Rev. F. L. Nicodemus Meets With a Fatal Accident in Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Ledger of January 21, says: The Rev. F. L. Nicodemus of 2154 North Seventeenth street, widely known in Pennsylvania as a minister of the denomination known as the Church of God, died in the Jefferson hospital yesterday morning, as announced in the postscript edition of the Ledger, of injuries received on Saturday, when, while riding on a bicycle, he was run down by a heavy wagon at Twelfth and Walnut streets.
Mr. Nicodemus was born on February 18, 1841, in Martinsburg, Blair county, Pa., and received his education there. He studied at the Juniata Collegiate institute in the same town and was licensed as a preacher. In 1808 he was ordained at Washington, Lancaster County, and for three years was assistant minister to the Rev. P. D. Collins at Martinsburg and Woodbury. His first charge was given him at the end of that time, the Church of God at Altoona, at which he labored three years. In 1874-75-76 he was stationed in Shiremanstown, Cumberland county, during his pastorate superintending the building of a new church for the congregation. In the two years that followed he was at Landisburg, Perry county, where he built another new church, and was transferred from there for a two-year term to Newberry, Cumberland county, where he organized a congregation; Palmyra, Lebanon county, and Saxton, Bedford county, where he built three new churches and organized three congregations. He moved to Cumberland to stay three years and to Rohrerstown, Lancaster county, for three years more. As pastor of the All Worker’s chapel he labored for three years in Harrisburg, and staying one year in Bainbridge and Maytown, Lancaster county, returned to Harrisburg for two years more, acting as pastor of the Nagle Street church, while he organized a mission at Eighteenth and Walnut streets.
Two years ago he came to Philadelphia and became pastor of the church at Germantown avenue and Berks street. His term expired November 1, and it was time for him to move again. Since then he devoted himself to organizing a mission at 2204 Marshall street.
For years he was transcribing clerk of the eldership meeting of Pennsylvania, and acted in a similar capacity at the general eldership conferences, in Findlay, O., and North Bend, Ia. In 1882 he was speaker of the Eastern Pennsylvania eldership meeting.
On Saturday morning Mr. Nicodemus and his son, who is a student at Jefferson Medical college, were riding down Twelfth street on their bicycles. A heavy feed wagon was coming down Walnut street and a car going west was about to cross Twelfth street. The driver of the wagon slowed until the horses were almost at a full stop, but, seeing that the car had stopped on the other side of the street, he urged his team forward, and the wagon crossed Twelfth street. The two bicyclists, when the horses had slowed, thought that the wagon was about to stop and went ahead.
The father was knocked down and run over. His right leg was broken at the thigh and the ankle was fractured. All the lower bones of the left leg were crushed. He was taken to the Jefferson hospital, where it was seen that three operations would be necessary. Dr. Brinton and Dr. Hearn chose the most important and the one which, if the patient survived it would leave him with the best chance of recovery. The left leg was amputated below the knee. The clergyman rallied for a while, but the shock was too great and he died shortly before 1 o’clock yesterday morning.
Funeral services will be held in this city tomorrow evening, and on Thursday morning at Harrisburg, where services will be held at noon in the Fourth Street Church of God. The interment will be made at Camp Hill Cemetery, opposite Harrisburg.
(Source: The Martinsburg Herald, Jan. 23, 1896.)
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