WEEK 42

Arthur Parkin is the husband of my third cousin, thrice removed (Catherine Loukes). Below is the newspaper article published shortly after his death with details of how he demised.

YORKSHIRE TELEGRAPH AND STAR, WEDNESDAY EVENING, MAY 10, 1916.

NO WITNESSES OF CARTER’S FATAL ACCIDENT

St. Philips Road

In lieu of direct evidence supposition had largely to be reported to at the inquest at the Sheffield Coroner’s Court to-day on the body of Arthur Parkin (48), of 70, Milton Street, a Corporation carter, whose death took place in curious circumstances. From the statements it had been found possible to collect, it appeared that the man, who was a carter in the Cleansing Department, was discovered lying in a pool of blood, suffering from terrible internal injuries, and the theories on which the jury based its verdict of “Accidental Death” were that the man, whilst applying the brakes before proceeding down a hill with his waggon, had been caught by the wheel and run over.

Arthur’s grave

A fellow-workman said that when he left Parkin at 2.45 a.m. he was all right, and was leading his horse and waggon, loaded with nightsoil, up Thomas Street, on his way to the destructor on Penistone Road. Henry Crouch, a Corporation street sweeper, found the body of Parkin in St. Phillip’s Road lying in a pool of blood, but could form no opinion as to what had happened. He made the discovery as day was breaking, and the horse and cart were nowhere to be seen.

Some time later, said another Corporation employee, he found the horse and cart of which the deceased had been in charge near the destructor in Penistone Road. The brakes were hard on, and the horse was pulling up the hill “as though it had gone mad.” In his opinion Parkin had been caught by the wheel whilst applying the brake in St. Phillip’s Road.

Dr. Mowat, of the Royal Infirmary, described the terrible injuries of the man when he was admitted to the institution. All the ribs on the right side were broken, there was a wound reaching down to the bone underneath the chin, and bruises on the chest and head. There were also severe internal injuries.

At the conclusion of the inquest, Mr. E. B. Gibson, who represented the Corporation, expressed the sympathy of the Cleansing Department with the relatives of the dead man. He was a good, honest workman, and the department were very sorry to hear of his death.