During its approach through a blinding snowstorm, NWA Flight 307 clipped its left wing on the flagpole at Fort Snelling Cemetery. Captain Donald Jones struggled to maintain altitude as he circled around for another attempt. The wing detached completely above the Washburn Water Tower, causing the plane to crash into the Doughty family home directly across from this spot. The resulting explosion and fire destroyed the house and severely damaged two adjacent dwellings. Children Janet and Tommy Doughty, upstairs in bed, were killed along with ten passengers and the three crew members. Joseph V. Breitwieser, Robert C. Buhmann, Mathilda Debeck, Janet Doughty, Tommy Doughty, Donald B. Eberhart, Helen Overlien Hott, Donald B. Jones, Mary Alice Kennedy, William B. Lampert, Robert N. Lohn, William T. McGinn, Dora Nolder, Emery E. Oliver, and Charles H. Pafford lost their lives on that snowy evening.
