Dahlia Smith and Winifred Smith, sisters enroute from Pontiac to Manton to attend their father’s funeral, were fatally injured Sat at the Intersection of US 131 and M 115 south of Cadillac in a two car collision. Miss Dahlia Smith was killed instantly and her sister died on admittance to the Mercy Hospital, Cadillac.
The accident happened late Sat when a car driven by Lawrence Webber, 31, of Pontiac, collided with another driven by James Wiltjer of Grand Rapids on US 131 and M 115 near Cadillac.
Webber suffered face injuries. Most seriously hurt of the survivors was Gerald Allen, 26, of Grand Rapids. Besides Wiltjer and Allen, another occupant of the car, Claude Van Duiken, 24, of Grandville was also injured.
Wiltjer and his companions were returning from a deer hunting trip when the accident occurred.
State police said the car driven by Webber failed to stop at an intersection and sideswiped the Wiltjer car.
Miss Dahlia Smith was born Feb 24, 1910 at Walton Junction the daughter of Emery and Nora Belle Smith. At the age of 16 she moved to Pontiac and made her home with her sister Pearl until 1937, when her parents went to Pontiac to live. She was an active member of the Baptist Church.
Winnifred Smith was born Feb 12, 1914 at Walton Junction. In 1937 she moved with her parents to Pontiac where she was employed in the Fisher Body plant. She was a member of the Church of Christ in Pontiac.
Surviving are the mother, Mrs. Nora Belle Smith of Pontiac; six sisters, Mrs. Harriet Kimball of Pontiac, Mrs. Nellie Aldridge and Mrs. Mildred Newmarch of Kingsley, Mrs. Pearl Vernier of Pontiac, Mrs. Dorothy Dontje and Mrs. Jane Loper of Manton; four brothers, Emery and Edward of Walton Junction, Roy and Robert of Pontiac; several nieces and nephews and many other relatives and a host of friends.
Funeral services for Rev. Emery Smith, lay minister in the Church of Christ, which were to have been held Sun, have been postponed. Triple funeral services for the father and two daughters will be held Tue at 2 pm from the Bostick funeral Home in Manton. The Rev. John W. Erskine of Evart will officiate and burial will be made in the Walton Cemetery.
Travere City Record Eagle – Nov 22, 1948 pg 1 and 10
