Ambulance service in Bloomington went from a slow horse-drawn wagon to a speedy Studebaker in January of 1911. John A. Beck was already involved in carrier services as an undertaker, livery stable operator and bus line operator. He had three separate business locations: his funeral parlor was at 116 S. Main Street, the livery stable at 515 N. East Street and the bus depot also at 515 N. East Street.
The advantage of an automobile ambulance was never clearer than after a railroad accident in Normal on January 8, 1910 when Henry Stutzman was struck on the Chicago & Alton Main Street crossing in Normal. It was ten o'clock when Stutzman was navigating an icy sidewalk while the Denver train was approaching from the south. Stutzman slipped on the ice, falling in the path of the train. His leg was crushed and the railroad employees rushed to his aid, wrapping him in blankets and calling to the Bloomington police station for the ambulance.
The ambulance was dispatched to Normal, but by the time it reached Normal, Stutzman had been placed on a southbound train and sent to the Bloomington Union Station. The ambulance was then sent to the Union Station to take Stutzman to Brokaw Hospital. Stutzman arrived at Brokaw around one o'clock, for a total delivery time of about three hours! His leg had to be removed at a point about three inches above the knee due to the massive damage, but amazingly, he did not lose a fatal amount of blood.
Before the accident, Henry Stutzman was an elevator operator in the Unity Building and in 1913 he was a driver for the Leader Laundry company. Sometime during the 1910s he had a second hand business in Normal and was said to be quite a well known man.
Mr. Stutzman was just 46 years old when he was struck by the train. He died ten years after losing his leg on October 19, 1920 leaving behind two children, ages 10 and 12 and his wife, Aura.
An automobile ambulance wouldn't have made any difference to Stutzman's end result, but it would have saved him a great deal of pain and trauma!