Britton - Chester
CHESTER BRITTON
Source: Crawfordsville Journal May 9, 1904
Attica, Ind., May 9 The community was shocked today by the sudden and rather peculiar death of Dr. Chester H. Britton. His father-in-law, M. J. Lee, of Crawfordsville, is in the habit of calling up by telephone each day to talk business and this morning could not be located at the elevator of which he was in charge. Mr. Lee ordered that a messenger be sent out for him but he was nowhere to be found. About noon his next-door neighbor, T. P. Campbell, went to the house and found all the doors locked with the keys on the inside. Being unable to arouse anyone he forced an entrance and found Dr. Britton in his bed face down. He was in his night robe and covered up just as if asleep but the physician who was immediately called said that he had been dead at least twelve hours. The cause of death has not yet been determined, but there is not the slightest suspicion of suicide. He had been complaining of a slight indisposition for several days caused by indigestion, but it was nothing serious. The news of Chester Britton's death reached his family here shortly before one o'clock and as can be imagined was a terrible surprise and shock. They had no reason to suspect that he was in danger of sudden death, but it has since developed that he was quite ill Saturday. His wife, who is a daughter of Mr. And Mrs. M. J. Lee, has been at home with her parents most of the winter on account of ill health and is just now down with a case of typhoid fever. Dr. Britton is the son of Judge and Mrs. W. P. Britton and was born and raised here in Crawfordsville. He graduated from Wabash College in 1891 and later from the Chicago Veterinary College and also from the Indiana Medical School. For the past three or four years he has been in charge of a grain elevator at Attica. He was thirty-five years old. No arrangements for the funeral have yet been made. - kbz