Martin married KING, Elizabeth I about 1860. Elizabeth was born in Feb 1840 in New York; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Witmer - On Sept. 27, 1903, Loren T. Witmer, aged 34 years, met a very sad and sudden death caused by coming in contact with a surcharged electric line, causing instantaneous death. He was the son of Martin and Elizabeth Witmer, and great-grandson of John and Barbara Witmer. He leaves a widow, one daughter and a large circle of relatives and friends to mourn his untimely death. "In the midst of life we are in death."

ALSO

Niagara Gazette - 9/28/1903

Loren T. Witmer, a well known resident
of t h e city was electrocuted a t his
home No. 1307 Linwood Avenue early
Sunday morning between the hours of
2 and 3 o'clock. . There was a cross on
the incandescent circuit which caused
tlie switch blocks to spark, and Mr. Witmer
while searching for the trouble
picked up a wire in the cellar and it
is supposed that he received a shocK
of 2,000 volts.
Mrs. Witmer was aroused by the noise
made by the electricity, there being a
buzzing sound. She awakened her husband
telling him there was something
the matter with the electric light system.
He arose from his bed and told
his wife that he would go to the at-
tic to throw off the switch. He returned
In a minute and with his wife went
to the cellar. It was dark and Mrs.
Witmer left him s t a t i n g that she would
go upstairs after a lamp. As she went
up the stairs she heard a groan. "When
she returned she found her husband
lying on the cellar floor apparently dead.
She called to h im and receiving no r e sponse
she hastened upstairs and summoned
Drs. W. H. Hodge and E. O. Mccarty.
Upon the arrival of t h e physicians an
examination was made and although it
seemed hopeless an a t t e m p t was made
to. rescusutate him by artificial respiration.
The physicians worked over
Witmer for an hour and then gave it
up, the .man being beyond medical assistance.
The exact manner in which Witmer
met his. death will never be known. In
the cellar beneath the stairs there was
an Incandescent lamp suspended from
a. hook. The Wire attached to the
lamp was too long and a portion of it
sagged in a loop touching the cellar
floor. At the point of contact with
the floor the insulation was burned
from the wire leaving it bare. It is
supposed that Witmer picked up the
wire at the 'point of contact with t he
floor and received . t h e full force or'
the voltage of the wire with which the
incandescent system was charged. He
was thrown a distance of several feet
from the point where he was .standing
when he picked up t he wire. He
grasped the wire with the left hand
the physicians finding a charred burn
on the wrist and also a burn on the
instep where the charge of electricity
left the body. Witmer was in his bare
feet and the floor of the cellar being
damp the circumstances could not have
been more favorable for him to receive
the full- voltage of t h e crossed wires.
Coroner Slocum was called, made an
examination of the wiring of t he house
with Mr. McDonnell of the Buffalo &
Niagara Fails Electric Light & Power
Company. Everything was found as
i t should be a n d a test of the wires
made by Mr. McDonnell registered a
voltage of 110 a s it should be. .Yes-
terday afternoon the coroner wishing to
be positive went to the Witmer house
with a first-class electrician and made
another examination. The wiring was
pronounced to be perfect.- The only
deduction left was that the incandescent
system was crossed with a wire of
higher voltage and this is t r u e as one
ohe electric light circuits was clossed
down for a short time early 'Sunday
morning in order to locate a cross of the
wires. Just how the electricity entered
the house on the incandescent wire' is
not explained. It is supposed that the
switch was not thrown entirely off or
if the disconnection had been made in
a proper manner that the voltage was
so high that the electricity leaped the
Intervening space and made connection.
Witmer was employed as a bookkeeper
at the plant of the Carter-Grume
and was 31 years old. He was the son
of Mr. and Mrs. Martin Witmer who
formerly resided in this city but who
now reside in Colorado. Besides his
wife and child the deceased is survived
by three sisters.
At 2 o'clock Sunday morning Superintendent
of the Fire Alarm M. J. Donohue
was notified of trouble on the wire,
the fire alarm having sounded several
strokes. The pin on one of the cross
arms of a pole at 18th and Niagara
streets had pulled out allowing the the
a l a rm wire to drop on a n arc wire.
Word was at once sent to the power
house and at 5: 45 o'clock circuit No. 4
was closed clown upon orders of Supt.
Donohue he .believing it to be better
to have the lamps on t h e circuit in
darkness rather than to t a k e a chance,
of someone being killed by a t t e m p t i ng
to send in an a l a rm on circuit No. 2 of
the fire alarm. In t he opinion of Supt.
Donohue if a person attempted to send
in an a l a rm from one of the boxes on
No. 2 circuit with the electricity on the.
No. 4 a r c circuit they would- have received
a shock which would have caused
death Superintendent Donohue had
the system in working order and as
soon as daylight arrived he went to
work and pulled up the wire which
crossed the arc system. Supt. Donohue
is of t h e opinion that one of t h e Wires
of the No. 4 a r c s y s t em was crossed
with the incandescent- system and
caused Witmer's death. He is positive
t h a t death was not the result of the
crossing of the a r c circuit with t he
fire alarm wire at the corner of Niagara
avenue and 18th street where the trouble
was located at daylight.
The only damage caused the fire
a l a rm system by the cross was t he
burning out of a pair of magnet rolls
in box No. 23 and the burning of a shunt
in box No. 27.

Loren married BROOKFIELD, Mary Leonora in 1892. Mary (daughter of BROOKFIELD, Jacob and WOODS, Nellie) was born in Jul 1872 in New York; died on 27 Oct 1949 in Warrens Corners, Niagara County, NY; was buried in North Ridge Cemetery, Town of Cambria, Niagara County, NY. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Alice married RICE, Howard M about 1906. Howard was born about 1878 in New York; died in 1957. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Evelyn married SYDELL, Robert H about 1920. Robert was born about 1885 in IL; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]