Death was “probably accidental”

Joseph Gilmore was born 19 January 1883 in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and died 17 June 1921 in Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania. When he was 27 years old, he worked as a laborer at a steel mill in Allegheny County. He and his wife, Frances (Eisner) Gilmore, had 7 children together. When Joseph died in 1921, his oldest child was 18 and his wife was about 3 months pregnant with their last.

Joseph’s death certificate listed his place of death as “Ohio River at foot of Pennsylvania ave.” in the 21st ward of Pittsburgh. His occupation was carpenter, according to the informant, Frank Gilmore, who was either his brother or son, both having the same name. The coroner recorded Joseph Gilmore’s cause of death as, “Drowned due to being struck by a timber and thrown into Ohio River / Probably accidental / (Body recovered June 19th 1821 – 945a.m.).”

Source: “Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates,” database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 Aug 2022), certificate image, Joseph Gilmore, 17 June 1921, file no. 54632; citing Death Certificates, 1906-1968, Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Probably accidental?!?!

What were the circumstances of Joseph’s death?

Three newspapers articles from the week of Joseph’s death helped shed some light on this dark story.

It is certain that Joseph Gilmore drowned on 17 June 1921, as the result of an accident while at work for the Neville Dock Company on the Ohio River. He and several others were working around a barge or derrick when a timbered part of the structure holding up the boat broke. Joseph ended up in the water and could not be saved. The information about the victim and the accident were fairly consistent between his death certificate and three news articles printed in the days right after his death.

In the three reviewed articles, none included author bylines or witness statements. Therefore, it’s impossible to know the relationship of the authors to the victim or the day’s events. Although reporting in all articles named the victim as Joseph Gilmore, one piece incorrectly called him John in the article subhead.

The Post-Gazette put Joseph’s age at both 45 and 40, while the Daily Post asserted that he was 40 years old. These assertions contradict the birth date provided to the coroner by Joseph’s family member, which made Joseph 38 when he died. Joseph’s relative, whether he was Joseph’s brother or son, would have had better knowledge of Joseph’s birth date than the news reporters. All articles and the death certificate assert that Joseph was from Wilson, Pennsylvania, so that was certainly true.

Whereas the death certificate indicated that Joseph was a carpenter, the articles all asserted that he worked for the Neville Dock Company, likely as a foreman. Whether his work for the organization was that of a carpenter is unclear, though likely the profession provided for the death certificate was intended to indicate the deceased’s general occupation, regardless of his employer at the time of his death.

All three articles communicated very similar circumstances leading to Joseph’s death as what was captured on his death certificate. Certainly, a timber broke while Joseph was working on the Ohio River, which resulted in Joseph landing in the water and drowning. The third article specifically provided evidence of the recovery of the body several days after the drown, which was documented on the death certificate.

Two of the articles said that the accident took place at the foot of Pennsylvania Avenue, though the third put the location as the foot of Liverpool Street, which was one block over. The Post-Gazette explained that the site of the accident was 75 feet off shore, so it’s likely that the accident and the body’s recovery occurred somewhere between the two streets, relatively close to where the accident took place.

Source: “Dock Foreman Knocked Into Ohio By Plank,” Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Post-Gazette, 18 Jun 1921, page 2, column 5; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://newspapers.com : accessed 17 Aug 2022).

“Workman and Boy Drown; Four Rescued From River by Pals,” Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Daily Post, 18 Jun 1921, page 2, column 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://newspapers.com : accessed 12 Feb 2021).

“Body Recovered From River,” Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Daily Post, 20 Jun 1921, page 5, column 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://newspapers.com : accessed 12 Feb 2021).

Thank you to client, Schuyler Gilmore, for allowing me to share her ancestors’ stories. Are you curious about the stories behind something that happened to one of your ancestors? Contact me to discuss how I can help you learn more!