Obituary Details

Donald Sargent Bonsell

(02/19/1920 - 05/09/1978)
Courtesy of The Lusk Herald, 05/11/1978

Frances Bonsell's son dies

Don Bonsell, 58, the son of Frances Bonsell of Lusk, died Tuesday afternoon in St. Paul, Minn. following head injuries he received Sunday in a freak accident.

Bonsell was towing a friend's car when he stopped to check the tow chain. As he was standing between the two vehicles, a third vehicle struck the rear end of the towed car crushing Bonsell between the two vehicles. He received injuries to the head and was later operated on for a blood clot on the brain.

Bonsell graduated from high school in Lusk in 1938 and joined the service in 1941 serving as a navigator and pilot in the U.S. Air Force. After the service he attended college in Minneapolis and later worked for the 3M Company, for Northwest Airlines as a navigator and for Univac.

He was married in 1942 Alta Mae Shaw and the couple had a daughter, Ann Freestone, who now lives in Sidney, Mont.

Bonsell was divorced after the war and married Audrey Haller of St. Paul in 1947. They had three children, Jeff, now a chiropractor in St. Paul; David, a high school senior and one girl, Linda, now attending college in Minnesota.

Bonsell is survived by his wife Audrey, brother Roger of Lusk, a sister Eva Lou Paris of Mesa, Ariz., and his mother Frances.

He was preceded in death by his father and a sister Miriam Brott. The funeral will be in St. Paul.

Images & Attachments

There are no attachments for this record.

Related/Linked Records

Record Type Name
Obituary Brott, Miriam (03/21/1923 - 02/15/1967) View Record
Obituary Bonsell, Frances (08/16/1897 - 11/30/1994) View Record
Obituary Bonsell, William (08/06/1898 - 10/21/1952) View Record
Obituary Bonsell, Roger (08/31/1921 - 08/29/2011) View Record
Obituary Bonsell, John (06/26/1957 - 01/03/2023) View Record