Edgar W. Cockbill saved Charlene C. and Genevieve C. Anderson, Mary L. Kenney, and attempted to save James P. Zappa from drowning, Wilmington, Illinois, June 22, 1947. A motorboat in which Cockbill, 38, salesman, Charlene, 10, and her mother Genevieve, 38, Miss Kenney, 16, Zappa, and two other men were riding in a pool in a coal pit shipped water; and after one of the men jumped out, the boat capsized 45 feet from the bank, throwing the others into water 25 feet deep. Two of the men swam to the bank, and Zappa, 36, tavern keeper, started to swim toward it after first reaching the boat, but he sank. Cockbill, who was overweight and had high blood pressure and had been advised against over-exertion, swam four feet to Mrs. Anderson and Miss Kenney, who struggled together; and they took hold of him, all being submerged. Freeing himself, Cockbill rose and swam 15 feet to Charlene, whom he towed 30 feet to the bank. He then swam 40 feet to Mrs. Anderson and Miss Kenney, who had risen and who again struggled together. They held to his shirt, and he towed them 30 feet to within five feet of the bank as they got onto his back; and he began to sink. They and Cockbill were then pulled to the bank by a stick extended to him. Removing his outer clothing, Cockbill though tired and nervous dived twice but could not find Zappa, who was drowned. 41088-3542
41088 – 3542
41088-3542