True Life Tuesday: Evelyn McHale

This is such a sad story I am sure that Evelyn would be devastated that this picture became such a sensation.

Evelyn McHale was born on September 20, 1923 in Berkeley, California. Her parents were Vincent and Helen McHale. Vincent was a bank examiner and he moved the family to Washington, DC in 1930. Helen suffered from untreated depression which took a toll on their marriage and they eventually divorced. Vincent was granted custody of the children and relocated them to Tuckahoe, New York. 

After high school Evelyn joined the Women's Army Corps and was stationed in Jefferson, Missouri. After her service was completed she moved in with her brother and sister-in-law on Baldwin Long Island and began work as a bookkeeper. She eventually met Barry Rhodes, a college student from Pennsylvania and they were soon engaged.

On April 30, 1947 Evelyn took the train to Pennsylvania to visit Barry for his birthday. The next day Barry kissed her goodbye as she boarded a train for Penn Station at 7am. Around 10:30am she purchased a ticket to the observation deck on the 86th floor of the Empire State Building. Approximately 10 minutes later she crashed into a car parked on 34th street. After she jumped police found her coat folded on the wall, her make-up bag full of family pictures and her purse with a suicide note addressed to her sister. In the note she stated that Barry would be better off without her and that she had "too many of my mother's tendencies." Evelyn's sister identified her body and followed her wishes of cremating her and having no service or grave marker. Barry eventually moved to Florida but he never married.

When she jumped photography student Robert Wiles was across the street when he heard the crash. He ended up taking the picture of Evelyn within 4 minutes of her death. He eventually sold the picture to Life magazine where it was dubbed The Most Beautiful Suicide. The picture has been used many times over the years in pop culture including in Andy Warhol's 1962 painting Suicide: Fallen Body.

Evelyn was the 12th person to jump from the Empire State Building. She was also part of a group of five people who jumped within a 3 week period. This led to the construction of a 10 foot wire mesh fence and the employment of security guards who were trained to spot possible jumpers.