April 8, 1916
Corona, California
Racer Bob Burman crashes his car, killing himself and two others and wounding 5
Burman had been racing at an estimated 100 mph when his left rear tire exploded and sent the car into a telegraph pole, a crowd of spectators, and over a car parked near the track — ripping off the parked vehicle’s top and steering wheel and injuring the occupants — before coming to a rest back on the track. W. H. Speer, who was guarding the section of track, was struck and killed instantly; his head was crushed and his legs broken. Burman and his mechanic Eric Schader (also spelled Schoeder) were unconscious when ambulances reached them but died of their injuries soon after.
Burman’s death inspired his friends Barney Oldfield (race car driver) and Harry Arminius Miller (race car designer) to design a roll cage to surround and protect the driver.
Those killed or injured, according to The Corona Independent (April 10, 1916), were:
* Robert Burman, died
* Eric Schader, Burman’s mechanician, died
* W. H. Speer, track guard, died
* F. E. Baker, right leg injured
* H. Cohn, back and thigh injured
* Wm. M. Dewey, leg injured
* Earl Davidson, ankle injured
* S. R. Meek, leg broken
Headline in photo: Times-Ledger (Wilkes-Barre, PA) Apr 17 1916
