"CORRY MAYOR DIES OF SHOCK AFTER CRASH - Benjamin F Starr, Uninjured, Suddenly Collapses Some Twenty Minutes Following Accident - AUTO LEAVES HIGHWAY, TURNS UPSIDE DOWN - Fatality Second to a Corry Mayor in Little More Than a Year - Benjamin F Starr, aged 64, mayor of Corry, dropped dead shortly after 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon, following an automobile accident one mile south of Centerville on McKinney Road in which a car he was driving turned completely upside down. He suffered no bodily injuries in the mishap and death was due to shock. Mayor Starr's wife, who was with him in the car, was only slightly hurt. The accident occurred at 3:45 and about twenty minutes later, while active in his wife's welfare, Mr Starr collapsed and died almost instantly. Mayor and Mrs Starr were returning from a visit in McKeesport when the tragedy occurred. Only a short time before the accident Mrs Starr had commented on what a delightful time they had had on their visit and ride. The accident happened almost in front of the residence of Frank T Stewart just after Mr Stewart had backed his Ford car out onto the road. Says Highway Was Clear - 'I am always careful in backing out onto the highway,' said Mr Stewart to The Herald yesterday, 'and I was particularly so in this case. I got almost to the edge of the pavement and stopped for two cars to pass, one going north and one south. I had planned to go north toward Centerville and when I saw the highway was clear in both directions, I backed out onto the highway, straightened out and headed north. I was just starting, being still in low gear, when the Starr car crashed into me from behind, striking my rear right fender, which was the one next to the ditch. The Starr car, a heavy coupe, plunged along the ditch and then came back onto the road and overturned, stopping along the edge, with the top resting on the pavement. The road was clear at the left and I don't know why Mr Starr did not go around me on that side, which was his right of way. Evidently, he became confused, and, besides, he was driving pretty fast.' Help Was Soon at Hand - Just as the car overturned, E H Shreve and A L Bloss of Union City came into view, traveling south. They stopped at the scene of the accident and joined Mr Stewart and his young son, who had seen the crash from his home, in removing the occupants of the Starr car. Although neither Mr Starr nor his wife was injured to speak of, they could not get out with the car on its top. The men, therefore, tipped it over on its side and helped Mrs Starr out. When they sought to help Mr Starr, he declined their assistance, saying: 'I'm all right; I'm not hurt.' Mrs Starr's face had been cut slightly when her eye glasses broke and she was suffering from shock, but was able to walk to the Stewart residence, a few rods away. She sat down in a chair and when her husband saw she was not badly hurt, he returned to the car. He told Mr Stewart he was not able to say exactly how the accident occurred. He examined the car and talked freely about the crash and, while somewhat agitated, did not show any evidences of having suffered severely from shock. Declined To Be Taken Home - Soon after the crash, N T Francis and his son-in-law, Warren Love, stopped on their way to Canadohta Lake. When they learned that Mr and Mrs Starr were from Corry they volunteered to take them home in their car. Mr Starr declined the proffer with thanks, saying friends from Corry would come for them eventually. After Messrs Francis and Love proceeded to the lake, Mr Starr started to the Stewart house to see his wife. He had scarcely stepped onto the porch before he collapsed and fell. Several persons rushed to him and carried him into the house. They thought he had fainted, and restoratives were applied. However, it was soon apparent to everyone, including Mrs Starr, that he was in a critical condition and Dr Harry Hatch of Centerville was summoned. Although Dr Hatch came promptly, the man was dead before he arrived. The doctor said death had been due to shock resulting from the accident, with probably some heart involvement, It developed later that Mr Starr suffered from a nervous breakdown in May and was in bed for several weeks. For a time his life was in the balance, but he eventually recovered and returned to his business. Among those who came from Corry after the accident was A B Treat, a brother of Mrs Starr, who said she was not able to tell exactly how the accident occurred. She said that as soon as the car stopped after the crash, her husband turned to her and asked: 'Ruth, are you hurt?' When she assured him she was not, he also said he was unhurt. Official Investigation Made - A thorough investigation of the accident was made by Deputy Coroner Harold H Benedict of Titusville, who talked with several persons at the scene, some of whom had seen the crash. The official also inspected the berm to the south, and found tire tracks indicating that Mr Starr had driven off the road 75 or 100 feet south of the point at which he struck the Stewart car. Mr Benedict could not understand why Mr Starr did not remain on the road and pass the Stewart car on the left. It was also noted that the point at which Mr Stewart came out on the highway was observable from the south by about 200 yards. The deputy coroner reached the conclusion that no inquest was necessary. Corry friends of Mayor Starr, who visited the scene of the crash last night, could not understand why he ran into the Stewart car from the right side unless it was farther out on the road than was generally supposed. They said Mr Starr was one of the most experienced drivers in Corry and had a reputation for being careful and cautious. The body of the mayor was removed to Corry in the service car of Alexander & Co, in charge of Mark Fullom. It was only on June 9, 1931, that Corry lost another mayor as a result of a motor accident, Cassius Alexander being killed on the Lake Shore road near Dunkirk, NY, on that date. He was succeeded as mayor by Frank T England, superintendent of finances and accounts on the city council, who will probably succeed Mr Starr until the next general election. The latter was elected last November to serve the unexpired term of Mr Alexander. Mr Starr was owner of the Starr Granite and Marble Works."
(Titusville Herald, July 28, 1932, p.2)