragedy continued from father to son.
Christian was known as the "Farmer King". He owned 14 farms (totaling thousands of acres) in Wayne County, Ohio and was purported to be the richest farmer in the county at the time. He was known as a man of his word, and paid his debts on time. He reportedly spent little on creature comforts. Perhaps the robbery of his father played into his frugal nature. I wish I could say the farms Christian owned were still in the family, but the vast majority of the land acquired by my Shelly ancestors has been sold off.
But back to the story of Christian. He went out alone one afternoon to work in one of the fields with his horse drawn machinery. Usually he had a hired hand to help him, but not on this particular afternoon. He was supposed to be home to leave for a visit his daughter later in the evening. When he didn't arrive as expected, his wife requested a neighbor go check on him. The neighbor found him deceased in the clover field.
I sometimes struggle with newspaper articles of this time. The imagery, while more or less accurate, is strikingly graphic compared to articles today. Below is the front page headline from the Wayne County Democrat on September 5th, 1906. The same paper published a follow up article on September 26th 1906.
Much like the death of his father, the family originally suspected foul play. There was apparently a dark mark over his left eye, interpreted by some as a bullet wound. However, the Coroner found markings on the body consistent with having been run over by his own mower. The dark mark was determined to be only a bruise. Based on the scene, it was believed his reigns may have became tangled, ultimately throwing him from the mower, and likely startling the team of horses, resulting in a horrific accident.
A neighbor suggested honey bees were all over the clover field, and he may have been stung while trying to shoo them away. Christian's son advised the Coroner his father would lose consciousness for a few minutes whenever he was stung. Clearly he had a fairly serious allergy. If he was stung by one or more bees and passed out, it's understandable how he could have easily fallen and ended up under the machine. In this potential scenario, the cause of death is still the same - unfortunate accident.
I certainly only know the story as it was reported in the papers. No one actually witnessed it happen, so everything was speculation and best guess. But given Christian was a third generation farmer in Ohio, I personally think it unlikely he would have allowed his reigns to become tangled. It's not out the realm of possibility, but it just doesn't feel like a mistake he would have made. The bee theory seems much more plausible. With a known allergy, one little honey bee could have caused it all.
Christian was 69 years, 2 months and 19 days old when he died on September 4th, 1906. He made quite a name for himself, and certainly left quite a legacy and considerable wealth for his 5 children. But the Great Depression was just 20 or so years away...
How terrible! We don't think of allergic reactions being a cause of death in ages past and then to get run over by his own mower. . .
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