Dr. James D. Harris, physician and surgeon, was born in or near Wentzville.   A blinding snow was falling on January 8th, 1886 in Wentzville. The St. Louis train from Omaha, which did not stop in Wentzville, was running 3 hours late. Dr. James D. Harris was a respected doctor and druggist in Wentzville. Even though he was only in his 40’s, he was also very hard of hearing, perhaps even deaf. When he decided to cross the railroad tracks, he thought the train had been through town.  Blinded by the snow and hard of hearing, he stepped directly in front of the train. His body was thrown on the platform of the train station, were he breathed his last. When he died, Dr. Harris left a widow Sarah and two children, Claudia and Warren. He is buried in Linn Cemetery.

To learn more about Dr. Harris and his family, see our post on Facebook published March 1, 2018.