Weekly Puzzle - Kansas City 1888

New York Life Building
Kansas City MO
Completed 1890

It seems that Trendell's were unlucky in Kansas City.  One year to the day before the drowning death of Charles Arthur Trendell, William C Trendell and two co-workers fell to their death when a scaffold collapsed as they laid bricks on the New York Life building. The fall was over 100 feet and Billy struck a wire on the way down which broke his neck.  Unlike the other two victims he probably did not live to feel the impact.

Two days later, 30 Jun 1888, the coroner's jury found that the contractor and the foreman of the carpenter's had been negligent, but not criminally so. (1)

Who is William C. Trendell.  The newspaper account, in which he is referred to as Billy Trendell and also Tremlyn says he was an officer of the bricklayers union, that he could not have been over 27 years old, was small and had a thick black mustache.

 Thursday, June 28, 1888
Kansas City Star (Kansas City, MO)
Volume: 14   Issue: 244   Page: 1

The newspaper account quoted one mourner as stating, "Poor Billy.  Everybody that knew him liked him.  He's only a little fellow, you know, but what there was of him was good."

None of the Trendells (with any spelling) in the 1880 census looked promising.  More promising might be a few individuals born in the British Isles around 1861.  At least two do not appear to have any records after 1881.  Might they have emigrated.

I did not find a cemetery or a death certificate for William, and I also looked under the name Tremlyn using both William and Billy.

The second article, with the official verdict of the coroner's jury gave the name as William C. Trendell, making Trendell more likely than Tremlyn.

So who is William C. Trendell.  There must be more in the coroner's records.  Does anyone have access to them?  One would also expect a lawsuit or at least some sort of settlement if William had any family, so there might be information in the civil court records as well.  If not a lawsuit by the Trendell family perhaps by the family of one of the others?

And so the search is on!





(1) "A Verdict of Censure. Finding of the Jury in the Scaffold Victims' Case. John Russell", Kansas City Star, 30 Jun 1888, v:14 i.246 p1 

Weekly Puzzle - Charles Arthur Trendell

On 28 Jun 1888(9) Charles Arthur Trendell, age 14 born in Wisconsin, drowned in the Water Works Reservoir. (1)  The reservoir, known as the Holly Street Reservoir, was located in the area that in the 1930s was known as Observation Park. (2) He is buried in lot 47 plot 25 of Union Cemetery. (2)  His tombstone gives the 1888 date and the Trendell spelling , his death certificate gives a spelling of Trendle and the year as1889.

In working on this puzzle, I think I might have started to solve another.  In July I posted the puzzle of George Trindle George Trindle, railroad engineer, born in NY died in MS.  One of the possible connections was that he was the same person as George Trindale, railroad engineer, born in New York and found in Minnesota in 1880.  One of the problems with that connection was a son Arthur born in Wisconsin about 1875 and a son Arthur born in Mississippi in 1890.

So, here is a solution to that problem.  Charles ARTHUR born in Wisconsin about 1875 (would be 14 in 1889) died in 1889.  Now an Arthur born in 1890 is no longer a problem.

So, I propose that Charles Arthur Trendell is the son of George Trindal and Lydia Putnam and that George Trindal and and George Trindle are in fact the same person.  This leaves us with the questions:  Why Charles Arthur was in Kansas City?  Did George and Lydia get divorced or did Lydia die?  Did C. Arthur not want to live in Mississippi with his step-mother?  What happened to his siblings Gracy and Frank?

Much more to solve and corrections and questions are always welcome!

(1) Missouri Death Records Jackson County, Roll C #19509.
(2) The Water Supply System of Kansas City, Missouri,  T. D. Samuel, Jr.  Journal (American Water Works Association) Vol 22 No 9 (September, 1930) pp. 1236-1246; Old Reservoir, New Park Site , Northeast News.net.
(3) Find A Grave