Obituary Record

Richard F Brand
Died on 2/13/1954

From obituary printed in the Thursday, February 18, 1954 Pilot-Tribune, Blair, Nebraska p. 3

Brand Family Dies

Nickerson-Fontanelle Area Family Wiped Out When Car Hit by Truck FUNERAL FOR ALL IS HELD ON WEDNESDAY

A split second-a truck driver’s time to figure his chances of avoiding another collision—and the entire Richard Brand family of near Nickerson met sudden death on the highway Saturday evening.

Mr. Brand, 45, his wife and their two daughters, 11-year-old Karen and six-year-old Jean, met death swiftly at 7pm Saturday when a truck swerved into the path of their northbound car north of Fremont as they were returning from a trip to Omaha and Fremont.

It was one of the worst highway tragedies of Nebraska history. It sent Dodge County’s 1954 highway death toll from zero to four, and it boosted Nebraska’s toll up to 37 as compared to only 17 at the same time last year.

Tragedy Reconstructed

The Brands had been in Omaha during the day Saturday to have one of the girls fitted for glasses. Enroute home, they paused in Fremont to buy groceries and proceeded north along Highway 77 toward their home, at about 7 p.m.

Authorities reconstruct the accident as follows:
An Oakland man, Kenneth Carlson, southbound toward Fremont In the heavy Saturday evening traffic flow, pulled his car off the highway to repair a flat tire. Another car, coming by several minutes later, slowed down suddenly upon seeing the Oakland car. Behind it was a large Watson Bros. truck, the driver of which suddenly had to decide whether to ram the slowed-down car, strike the parked on, or swing out into the other lane. With only a split second in which to decide, the truck driver veered out into the other land—and for once the laws of chance failed. Coming directly at the truck was the northbound Brand car.

Mr. and Mrs. Brand were killed instantly. Jean, age 6, died at about the same time an ambulance arrived. Karen, 11 years old, died two hours later at Dodge County Community Hospital in Fremont.

Native of County

Mr. Brand was the son of the late Frank Brand of Fontanelle and was born in Washington County in 1909. He had spent his entire life in the Fontanelle-Nickerson area.

Funeral services for the entire family were held yesterday, first at the Wollmer & Warne Funeral Home in Hooper, Nebraska, and then at 2 o’clock at Grace Lutheran Church, Hooper. The Rev. S.W. Jensen officiated, and burial was in Hooper Cemetery.

Mr. Brand is survived by three sisters: Mrs. T. Autry Freeman, Nickerson, Nebraska; Mrs. Raymond Anderson, Fremont, and Mrs. Frank Kosta, Fremont; and his mother, Mrs. Clara Brand.

Mrs. Brand, who was born at Nickerson as Marguerite Ehninger in 1914, is survived by her mother, Mrs. Jessie Enhinger, Fremont, and a sister, Mrs. William Liston, Nickerson.

~~~from obituary courtesy of the Nebraska Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Public Library, Blair, Nebraska~~~

FindaGrave #11613076

Printed in the Washington County Pilot-Tribune on 2/18/1954


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