WILLIAM TECUMSEH STAFFORD
1864-1953
    
William Tecumseh Stafford, 89, of Paintsville was killed instantly
and three others were injured Monday afternoon when a seven-ton
boulder came loose and fell from a hill above a deep cut on route 23
near Louisa and crushed into a car in which the four were riding.
  
The accident happened about ten miles south of Louisa. Critically
injured was Mitchell Preston, 25, of Troy, O.,former Paintsville
athletic star.  Preston, son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Preston of Georges
Creek, was driving the car and had offered a ride to Mr. Stafford who
was walking along the highway.
  
Also in the car with Preston were his brother-in-law, Garred Goff
See, 11, of Louisa and a nephew Stephen McGee, 11, of Ashland.
  
See and Preston were removed to St. Mary's Hospital in Huntington
where Preston underwent surgery last night.
  
 He received in the accident a punctured liver, four broken ribs and
internal injuries.  His condition is described as critical.
  
See received a compound fracture of a leg, a serious laceration of
the hand, and other injuries.
  
McGee who is thought to be the least seriously injured, suffered head
lacerations and probably broken bones.  He is a patient in King's
Daughters' Hospital in Ashland.
  
Preston was a star football player on the Tiger team of the
Paintsville High School from 1943 to 1947 when he won all- state
honorable mention and all-conference honorable mention in 1946 and
1947.  He had come to Kentucky to visit his wife's parents Mr. and
Mrs. Adin See of Louisa.
  
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m. today at the First
Methodist Church for Mr. Stafford who is known throughout this
section as "Sonny".
  
A member of a prominent Johnson county family, Mr. Stafford was a
lawyer, livestock man, and was as member of the Kentucky Legislature
from 1900 to 1902.
  
He was born on July 3, 1864, a son of the late F. M. and Marietta
Lavender Stafford.He attended Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware,
Ohio, and was an ordained minister in the Methodist Church at 25
years of age, serving as pastor of a Cincinnati church for eight
years.  He later studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1900.
  
He was widely acclaimed for his oratorical ability. Stafford had a
varied career and his talents extended into many fields.  He was a
candidate for Circuit Judge of Johnson and Martin Counties in 1945
but was defeated for this office.
  
He served as a delegate to the Republican convention in Chicago when
Theodore Roosevelt was nominated. He enjoyed walking and his journeys
often took him into the remote sections of Johnson and Martin
counties where he was warmly received by his friends.  Of straight
figure, and quick step, he was military in bearing and his appearance
belied his age.
  
He was married in early life to Miss Jessie Picklesimer and is
survived by two sons, W. T. Stafford, Jr., and John N. Stafford, both
of Springfield, Ohio:  seven daughters, Mrs. Herman Minix,
Paintsville, Mrs. Bernard Van Hoose, Columbus, Ohio; Mrs. Eugene
Schulling, Springfield, Ohio, Mrs. Kenneth Littl???rst, Springfield,
Ohio, Mrs. Richard Williams, Springfield, Ohio; Mrs. Paul Ellars,
Springfield, Ohio, and Mrs. Donald Okeafe, and the following brothers
and sisters, DeWitt T. Stafford, Paintsville, Miss May Stafford,
Indianapolis, Ind., Mrs. Carrie Stafford, Abingdon, Va., Mrs. F. F.
Smith, Paintsville, and Miss Ella Stafford, Paintsville.
  
The funeral services will be conducted by Rev. W. F. Pettus.
  
Burial will be in the Stafford Cemetery under the direction of the
Paintsvsille funeral Home.
  
Paintsville Herald
9-9-1953
     
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