Summer 1942 - The Accident - The Newspaper Report and Medical Condition

A snippet in the local newspaper

The newspaper fails to report that Jim was transported to Sacred Heart on a mattress hastily installed in the back of a pickup truck.  It was thought, rightly so, that he would arrive at the hospital faster this way, than if they had waited for an ambulance to arrive at the logging site.

Medical Detail of the Injuries

In the family, we've always said that Jim's pelvis was "crushed".  According to the above report:

"Xray stereo of pelvis shows fracture of all rami of pubis(1); this section has been twisted so that the right side is forward & the left is back; and there has been a fracture involving the Rt. sacralilliac joint(2)." 

1 - pubic rami, a group of four bones in the front of the pelvis -#4 on the above drawing. (Wikipedia)

2 - The sacroiliac joint or SI joint is the joint in the bony pelvis between the sacrum and the ilium of the pelvis, which are joined together by strong ligaments. In humans, the sacrum supports the spine and is supported in turn by an ilium on each side. (Wikipedia)