Written by Lynn Allen, Executive Director/Curator Brown County Historical Society
It was late last Friday afternoon, and I thought my day and week were closing in on the finish line of many history journies throughout the week. In wanders, a family, like many who wander in, asking about the museum and a tour. Only to discover a few moments later this was not your average family or average tour. Mrs. Betty Meek came in for a journey down history lane with her daughters and family. The subsequent events have to be destiny. One of the daughter’s sons was over at Wrights’s Ecclectibles, uncovering other historical treasures, and his path crossed with Dorothy Wright. The family then reunited at the Memorial Auditorium and joined in the tour another family, Uncle Jim Meek, on the phone! Talk about a trip down memory lane! It should come as no surprise to you, and indeed no surprise to me, that history has a remarkable way of connecting us to incredible stories about our past. Uncover what your story has to say!
So after the tour ended and my week ended, I came to work with the story in mind and had a few other historical journies to try to solve. Digging in the church file, I uncovered a little book that said the Optimeter; I opened the front cover, dated December 1938, and found a picture of Joseph Meek. As always, there is so much more to the story! Find it! Be sure to stop by and share with me what you uncover! #historymysteries
The Optimeter books are part of the Brown County Historical Society Collection.
Meek family pitcher collection donated by Dr. Joe & Mrs. Meek Jr.
Meek Family Photograph with Dorothy Wright is part of the Lynn Marie Allen Collection.
“History Mysteries” “Chasing My Sparkle” are the intellectual property and creative inspiration of Lynn Marie Allen
I do a lot of things to practice being more sustainable! One recent change was compostable cups the “wide-awake company” version. Now I enjoy the flavor of their coffee when the product works properly. I have purchased the K-cups previously and this purchase quickly reminded me of the previous issue! after going through more than half of the box of three boxes wasted on coffee that did not brew properly. WASTED them because of K-cup failure so my sustainable effort was a hard FAIL this week. I also switched from bottled water to five-gallon containers and that my friends in the dispenser is utter brilliance! I can get a piping hot cup of water for tea or a nice cool cup of water.
Self-care and self-love! I am working on the evolution of this for myself! My versions today include brushing my teeth, washing my face, getting at least seven hours of sleep, and two cups of coffee! It usually includes vitamins; before taking my mom in to care for her daily, it consisted of a lot more. A lot more freedom to do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. Now, if I am going to be perfectly honest, caring for people you love has its bonus rounds, and then it has the well, that really sucks moments. I have to remind myself daily most days, I no longer require my mom’s permission to explore and enjoy life. I am completely and utterly free! Now there are days I begrudge my feelings because I have been free, and taking care of someone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with not so much as a nap, is not always a picnic. The reality is that life will get worse, much worse for my mom, as she has lived in acute kidney failure, COPD, Asthma, diabetes. The list is long and doctors don’t have answers for why she is unrelenting pain! She cannot walk anywhere without assistance. Trips to the bathroom, which are four feet from her bedroom, are arduous. The reality is sharing the gift back to my mom is something that I have always wanted to do; I really had no idea at all how challenging it would be! It’s hard and leaves little time for “me” time. Every single day, I hope to hear my mom say, it’s a great day, no pain. So far, the pain has been every single day for her unbearable! So, I will say at the top of my list, caring for my mom means taking care of myself. That’s my self-care story, and I am sticking to it!
Henry was …. kind of a rock star! He had so much brilliance. Albeit short-lived, now letting the proverbial cat out of the bag. Henry was also a womanizer. He apparently liked or loved great sex; (it’s relatable, right!?!) The thing is that his thing got him in more than a bit of trouble. You see, the real, most likely real reason for the inability to produce a HEALTHY heir was syphilis. Now beyond syphilis, which no one knew about, most likely outside his doctors, they indeed were not bragging about it. Henry comes up with some really radical ideas, marriage, divorce, beheading, repeat; he was noble, remember he married his brother’s wife, and, at least in the beginning, that had to be for a little thing we like to call passion. Im going to go out on a limb and say, at the very least, he was a hopeless or hopeful romantic, possibly more! Henry changes the official Church and religion in England! Henry would have been a rock star if he were born in this century! Which is why he lands one of my top historical figures I would like to meet and there are a lot of them!
ALL OF THEM! BACK UP! HIT REPEAT! ALL OF THEM! I want to see the world! I want to share it with my loved ones. I want to explore the history and all its treasures. I don’t need fancy cars and all that bling; hand me my passport, airplane tickets, and zing!
Ah…. favorite moments. There is not and never will be a mere “one” moment on my list. I am grateful and will remain grateful for every piece of perfection.
A few of my favorite things…. the moment I laid eyes on my son after the utter hell we endured. Zachary … you made me a mother and thank you!
The moment you started reading “I love you forever” with me…. (ugly crying)
You still make me proud every second of every day!
You gave me new heartstrings my Benny and JuJu Bean
Every moment I have with my four-pound tiny T-rex!
In spite of his seizures is beyond utter joy! Every day you have filled my heart with such love and you had me at your first breath!
I love when you follow me (sometimes chase) me around the house because you feel every day should be soft cuddles and naps, instead of work. I agree buddy!
My peanut because well you make me laugh!
Miss Hope for your heart and your sparkle! A helicopter ride and hemorrhaging before you were born. To you kicking your way out 3 hours before your scheduled c-section!
Dean Doodle! There are so many reasons. Two helicopter rides, the first of course with your wonder twin. Second, I didn’t know how a normal tonsillectomy could go so horribly wrong.
“My heart! I have said it before and I will say it again! Thousands of words every day delightfully dancing pirouettes inside my head! All of them are entirely, utterly, and profoundly written for you!”
It’s 4 am again, and I can’t seem to get you out of my head!
My fervent prayer is unheard,
yet again…
I utter out wishes for sleep to softly beckon me in and soothe my soul
and take all the thoughts of missing and aching for you away if only for a moment
allow me the sweet surrender of my dreams
in my dreams, we hold each other and are not separated by an endless storm of miles
lingering thoughts of your touches and kisses as always leave an aching inside me that will not be soothed away,
it’s four am and my heart is restless,
I love you with a passion and fire that takes my breath away.
You are my first thought each day, you are my last thought each day, you are all the thoughts in between.
My heart and paradise are only found in your arms where I long to be for my eternity.
Wander back in time did June 8, 1913, to farmers in Edinburgh, Scotland, where two hearty stout gentlemen, are walking beside a Hopetown Quarry. The farmers’ names were Duncan and Thompson. They make a grisly discovery! What they find are the bodies of two small children who have, by all accounts, had been in the water for some time. As the story unfolds, two deceased children’s bodies were pulled from the water and were identified as John and William Higgins, aged four and six. Even in their badly decomposed state, it was easy to determine they were brothers. Further evaluation by the physicians on the case showed that the boys died sometime between 1911 to 1912.
(The below images are of John and William, circa unknown.)
Wander back a little further in time. It’s 1910, and life circumstances are harsh in Scotland. Recollections of the life events of the boys and father described them often gathering scraps of anything they might find to sustain themselves. The boy’s mother, Bridget Johnston, died at the young age of 33, and was from Broxburn, Scotland. (PS., I am digging for an obituary to find the cause of death; I have not been able to locate) Patrick is discharged from the military after serving in India. Presumably, an honorable discharge. Patrick reported epileptic fits, headaches, and forgetfulness. Was documenting these health conditions the foundation for future events that later unfold upon his return to Scotland? Patrick now a widower, and is unwilling to step up and provide the necessary care for his children, more so even annoyed by the children’s existence. In Scotland there are scarce work and even fewer food opportunities. Patrick and the children often find themselves stealing.
Patrick could not keep his story straight when asked about what happened to his children. Here are a few details, the boys were placed in foster care, Patrick had been determined unable to provide care. Reportedly the children were placed into foster/social welfare custody. Patrick reported he did not have family alive to help. Court records show testimony from a grandmother, aunts, and uncles, all willing and offered to the young children; offering a vastly different course could have been created for the boys. Were all these events merely crimes of circumstance or an opportunity for murder and the birth of a serial killer?
The children, upon being placed in foster care with a lady in Broxburn, Scotland, which in the purest of ironies was where the children’s mother was from. The foster mother will, at some point, return the children to the father when Patrick failed to pay the fee for their care, which was between $8 and $10 per month! Utter failure on the part of social services who looked the other way and ignored the welfare of these children. John and William were returned to Patrick, who had been determined incapable of providing for the children. Patrick always found money for the pub but none to ensure the safety of his own precious children.
On a cold and rainy night in November 1911? Patrick walks with the children in the early evening on the boy’s last night seen alive. Locals were used to seeing the three of them about and paid very little attention. Patrick takes the boys to the quarry, where he takes a rope from his pocket, ties the two boys together, picks up his children, and throws them as far as he can into the murky water. Was there an ounce of sadness or remorse immediately following these events? He returns to the pub, where he is, and promptly when asked about the boys. Patrick recalls the events of the evening earlier, where he described two kind women offering 25 shillings to Patrick and an offer to care for the boys. Patrick only assumes this was the best course because they would be better off under the ladies.
(An important fact for you to consider is if this was as Patrick recounted a crime of circumstance or pleas of insanity, the rope would not have been in his pocket to tie the two young toddlers together before throwing them into the water.)
Later in the court records, testimony recounts the grandmother, aunts, and uncles all offered to take the children. The judge had no sympathy for Patrick and sentenced him to death. Patrick pled guilty because of insanity or mental defect to the crime. The judge argued that perhaps, perhaps, there were circumstances of insanity at the time of the boy’s death. The crime goes unreported for so long that the judge declares Patrick may have been insane in 1911 but not in 1913 when Patrick stood trial for the crimes. The judge goes on to scold that the lack of professionalism on the part of everyone charged with their care was profoundly inexcusable. If someone had offered aid or intervened with the boys, would they still be alive? In Edenburg on October 2, 1913, Patrick Higgins was hung in a jail stairwell for taking his young children’s lives.
Forensic scientists Sir Sydney Smith and Sir Harvey Littlejohn made remarkable advances in the field of forensic sciences with their involvement in the case of the boys. The men gave little regard to the children’s bodies and only considered the scientific research badly disfiguring the children and removing body parts without the family’s consent. Both gentlemen are regarded highly for significant advances in forensic science. The quarry where the murders occurred is now a fishery called “Paddy Higgins Hole.” Is it another irony or tragedy the quarry is renamed Paddy Higgins Hole rather than honoring the two boys or merely remained Hopetown Quarry?
“History Mysteries” and “Chasing My Sparkle” are the intellectual property and creative inspirations of Lynn Marie Allen.
Did you know that this legendary actress dreamed of dancing her way into the hearts of people on the silver screen? She did very much so.
Jean Harlow was born on March 3, 1911, and died on June 7, 1937, due to complications of Uremia (acute renal failure.) The medical diagnosis was uremic poisoning, also known as acute kidney failure or acute kidney disease. It has many names. Jean was born Harlean Carpenter in Kansas City, Missouri. Harlean was an amalgam of her mother’s maiden name. Jean and her mother will relocate to Los Angeles following her parent’s separation. Only a short time later, she launched into an incredible career.
I wonder where the silver screen might have taken her if Jean had not passed away. Did someone or even anyone close to her know she was struggling with her health? Due to the telltale signs of Uremia, she likely had diabetes. In May 1937, Jean became very ill but reportedly felt unwell for about a year. It reported that she had suffered from an “acute sunburn” (PS… I seriously felt that), a throat infection, and influenza. The signs of acute kidney failure include Extreme fatigue, nausea and vomiting, confusion, excessive urination, swelling (edema) in hands, feet, and ankles, cramps and muscle spasms, and dry, itchy skin. Jean was also reported to have meningitis and scarlet fever while a teenager making her health compromised. Jean also had
Physicians discovered the Uremia and thought she was responding well to the treatment, but Jean fell into a coma and would never regain consciousness. In addition to her blonde bombshell looks and leading lady legs, odd for a woman who stood five foot one inch tall and weighed in at 108 pounds. Jean’s talent shined in her movies for her looks and perhaps even more for her comedic talents. The true measure of her talent as an actor is, perhaps, undervalued, and we will never know due to her unfortunate and untimely death. Her hair in most films is platinum which she claimed was natural. It was not. She was a blonde, just not the chemically altered form of platinum. Her hairdresser used Clorox, ammonia, and Lux soap flakes to create the color and dyed the color weekly. The process, however, made a dangerous chemical concoction dangerous to humans. Ultimately, her hair fell out, and she relied on wigs to create her platinum image.
Forest of Words 