PoliticalGraveyard.com

Politicians Killed In Collapses
catastrophic failure of structures

Very incomplete list! in chronological order   Adolph Abeles (1817-1855) — of St. Louis, Mo. Born in Petchau, Bohemia (now Czechia), April 3, 1817. Merchant; member of Missouri state house of representatives; elected 1850. Jewish. On the inaugural run of the Pacific Railroad, from St. Louis to Jefferson City, Mo., he was drowned when the bridge over the Gasconade River collapsed, sending the train into the water, near Hermann, Gasconade County, Mo., November 1, 1855 (age 38 years, 212 days). Interment at Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, Mo.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Charles Adams (1845-1895) — also known as Karl Adam Schwanbeck — of Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colo.; Manitou Springs, El Paso County, Colo. Born in Pomerania, Germany, December 19, 1845. Served in the Union Army during the Civil War; U.S. Minister to Bolivia, 1880-82. Member, Freemasons. Killed in the disaster at the Gumry Hotel, when a boiler explosion caused most of the building to collapse and burn, killing 22 people, in Denver, Colo., August 19, 1895 (age 49 years, 243 days). Interment at Crystal Valley Cemetery, Manitou Springs, Colo.   Relatives: Son of Karl Heinrich Schwanbeck and Maria J. (Markman) Schwanbeck; married to Margaret (Thompson) Phelps (sister-in-law of Edward Moody McCook).   Political family: McCook family of Steubenville, Ohio.   See also Wikipedia article — U.S. State Dept career summary — Find-A-Grave memorial   Joseph Henry Peirce (1870-1908) — also known as Joseph H. Peirce — Born in Messina, Sicily, Italy, November 6, 1870. U.S. Vice & Deputy Consul in Messina, 1900-06; newspaper correspondent. He and his family were among about 80,000 people killed during an earthquake and tsunami, specifically, when his house collapsed, in Messina, Sicily, Italy, December 28, 1908 (age 38 years, 52 days). Burial location unknown.   Arthur Sanford Cheney (1869-1908) — also known as Arthur S. Cheney — of Connecticut. Born in Joliet, Will County, Ill., October 4, 1869. Physician; U.S. Vice Consul in Reichenberg, 1906-07; U.S. Consul in Messina, 1907-08, died in office 1908. He and his wife were among about 80,000 people killed during the Messina Earthquake, specifically, when the U.S. consulate building collapsed, in Messina, Sicily, Italy, December 28, 1908 (age 39 years, 85 days). Interment at Evergreen Cemetery, New Haven, Conn.   Relatives: Son of Benjamin Hicks Cheney and Sarah (Austin) Cheney; married 1895 to Laura A. Pfeiffer.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial Andrew Jackson Barchfeld (1863-1922) — also known as Andrew J. Barchfeld — of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pa. Born in Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pa., May 18, 1863. Republican. Physician; president, South Side Hospital; U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania 32nd District, 1905-17; defeated, 1902. German ancestry. Member, American Medical Association. One of 98 killed when heavy snow caused a roof collapse at the Knickerbocker Theater, Washington, D.C., January 28, 1922 (age 58 years, 255 days). Interment at South Side Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Pa.   Presumably named for: Andrew Jackson   Relatives: Son of Mary (Neuenhagen) Barchfeld and Heinrich 'Henry' Barchfeld; married, May 21, 1885, to Anna Pifer; married, November 26, 1904, to Alice Davis.   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial   Image source: The Book of Prominent Pennsylvanians (1913)   Max David Kirjassoff (1888-1923) — also known as Max D. Kirjassoff — of Waterbury, New Haven County, Conn. Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, March 2, 1888. U.S. Vice Consul in Yokohama, as of 1916; U.S. Consul in Taihoku, as of 1917-19; Dairen, as of 1921; U.S. Consul General in Yokohama, 1922-23, died in office 1923. Jewish. One of more than 100,000 people killed during the Great Kanto Earthquake, probably in the collapse of the consulate building or the fire that followed, in Yokohama, Japan, September 1, 1923 (age 35 years, 183 days). Interment at Negishi Foreign Cemetery, Yokohama, Japan.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Paul E. Jenks (c.1863-1923) — of Brooklyn, Kings County, N.Y. Born about 1863. U.S. Vice Consul in Yokohama, 1917-23, died in office 1923. One of more than 100,000 people killed during the Great Kanto Earthquake, probably in the collapse of the consulate building or the fire that followed, in Yokohama, Japan, September 1, 1923 (age about 60 years). Burial location unknown.   Relatives: Brother of Almet Francis Jenks.   Jasper Baxter (1957-2001) — of Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pa. Born in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pa., January 28, 1957. Democrat. Candidate for Pennsylvania state house of representatives 186th District, 1986. African ancestry. Was conducting a seminar on the 93rd floor of 2 World Trade Center, when an airliner hijacked by terrorists was deliberately crashed into the building, causing an explosion, fire, and collapse of the structure, killing almost 3,000, in Manhattan, New York County, N.Y., September 11, 2001 (age 44 years, 226 days). Cenotaph at National September 11 Memorial, Manhattan, N.Y.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Peter Adolf Augustus Berle (1937-2007) — also known as Peter A. A. Berle — of Manhattan, New York County, N.Y. Born in Manhattan, New York County, N.Y., December 8, 1937. Democrat. Lawyer; served in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War; member of New York state assembly, 1969-74 (64th District 1969-72, 68th District 1973-74); delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1972; New York State Commissioner of Environmental Conservation, 1976-78; president, National Audubon Society, 1985-95. Member, Audubon Society. Injured in the collapse of a barn roof, and died a few weeks later at Berkshire Medical Center, Pittsfield, Berkshire County, Mass., November 1, 2007 (age 69 years, 328 days). Interment at Muddy Brook Cemetery, Great Barrington, Mass.; cenotaph at St. Paul's Episcopal Church Memorial Garden, Stockbridge, Mass.   Relatives: Son of Adolf Augustus Berle Jr. and Beatrice (Bishop) Berle; married, May 30, 1960, to Lila Sloane Wilde.   Epitaph: "Environmentalist."   See also Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial

"Enjoy the hospitable entertainment of a political graveyard." Henry L. Clinton, Apollo Hall, New York City, February 3, 1872

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