True Life Tuesday: Tarrare

Tarrare was born around 1772 near Lyon France. It is unknown if Tarrare was his real name or a nick name. he always had a huge appetite which made him leave home when he was a teenage because his parents could not afford to feed him. Despite his appetite Tarrare was of slim build and average height. His skin was hot to the touch and he sweated profusely. He also had a very strong body odor which became worse after he would eat.  

After his parents kicked him out Tarrare toured the country with a band of thieves and prostitutes stealing and begging for food. he eventually was hired as a warm-up act for a traveling charlatan. He would eat corks, stones and live animals. He would also eat an entire basket of apples one by one. Tarrare moved to Paris in 1788 to become a street performer. During one act he suffered an intestinal obstruction. He was carried by members of the audience to Hotel-Dieu hospital where he was  iven powerful laxatives. He ended up making a complete recovery. He ended up joining the French Revolutionary Army at the outbreak of the War of the First Coalition in 1792. His food rations would not satisfy his appetite so he would complete tasks for others soldiers for their rations and would also scavenge scrap bins for food. He was admitted to the military hospital at Soultz-sous-Forets where he was used in psychological experiments due to his appetite. After a few months military authorities pushed for him to return to active duty. He was made a spy of the Army of the Rhine. It was decided that he would swallow small wooden boxes with messages that he would pass through his system. he was captured by Prussian soldiers and he eventually confessed the plan. He was beaten and almost killed before they decided to leave him near the French border.

Tarrare returned to the military hospital stating that he would attempt any possible cures for his condition. Nothing helps to calm his appetite and he ended up fleeing the hospital when he was accused for killing and eating a 14 month old baby who disappeared from the hospital. He died from tuberculosis in 1798. After death his corpse began to rot quickly. At autopsy it was discovered that his esophagus was abnormally wide, Also his liver, gallbladder and stomach were all abnormally large and his stomach was covered in ulcers. It was never determined what cause him to have such a voracious appetite. 

True Life Tuesday: Jeanne Baret

Jeanne Baret was born on July 27, 1740 in the village of La Comelle in Burgundy France. Her parents were Jean Baret, a day laborer, and Jeanne Pochard. Her mother died in November 1741 and her father in December 1755. Little is know about her early life. Sometime between 1760 and 1764 she became a housekeeper in the home of Philbert Commerson, a doctor and passionate botanist, in Toulon-Sur-Cerroux. In 1764 she became pregnant and it is believed that Commerson was the father although she refused to name who the father was publicly which was a requirement for unwed mothers at the time. She and Commerson moved to Paris soon after her pregnancy declaration. Her child was born in December 1764 and was given u in January 1765. 

While living in Paris Commerson instructed Jeanne in the field of botany. In December 1766 Baret and Commerson joined the Bougainville expedition. Since having a woman onboard would not have been allowed she disguised herself as a man and Commerson's aide. Commerson suffered from seasickness and an ulcer in his leg so Baret spent most of her time nursing him. She was discovered in April 1768 when the expedition reached Tahiti. When they landed the locals called out that she was a woman and she ended up having to return to the ship. Once the expedition made it to Mauritius (then the Isle de France) she and Commerson Commerson stayed behind since Commerson;s old friend Pierre Poivre was governor. While on the island Jeanne still worked for Commerson and went on plant collections in Madagascar. In 1770 she was granted property in the capital of Port Louie. Commerson died on the island in February 1773. On May 17, 1774 she married Jean Dubernat, a non-commissioned officer in the French army. She returned to France sometime in 1775. After applying to the Attorney General she received the money left to her in Commerson's will in April 1776. She and her husband bought property in Dubernat's native village of Saint-Aulaye, Dordogne where they lived with their nieces and nephews. In 1785 she was granted a pension of 200 livres per year by the Ministry of Marine. Jeanne Baret died on August 5. 1807.

In 2018 the International Astronomical Union naed a mountain range on Pluto after her. She was also 1 of 10 inspiring French women celebrated with a golden statue rising out of the Seine during the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony. Finally, in 2026 it was proposed the have her name added to the Eiffel Tower along with 72 other historical women in STEM.

True Life Tuesday: Natascha Kampush

Natascha Maria Kampush was born on February 17, 1988 in Vienna Austria. Her parents are Brigitta Simy and Ludwig Koch who separated when she was very young. On March 2, 1998 she left her home for school but she never arrived. A 12 year old witness stated that she saw Natascha being dragged into a white minibus by 2 men. Police examined 776 minivans including the one driven by her kidnapper. He said that he was home at the tine and was using the minibus to remove rubble from construction on his home. The police believed his story and let him go. Rumors of child pornography and organ theft arose causing police to to look at links to crimes of French serial killer Michael Fourniret. Accusations were also made against her family. 

Natascha had been kidnapped by Wolfgang Priklopil who lived about 30 minutes from Vienna. She was held captive for 8 years in a small underground cellar that was soundproof with no windows. As time went on she spent more of her time upstairs but would have to go back to the room at night and while Prilkopil was at work. Once she turned 18 she was allowed to leave the house with her captor but he threatened to kill her if she tried to escape. She was allowed to have books, radio and TV. She also spent time cooking and doing housework. He told her that the doors and windows were booby trapped to explode. 

Natascha was able to escape on August 23, 2006. She was outside with Prilkopil vacuuming his van when he went inside to answer the phone. She left the vacuum running and ran while he was distracted. She ran to the home of a 71 year old neighbor and told her who she was. She was identified by a scar, her passport which was found in the room and DNA. Prilkopil ran in his BMW but the car was eventually found in a Vienna car park. He committed suicide by jumping in front of a train. Natascha wrote a memoir, 3096 Days, released in September 2010. The book was adapted into a movie in 2013

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True Life Tuesday: Opha May Johnson

Opha May Jacob was born on May 4, 1878 in Kokomo, Indiana. She graduated in 1875 from the shorthand and typewriting department of Wood's Commercial College in Washington, DC. She was the salutatorian of her class. On December 20, 1898 she married Victor Johnson. He was the musical director at Lafayette Square Opera House. She started working for the Interstate Commerce Commission.

Opha May became the first woman to enlist in the Marine Corps reserves on August 13, 1918. Her first duties were as a clerk at Headquarters Marine Corps. She managed the records of other female reservists who enlisted after her. In September of that year she was promoted to Sargent and was the highest ranking woman during her service. She was a charter member of the American Legion post created on July 11, 1919 for female reservists. At the end of World War I all branches of service began to disenroll women. After her military service she worked as a clerk in the War Department until she retired in 1943. 

Opha May died on August 11, 1955 at Mount Alto VA hospital in Washington, DC. Her funeral services were held 37 years to the day after she enrolled in the Marine Corps reserves. She was buried with her husband and parents in Rock Creek Cemetery in an unmarked grave. On August 29, 2018 she received a grave marker provided by the Women's Marines Association. The training center on Grissom Air Reserve Base was named after her on November 10, 2022. She received a monument in her honor in Kokomo the next day. 

True Life Tuesday: Daniel Sickles

Daniel Edgar Sickles was born on October 20, 1819 (although he claimed 1825) in New York City. His parents were George Garrett, a patent lawyer and politician, and Susan Marsh Sickles. He married Teresa Bagioli on September 27, 1852 against the wishes of both families. He was 32 and she was 15 or 16. It is believed that this is the reason why he changed the year he was born. 

He studied at the University of the City of New York (now New York University). He then studied law at the offices of Benjamin Butler. He was admitted to the New York bar in 1843. In 1847 he was elected to the New York State Assembly. In 1853 he was appointed by President Franklin Pierce to be secretary to the US legation in London. He returned to the US in 1855. In 1856 and 1857 he was elected to US Congress. 

The incident he is most famous for occurred on February 27, 1859. In Lafayette Square, across from the White House, he shot and killed Phillip Barton Key II. Key was the US attorney for Washington, DC and was the son of Francis Scott Key. Sickles discovered that Key was having an affair with his wife, Teresa. Sickles surrendered to Attorney General Jeremiah Black at Black's home and confessed. He was taken to jail where he was given many accommodations and he had so many visitors that he had to use the head jailor's apartment to receive them all. He was charged with murder and was represented by several politicians including Edwin Stanton who would late be Secretary of War. He plead not guilty by reason of insanity. This was the first use of this defense in the US. He was eventually acquitted of all charges. He ended up forgiving his wife which maddened the public. 

At the start of the Civil War Sickles raised volunteer units for the Union Army in New York. He was eventually appointed as a Coronel of the 70th New York infantry and was then promoted to Brigadier General of Volunteers in 1861. He refused to return runaway slaves and would put them on the Union payroll as servants or train them as soldiers. In March 1862 he had to relinquish command when Congress refused to confirm his commission. He lobbied his DC contacts and reclaimed his rank and command on May 24, 1862. He was promoted to Major General by President Lincoln on March 11, 1863. This was controversial since he was the only corps commander without a West Point education. He was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg and ended up having his right leg amputated. He was given the Medal of Honor for his action at Gettysburg 34 years later. 

After the Civil War he worked for many different organizations during Reconstruction. He served as US Minister to Spain from 1869-1874. While there he was rumored to of had an affair with Queen Isabella II. His wife, Teresa, died in 1867 and in 1871 he married Carmina de Creagh. The couple had 2 children. In the 1880s he frequently attended and spoke at Gettysburg reunions. In 1886 he was appointed honorary chairman of the New York Monuments Commission but he was required to step down in 1912 was it was determined that he embezzled $27,000 from the group. He served as a representative to the 53rd Congress from 1893-1895. While there he was a key figure in the efforts to preserve the Gettysburg battlefield. He died of a cerebral hemorrhage in New York City on May 3, 1914. His funeral took place at Saint Patrick's Cathedral on May 8, 1914 and he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. 

True Life Tuesday: The 1900-1904 San Francisco Plague

 
In the 1850s there were a few outbreaks of the bubonic plague in China and Hong Kong. Eventually this would spread to Hawaii and the mainland US. In January 1900 the SS Australia laid anchor in the Port of San Francisco after a voyage from Honolulu. The ship was unloaded near the sewers that lead to Chinatown. This allowed rat that were infected with the plague to escape. Soon the bubonic plague was found in the overcrowded Chinatown ghettos. Rumors of the plague were rampant catching the attention of authorities on Angel Island. A Chinese American, Chick Gin, was the first official victim of the plague in California. On February 7 he became ill with what doctors though was either typhus or gonorrhea. However, no medicines worked and he died in his bed 4 weeks later. His body was autopsied and the city bacteriologist, Wilfred H. Kellogg, thought he saw plague bacilli when viewing samples under his microscope. 

Kellogg decided to send the samples to the more sophisticated lab on Angel Island but the results would take 4 days to come in. The Board of Health was contacted and he insisted that Chinatown be place under immediate quarantine. The quarantine was put in place on March 7th making it impossible for 25,000-36,000 residents to leave. The mayor, James Phelan, insisted on keeping the quarantine even against the wishes of Chinese leaders who said it was unnecessary. He claimed that the Chinese population was "unclean, filthy, and a constant menace to public health." The Board of Health ended up lifting the quarantine on March 9th. On March 11th it was determined that the plague was in the city when 2 guinea pigs and a rat who were exposed to samples from the first victim died. The Board of Health inspected every building in Chinatown and worked to disinfect the neighborhoods.

California governor, Henry Gage, denied the existence of the plague for fear of the impact to the economies of the city and state. Medical officials asked US Treasury Secretary, Lyman J. Gage, to intervene. He created a commission of 3 medical scholars who confirmed the presence of the plague. Governor Gage doubled down and no longer allowed the commission access to the lab at the University of California, Berkeley where they were working. Another quarantine of Chinatown was announced and all east Asians were denied entry to California. The outbreak continued to worsen through 1901 and 1902. Governor Gage accused federal authorities of falsifying cases by injecting cadavers with bacteria. Laws were passed by the California legislature banning medical professionals from discussing the plague. Gage lost the governors election in 1902 to George Pandee. The new governor implemented public health measures and the epidemic was declared over in 1904. In total there were 121 identified cases resulting in 119 deaths.   

True Life Tuesday: Pierre Loutrel

Pierre Loutrel, also known as Pierre le fot (Crazy Pete), was the first public enemy #1 in France. He was born on March 5, 1916 in Chateau-du-Loir, Sarthe, France. He was born into a peasant family and started committing petty crimes at an early age. During the German occupation of France during World War II he worked with the Carlingue, a part of the gestapo, from 1941-44. He gained a reputation as a cold blooded killer During this time he also made connections with the criminal underworld. Feeling that the Germans were turning against him he joined the French resistance. After the liberation of France he once again began his work with organized crime. He ended up committing racketeering and was a pimp. His reputation as an unscrupulous crime lord grew. He ended up forming the Gangs des tractions who ended up becoming infamous. The gang partially dismantled after a raid in Champigny. He was considered to be dangerous and incontrollable and other criminals would no longer work with him. This caused him to once again turn to petty crimes. On November 6, 1946 he tried to rob a Parisian jewelry store while drunk and ended up shooting himself in the bladder. He died from his wound on November 11, 1946.     

True Life Tuesday: The London Beer Flood

The London Beer Flood took place on October 17, 1814 at Meux & Company's Horse Shoe Brewery in London. The brewery was bought by Sir Henry Meux in 1809. He constructed a wooden vessel the was 22 feet tall and able to hold 18,000 imperial barrels. They only brewed porter which would be left in the vessels for up to a year to mature. Behind the brewery was a small cul-de-sac which was part of the St. Giles rookery, a decaying slum.

Around 4:30pm on the day in question the storehouse clerk, George Crick, noticed that one of the 700 pound iron bands around the vat had slipped. This would happen a few times per year so he was not overly concerned but still alerted his supervisor. The supervisor told him not to worry about it and to write a note to one of the partners, Mr. Young, to have it fixed. About an hour later Crick was standing on a platform about 30 feet from the vessel when it burst. The force knocked the stopper off of a neighboring vessel causing it to also lose its contents. Between 128,000 and 323,000 imperial gallons of porter ended up being released. The force of the flood destroyed the back wall of the brewery which was 22 feet high and 2-1/2 bricks thick. A wave about 15 feet high swept into the street. Two homes were destroyed and two others were damaged. Eight people, adults and children, were killed. All of the people in the brewery survived but three workmen did have to be pulled from the rubble. There were stories of people collecting the beer and drinking so much they died from alcohol poisoning but this was never mentioned in the newspapers. Watchmen at the brewery charged people to view the remains of the vats and several hundred people did so. Many of the deceased were laid out in a nearby yard where the public came to view them and donate money for the funerals. 

A corner's inquest was held on October 19, 1814. The inquest was led by George Hodgeson, the coroner for Middlesex. The jury returned a verdict that the victims lost their lives "casually, accidentally and and by misfortune." Meux & Company was not required to pay any compensation since the verdict was that this was an act of God. However, the costs to repair the building, rebuild the vats and the loss of the product almost led the company to bankruptcy. They were saved by a payment from Parliament. The brewery went back into business but was closed in 1921 when Meux & Company moved production to another brewery in Wandsworth. The Dominion Theater was eventually build on the site of the brewery. Meux & Company went into liquidation in 1961. Because of the accident wooden tanks were phased out and replaced with vessels lined with concrete. 

True Life Tuesday: The Highgate Vampire

On October 31, 1968 a group of young people visited Highgate Cemetery in London. The group vandalized the cemetery. The identities and motives of the group were never determined but most felt that they were interested in the occult and black magic. On February 6, 1970 a local man, David Farrant, wrote a letter to the Hampstead and Highgate Express stating that when he was passing the cemetery on December 24, 1969 he saw a gray figure he believed to be supernatural. He asked if others had seen something similar. By February 13th many people reported the they had seen many ghosts in the cemetery and adjoining Swain's Lake. The ghosts were described as a tall man in a hat, a cyclist, a woman in white, bells ringing and voices. 

One media report said that Farrant's was a vampire and the media ran with the story. On Friday March 13, 1970 an exorcism at the cemetery was broadcast on ITV. Mobs of "hunters" swarmed the walls and gates of the cemetery. On August 1, 1970 the charred and headless remains of a woman were found need a catacomb in the cemetery. The media reported that this was the work of local Satanists. In July 1974 Farrant was jailed for 4 years and 8 months for damaging memorials interfering with human remains. He blamed these on Satanists and said that he was innocent. He spent the rest of his life profiting off the story until he died in April 2019. 

True Life Tuesday: Attack of the Deadmen

 I want to provide a warning that this post is somewhat graphic.

The Attack of the Dead Men is also known as the Battle of Osowiec Fortress and occurred on August 6, 1915. Osowiec Fortress is located in present-day northeastern Poland. The German army had tried to take the fortress on several occasions in September 1914, February 1915, March 1915 and early July 1915. The German army decided to use chlorine and bromine gasses and try taking the fortress again. 

Around 4am, after waiting 10 days for favorable winds, the German forces began a massive auxiliary bombardment followed by the release of the gasses. The gasses blankets an area of 8 kilometers (26,246 feet) wide and 20 kilometers (65,616 feet) deep. Weapons and equipment corroded almost immediately and trees died upon exposure. Of the 800 Russian garrisons only 100 survived the attack. The Germans advanced forward expecting no resistance. However, the Russians were able to launch a counter attack. The Russian soldiers were covered in blood and lung tissue that they expelled while they were coughing. The chlorine mixing with the moisture in their lungs formed hydrochloric acid which slowing dissolved their organs. While seeing the "dead men" attacking the Germans retreated in panic and broke ranks. Many were caught in their own barbed wire traps and ended up dying. By 11am the Germans had retreated. However, the fortress was now seen as threatened so the Russians demolished much of the area and retreated on August 18, 1915.

True Life Tuesday: Timothy Evans

Born on November 20, 1924 in Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Wales. His father abandoned his mother and older sister before he was born. As a child he had trouble speaking and struggled in school. After an accident when he was 8 years old he developed tubercular verruca (a painful rash) on his right foot which never fully healed. Because of this he missed a lot of school and had low literacy throughout his life. Evans would often create wild stories about his accomplishments to boost his self-esteem. This lead to problems with his credibility with police and the courts. In 1935 he moved to London with his mother, step-father and sisters to London. While there he worked as a painter and decorator while attendind school. He returned to Wales in 1937 where he worked briefly in the coal mines before he had to quit due to issues with his foot. In 1939 he returned to his family in London and in 1946 they moved to Notting Hill.

Evans married Beryl Susanna Thorley, who he met on a blind date, on September 20, 1947. The couple lived with his family for a time but ended up moving to the top floor of a flat, also in Notting Hill, in 1948 when they found out the Beryl was pregnant. Their daughter, Geraldine, was born on October 10, 1948. The marriage was marked by arguments, mostly about money, and physical violence that was witnessed by neighbors. In 1949 Beryl advised that she was pregnant again. Due to financial problems she convinced Timothy that she should have an abortion, which was illegal at the time. 

On November 30, 1949 he informed police that his wife died under unusual circumstances. He first told them that she died after he gave her something a man gave him to induce an abortion. He said that he disposed of her body in a sewer outside the house When it was searched nothing was found and it was found that it took 3 police officers to remove the manhole cover. He then said that their neighbor, John Christie, offered to perform an abortion for them. When Timothy returned home from work on November 8 he was told by Christie that Beryl had died. He said that Christie told him that he would take care of the body, would find someone to look after Geraldine and that Evans should return to Wales. He left for Wales on November 14. On December 2 the bodies of Beryl and Geraldine were found wrapped in a tablecloth in a wash house in the back garden of the flat. Both of them had been strangled. When he was questioned again he confessed to both murders. 

Evans was put on trial for Geraldine's murder on January 11, 1950. Legal practice at the time was to only prosecute one charge at a time. However, evidence of Beryl's murder was used by the prosecution to show his guilt. He would recant his confession and stated that the story about Christie performing the abortion was the truth. Christie and his wife were the star witnesses for the prosecution and would testify to the arguments and violence in the marriage. However, there were issues with his confessions that were never explored along with witnesses who would testify to his innocence that were never called. After a 3 day trial and 40 minutes of deliberation Evans was found guilty of Geraldine's murder. His appeal was denied on February 20 and he was hung on March 9, 1950.

Three years later the bodies of 3 women were found in the home of John Christie, During his interrogation he confessed to the murders of Beryl and Geraldine Evans. Christie was found guilty of murdering his wife and was hung on July 15, 1953. An inquiry into Evans' execution was undertaken. His conviction was upheld because the tribunal stated that Christie only confessed to support his insanity defense. After many inquiries and calls for justice from the media Evans was granted a royal pardon in October 1966. In January 2003 his sisters were awarded payments due to the miscarriage of justice. Outrage over Evans' execution contributed to the suspension and eventual abolition of capital punishment in the United Kingdom.

True Life Tuesday: The Tattarisuo Case

On August 19, 1930 a 14 year old student found the severed hand of a woman in the spring of Tattarisuo outside of Helsinki Finland. The police were disturbed but did not do to much about the discovery until September 18, 1931 when more mutilated body parts were located in the spring. Once word of these discoveries got out it caused an uproar in the Finnish media. 

Suspects initially included the Finnish Freemasons, the Oddfellows and Ruufu-Risti. Eventually these groups were all found to not be responsible. The far-right Finnish media placed the blame on Jewish ritual murder. It was eventually found that the perpetrators were a local driver, Vilho Kallio, abd port workers Ville Saari and Johan Ilmari Hedman. The men took the body parts from open mass graves of the poor in Malmi Cemetery. They wanted to use the parts to contact the spirit world. They thought that they would be able to acquire knowledge and powers to cure diseases and locate stolen property. They used instructions that were fund in the Black Bible. 

On September 28, 1932 they were found guilty of corpse mutilation by the Court of Helsinki. Kallio received 2 years and four months while Saari received 3 years. Tge sentences were upheld on appeal by the Supreme Court of Finland. 

True Life Tuesday: Esther Eng

Esther Eng was born Ng Kam-he on September 24, 1914 i San Francisco. She was the 4th of 10 children in her family. Her grandparent came to American from Toy Shan County in the Guangdong province of China. Esther was a big fan of Cantonese opera and socialized with may of the singers and actors who performed in the operas. 

When Esther was 19 her father and his business partners created a film production company. She was named a producer and her first film credit was the 1936 film Heartache. She travelled to Hong Kong for the film's premiere along with the movie's lead actress Wai Kim Fong. After the success of her 1937 film National Heroine She stayed in Hong Kong. While there she directed Ten Thousand Lovers and Storm of Envy, both released in 1938. She returned to San Francisco in 1939 where she began distributing Cantonese films to Central and South America. In 1950 Esther stopped making films and entered the restaurant business. Eventually she opened 5 restaurants in Manhattan. In 1961 she earned her final film credit for co-directing Murder in New York Chinatown with Wu Peng. Most of her filmography has been lost other than olden Gate Girl and Murder in New York Chinatown. 

Esther lives as an out lesbian. This did not harm her career because homosexuality was accepted in the Cantonese opera community. She died of cancer on January 25, 1970 at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Her life was memorialized in 2 documentaries. The first was Golden Gate Silver Light in 2013 and Golden Gate Girls in 2014, both my Louisa Wei.

True Life Tuesday: Addie Viola Smith

Addie Viola Smith was born on November 14, 1893 in Stockton, California, She was the daughter of Rufus Roy, a publisher, and Addie Gabriela (nee Brown) Smith. She earned a degree in business from Healdi Business College in San Francisco in 1917. She moved to Washington, DC in April 1917. She was hired to work at the United States Children's Bureau to work on implementing recently passed child labor laws. Addie earned a bachelor of laws degree from the Washington College of Law in 1920. 

In October 1920 Addie was appointed to the US foreign service as a Foreign Services Officer and was assigned to the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce. She was the first woman to serve in this position. She initially worked as a clerk in the commissioner's office in Beijing. In 1922 her application to be promoted to assistant trade commissioner was denied director O.P. Hopkins, even though she had the backing of her supervisor and American business in the city. He eventually reversed his decision due to pressure and she was appointed to the post on November 1, 1922. On January 1, 1928 she was promoted to full trade commissioner. She was also the first woman to hold this post. In 1934 she became the 3rd woman to be admitted to practice before the United States Court for China. 

Addie was an avid motorist and was known to be an expert on the roads in China. She was regularly consulted by the Chinese government on road proposals. She prioritized building roads in the country to increase the import of American automobiles. In 1935 she began lobbying to bring shortwave radio to China. In 1937 she convinced General Electric to open W6XBE which would rebroadcast programming from San Francisco. The station launched on February 19, 1939. She was appointed counsel and secretary to the United States Consulate in Shanghai in 1939. She returned to Washington, DC from 1942-6 while China and Japan were at war. In 1946 she returned to Shanghai to open the headquarters of the China America Council of Commerce and Industry. In 1949 she moved to Bangkok where she worked for the United States Economic Cooperation Administration.

Addie met her life partner, Eleanor Hinder in March 1926 while Hinder was working on a grant with the Young Women's Christian Association. After Hinder was denied US citizenship in 1957 the couple moved to her native Australia. Hinder died in 1963 and Smith died on December 13, 1975. They were both cremated and were memorialized by friends with the placement of two stone seats at the E.G. Waterhouse National Camellia Gardens in Caringbah.

True Life Tuesday: Mary Jane Patterson

Mary Jane Patterson was born on September 12, 1844 in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was the oldest child of Henry and Emeline Eliza (Taylor) Patterson. Her father was a bricklayer and plasterer who was born free. He purchased his wife and successfully petitioned for her freedom in 1840. The family moved to Oberlin, Ohio in 1852. In 1857 Mary Jane took a 1 year preparatory course at Oberlin College. After competing this course she she enrolled for a degree course designed for gentleman rather than the easier 2 year course for ladies. The modules she studied included Greek, Latin and higher mathematics. She ended up becoming the first African American woman to receive a Bachelors degree. 

On September 21, 1864 Mary Jane applied for a teaching position at a school for black children in Norfolk, Virginia. She received a letter of recommendation from E.H. Fairchild, principal of Oberlin College's preparatory department. She became an assistant to Fanny Jackson Coppin in 1865 at the Philadelphia Institute for Colored Youth (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania). From 1869-1871 she taught at Preparatory High School for Colored Youth (now Dunbar High School) in Washington, DC, the first public high school for African Americans in the US. She became the school's first black principal from 1871-1872 and again from 1873-1874. In 1884 the administrators of the school would be better headed by a male principal and forced her to step down. She did continue to teach at the school until her death. Mary Jane devoted her time and money to black institutions in Washington, DC.

Mary Jane died at home on September 24, 1894. She was never married. She has been recognized as a pioneer in black education. Her home is on the route of Washington, DC's walking tour. In 2019 a scholarship was established in her name at the California State University, Long Beach's Teachers for Urban Schools. 

True Life Tuesday: Frances Marion

Born Marion Benson Owens on November 18, 1888 in San Francisco, California. Her parents were Minnie Benson and Len Douglas Owens. Her father was an advertising and billboard executive who would later develop the Aetna Springs resort in Pope Valley, California. She was the middle child with an older sister - Maude - and a younger brother - Len. At the age of 12 she was expelled from her elementary school for drawing a cartoon of her teacher. She was then sent to a school in San Mateo and then to Mark Hopkins Art Institute at 16. She attended the school until it was destroyed by the fire that started during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. 

From 1907-11 she was employed as an assistant to photographer Arnold Genthe in San Francisco. She moved to Los Angeles in 1912 where she was a poster artist for the Morosco Theater. In 1914 she was hired as a writer, assistant and actress by Lois Weber Productions. Lois Weber was pioneer film director. When Weber moved to Universal Pictures so wanted to bring Frances with her but she declined. She was then offered a took a job offered to her by Mary Pickford at Famous Players-Lasky. While there she sold the script for The Foundling to Adolph Zucker for $125. While in New York City for the film's premier she applied to work as a writer at World Films. She soon became the head of the writing department where she was credited with writing over 50 films. In 1917 she left New York to go back to California and Famous Players-Lasky as Mary Pickford's official scenarioist for $50,000 per year. Frances also worked as a journalist during World War I. She was the first woman to cross the Rhine after the armistice. When she returned from Europe she worked at Cosmopolitan Productions, owned by William Randolph Hearst, for $2,000 per week. It was here that she began directing when her best friend Mary Pickford asked for her. 

Frances won an Oscar in 1931 for writing for The Big House and in 1932 for best story for The Champ. She was credited with over 30 scripts and 130 produced films, She was married four time to Wesley de Lappe, Robert Pike, Fred Thomson and George Hill. She had two sons with Fred Thomson, Richard and Frederick. In 1945 her novel, Molly, Bless Her, was adopted into a film, Molly and Me, by Roger Burford and directed by Lewis Seller. In 1946 she left Hollywood to focus on writing stage plays and novels. She published her memoir, Off With Their Heads: A Serio-Comic Tale of Hollywood in 1972. She died of a ruptured aneurysm on May 12, 1973.

True Life Tuesday: Alice Huyler Ramsey

Alice Taylor Huyler was born on November 11, 1886 in New Barbados, New Jersey. Her parents were John Edwin Huyler, a lumber dealer, and Ada Mumford Farr. She attended Vassar College from 1903-1905. On January 10, 1906 she married Congressman John R. Ramsey. The couple had 2 children John Rathbone Ramsey (born 1907) and Alice Valleau Ramsey (born 1910). 

In 1908 John bought Alice a new Maxwell runabout. She loved the car and ended up driving it over 6,000 miles near their home in Hackensack, New Jersey. In September 1908 she entered the Montauk Point endurance race. She was one of two women who entered the race. While there she was approached by Carl Kelsey, a fellow racer who did publicity for Maxwell-Briscoe that she should attempt a transcontinental drive. On June 9, 1909 she began a 3,800 mile journey from New York City to San Francisco. She was driving a green, 4 cylinder 30HP Maxwell DA. She was joined by 2 of her sister-in-law and her friend, None of the women who went with her could drive. The group arrived in San Francisco on August 7th, about 3 weeks behind schedule, to great fanfare. This made Alice the first woman to drive across the country at a time when women were discouraged from driving. The group used maps from AAA to plan their trip but only 152 miles of road were paved. 

From 1908 to 1975 Alice drove across country over 30 times. She was named Woman Motorist of the Century by AAA in 1960. In 1961 she wrote the story of her journey - Veil, Duster and Tire Iron. She passed away on September 10, 1983 in Covina, California. She was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame on October 17, 2000.

True Life Tuesday: Jim Thompson

James Harrison Wilson Thompson was born on March 21, 1906 in Greenville, Delaware. He was the youngest of 5 children born to Henry and Mary Wilson Thompson. His father was a wealthy textile merchant. His mother was the daughter of James Harrison Wilson, a noted Union general in the Civil War. Jim graduated from Princeton University in 1928. He did some post-graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania but did not finish due to his weakness in Calculus. From 1931-1940 he worked at Holden, McLaughlin & Associates in New York City. While there he designed homes for the east coast rich. 

In 1941 Thompson quit his job and enlisted in the Delaware National Guard. He was eventually transferred to Fort Monroe in Virginia. While there he met 2nd Lieutenant Edwin Fahey Black. Black encouraged him to join the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor to the CIA. He served in the OSS during the height of World War II. He was sent to Thailand shortly after VJ Day to set up an OSS office in Bangkok. 

In 1946 he returned to American to request his discharge. He had fallen in love with Thailand and returned to the country once he was discharged. In 1948 he partnered with George Barrie to found the Thai Silk Company Limited. In 1951 the company provided the silk fabrics that were used in the film The King and I. This caused the company to prosper. Even with the increase in business Thompson was determined to keep the company cottage based. This allowed women to stay in their households while earning a living.

In 1958 he designed and started building a large mansion to display the many treasures he had collected. He had pieces from China, Belgium, Victorian England and Cambodia. He used parts of old country houses to construct the home. On March 26, 1967 he went for a walk in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia. On the walk he disappeared and has never been found. Theories on his disappearance include him becoming lost, foul play and that he left to start a new life. He was declared dead in absentia by a Thai court in 1974. His mansion was turned into a museum. It named one of the top 5 places to visit in Bangkok by Trip Advisor in 2022.

True Life Tuesday: The Toldeo War

For what it is worth I believe that Michigan ended up winning this war. In 1787 the Congress of Confederation enacted the Northwest Ordinance which created the Northwest Territory. Eventually the territory was supposed to be divided into no less than 3 and no more than 5 states. The boundary was declared to be "an east and west line drawn through the southerly extreme of Lake Michigan." This boundary was used in 1802 which is when Ohio began the process of becoming a state. At this time it was reported that Lake Michigan actually went further south than previously believed. This fact would lead to Ohio losing quite a bit of land. When creating the state constitution included a provision angling the boundary line. When Congress accepted the constitution this provision was included. 

When Congress created the Michigan Territory they disregarded the boundary line included in the Ohio constitution and used the original line. This meant that a part of Ohio now belonged to Michigan. The Ohio legislature asked Congress to take up the issues. In 1812 they approved a survey of the line but it was delayed by the War of 1812. In 1816 the boundary in the Ohio constitution was upheld. Michigan territorial, Lewis Cass, objected to the decision and commissioned a second survey which agreed with boundary used when the territory was created. The area in question was named the Toledo strip and was 5-8 miles wide. 

Michigan ended up occupying the strip setting up local governments, building roads and collecting taxes. The location of the strip was near rivers and the Great Lakes which made it economically significant. The area was also fertile with loam soil which made it excellent for agriculture. When Michigan was able to apply for statehood in 1833 Congress rejected the request because of the disputed area. Ohio refused to cede the area and petitioned other states to block Michigan's entrance as a state. In January 1835 Michigan territorial governor, Stevens T. Mason, called for a constitutional convention without the approval of Congress. On March 31, 1835 the an Ohio Militia arrived in Perrysburg, Ohio - about 10 miles southwest of Toledo. Governor Mason sent 1000 armed men to Toledo to prevent the Ohio militia from entering the area. 

President Andrew Jackson was desperate to avoid an armed conflict. Ohio was quickly becoming a political power and was often a swing state in presidential elections. On April3, 1835 Jackson sent Richard Rush of Pennsylvania and Benjamin Chew Howard of Maryland to arbitrate the issue. Ohio agreed to arbitrate but Michigan refused and prepared for conflict. On April 26, 1835 a group of surveyors were attacked by the Michigan militia in what was called the Battle of Phillips Corners. Michigan claimed that they did not fire on the surveyors but the incident increased tensions between the two parties. In May and June 1835 Michigan drafted a constitution but Congress refused to accept it. President Jackson also vowed to deny Michigan entry as a state unless the dispute was resolved. 

In August 1835 at the urging of the members of Congress from Ohio President Jackson removed Mason as the territorial governor of Michigan. He was replaced by John S. "Little Jack" Horner. Horner was extremely unpopular. Michigan residents actually burned him in effigy. In October 1835 Mason was reelected as governor. On June 15, 1836 President Jackson signed a bill allowing Michigan to become a state if the ceded the Toledo strip. As a concession Michigan would be given the western 3/4s of what is now the Upper Peninsula. This area was considered to be ill-suited for agriculture. In a special convention in Ann Arbor in September 1836 the offer was rejected. As 1836 continued Michigan was almost bankrupt due to the cost of the militia. At this time the federal government had a surplus that it was planning on distributing to the states. Since Michigan was a territory they would not be eligible to receive the payment. Another convention was convened in Ann Arbor was held on December 14, 1836 and Congress' terms were accepted. Many people felt that this convention was illegal and it became known as the Frostbitten Convention. On January 26, 1837 Michigan was admitted as the 26th state in the union. 

True Life Tuesday: The Purple Gang

The Purple Gang, also known as the Sugar House Gang was a group of criminals who were active in Detroit during the 1920s and 1930s.

In 1917 the Michigan legislature banned the sale and consumption of alcohol, 3 years before the constitutional amendment making it illegal nation wide. The ban led to bootleggers would smuggle alcohol in from Ohio, where it was still legal, and Canada. When the amendment was passed Windsor, Ontario, across the river from Detroit, became a major port in the smuggling trade. The all lead to the rise of the Purple Gang.

The gang was mostly made up of the American born children of Jewish immigrants, mostly from Poland and Russia. Most of the members live on Hastings Street on the city's lower east side. The neighborhood was nicknamed "Paradise Valley". The group was led by brothers Abe, Joe, Raymond and Izzy Bernstein. There is debate about how the gang got its name. The first story is that one of the members was a boxer who wore purple trunks in the ring. The second is that in a conversation about the gang between two shop keepers one of the said that the boys were "rotten, purple like the color of bad meat, they're a purple gang." They started out as petty thieves and extortionists but they eventually moved onto armed robbery and truck hijacking. They eventually earned a reputation for stealing the alcohol from older and more established gangs. For many years the gang managed the business of supplying Canadian whisky to Al Capone's organization in Chicago. Kidnapping members of rival gangs and holding them for ransom also became one of their crimes. The FBI also had suspicions that they were involved in the Linbergh baby kidnapping. By the late 1920's the gang reigned over the Detroit underworld. The gang began hiring their members out as hitmen. In 1927 nine members were arrested and charged with conspiracy for attempting to extort money from cleaners and dyers in the city. They were all eventually acquitted of the charges. The gang was also suspected of being a part of the St. Valentine's Day massacre even though it was never proven. 

The gang seemed to be untouchable. Witnesses would refuse to testify because of their fear of the members. Soon feuds between the Purple Gang and other Italian and Irish bootleggers over territory. Eventually the gang became sloppy and arrogant. There was also a lot of infighting among the members. Eventually a Sicilian gang became fed up and ended up eliminating the gang in 1932. The gang was memorialized in movies and on TV. There is also a line about the gang in the Elvis Presley song Jailhouse Rock. Detroit rapper Proof has a song about the group call Purple Gang. Finally, Raymond Chandler wrote about the gang in his novel Farewell, My Lovely.