Talk:Kate Morgan/Archive 1

Oh my, John, I do believe you've totally lost it.

First, I was not responsible for Wiki cutting any your information. If you read the notes, you'll see an editor did that. My posts were all about the story, and your posts were all about me, attacking my character, calling me a psycho, yada yada yada. I think the editor got a belly full of your juvenile behavior and decided enough was enough.

My last addition was simply to post a copy of Tom Morgan's obituary for the record, and a couple of items taken from census records and Fremont County Probate records to better define the year of Kate's birth, because I believe you had it misstated ... and you just went ballistic! And you think I'm the psycho?

I know you promised to go away, but I suspect you're lurking somewhere in the background. To see if I can lure you out of your lair, I challenge you to post one - just one - verifiable fact that in any way definitively gives any credence to your contention that Lizzie Wyllie was the victim of Kate and/or Tom Morgan. I further challenge you to offer some rebuttal to not all, but just one, of the documents I've given you in support of my version of the Kate Morgan story rather than just dismissing it as a wicked scheme cooked up by the "evil" Kate Morgan because it doesn't fit into your story.

If you want to maintain any credibility in this forum, you should quit asserting I have no theory, for you know very well that I do; I just haven't posted it here. Any reader interested in the TRUE story of Kate Morgan can contact me through this forum and I will send them copies of the census records, probate court records, genealogical records, and/or family records that proves your hypothesis has no basis in fact.

You KNOW the picture of Kate Morgan has a note on the back on it, written by Tom Morgan's daughter, that Kate ran away with Tom's step-brother, Albert Allen. You KNOW that an article was published in the San Diego newspaper that says at the time of her death, Kate had not been living with her husband for several months. You KNOW that Tom Morgan moved to Burchard, Nebraska at least a year before Kate's death, and that he remarried just one year after being notified of her death. You KNOW Tom was notified by telegram of her death while in Burchard, because I have the ORIGINAL telegram in my files.

I say, quit ranting and raving about my alleged desire to somehow destroy you and instead discuss the facts of the story ... either put up or shut up.

24.27.72.98 (talk) 06:19, 17 December 2008 (UTC)Terry Girardot

Johntcullen (talk) 09:50, 18 December 2008 (UTC) I have been informed this is the proper venue for discussing improvements to the article. I therefore submit the background of the Legend of Kate Morgan, all the printed information from which that legend arose, and other data the reader may find informative. 24.27.72.98 (talk) 03:57, 22 December 2008 (UTC)Terry Girardot

THE LEGEND OF KATE MORGAN

All versions of the legend of Kate Morgan are based upon the newspaper articles and the Coroner’s Inquest that appear below. The most enduring version originated in August of 1989, when Alan May, an eccentric criminal defense attorney from San Francisco, learned of the ghost who haunted the Hotel del Coronado from a business acquaintance. Intrigued, he asked the Hotel Communications office for any information they had and was given, among other material, a copy of an article written by Richard Carrico that had appeared in the Heritage Section of San Diego Home and Garden (October, 1983).

Carrico’s story said Kate married Tom Morgan, a vagabond gambler, when she was 16 and traveled the West with him. Abandoned by the card shark, Kate lived first in Visalia and then in Los Angeles. A few days before Thanksgiving, 1892, she checked into the Hotel del Coronado and told all who would listen she was waiting for the arrival of her ‘brother.’ After realizing her husband was not going to come for her, and after aborting the child she was carrying, she took the ferry to San Diego, bought a pistol, and used it to end her existence. After her suicide, “her anguished spirit drifted back down the long corridors, ascended two flights of stairs and came to rest, back in room 302.”

Carrico said the room had been renumbered after a major renovation and was now room 3502. May spent the night in the room, hoping the ghost would make an appearance. When she did not, May concluded he was in the wrong room; he located the original hotel registry and discovered Kate’s room was not 502, but 302. After researching the original floor plans and revised plans from 1930, May deduced the correct room and asked to be moved to it. He claimed to have seen a ghost that night, when he slept in Room 3312. He said his experience was witnessed by several hotel employees, and at least one of them has confirmed his account of the episode. He stayed in Room 3312 several more times that month, and claims to have again been visited by the ghost. He said he believed the apparition was appealing to him to solve the mystery of who she was.

He obtained a copy of the Coroner’s Inquest from the San Diego Historical Society and found the newspaper articles from 1892 at the San Diego Public Library. With the assistance of an employee of Mount Hope Cemetery, he was able to locate the unmarked grave of Kate Morgan, and arranged to have a monument engraved and placed on her grave on September 20, 1989. By September 29th, he had typed out his first draft of Kate Morgan, Who Are You? It was a simple story of his encounter with the ghost and his search for the material described above.

In November of 1990, he went to Hamburg, Iowa, interviewed several people, visited Tom Morgan’s grave, and in December, he published The Legend of Kate Morgan: The Hunt for the Haunt of the Hotel del Coronado. In 1991, shortly before he died, a third version, The Legend of Kate Morgan: The Search for the Ghost of the Hotel del Coronado was published. Various authors have written about the legend of Kate Morgan, each story differing from the others in small details and each with its own errors. In one, Kate was born in Dubuque rather than in Hamburg, Iowa. Her date of birth is given to be anywhere between 1864 and 1868. Some say she killed herself in her room and not near the beach. Others say she did not commit suicide at all, but was murdered by her husband. Over the years, May’s book has become the cornerstone for all contemporary versions of The Del’s famous ghost. Much of it is wrong. In his book, he makes this statement:

The story of Kate Morgan is based upon fact as revealed by considerable research. However, to facilitate the flow of the story and to aid the writer in its telling, some historical sequences, names and some of the dialogue have been fictionalized.

Statements below in bold type are those made by May – and following them is the truth.

Kate Farmer’s mother died in childbirth.

This assumption set Kate’s date of birth as September 23, 1865. It is possible, perhaps even probable, but there are no official records of her birth. There is some evidence she may have been born in 1864.

After the death of his wife and child, George Farmer started to drink and gamble.

The details of George Farmer’s life between 1865 and 1870 are unknown. He was appointed Postmaster of Hamburg on November 9, 1870. He married Lydia Jane Burnett on January 10, 1871 and fathered two more children - Evalena (Eva) was born in 1871 and Margaret (Maggie) in 1873, both in Hamburg, Iowa. After Maggie’s birth, the family traveled by train, stage coach and wagon to Mason County in Central Texas. It is said he died in Concho Post, Texas in 1876; his widow married Henry T. Eubank on April 4, 1878. She died September 7, 1946.

Mattilda Chandler, Kate’s grandmother, wondered whether her husband spent so much time at work as a miller because of business, or because of his clerk, Maria E. Hand, who was younger than Mattilda and quite attractive. Mattilda shot herself in 1879, distraught that her husband was having an affair with Maria Hand. Joseph Chandler married Maria Hand shortly thereafter.

Maria was three years younger. According to a history of the Chandler family found in the Fremont County Historical Museum in Sidney, Maria was the widow of Joseph’s uncle, Shadrack. Her obituary said she “was born in Ohio and lived there during her girlhood and most of her early married life. In 1881 she came to Riverton as the wife of J. W. Chandler …”

After her grandfather married Maria, he sent Kate to live with her father; Kate would never return to Riverton.

For reasons unknown, George Farmer sent Kate to live with Joseph Chandler when she was two and there she remained until she married Tom Morgan. She is recorded in the Federal census records of 1870 and 1880 as living in Riverton with him and also in the Iowa census of 1885.

Since Tom was a gambler, he sought out George Farmer and engaged him in a card game; when George could not cover Tom’s bet, he put up his daughter as collateral, and Tom won the hand with four queens.

By the time of this alleged card game, George Farmer had been dead for nine years.

After they married, Tom and Kate lived with Tom’s parents. Her sisters-in-law, Gertrude and Jennie, adored her.

Gertrude and Jennie are buried with Tom in the Morgan family plot in the Utterback Cemetery south of Riverton, Iowa. Gertrude was Tom’s step-sister, but his other sisters were Mollie and Lula. Jennie Devor was Tom’s second wife.

After their marriage, Tom continued his college education in Omaha; he was studying to be a doctor.

In the late 1800's, attendance at school was not common for boys old enough to work on the farm. During the winter months after the harvest, men as old as twenty-two years of age attended school and it was not uncommon for them to be reciting with seven or eight year olds in the ungraded school of those days. This story was probably contrived because at the inquest following Kate’s death, witnesses testified she told them she was traveling with her brother, whom she said was a physician.

When Kate found out she was pregnant, she wanted to name the baby Thomas Ernest, and call him "Ern," after her husband.

Tom’s middle name was Edwin.

After the death of their baby, Tom decided they needed to change their lives, and suggested they travel the country on the railroads and make their living from Tom's skill as a poker player.

While working in Los Angeles, Kate said she was married to a gambler. Since Tom Morgan was her husband, it was naturally accepted that the gambler she referred to was Tom. What she said was not true. Kate appears to have been an adept liar; to explain why she was not with her husband, she told the uncle she stayed with in California that Tom was traveling in behalf of a manufacturing company.

Tom murdered a fellow gambler to whom he lost money on the train.

This is pure fantasy.

Afterwards, Tom suggested perhaps they should “give this routine a rest.” His mother had written them a letter about some land given to the Presbyterian Church by the Utterback family, and was being sold for $50.00 a parcel.

His mother died when he was eight years old. If he and Kate rode the trains from large cities to a hundred one-horse towns over a period of six years, one has to wonder how his step-mother knew where to address the letter.

Tom wanted to go back to Iowa and buy some of the land and farm it. He hoped some day it would be their home.

The land he bought for $50.00 measured 10 feet by 24 feet, hardly enough room for a garden, let alone a farm. It was located in the Utterback Cemetery – he bought a burial plot.

Tom told her about an old classmate, George Allen, with whom he used to play poker in school.

This was another story contrived to correspond with the newspaper accounts. Tom did not attend college, nor did George Allen. Prior to marrying Tom’s father, his step-mother was married to John Allen; George Allen was her step-son.

FOLLOWING ARE NEWSPAPER ARTICLES OF THE PERIOD AND THE OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE CORONER’S INQUEST, ALL TRANSCRIBED VERBATIM, IN THE CHRONOLOGICAL SEQUENCE IN WHICH THEY OCCURRED

Tuesday, November 29, 1892 The Daily Bee, San Diego BLEW OUT HER BRAINS. SUICIDE OF A BEAUTIFULYOUNG WOMAN AT SAN DIEGO Disappointed Over Not Receiving Money. After Her Death Word Came That She Could Draw All She Desired - She Was Well Dressed and Had a Good Sum in Her Purse

Between the thunderous turf on the gray sea and the brilliancy and music of a gay throng in the great parlor and long halls of the Hotel del Coronado, a woman stood alone and desperate. From her position on the stone stairs at the west end of the ocean terrace leading to the beach, the surf wrapped and re-wrapped her with its spray, and the pitiless rain fell upon her bared head and young white face.

Whatever it may have been, fear or courage at the final moment, there is no one to say. All that is known of the stranger is that she arrived with no luggage but a hand satchel on the 24th and gave her name as a Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, of Detroit. She remained in her room generally and seemed to suffer intensely.

Wednesday, November 30, 1892 San Diego Union BY HER OWN HAND A YOUNG WOMAN, SUFFERING FROM INCURABLE DISEASE, SUICIDES She Wanders Out Into the Storm to Die Desperate Act of a Guest of Hotel del Coronado – A Revolver the Chosen Weapon

Night before last an attractive, prepossessing and highly educated young woman came down from her room at Hotel del Coronado, and between 9 and 10 o’clock stepped out upon the veranda facing the ocean, which was roaring at her very feet, lashed by the tempest that is sweeping over the whole coast. The lady was quietly and elegantly dressed in black, and wore only a lace shawl over her head. Nothing more was seen of her until, at 8:20 yesterday morning, when the assistant electrician of the hotel, passing by the shell walk at the end of the western terrace, saw the lady lying on the steps leading down to the beach. She was dead, and an American bull-dog revolver was lying within two inches of her outstretched hand. A ragged wound showed on the right temple, but the rain had washed away all stains of blood. Her body was soaking wet, stiff and cold. Deputy Coroner Stetson was notified, and he had the body removed to Johnson & Co.’s undertaking rooms in this city before many of the guests of the hotel were stirring.

The young woman came to the hotel on Thanksgiving day, and registered as “Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard, Detroit.” She was reserved and ladylike. Her clothing was fine, but she had no baggage excepting a small handbag. She kept her room most of the time, and was visited often by the housekeeper, who learned that she was afflicted with cancer of the stomach. She said she was 24 years old, and spoke often of her physical condition, and was noticeably despondent, sometimes seeming to verge on melancholia, as when on one occasion she told the housekeeper she was also troubled with heart disease, and despaired of recovering her health.

There are signs pointing to an attempt on her part to commit suicide on Monday afternoon by means of drowning in her bath. She told the housekeeper that she proposed to take a warm bath for two hours or more. The matron remonstrated, saying it would weaken her, but the lady persisted, and the bath was prepared. At the end of an hour, however, she appeared and sent for a bellboy to rub her head. It was then noticed that her hair was drenched to the roots, an unusual incident, and that her manner was nervous and unstrung.

Undoubtedly the lamentable suicide was the despairing act of one suffering from an incurable disease, perhaps induced depression of spirits caused by utter loneliness. It is understood that she was expecting a brother to arrive at the hotel, and she anxiously awaited his coming. Monday morning she inquired of a bellboy if he had arrived, and receiving the usual discouraging answer, she said: “Oh, no one comes to me any more!” She then nerved herself to the final act, burning all her letters and papers, except an envelope addressed to “Mrs. Lottie Anderson Bernard,” as if in reverie, her own name, “Coronado,” “Lillian Russell,” and “I don’t know any such man.” The dreary day perhaps added to her despondency, and at night she went out in the heart of the storm, within fifteen feet of the ocean’s edge, and took her life. In her purse was found something over $20, and she seemed in no stress for money. Having telegraphed ahead to a Mr. Allen at Hamburg, Iowa, and received an answer that she could draw on him for $50 on sight. Her bill at Coronado was not presented, as she had not been there a week.

A telegram was sent to Mr. Allen, to notify her relatives there and at Detroit, and the authorities will await their instructions as to the disposal of the remains. Deputy Coroner Stetson also wired Coroner Kellar, at Escondido, and receiving no response, will impanel a jury this morning and hold an inquest.

The Coroner’s Inquest This is the official record of the circumstances surrounding the death of Kate Morgan. The inquest was open to the public, and apparently well attended. At one point, a spectator interrupted to correct a witness’s testimony. No attempt was made to correct misspellings in the original.

CORONER’S INQUEST

Over the body of Lottie Anderson Bernard, Deceased, before W. A. Sloane, Esq. Justice of the Peace and Acting Coroner.

The Coroner orders W. W. Whitson to report in short hand and transcribe the testimony and proceedings herein.

San Diego, Cal., Wednesday, Nov 30, 1892.

The following named gentlemen were called, and sworn to act as jurors in this inquisition, viz: E. A. Stevens, T. J. McCord, Frank Kemmer, William Cooper, A. T. Randall, J. S. Dowd, J. M. Spencer, L. Dampf and Milton Lamb.

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DAVID CONE is called, and testifies as follows (Not being sworn at this time.)

Q. What is your name? A. David Cone.

Q. Where do you live? A.At the Hotel del Coronado.

Q. Were you at the Hotel del Coronado night before last, and yesterday morning? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Do you know any of the facts in relation to the finding of the dead body about the hotel? A. I believe I was the first one to find it.

Q. State the facts in reference to the discovery of the body? A. Every morning I commence at seven o'clock to trim the electric lights around the hotel. Yesterday morning at half past seven I was trimming the electric light at the north corner of the hotel, and when I came to the pole I was just going to climb the pole. I saw the body lying on the stone steps right close to the pole.

Q. Where abouts? What portion of the hotel was that? A. I think it is the north corner. It is the corner of the hotel towards Point Loma.

Q. BY A JUROR: Next to the ocean? A. Next to the ocean.

Q. BY THE CORONER: You say you found a body there? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Who was it, do you know? A. I have no idea.

Q. Man or woman? A. Woman.

Q. What was the condition of it? A. It was lying on the steps, with its feet towards the ocean, head on the steps, almost on the top step. There was blood on the step. The clothes were all wet, and the body seemed to have been lying there quite a while, to have been dead quite a while.

Q. The person was dead? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did you find any weapons there? A. There was a large pistol lying at the right hand side of the body.

Q. Did you discover any wounds on the person? A. No, sir.

Q. You say there was blood? A. Yes, sir, on the steps, on the right hand side.

Q. Have you seen the remains that are at the undertaking establishment of Johnson and Company in this City, at the present time? A. I have, yes sir.

Q. Was it the same person whose body you found? A. It is, to the best of my knowledge.

Q. You say you do not know who that woman was? A. I never saw her until I ...

Q. Who else was present? A. No one else.

Q. What did you do when you found it? A. I started up towards the office to report, when I had not gone very far, when I met the gardner. I showed him the body, and I started off again to the office. I went to the office this time, and informed the chief clerk. Then I went back and trimmed the light at the corner, and went on about my work. That is all I know of it.

Q. You said you discovered a pistol lying there. Look at that pistol (showing pistol to witness) and see if you have ever seen that before? A. I believe there was rust there, when I saw that pistol. That is the rust I saw. Yes, that is the pistol.

Q. Did you examine it, to see whether or not the chambers had been discharged? A. No, sir. I did not touch it.

Q. You did not touch it at all? A. No, sir.

(At this time, the witness was sworn, he not having been sworn at the beginning of his testimony, by oversight.)

The reporter reads the testimony as hereinbefore set out, to the witness.

Q. That statement is correct - that is your testimony in relation to the matter, under oath, is it? A. Yes, sir.

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F. W. KOEPPEN, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY CORONER SLOANE:

Q. Where do you reside? A. Coronado.

Q. What is your occupation? A. Gardner.

Q. Where were you on the morning of the 29th? A. Well, in making my rounds, going around the hotel, I met the electrician, Cone. He said there was a dead body lying on the steps. Both together we went down and looked at the body. I said I was going to report it to the management. He went around one way, and I went the other. I met Mr. Rossier, and I told him, and both him and me went and looked at the body.

Q. The first time you saw the body, what did you see there? A. Nothing, only the dead body lying on the steps. I did not take any notice of it until I went to report it to the management.

Q. Then you went and got the assistant manager, and returned? A. Yes, sir.

Q. What examination was made at that time? A. We both looked at the body, and he suggested to cover it up with some cover. I went to the tool house and took a canvas and covered it up.

Q. What position was the body lying in? A. Lying along on the steps in a sitting position, and after being dead dropped over on the stair way, and I noticed the pistol lying on one side, but I never went close, to see whether it was the same pistol or not.

Q. Did you notice any wounds? A. I noticed blood, but I did not see any wounds.

Q. Is that the pistol? A. Yes, but I could not identify the pistol.

Q. It looked like that? A. Yes, some like that, but I did not touch it.

Q. Who took charge? A. It was covered up, until the Coroner came and examined it.

Q. You were in charge of it then, were you? A. Yes, sir, it was never touched until the Coroner came and took it away.

Q. Do you know who the person was? A. No, sir, I never saw her in life, except to see her dead body - not to my knowledge.

Q. Have you seen the remains since her death, since when she was brought here? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Is it the same person? A. Yes, sir.

Q. The remains that are here, that were shown to you? A. Yes, sir.

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FRANK HEATH, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY MR. SLOANE:

Q. What is your name? A. Frank Heath.

Q. Where do you live? A. 1516 Union Street.

Q. In the city of San Diego? A. Yes, sir.

Q. What is your business? A. Clerk in the Ship Chandlery store, 624 Fifth Street.

Q. Have you seen the remains of the person whose body was viewed by the coroner's jury at Johnson's parlors? A. Yes, sir, I have.

Q. Did you ever see that person in her life time? A. Yes, sir.

Q. When and where? A. I saw her day before yesterday.

Q. Where was she? A. Between four and five.

Q. Where? A. In the store where I am employed.

Q. What transactions did you have with her? A. She asked me if I kept revolver cartridges.

Q. What did you tell her? A. I told her we did not, and directed her where she could get them.

Q. Did she say anything as to what number she wanted? A. No, sir, she did not.

Q. Or size? A. No sir.

Q. Did you have any further conversation with her at all? A. No, sir. She came in and spoke to me three or four times before I could understand her, she spoke so low. She seemed a little nervous.

Q. You are sure it is this same person, are you? A. To the best of my belief it is.

Q. How do you identify her, from her appearance or from her clothing? A. From her appearance.

Q. You do not know who she was? A. No, sir, I never saw her.

Q. Do you know where she went after she left your place? A. No, sir, I did not notice.

Q. Did you have any talk with anybody about her, after she went out? A. No, I did not.

Q. No remarks made about her? A. No, sir.

Q. You say at the time she spoke to you it occurred to you that she was nervous and excited? A. Yes, sir, it did.

Q. What led you to that conclusion? Why did you form such an opinion as that? A. Why, the way she walked and looked.

Q. How did she walk, and how did she look? A. She walked very slow, as if she felt sick, and she looked very bad, in her general appearance. She was well dressed.

Q. You say you directed her to some place where she could get what she wanted? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Where did you direct her? A. To Mr. Chick.

Q. You do not know whether she went there or not? A. No, sir, I do not.

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B. F. MERTZMAN, having been first duly sworn to tell the truth, and the whole truth and nothing but the truth, testifies as follows:

BY MR. SLOANE:

Q. What is your full name? A. B. F. Mertzman

Q. What is your occupation? A. Physician and surgeon.

Q. Where do you reside? A. Twenty-second and E and my office is on Fifth Street.

Q. Were you called to view the remains of the lady who was said to have been found dead at the Hotel del Coronado? A. Yes, sir, I was.

Q. When was that? A. About half an hour ago.

Q. Just recently? A. Yes, sir.

Q. At what place? A. At the undertaking establishment of Johnson, of Sixth and E Streets.

Q. You made an examination of the remains there? A. I made an examination of the remains, and found a gun-shot wound in the right temple region, just between the ear and the out edge of the eyebrow, and about half an inch high up above that line drawn here. The ball entered into the brain, and that is the only opening I could find - no exit at all.

Q. What direction did the shot enter then, into the head? A. Well, I took a probe, and it entered almost at an angle of about that (indicated).

Q. A little forward and a little upward? A. A little forward and a little upward, yes sir.

Q. Are you able to judge what occasioned the wound, can you tell that? A. It was a gun-shot.

Q. Are you able to judge as to the size of the ball? A. From the looks of it, I should say about 38 or 40.

Q. You think it was a ball about the size of that (handing pistol to witness)? A. Yes, sir, about the size of that.

Q. Can you state what was the cause of death? A. Yes, sir - probably internal hemorrage.

Q. BY A JUROR: You never saw her before, until you saw her a while ago? A. I had never seen her before.

Q. BY ANOTHER JUROR: That ball passed through the head or just remained? A. Just remained. It went in on the right side, that is all I could see.

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T. J. FISHER, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY MR. SLOANE,

Q. Your name is T. J. Fisher? A. Yes, sir.

Q. What is your occupation, Mr. Fisher? A. Real estate.

Q. Where is your place of business, and residence? A. The Coronado Hotel is my residence, and my place of business is in the hotel drug store.

Q. Do you know any of the circumstances attending the death of the woman? A. I saw the lady first about Saturday, when she came into the drug store and walked up and down the floor two or three times; she seemed to be suffering. She asked me if I could get her something to relieve her suffering, and I referred her to Mr. Fosdick, the manager of the store, and Mr. Fosdick advised her to see a physician. She said that her brother was a physician, and that she expected him here. That was the last I saw of her until Monday. On Monday afternoon, she came in again, and walked up and down the floor, and looked as though she was still suffering. I said "It seems too bad for you to go over in town and you suffering from Neuralgia, in this stormy weather." She said "I am compelled to go. I forgot my checks, and I have got to go over and identify my trunks, personally." She went out, and that was the last I saw of her until I saw her dead, lying on the steps.

Q. Do you know her name? A. Yes, sir.

Q. What is it? A. L. A. Bernard.

Q. Do you know anything of where she was from? A. No, sir, she didn't tell me where she was from. I know nothing more about that than what I saw in the newspaper.

Q. Is she registered at the hotel as a guest there? A. I guess she was, I did not see her name there.

Q. You know nothing of her antecedents then? A. Not a thing.

Q. And the next you saw of her was when she was lying on the steps, dead? A. On the steps, dead.

Q. What time was that? A. I think that was about half past eight o'clock in the morning.

Q. Monday morning? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Who was present at that time? A. Mr. Green, the young man at the hotel went with me.

Q. Did you observe anything in connection with the body that has not been testified to here? A. Not a thing, sir.

Q. Do you know of anyone who does know what time the event of her death occurred? A. No, from the information I could get, nobody seemed to know.

Q. Nobody heard the pistol shot? A. No, sir.

Q. It was near the oceanside, the surf would have a tendency to prevent people for hearing? A. Yes, sir, it was at the north corner, the surf probably would deaden the noise.

Q. BY A JUROR: You say you knew what her name was? A. Yes, sir.

Q. How did you come to know? A. I was told since; I have seen it in the newspaper.

Q. Is that the only way you know? A. Yes, sir.

Q. BY ANOTHER JUROR: The only evidence you have of her malady is her statement? A. That is all, yes, sir.

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HARRY WEST, sworn, testifies as follows:

Q. Your name is Harry West? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Where do you live? A. My folks live between Sixteenth and Seventeenth, on I, San Diego -2519.

Q. Are you in any employ, in that town? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Where are you employed? A. I work at the Hotel del Coronado, bell boy.

Q. Have you seen the remains of the woman whose body is at the undertaking establishment of Johnson & Company? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did you ever see her before, alive or dead? A. Yes, sir, I saw her alive.

Q. Saw her in her life time, when? A. In her room, where she was sick.

Q. Where did she room? A. She roomed at the hotel.

Q. When was that, when did you see her? A. I seen her all the time, until I seen her the last time I seen her was half past six in the evening, that was night before last.

Q. Sunday evening? A. Yes, sir, I seen her on the veranda.

Q. Which veranda? A. Second floor.

Q. Where was her room, what part of the hotel? A. North side.

Q. Do you know where she was found dead? A. Yes sir, I know where she was found dead; I didn't see her.

Q. Was her room anywhere near there? A. No, sir, it was on the opposite side.

Q. Do you know her name? A. No, sir.

Q. Do you know anything about her, any circumstances, or the condition of her health? A. No, sir, she only told me that she had the neuralgia very bad, she was very sick; she was expecting her brother to come down.

Q. Do you know how long she has been at the hotel? A. I think she has been there since the 23rd.

Q. That is your information which you gathered from others, or is that your recollection of it? A. I seen that upon the register.

Q. What is your recollection in reference to it, have you been in attendance there as bell boy since that time? A. Yes, sir, I have been attending her room, ever since she got there.

Q. When was she taken sick? A. She was sick the first day she was there, right along.

Q. So you attended her, constantly? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did you have any conversation with her, in reference to her sickness? A. No, sir, just that she had the neuralgia, that is all.

Q. Did she send you for any medicines or anything? A. Not by me. Let's see, today is the 30th. On the 26th she sent me down to the drug store for an empty pint bottle and a sponge, and that is the only thing she sent me for. She sent me to the bar twice.

Q. What for? A. Liquors. Sent me once for a glass of wine, and once for a whiskey cocktail. That was day before yesterday.

Q. That was day before yesterday? A. Yes, sir. I fixed her a bath in the morning, and I got her a pitcher of ice water, and she told me she was going to stay in an hour and a half or two hours. About 12 o'clock she rang, and I went up there. Her hair was all wet, and she wanted me to rub it, and I did so. She told me she was so weak, she was standing on the side of the tub and fell into the tub, and got her hair wet, and I rubbed it, and got it dry.

Q. That was half past six, Sunday evening? A. Yes, sir.

A BYSTANDER: Excuse me - I think the young man means Monday evening.

Q. When did the shooting occur? A. Tuesday.

Q. Then that would be Monday evening? A. Yes, sir.

Q. What was her appearance and conduct, did she appear to be suffering from pain? A. Yes, sir, she appeared to be suffering a great deal. She groaned a great deal, and slept most of the day. She would sleep a little while, and then wake up, and be groaning. She looked pale in the face.

Q. She said she expected her brother, did she say where from? A. No, sir - she told me where from, but I do not remember the place.

Q. Do you remember the state? A. No, sir.

Q. BY A JUROR: What time was it when she sent you for that liquor? A. For the liquor?

Q. Yes? A. That was day before yesterday, in the morning, about 12 o'clock, somewhere just about 12 o'clock.

Q. Did you take the money for it? A. No, sir, I did not - charged it to the room.

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R. GOMER, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY MR. SLOANE,

Q. What is your name? A. A. D. Gomer.

Q. What is your occupation? A. I am engaged in the Hotel del Coronado, in the capacity of clerk.

Q. You are engaged there, and have been for several days past, have you? A. Yes, sir, I have been there for six or seven weeks.

Q. Have you seen the remains that are at the undertaking parlor? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Do you identify them? A. Well, the only means, of course, that I have of knowing her name, is the manner in which she was registered.

Q. What name did she go by? A. Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard, Detroit.

Q. That is the way she registered, is it? A. She did not register herself. I was not in the office at the time of her arrival, but the young man there registered for her, at her request. That is the name she gave him.

Q. Is he present? A. No, he is not here.

Q. You learned that from him subsequently? A. Yes.

Q. What do you know of her condition and circumstances, during her stay at the hotel? A. Well, all I know is that the young man spoke to me of her arrival, when I came to the office that evening. Said there was rather a peculiar person came in this afternoon, and I asked him to point her out to me, and along about between seven and eight o'clock she came along, and he pointed her out, and there was nothing said until the next morning, she came to me, asking my advice as to how she could get her baggage, which she claimed had been checked to San Diego, and the checks she said her brother had kept with him, and her brother had been called away from Orange, either to Los Angeles, or Frisco, she in fact did not know where.

Q. From Orange? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did she speak of having come here to this place from Orange? A. That is the way her story begun, Orange, she said Orange; her brother was obliged to leave her, to remain there, or go to Frisco, she didn't know which, and that she came on alone from Orange, and that her brother would be along that afternoon. That was the day after her arrival, and every day she inquired if her brother had arrived. She claimed that her brother was Doctor Anderson, and that the initials were M. C., I am not sure about that.

Q. Did she state anything as to where he was, or as to where he had gone? A. She didn't seem to know where he was.

Q. What do you know of her circumstances financially, whether she was under financial embarrassment? A. After the boy came to the office Monday, and asked for whiskey, I thought it necessary for someone to see her. The housekeeper had been trying to induce her to call the house physician - rather, I insisted that the housekeeper should persuade her to call the house physician, and see just what her condition was, and the housekeeper was unsuccessful; she kept telling the housekeeper that her brother was a physician, and that it was not necessary to call a physician, but after this boy, who just testified, came to the office and asked for whiskey, and said the lady had fell in the tub and wet her hair, I went up to her room myself, and suggested first, that we call the house physician. She was in bed then covered up, and she was totally opposed to calling the physician. It was a very gloomy, dreary sort of a day, and she was on the east side of the house without any fire, and I suggested that she have a fire, and be made comfortable. She said No, she was very comfortable, as good as she could expect. She further told me that the doctors had given her up, that she had cancer of the stomach, and that her case was hopeless, but she told us in such an off-hand way that it did not appear suspicious to me, and I endeavored to find out something about her identity. On the table in her room were some letters. I could not find out the contents of them without picking them up, and of course that was out of order. The only thing I saw on the table were some envelopes, addressed to herself, and finally, after I found she was so much opposed to having the physician, I just put the question to her, if she had got her baggage over, and then I asked her if she was supplied with funds; that in her condition she must necessarily need some funds, and she said yes. Then I said to her "Wouldn't it be a good plan to telegraph your brother. She said "I do not know where to find my brother, I do not know whether he is at Los Angeles, or at Orange, or at Frisco. Then I said Is there no one else you could telegraph to for funds, and she suggested the name of G.L. Allen, Hamburg, Iowa, and at her suggestion I wrote a telegram, and sent it to Hamburg, and left her then, in the room, that was about one o'clock, or half past twelve, possibly on Monday. And then the last time I saw her after that, the next time, and last, was that evening about somewhere between seven and eight o'clock, she called at the office ...

Q. Now what day was this? A. This was on Monday, she called at the office and inquired if there were any letters or telegrams for her. I said No, nothing, and went about doing something, and that was the last I saw of her until yesterday morning, this man done came to me and reported there was a corpse out on the ocean side of the house, and I immediately went out there, and of course discovered that it was this woman.

Q. You say you noticed letters addressed to her, on her table? A. Just letters, envelopes, two or three possibly.

Q. Did you notice the address? A. This same address.

Q. Lottie A ... A. ... Bernard, Detroit.

Q. Has there been any reply, subsequently, to the telegram? A. Yes, yesterday morning, as soon as the office opened, a telegram came from Hamburg, Iowa, signed by some bank, but I neglected to bring that telegram with me, and forget the name of the bank - saying that they would honor her draft for $25.00 show this to the bank. Then I immediately telegraphed to this same party that this person had suicided on the hotel grounds.

Q. Have you received any reply to that? A. No, and advised them, at the suggestion of one of your assistants here, to telegraph the coroner. We have received no reply. It seems that some time Monday afternoon - in relation to the papers, the memorandum - she rang her bell, and the bell was answered by the boy, she asked for a box of matches, but he said if she only wanted a few, he had a few in his pocket. She made the remark that she wished to burn some papers, so that may account for the disappearance of anything of the kind.

Q. BY A JUROR: Was there a fire place in the room? A. Yes, sir.

Q. All those envelopes were postmarked Hamburg, were they? A. No, I saw nothing on her table. She received no mail while she was there. The envelopes I saw were evidently written by herself, and addressed to herself, Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard, without any street address, Detroit - for I was trying if possible to find out who she was.

Q. You say she said her brother's name was Anderson? A. Yes, Doctor Anderson, and she told me in that conversation that he was a practicing physician in Indianapolis.

Q. You know nothing of the immediate circumstances of her death? A. Nothing at all, except going there and seeing the body, and returning to the office.

Q. The house physician there, did he view the body at all? A. The house physician that day was off hunting.

Q. Are you able to judge in any way as to how long she had been dead at the time she was found? A. Well, no.

Q. How soon was it before the coroner reached there what time of day did he get there? A. I think it was between seven and half past seven that it was reported to me, and I think it was along about half past nine, possibly ten o'clock when the body was removed. I am not sure as to the exact time.

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M. CHICK, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY ACTING CORONER SLOANE,

Q. What is your name? A. M. Chick.

Q. Where do you live, Mr. Chick? A. At 1663 Sixth street.

Q. What is your business? A. Gun smith, gun dealer.

Q. Have you seen the remains of the woman whose body is at the undertaking parlors of Johnson & Co.? A. I have.

Q. Did you ever see her before? A. I think I have.

Q. If so, under what circumstances, and where? A. Well, it is a woman dressed a great deal like the one that came into my store about three o'clock Monday afternoon, and wanted to look at some pistols; said she wanted to get one, to make a Christmas present to a friend of hers. I showed her the pistols, and she selected one and bought it.

Q. What kind of pistol was it? A. It was a 44 American bulldog.

Q. Examine that pistol, will you Mr. Chick? A. It was one just like that.

Q. You would not be able to identify it positively? A. No.

Q. Did you sell her any cartridges? A. I sold her two bits worth of cartridges.

Q. Did you have any other conversation with her? A. None, whatever.

Q. Was there anything in her appearance that attracted your attention particularly, or in her manner? A. Not at all.

Q. That is all the conversation you had with her upon it? A. Yes, sir.

Q. BY A JUROR: Did you load the pistol for her? A. No, sir, she asked me how to load it, how it was loaded. I turned the cover back and showed her. I put it in a box for her, she wrapped it up and took it away.

Q. You, I understand, identified her positively? A. No, sir, not positively; it looks a great deal like the woman, and like the clothes she wore, but I would not swear it was the same woman.

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W. P. WALTERS, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY ACTING CORONER SLOANE,

Q. You have seen the remains of this woman? A. Yes, sir.

Q. At the undertaking parlors - have you ever seen her before in her life time? A. I could not tell, I did not see her face. She walked right past me, within a foot, and very slowly, and was dressed in black, and I noticed particularly that she had on what appeared to me to be a sealskin coat or sack, and rather long.

Q. Well, you speak of some woman who passed you? A. Yes, sir, who passed.

Q. At what time? A. On Monday afternoon somewhere along three or four o'clock, I did not know what time it was.

Q. Where was that? A. At Chick's gun store.

Q. What did she do, in that connection? A. She walked right straight past, she came right direct in the door, and walked straight to the show-case, until she came where the pistols were and then she asked for a pistol. Mr. Chick showed her one, she said she did not want a very high priced one, and she bought the pistol. She asked for some cartridges - that is, the woman who came in there - and then she asked Chick to show her how to load it. He opened the thing, showed it in, and took it out again. Then she took hold of the pistol, and pulled it, and says, "Isn't this hard to pull?" He said No, and he took hold of it and pulled "click", "click", "click". She took hold of it again and pulled, and it clicked, and then she asked to have it put away in a box, and wrapped up.

Q. Did you notice anything peculiar about her manner? A. Why yes, she came in just as slow, and walked out straight, slow, again, and I remarked, I think, that woman - she is going to hurt herself with that pistol. I spoke to the man who was sitting there, and he thought the same thing.

Q. Do you know where she went from there? A. She went south on Fifth street, and I stepped to the door, and asked a gentleman who was standing at the door where she went and he said she had went into the Combination, he thought. I stopped there a few seconds, and then I saw her go straight diagonally across to Schiller and Murtha's, and that is the last I seen.

Q. Does the dress this woman wore correspond to that on the person of the deceased? A. The clothes I looked at there, yes sir.

Q. How were these remains dressed? A. They had a black dress and a sealskin sacque or coat, or what appeared to me to be a sealskin, I do not know whether it was, and black, and rather long, longer than they usually wear them now.

Q. That is all you know in relation to the matter? A. That is all I knew. I did not speak to the lady, she went past me so I did not see her face.

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H. J. STETSON, sworn, testifies as follows:

BY MR. SLOANE, ACTING CORONER:

Q. You are the deputy coroner, Mr. Stetson? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did you receive word yesterday morning that there was a dead person at the Hotel del Coronado, who needed the attention of the coroner? A. I received word to come to Coronado, from the Coronado Hotel. I found the body there.

Q. What did you do in response to the message? A. I went over and found the body covered, found the lady lying there covered with a tarpaulin. The undertakers came over on the next boat, and she was placed in the receiving box and brought to this City, and taken to Johnson & Company's.

Q. Did you form any judgment as to how long she might have been dead? A. She laid as though she might have been dead at least six hours - six or seven.

Q. She was stiff and cold? A. Yes, sir.

Q. You found the pistol there in the vicinity? A. Yes, sir, that pistol was lying on the next step, the stone steps that go down to the surf, and her hand rested on the lower edge of one, and it had fallen out on to the edge of the next one below, and there was blood around and underneath it.

Q. You superintended the removal of her remains to the undertaking establishment? A. Yes, sir.

Q. And they have been there ever since? A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did you make any examination of the effects in her room? A. Yes, sir, I found the things that are right there. I found that valice, and on the table I found this envelope she had addressed.

Q. Just read it? A. Denman Thompson, the Old Homestead. And "Frank” is written here four times, and "Lottie Anderson Bernard", and “Mrs. Lottie Bernard", "Lottie Anderson Bernard, Detroit", and then on this paper I found "I merely heard of that man, I do not know him". Here is an invitation - here is an invitation to the Hotel del Coronado, signed by Louise Leslie Carter, and Lillian Russell.

Q. What is the name on the handkerchief? A. L-t-tle, I think it is, I can not quite make it out, but the last name is Anderson. She had a purse on her person, that contained $16.50, and there was a little ring in the purse, a plain ring, and the key to her valice. (Produces ring and purse.)

Q. Nothing else? A. Nothing else, just some –

Q. That is the purse, is it? A. Yes, sir; that is the purse.

Q. What other contents were there? A. Just some handkerchiefs.

Q. Nothing that would throw any identity upon where she was from? A. Not a thing. In the grate of the room it looked like as though quite a package of papers had been burned, it was all in ashes, you might say. Whether she made them for a fire or what they might have been you could not tell, but they had all been burned.

Q. Any night clothes? A. Just one night dress was hanging in the closet. The bed had not been touched at night. It was all made up; the hat lay on the mantel, a bottle, and penknife. Yes, there was considerable medicine in there, a bottle of camphor and a bottle of alcohol.

Q. This large bottle here? A. That is brandy, I think, or alcohol, and some quinine pills. Then there is a little piece of paper. I found a piece of paper that had been wrapped around a bottle of some kind. It says if it does not relieve you, you better send for the doctor. It was just signed "Druggist". It did not say where it was from.

Q. Did you receive information from the Clerk in the hotel, or some one else? A. Yes, I received word - I received a telegram in the morning to come over to the Coronado immediately.

Q. I mean with reference to parties to whom you were to telegraph in reference to her case? A. Yes, Mr. –

Q. What was the name, do you remember? A. The gentleman who just left the stand here, the Clerk there. He telegraphed to I think it was Iowa, to that bank, and to these people to whom she had been writing, I do not know the name, he did the telegraphing. I asked him at the same time to just include for them to telegraph to the Coroner, and he said he would, but there has been no reply come.

Q. You have heard nothing whatever? A. Not a thing, no sir.

Q. No trace of her friends? A. No, sir.

Q. BY A JUROR: Have you been to the baggage office, to find out whether she had any there or not? A. No, I have not been to the baggage, but she had no checks or anything put away, to know.

Q. She said her brother had the checks, but you do not know anything about whether she had baggage? A. No, sir, I do not know anything about it, I have not been.

Q. BY MR. SLOANE: Have you made any inquiry at all about it to any of the baggage men? A.MR. MARKS: No.

MR. SLOANE: I believe, gentlemen, we have got all the testimony we can get. Unless there is some further inquiry you can suggest, I will submit the case to you. You can take the case and prepare your verdict. Here is a blank. You can fill it out in accordance with the facts.

The jury, after deliberation, return the verdict which is on file in this matter.

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In written hand below, it says, "I hereby certify that the foregoing transcript contains a full, true and correct statement of the proceedings had and testimony given in the within mentioned inquisition, and that the said transcript was mislaid while in my possession which is the reason for its not having been heretofore filed.

(signed) W. W. Witson, Reporter

Thursday, December 1, 1892 San Diego Union STILL IN DOUBT IDENTITY OF THE CORONADO SUICIDE AS YET NOT LEARNED. A Possible Clue Contained in a Telegram to Coroner Stetson. Mysterious Disappearance of Her Brother –Various Theories Afloat

The coroner’s inquest was held yesterday as to the identity of Mrs. Lottie Anderson Barnard, the young woman who in the height of Monday night’s storm stood at the ocean’s edge at Hotel del Coronado and put a bullet in her brain. Several interesting facts were brought out, though the identity of the girl and the exact cause of her suicide are still unknown. The most interesting testimony was given by the chief clerk of Hotel del Coronado, who stated that on Monday morning she sent a bell boy for a vial of whisky, the boy reporting that she was very ill and almost drowned at her bath, from weakness. Previous endeavors of the housekeeper to prevail upon Mrs. Barnard to call the house physician not being successful, the clerk himself went to her room. She was in the eastern wing, and in bed. The day was dismal and cheerless, and he suggested that a fire be made in the grate, but she replied that she was perfectly comfortable; that her brother was a physician and had attended to her, and that it was not necessary to call another. She said she was afflicted with cancer of the stomach, and had been told by physicians that her case was hopeless.

Her brother, she said, was a practicing physician at Minneapolis, named Anderson, and had left her at Orange, and she was not sure whether he had gone to Los Angeles or San Francisco; but he was to have joined her at Coronado the day after her arrival. Mercer suggested that she telegraph to friends for funds, and not knowing her brother’s whereabouts, she gave the clerk the name of G. L. Allen, Hamburg, Iowa. The answer came back Tuesday, after her death from a Hamburg bank, saying her draft for $25 would be honored.

From the testimony of other witnesses it was learned that she left Coronado shortly after noon Monday. On the electric motor she asked the conductor where she could find a hardware store, and was directed to Todd & Hawley. The conductor had to lift her off the car, as she was very weak. She is not known to have called on Todd & Hawley, but she appeared at Heath’s ship chanderly and asked if pistols were kept there for sale. Heath told her she could find what she wanted at Chick’s gun store, and was shown the way. Her slow walk and nervous manner impressed Heath and Capt. Hamilton, who stood by, that she meant to use the pistol on herself. At Chick’s she asked to see a pistol, not too high priced, which she wished to give as a Christmas present to a friend. She chose an American bull-dog revolver, 44 caliber, and bought 25 cents worth of cartridges. Chick showed her how to load the weapon. She immediately returned to Coronado, taking the return car with the same conductor.

At about 6:30 that evening she inquired if any letters or telegrams had come for her, or if her brother had come, and being answered in the negative, she retired again to her room, whence she emerged three hours later with the pistol hidden in her dress and went to the terrace, where she was afterward found.

Deputy Coroner Stetson on the stand testified as to her effects, which were all contained in a small hand satchel. In the grate of her room he found a pile of ashes made from papers burned. Her handkerchiefs were of the finest linen, and marked “Lottie Anderson.” While Mr. Stetson was testifying he received the following telegram:

MT. VERNON, N.Y., Nov 30. Coroner, San Diego: Send description also photo suicide Miss L. A. Bernard. Answer. HARRY M. BERNARD

It will be noticed that she is designated “Miss” in the telegram, and the name spelled “Bernard” instead of “Barnard,” as she wrote on the envelope in her room. These may be, however, only telegraphic errors.

The jury found a verdict in accordance with the facts, and the body is now being held at Johnson & Co.’s rooms awaiting instructions from relatives, if any can be found. Various theories are entertained by those who have been examining into this most mysterious case. The allusion to her brother by Mrs. Barnard, as she termed herself, and from her apparent anxiety to receive advices from him, have led some to believe that there is more in the case than at first sight appears. Is it not possible, nay, probable, that the person to whom she referred as brother entertained a closer relation to this unfortunate woman ? they ask. If he was her brother, he would certainly have lost no time in communicating with the authorities here when the story of her rash act was made known to him. If he parted her at Orange on Thanksgiving day, he could not have got far away when the news of her suicide was flashed all over the country. The fact was published in all the cities north and must have met his eye. Why, then, did he not telegraph at once that he would be here to take charge of the remains? It is a suspicious circumstance that nothing has been heard from this man. If he had been her lover and had wanted to rid himself of her, he could scarcely have concealed himself more effectually than he has done. It appears to be the general opinion that, however ill Mrs. Barnard may have been, she had some great trouble weighing upon her mind during the time that she was at the hotel. The absence of baggage she explained by saying that her brother had the railroad checks and forgot to turn them over to her. When coming to San Diego, her excuse given at the hotel was that she must come personally to identify her trunks, there being no checks, and, yet, on arriving on this side of the bay, she made no inquiry at the station relative to her baggage, but went at once to purchase the revolver with which she ended her existence. That she intended to do this and that her reference to her trunks was intended merely as a blind is proved by her inquiry addressed to the conductor of the train at Coronado as to where she would find a hardware store. More light will doubtless be cast upon this matter.

A PROBABLE THEORY What a San Diego Physician Thinks of the Suicide

For every fact brought out in the investigation of the suicide of the pretty and mysterious stranger at Hotel del Coronado tending to show that the act was done in despondency over sickness, there are dozens of circumstances pointing strongly to the theory that she may have been betrayed, ruined and deserted, and committed the act soon after the truth dawned on her. Upon this supposition a UNION reporter interviewed a prominent physician, who yesterday examined the body, and his examination entirely upsets the story she told, that she was afflicted with cancer of the stomach, and had been given up by the doctors as hopelessly ill. “The girl was about 24 or 25 years old,” said the doctor last night. “Her face bears no trace of intense suffering, and her frame is not wasted, as would be the case if she had been so far gone with cancer as to be pronounced hopeless. But it is nonsense to say she had cancer or the stomach. Why? Because cancer rarely develops under the age of 40, and I never heard of a case under 35. Some authorities say that it is never developed under 40 years of age. All agree, also, that there is rapid wasting away.

“Now look – the first symptoms of pregnancy in certain temperaments and those of cancer of the stomach are almost identical. There is the same great pain in the stomach, with sourness and occasional vomiting. The complexion becomes sallow, exactly alike in these cases. I cannot say that the girl was enciente, but the indications, I think, point more to that and to an attempt on her part to produce a miscarriage than to long-standing disease. The sallowness of her complexion could very naturally have been made by the strong medicine necessary to effect miscarriage. Again, the dark rings under her eyes, spoken of by the Coronado pharmacist, could have been produced by violent medicine and consequent pain.

“The indications are that she has already borne a child, and was enciente when she died, but this cannot be proven without a post-mortem examination. I refuse to believe that she was afflicted with cancer of the stomach. The paroxysms of pain from cancer in its last hopeless stage are quite frequent, and it is impossible that she could have ridden three hours, as you say she did, without being attacked with intense pain, which she could not have concealed. In my opinion she shot herself in desperation over some love affair, as the cases of suicides of females of her age from ill-health are very rare, and no case is on record of a case of cancer of the stomach at her age.”

The three hour ride alluded to by the doctor, was taken a day or two after the girl arrived at Hotel del Coronado. She was noticed by Charles Stevens of the Star stables, driving a fractious horse, that threatened to run away with her. He proffered his assistance, which she accepted, and he drove with her for several hours. She stopped at Marston’s and bought a pair of gloves. Throughout the ride, Mr. Stevens says, she was pleasant and companionable, if not actually in high spirits. She certainly did not appear to be in pain, either bodily or mental. They returned to Hotel del Coronado, and Mr. Stevens gave her his card, saying that he would be glad to furnish her next time with a gentle horse. Neither this card nor the new gloves were found among her effects after her tragic taking-off.

It is learned that on first arriving in the city on Thanksgiving day, the mysterious lady come to the Hotel Brewster and inquired of the clerk if her relatives, Mr. Anderson and wife, had arrived. He told her they had not, and she replied that they had doubtless gone to Hotel del Coronado, and that she would follow them, which she did, going on the cars and ferry. She had then no baggage beyond the hand-satchel. “Mr. Anderson” is doubtless her brother, with whom she parted at Orange a day or so previous, according to her story to the clerk of Del Coronado, though she told the latter nothing of his being accompanied by a wife.

Strenuous efforts to a late hour this morning, in the city and by telegraph, failed to answer the questions of her identity, or why she should come from Detroit, or New York state, or some unknown place, to take her life at the very edge of the Pacific. A deep mystery at present hangs over every act of her mournful tragedy.

Los Angeles Times ENDED HER TROUBLES. Suicide of a Young Lady at the Hotel del Coronado

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 30. – [Special.] It is now thought that the woman registering at the Hotel del Coronado as Lottie Anderson Barnard, who committed suicide yesterday morning, was not suffering from cancer in her stomach, but had been ruined, and, realizing that she had been deserted as well, decided to end her troubles. She was a beautiful woman, and when arriving here on Thanksgiving day did not appear ill or unhappy. Though representing that her brother, Dr. Anderson of Minneapolis, as having parted her at Orange with the understanding that he would join her in a few days at Coronado, she is said to have inquired at the Hotel Brewster, in this city, whether Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were staying there. Her evident anxiety to trace the whereabouts of Anderson, and her distress on receiving no advices from him after going to the Hotel del Coronado, are now believed to prove that the man was not her brother, but the one who was responsible for her condition.

The Coroner has a dispatch from Mt. Vernon, N.Y., requesting a description of the woman, and signed Harry M. Bernard. An inquest was held today, at which evidence was elicited tending to support the theory of despair because of her desertion by her betrayer. Her evident illness is attributed to medicines taken with the purpose of effecting a miscarriage, though this has not been fully demonstrated, no post mortem examination having been authorized.

San Francisco Chronicle CORONADO’S PUZZLE Peculiar Actions of Miss Barnard New Facts Developed at the Inquest Theories That a Man Is Indirectly Concerned in the Suicide Case

Special Dispatch to the Chronicle. SAN DIEGO, November 30. – The inquest upon the remains of the woman who committed suicide at the ocean’s edge at Coronado beach on Monday night, was held today and resulted in a verdict of suicide. The verdict was undoubtedly correct, but fails utterly to give satisfaction to the public mind since the identity of the woman is not positively fixed, and the cause of the suicide is left enveloped in mystery. Public opinion is to the effect that the contradictory stories told by the victim of her own unwillingness to face the world were not true, and that a man is connected to the story somewhere.

The most interesting testimony was given by the chief clerk of the hotel, who stated that on Monday morning she sent a bellboy to her room with a vial of whisky, the boy reporting that she was very ill, and had almost drowned herself while in her bath through weakness. The previous endeavors of the housekeeper to induce Mrs. Barnard to call the house physician proving unsuccessful, the clerk himself went to her room. She told him that her brother was a physician and had attended her, and that it was not necessary to call another. She also said she was afflicted with cancer of the stomach and had been told that her case was hopeless. Her brother was a practicing physician at Minneapolis named Anderson and had left her at Orange. He had gone to Los Angeles or San Francisco, but he was to have joined her at the Coronado on the day after her arrival and had taken the checks for her baggage.

It was suggested that she telegraph to her friends for funds, and not knowing her brother’s whereabouts she gave the name of G. L. Allen of Hamburg, Ia. An answer came on the Tuesday after her death from the Hamburg Bank stating that her draft for $25 would be honored. She left the Coronado at noon on Monday. She asked the conductor where she could find a hardware store and was directed to one. The conductor had to lift her off the car, as she was very weak. Her walk and nervous manner attracted attention. She asked to see a pistol not too high priced, which she wished to give as a Christmas present to a friend. She chose an American bulldog, 44 caliber, and bought 25 cents’ worth of cartridges.

She immediately returned to the Coronado, taking a return car with the same conductor. At about 6:30 o’clock that evening she inquired if any letters or telegrams had come for her or if her brother had come, and being answered in the negative she retired again to her room, whence she emerged three hours later with the pistol hidden in her dress and passed on to the terrace, where her body was afterward found. Deputy Coroner Stetson testified concerning her effects, which were all contained in a small hand satchel. In the grate of her room was found the remnants of a large number of papers which had been burned. Her handkerchiefs were of the finest linen and one was marked “Lottie Anderson.” While Mr. Stetson was testifying he received the following telegram:

MT. VERNON, November 30. – Coroner, San Diego, Cal. Send description, also photograph of the suicide, Miss L. A. Bernard. HARRY BERNARD

It will be noticed that she is designated “Miss” in the telegram and the name is spelled “Bernard” instead of Barnard, as she wrote it. These may, however, be only telegraphic errors. Various theories are entertained by those who have been examining into this most mysterious case. The allusion to her brother by Mrs. Barnard, as she called herself, and her apparent anxiety to receive advice from him have led some to believe that there is more to the case than what at first appears.

Is it not possible, nay, probable, that the person to whom she referred as brother entertained a closer relation to this unfortunate woman ? they ask. If he was her brother, he would certainly have lost no time in communicating with the authorities here when the story of her rash act was made known to him. If he parted her at Orange on Thanksgiving day, he could not have got far away when the news of her suicide was flashed all over the country. The fact was published in all the cities north and must have met his eye. Why, then, did he not telegraph at once that he would be here to take charge of the remains?

It is a suspicious circumstance that nothing has been heard from this man. If he had been her lover and had wanted to rid himself of her, he could scarcely have concealed himself more effectually than he has done. It appears to be the general opinion that, however ill Mrs. Barnard may have been, she had some great trouble weighing upon her mind during the time that she was at the hotel.

When arriving at San Diego on Monday her excuse given at the hotel was that she must come personally to identify her trunks, there being no checks, and yet on reaching this side of the bay she made no outcry about her baggage, but departed to purchase a revolver, with which she ended her existence.

A physician who has seen the body gives voice to the opinion that the woman was not suffering from cancer of the stomach. No baggage is in the city that can be identified as hers, and more light on the matter is anxiously awaited.

Friday, December 2, 1892 San Diego Union THE BEAUTIFUL STRANGER LOVE TROUBLES DOUBTLESS KILLED HER, BUT WHO WAS SHE? Mystery Deep as Ever Regarding Her Identity - She Quarreled With Her Companion -Her Story Contradictory, But Partially True

Facts are slowly coming to light to prove the theory that a love trouble was the cause of the dramatic suicide of Mrs. Lottie Anderson Barnard, the beautiful and mysterious stranger who came on Thanksgiving day to Hotel del Coronado. The question of her identity is still unsolved. Some little light has, however, been thrown upon her motives for committing suicide. A bell boy of the Hotel del Coronado said yesterday that he was told by Joseph E. Jones of Boston, who came to the hotel on Thanksgiving day, that the latter was a fellow passenger in the same car from Denver with the young woman. Mr. Jones said he had not mentioned the fact, as he was averse to being called to testify before the coroner’s jury. He stated that the young woman was accompanied by a well-dressed gentleman. He did not particularly notice the couple until after reaching the coast, when they attracted his attention, and that of others in the car, by high words and bitter quarreling. This they continued at intervals for some time. The quarrel ended with her asking her companion to forgive her, which she repeated several times, but he was obdurate and angry, and at length left the train. As nearly as Mr. Jones can recollect, the man left at Orange. The lady came through to San Diego. Mr. Jones saw no more of her, and thought no more of the matter until he saw her at Hotel del Coronado a day or so afterward. He said he immediately recognized her, and was sure she was the same person.

The stories told by the lady as to her identity, her companion who left her at Orange, and her baggage, are found to be full of contradictions. She told Mr. Yomer, chief clerk of Del Coronado, that her brother had been called away at Orange; that he could be found either at the Palace, San Francisco, or the Nadeau or Westminster, Los Angeles; that he sometimes stopped at one and sometimes the other. This of course contradicts her story that he was a practicing physician at Minneapolis. She spoke very familiarly of Los Angeles hotels. Regarding herself, she said her father and mother lived at Detroit, and that the man, G. L. Allen, who was telegraphed to for funds, was in charge of her finances. She mentioned his name after much hesitation, evidently only after she was convinced that she could not reach her brother by telegraph. Her baggage, she said, was carried by to National City, and that she would have to go personally to identify her trunks, but she was sure she could name every article in them. Later she spoke as if she had only one trunk, saying that it was provided with a peculiar French lock. She gave the bellboy a dollar for a trifling service, and he remonstrated, saying he “didn’t like to take so much from a sick lady.” The boy said she replied: “Take it; I’ve got plenty of money.” Yet she had barely $20 in her purse. Altogether her story was inconsistent, contradictory and mysterious.

It is worthy of remark that G. L. Allen of Hamburg, Ia., who wired her $25 the same day he received her telegram from Hotel del Coronado announcing her suicide, although three days have elapsed he is known to have received the dispatch. From this fact the authorities are inclined to believe that he is more than financially interested in the dead girl – in other words, that possibly he has sent her away. On the other hand, Mr. Jones testimony regarding her quarrel on the train strengthens the theory that her companion was her lover instead of her brother, and that he deserted her at Orange. She gave his name as Dr. W. C. or M. C. Anderson, Minneapolis, but no such name is in the directory.

So far, the only direct clue to her identity is through the man Allen in Iowa, and Deputy Coroner Stetson has accordingly telegraphed to the city marshal of Hamburg to ascertain who Allen is, and what relation he bears to the girl. Many persons, noting her familiarity with Los Angeles hotels and the fact that she was traveling without baggage or funds, believe that she was a Californian, and that the trip to San Diego was a mere escapade. A full description of her was telegraphed to Harry J. Bernard of Mt. Vernon, N.Y., and no answer has been yet received. No inquiries have come from any other source, though the facts of the suicide are known all over the United States. In the meantime she lies on a slab in the undertaking rooms, beautiful even in death, the only undoubted fact in all the mystery being that she took her life with her own hand.

Los Angeles Times STILL A MYSTERY The Identity of the Coronado Suicide Not Yet Known

SAN DIEGO, Dec. 2 – By the Associated Press – The identity of the young woman giving the name of Lottie Anderson Bernard, who committed suicide at the Hotel del Coronado on Monday night, is still unknown. Inquiry has been received from Miss May Wyllie of Detroit, Mich. for a full description of the lady, she having registered at the hotel as having come from that city. An attempt is being made through the Farmers’ and Merchants’ Bank of Hamburg, Iowa, to ascertain the connection existing between the dead woman and G. L. Allen of that place, who has not answered the telegram sent to him though having previous to the death of Miss Barnard responded to her demand or money by telegraphing that a draft would be honored for her.

A key found among the girl’s effects partially fits the locked trunks which arrived at the local Santa Fe depot from Omaha via Denver about Thanksgiving day, when she made her appearance here, but permission to open was withheld until the proper authorities from the division baggage agent could be secured. This will be obtained tomorrow, when it is hoped some means of identification will be unearthed.

Saturday, December 3, 1892 San Diego Union A POSSIBLE CLUE A Telegram From Detroit Relative to the Coronado Suicide

The only new feature presented up to this morning in the suicide case of the pretty and mysterious Lottie Anderson Barnard was the receipt of a telegram from Detroit, as follows:

DETROIT, Nov. 30. Chief of Police, San Diego: Telegraph full description lady’s body found on beach. Had short hair, black corset, large black hat, gold buckle. MISS MAY WYLLIE

Deputy Coroner Stetson replied, giving a full description. The description in the telegram is partially applicable to the dead girl. She wore a black corset, and a large black hat, but her hair was of medium length and there was no gold buckle on her hat. No telegram has been received from any other source, though inquiries were sent yesterday to James P. Beach, president of the Farmers’ and Merchants’ bank at Hamburg, Ia., regarding the identity of G. L. Allen who wired $25 to the girl through the bank.

An examination was made last night of the three trunks lying at the D-street depot, which arrived from Omaha, via Denver, about Thanksgiving day. The key found among the girl’s effects partially fits the lock of one of the trunks, but permission was withheld to open them until proper authorization from the division baggage agent. This will be secured today.

The Seaport News Coronado Items:

Weary of Life: Mrs. Anderson Bernard a widow, twenty-four years of age, arrived at Del Coronado alone last week. She was reserved and mingling not with the other guests, made few acquaintances. It was known, however, that she was an invalid. On Monday she resolved to end her sorrows and sufferings, so, crossing the bay purchased a revolver and cartridges. Soon after dark on that evening she deserted the warm, cheerful rooms of the hotel for the darkness outside, and on the steps at the rear in the cold, drizzling rain, took her own life. The lifeless body of the unfortunate woman lay there all night, not being discovered until early morning.

Sunday, December 4, 1892 San Diego Union IDENTIFIED Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard Was Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit In the City of Her Home She Was a Book-Bindery Girl Leaving There Five Weeks Ago in Company With a Married Man He Who Caused Her to Err Was John Longfield, and He Was Probably Her Deserter at Orange

Special to the Union DETROIT, MICH., Dec 3, 1892 – The identity of Mrs. Lottie Anderson Bernard, who committed suicide on Tuesday night at San Diego, Cal., is now established from the description given. She is Miss Lizzie Wyllie, of 102 National avenue, this city. Mrs. Elizabeth Wyllie, who lives at the above number, has received a dispatch from relatives in San Diego which identifies the dead girl as her daughter. The description of her clothes tallies with those worn by Lizzie Wyllie when she left here some five or six weeks ago. The suicide has two moles on her left cheek, a ring on a finger of the left hand and another ring was found in one of her pockets. The Detroit police were asked for a description of Lizzie Wyllie and the description furnished tallies in almost every detail with that of the dead woman.

Lizzie and her sister, May, were employed in Winn & Hammond’s book-bindery until about two months ago, when they were both discharged. Miss Lizzie, the dead girl, because she was too intimate with John Longfield, who was also discharged. A few days before Lizzie left, Longfield called at the house and said he was going to California. Before Lizzie disappeared, she had said she was going away to look for work, and might go as far as California. The police state positively that Lizzie and Longfield went away together. He is a married man. Mrs. Wyllie, mother of Lizzie, says: “I have relatives in both San Diego and Pasadena. The ones at San Diego have not seen Lizzie since she was a little girl, and she is now 24, the age given in the original dispatch from San Diego. I have telegraphed my friends in Pasadena, who know Lizzie well, to go down and take care of her remains.”

DEVELOPMENTS IN SAN DIEGO

The only word received from Detroit yesterday was a request from Miss May Wyllie asking that a tin-type be sent of the dead girl. A telegram was received from the president of the bank through which the man Allen sent the money to the girl, as follows:

HAMBURG, Iowa, Dec. 3, 1892 Johnson &Co., Undertakers, San Diego Neither Allen nor I know the relatives of Mrs. Bernard. Her husband supposed to be in Wichita, Kan. J. P. Beach

It is supposed that the erring girl and Longfield, traveling under the name of Bernard, went to Hamburg, and that the relations were then made which enabled the girl to call on Allen for money. Longfield may have intimated to Allen that he was going to Wichita. The story of Jos. E. Jones, that he traveled with the couple from Denver, and that they quarreled, with the result that the man deserted the girl at Orange, is doubtless correct. The girl invented the story of her brother the account for her presence at Coronado without money, baggage or friends. It could not be ascertained last might who the relatives of the girl are who reside here.

Los Angeles Times MYSTERY SOLVED The Identity of the Coronado Suicide Disclosed A Poor Detroit Girl Who Had Eloped, Presumably With a Married Man – No Trace of the Latter Yet Discovered

By Telegraph to the Times DETROIT (Mich.) Dec. 3 – [Special]

The identity of Miss Lottie Anderson Bernard, who committed suicide on Tuesday night at San Diego, Cal. is now established from the description given. She is Miss Lizzie Wyllie of No. 102 National avenue, this city. Mrs. Elizabeth Wyllie, who lives at the above number, has received a dispatch from relatives in San Diego, which identifies the dead girl as her daughter. The description of her clothes tallies with those worn by Lizzie Wyllie when she left here some five or six weeks ago. The suicide has two moles on her left cheek; she had a ring on a finger of the left hand and another ring was found in one of her pockets. Mrs. Wyllie says that her daughter was marked as stated in the dispatch, and had the rings spoken of. The Detroit police were asked for a description of Lizzie Wyllie, and the description tallied in almost every detail with that of the drowned woman.

Lizzie and her sister May were employed in Winn & Hammond’s book bindery until about a month ago, when they were both discharged. Miss Lizzie Wyllie, the dead girl, was discharged because she was too intimate with John Longfield, who was also discharged. A hew days before Lizzie left her home, Longfield called at the house and said he was going to California. Before Lizzie disappeared she had said she was going away and look for work and might go as far as California. The police state positively that Lizzie and Longfield went away together. His is a married man.

Mrs. Wyllie, mother of Lizzie, says: “ I have relations in both San Diego and Pasadena. The ones at San Diego have not seen Lizzie since she was a little girl, and she is not 24 years old, the age given in the original dispatch from San Diego. I have telegraphed my friends in Pasadena, who know Lizzie well, to go down and take care of her remains.” Longfield’s whereabouts are unknown. The family cannot explain the money said to have been found on the body, nor Lizzie’s connection with the Hamburg (Iowa) bank.

San Francisco Chronicle HER NAME WAS WYLLIE Identity of the Coronado Suicide She Eloped With a Married Man The Dead Girl Was a Bookbinder of Detroit and Was Out of Employment

Special Dispatch to the Chronicle DETROIT (Mich.), December 5 – Driven almost to distraction by worry and shame Mrs. Elizabeth Wyllie of Detroit admitted this afternoon that it was her daughter Lizzie who was found dead with a bullet wound in her head, inflicted by her own hand, on the sands of the ocean beach at San Diego, Cal., last Tuesday night. With the stricken mother’s admission came the statement that her daughter had eloped a month before with a married man of this city. The young woman left here without a dollar and her paramour was known to have but little money.

Miss Wyllie, or “Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard,” as she signed herself at San Diego, lived here with her widowed mother and brother and her sister in moderate circumstances. The two girls worked in a bookbindery, but were laid off in September because of dull times. Lizzie became despondent and several times remarked to people that she would not remain in Detroit doing nothing. She spoke then of going even as far as California, if necessary, to seek employment. She made a long visit to her married sister in Grand Rapids and returned six weeks ago. Five weeks ago last Monday she went out ostensibly to go to town on an errand. She never returned. The anxiety of Mrs. Wyllie and her son and daughter was great. The mother is poor, and evidently depends upon her son for support. She had begged Lizzie not to leave Detroit to seek employment, for she had no money and at home she was sure of getting at least her daily food. It soon became evident to the girl’s relatives that her errand was not to secure work and that she did not go alone. By a little investigation they discovered that a Detroit man, whom they suspected, had also disappeared. He had been calling on Lizzie occasionally, but was regarded by the family merely as a friend, not as a lover.

On the Saturday before Lizzie’s disappearance this man called in the afternoon at the Wyllie house and bade them all good-by. He said he was going south and would probably reach Southern California before he returned. “I will be picking roses in California while your feet are freezing in Detroit,” he said to May Wyllie, jocosely.

For four weeks the Wyllie family watched and waited for news from Lizzie, and their suspicions settled down into the conviction that she had gone with the man who coolly and smilingly told them of his intended trip to California. They read the newspapers more closely than ever before, and finally the story of the strange suicide of “Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard” was before them.

“Mrs. Bernard,” the telegram said, was 24 years old. That was the age of Lizzie. It was in Southern California that the tragedy occurred, and there was where it was suspected Lizzie had gone. The dispatches described Mrs. Bernard as of pre-possessing appearance, and Lizzie was certainly an attractive girl. The name “L. Anderson Bernard” was suggestive of the lost daughter. The initial is that of the name of Lizzie and Anderson is the name of the married sister in Grand Rapids. So strong became the conviction that the suicide in San Diego was Lizzie that last night May Wyllie telegraphed to the Chief of Police of that city for a full description of the deceased.

This morning a dispatch was received from Undertaker Johnson of San Diego as follows:

“Height, 5 feet 6 inches; complexion, fair, but sallow; medium length black hair, two small moles on left cheek, broad features, high cheekbones, brown eyes; weight, 150 pounds; age, about 26; good teeth, plain gold ring on third finger of left hand; ring of pure gold, with four pearls and blue stone in center; black corset.”

Mrs. Wyllie read the telegram as far as the mention of the two moles and then the paper dropped from her hands. “My Lizzie; it’s my Lizzie,” she sobbed repeatedly. “What will become of me?” Not a word of reproach came from her lips upon the name of the dead girl.

John G. Longfield, a local bookbinder under whom Lizzie worked, is the man with whom she eloped. He is married, and left behind a wife and two children. Mrs. Longfield, while admitting that her husband has not been home for five weeks, says he has been at work in Cleveland all the time and is there now. The sole phase of the strange affair that cannot be explained is the fact that she was expecting money from one G. L. Allen of Hamburg, Ia. The local officers believe that the girl and Longfield had somehow secured the money by illegal means and that in her fear of the discovery of her crimes the girl killed herself.

Monday, December 5, 1892 San Diego Union NOT YET CLAIMED Remains of the Coronado Suicide Still at the Morgue

No one has yet called at Johnson & Co.’s undertaking parlors to claim the body of “Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard.” Many curious people dropped in yesterday to look at the dead girl, among them being a number of ladies. A telegram received at the undertaker’s in the afternoon from J. P. Beach, president of the bank at Hamburg, Ia., replying to a request for a description of the dead woman’s alleged husband, stated that he had never met the man, but that he thought the name was John W. Bernard. A cousin of the suicide, who resides in Pasadena, was expected to arrive in the city on last night’s train to identify the body. The mystery which has surrounded the case for the last week will probably be cleared today.

Tuesday, December 6, 1892 San Diego Union FURTHER EVIDENCE CIRCUMSTANCE TENDING TO THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE SUICIDE Incidental Proof That the Wretched Girl Was Miss Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit – No One Yet Here to Take Charge of the Remains

No one now believes that “Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard,” the Coronado suicide, is other that pretty Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit, who mysteriously disappeared from her home some six weeks ago, and for whom a diligent search has been kept up by her parents and the police of that city. All that yet remains to fully solve the mystery is the identification of the dead girl by some relative. The niece of Mrs. Wyllie, who is reported to reside at Pasadena, has not yet materialized. This, of itself, is not strange. She may have changed her place of residence recently, or subsequent to the last time of writing east and any telegrams, which might have been sent would fail to reach her. Johnson & Co. telegraphed to John W. Bernard at Wichita, Kan., on Sunday, informing him that his wife had suicided. It was a pretty cold ___ and late last night John had not seen fit to make any inquiries concerning his better half. The newspaper at that place will probably this morning announce that there is an undelivered telegram at the office of the Western Union Telegraph company for John W. Bernard.

Further advices concerning Lizzie Wyllie’s past life were received at this office yesterday. She lived with her mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Wyllie, a widow, and a brother and her sister May. The dead girl and her sister were formerly employed at a large book-bindery establishment in Detroit. John G. Longfield, a married man, was the foreman. He was so attentive to Lizzie that both he and the girl were discharged. They still continued to go together, notwithstanding that Lizzie knew he was married.

After his discharge Lizzie made a long visit to her married sister, Mrs. Anderson, in Grand Rapids, and returned to her home a little over six weeks ago. This accounts for the girl’s having several handkerchiefs marked Lottie Anderson. A few days subsequent to their return Lizzie left her home, ostensibly to go down town on an errand, and never returned. It was certain that the girl must have gone away penniless, and it soon became evident to her relatives that her errand was not to secure work and that she did not go alone. Longfield was suspected of going with her. He had been calling on Lizzie occasionally, but was regarded by the family as a friend.

On the Saturday previous to Lizzie’s disappearance, this man called in the afternoon at the home and bade them all goodbye. Mrs. Wyllie and May noticed nothing peculiar in his demeanor or in that of Lizzie. He said that he was going south and the he would probably reach Southern California before he returned.

“I will be picking roses in California while your feet are freezing in Detroit, he said to May Wyllie jocosely. His call was brief, and it was not the subject of much remarks in the household. It is now remembered that soon after his departure Lizzie put on her hat and went out. After half an hour she returned. Probably during that thirty minutes she met the man and arranged for the elopement or conveyed her clothing to an appointed place, and when she failed to return on Monday it was found that all of her scanty wardrobe was gone. For four weeks the Wyllie family waited for news from Lizzie, and their suspicions settled into conviction that she had gone with the man who coolly and smilingly told all of them of his intended trip to California. Eagerly they read the newspapers, and finally the story of the strange suicide of Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard was before them.

A reporter was an unwilling witness at the home of the dead girl when the dispatch giving a full description of the suicide was received by the mother. Mrs. Wyllie read the telegram as far as the mention of the two moles on the girl’s cheek. Then the paper dropped from her hands and a most distressing cry came as from the mother’s heart. “It’s my Lizzie, it’s my Lizzie,” she sobbed repeatedly. “What will become of me? Oh, it’s my girl. What shall I do? What shall I do?”

There is but little doubt that Longfield persuaded the girl to follow him to this state. The family can solve the Hamburg part of the tragedy in no way, except that Longfield was at Hamburg under an assumed name and sent Lizzie the $25. If this be the case, who came to California with her, with whom did she have a quarrel at Orange, and who was the man that left her at that point? Who was the dead girl expecting at Hotel del Coronado? Not a brother, but one Longfield. If the truth were known, Allen of Hamburg may have played a leading part in the dastardly affair himself. Longfield is known at Detroit as a sport, and a rounder of not the best reputation even for one of his class.

Lizzie’s body is yet at Johnson & Co.’s undertaking parlors. Late yesterday afternoon she was dressed in black. Her face looked as natural and peaceful as though she were asleep at home, not at the morgue. A telegram has been sent to Mrs. Wyllie asking what shall be done with the remains. An answer is excepted today. The three trunks at the Santa Fe depot, of which mention was made several days since, have not yet been claimed.

San Francisco Chronicle HER NAME IN DOUBT Mystery of the Coronado Suicide The Detroit Identification Questioned Many Reason to Believe That the Woman Was Not Lizzie Wyllie

There appears to be still some mystery about the Coronado suicide. Sunday morning the CHRONICLE printed a story from its Detroit correspondent tending to show that the dead woman’s name of Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard was assumed and that she was in reality Lizzie Wyllie, a girl who had left Detroit to join John A. Longfield, a married man of that place, presumably in California. Lizzie Wyllie’s mother, it will be remembered, based her identification of the suicide on two small moles on the left cheek. She said nothing about the rings on the dead woman’s fingers. That account of the matter contained this sentence: “The sole phase of the strange affair that cannot be explained is the fact that she was expecting money from G. A. Allen of Hamburg, Ia.” So far as Lizzie Wyllie’s relatives knew she had no acquaintance with Allen, or, indeed, with any one of the Iowa town mentioned.

Further inquiries made in Detroit and Hamburg, Ia., leave the matter of identity again in doubt. The report from the latter place, especially, is entirely at variance with any of the theories yet advanced, while in the city where Lizzie Wyllie lived there is growing doubt of the identification. - - - - - - - - - - - Special Dispatches to the Chronicle HER HUSBAND A GAMBLER People in Hamburg Disbelieve the Wyllie Story

HAMBURG (Ia.), December 5 - It is not believed here that Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, who killed herself at Coronado, was Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit. It was learned that there was recently in this place a man named L. A. Bernard, a professional gambler, and he is believed to be the suicide’s husband. Bernard left Hamburg November 7 for Topeka. He said his wife was sick in California and he intended to bring her back to Iowa. He tried to borrow money for that purpose, but failed. No word had since been received from him. G. L. Allen of this place, to whom the woman telegraphed for money, was a schoolmate of Bernard’s in Illinois, and had never met Mrs. Bernard. Simply out of charity he sent her $25. Therefore, it is strongly believed here that the Detroit identification is a mistake. - - - - - - - - - - - POINTS TO BE EXPLAINED The Dead Woman Neither Acted Nor Spoke Like a Bindery Employee.

SAN DIEGO, December 5 – There are some points about the Coronado suicide to be explained before the Detroit story can be fully accepted. How did the woman come to have a handkerchief marked Lottie Bernard? And then the alleged plea for forgiveness on the train. What had she done that such a man such as Longfield, assuming he was her companion, should forgive? Why is a man in Mount Vernon, N. Y., inquiring about the suicide if she was really Lizzie Wyllie? People here are asking these questions, and there are still others.

The clerks at the Hotel del Coronado speak of the dead woman as better educated than the usual run of bookbindery girls and more refined than one who had been discharged for being intimate with a man would likely to be. Furthermore a bookbindery girl running away with a fellow workman would hardly go to fashionable places like the Hotel Brewster or the Hotel del Coronado. They would seek a hotel more suited to their class. She is said, also, to have spoken with more familiarity of the Place in San Francisco and of the Westminster and Nadeau in Los Angeles than would be expected of a factory girl only a month from Detroit. - - - - - - - - - - - LONGFIELD HEARD FROM A letter From Miss Lizzie Wyllie That May Clear Up the Case

DETROIT, December 5 – Doubts as to the identity of the Coronado suicide are growing deeper as later developments come to light. That there was a remarkable similarity of dress, etc., between the dead girl and Miss Lizzie Wyllie is only a coincidence may yet be proved. And the next question will be, Where is Miss Wyllie?

Mrs. Longfield addressed a letter to her husband in Cleveland on Saturday. As she does not know his address she sent it to the general delivery. This morning she received the following dispatch from him in reply: “I received a letter from Miss Wyllie last Wednesday. Will send it on at once. There is no truth in it.”

Longfield does not say where Miss Wyllie was when he heard from her, but the letter he speaks of will perhaps make matters clearer. It is hardly possible that Mrs. Longfield will get it before tomorrow. The body of the suicide woman was found on the beach last Tuesday morning. Longfield says in his telegram that he received a letter from her Wednesday. It takes a letter about a week to come from California, so Miss Wyllie could have committed suicide in the meantime.

Miss Wyllie’s brother received a telegram from San Diego today saying that the dead woman wore black lisle thread underclothing, which corresponds to his sister’s garments.

San Diego Union NOT YET FULLY DETERMINED The Coronado Suicide’s Identity Still a Matter of Conjecture

On Monday Undertaker Johnson sent a photograph of the dead girl supposed to be Lizzie Wyllie, to Mrs. Wyllie at Detroit. He wrote a minute description of the girl and her clothing, noting in addition, to the points already published, that the girl’s ears had never been pierced for earrings, and that she carried a large Canadian penny for a pocket-piece. In examining the girl’s effects Mr. Johnson noticed that the handkerchiefs, instead of being marked "Lottie Anderson,” as stated at the inquest, were marked plainly “Louisa Anderson.” Mrs. Anderson of Grand Rapids, Mich., Lizzie Wyllie’s aunt, with whom she visited before disappearing, will be asked as to her given name, and if it is Louisa instead of Lottie, the last doubt will be removed as to the dead girl’s identity. Mr. Johnson yesterday heard from Mrs. Wyllie, asking him to hold the body until she received the photograph, which will be next Saturday. The following dispatch appeared in the evening papers yesterday:

HAMBURG, Ia., Dec. 6 – It is not believed here that Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, who killed herself at Coronado, was Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit. It was learned that there was recently in this place a man named L. A. Bernard, a professional gambler, and he is believed to be the suicide’s husband. Bernard left Hamburg November 7 for Topeka. He said his wife was sick in California and he intended to bring her back to Iowa. He tried to borrow money for that purpose, but failed. No word had since been received from him. G. L. Allen of this place, to whom the woman telegraphed for money, was a schoolmate of Bernard’s in Illinois, and had never met Mrs. Bernard. Simply out of charity he sent her $25. Therefore, it is strongly believed here that the Detroit identification is a mistake.

The story is not believed in San Diego. On the contrary, it strengthens the opinion that somehow Allen is more deeply interested than to the extent of $25, and has invented the above as a blind. A San Diego man, who happens to know Allen, says he is a man of some wealth, a sport and a lady-killer.

The situation in this mysterious case resolves itself to this – either Allen is a consummate liar and had dealings with Lizzie Wyllie, which he is trying to conceal, or the girl lying on a slab at the morgue here is Mrs. L. A. Bernard, the wife of a gambler.

Los Angeles Times THE CORONADO SUICIDE The Detroit Identification Now Thought to Be a Mistake

HAMBURG, Ia., Dec. 6 – It is not believed here that Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, who killed herself at Coronado, was Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit. It was learned that there was recently in this place a man named L. A. Bernard, a professional gambler, and he is believed to be the suicide’s husband. Bernard left Hamburg November 7 for Topeka. He said his wife was sick in California and he intended to bring her back to Iowa. He tried to borrow money for that purpose, but failed. No word had since been received from him. G. L. Allen of this place, to whom the woman telegraphed for money, was a schoolmate of Bernard’s in Illinois, and had never met Mrs. Bernard. Simply out of charity he sent her $25. Therefore, it is strongly believed here that the Detroit identification is a mistake.

San Francisco Chronicle NOT LIZZIE WYLLIE THE CORONADO MYSERY ABOUT SOLVED Mrs. Bernard, Who Committed Suicide, Was an Iowa Gambler’s Wife

Special Dispatch to the CHRONICLE DETROIT (Mich.), December 6 – Miss Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit and Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, who committed suicide at San Diego last week, were not the same persons. The Wyllie girl is alive and in Toronto and Mrs. Bernard is supposed to have been the wife of a Hamburg, Ia., gambler. She had been in California for some time. G. L. Allen, who telegraphed her $25 on November 25th, did so because he was a schoolmate of Bernard.

As he promised in his dispatch of yesterday, Longfield, whose name has been associated with Miss Wyllie’s disappearance, inclosed to his wife a letter from Miss Wyllie, dated Toronto, in which she says she is not coming home.

This almost completely severs the connection between Lizzie Wyllie and the San Diego suicide and indicates that Lizzie left home on account of trouble with her family and did not wish to let them know where she was.

The Wyllie girl worked in Toronto several years ago and has a great many friends there, and the natural conclusion from her letter is that she is working in some store at that place, as bookbinding is her trade.

Thursday, December 8, 1892 Los Angeles Daily Times A MYSTERY SOLVED Identity of the Coronado Suicide Established She Was Known as Mrs. Katie Logan in Los Angeles, Where She Worked as a Domestic in Several Families. Said to Have Been the Wife of a Gambler, Who Had Deserted Her – Her Departure for San Diego on the 23rd of November.

It has been left to Los Angeles to unravel the dark mystery surrounding the suicide of the unknown girl at the Coronado Hotel. Everything points to the fact that she lived in this city, where she was known as Mrs. Katie Logan, and she left here for San Diego the day before Thanksgiving, and had no baggage except for her little gripsack and the shawl that has been written about so much.

The young woman’s trunk and baggage are now at Mrs. Grant’s, No. 917 South Hill Street, where she was last seen. When she left, on the 23rd of last month, she stated that she would be back in time for Thanksgiving dinner, but not a word has been heard from her since. Mrs. Logan came here from Omaha about two months ago, and stated that her parents lived near that place. She stated that her husband was a gambler, but she did not know what had become of him.

She visited several employment agencies and first secured work as a domestic in R. M. Widney’s house and from there she went to work for T. H. Hughes. Shortly before she disappeared she got employment at Mrs. Grant’s, No. 917 South Hill Street.

The day before she left this city she was anxious to get some papers signed, and seemed to be greatly worried about something, but what it was no one seems to know.

She wore the same ring as described in the dispatches, and the black underclothes are the same. Not only that, but Mrs. Logan had two moles on the left side of her face, and the unfortunate suicide at Coronado answers the description in every way. She also told several persons in this city that her name was Lizzie, but that she liked the name of Kittie better, and that was the reason she adopted it.

It is believed that she came to Los Angeles from San Francisco, where she probably worked awhile after she reached the Coast. At any rate, she was well posted in San Francisco and knew all about the hotels and public places, showing that she must have lived there. The San Diego authorities were considerably puzzled over the young woman’s knowledge of the streets and public buildings of Los Angeles and San Francisco, but it is plain now, for she certainly worked here and she must have lived in San Francisco. While in this city Mrs. Logan bore an excellent reputation. She attended strictly to her duties all the time, and she was never out at night, and, so far as is known, she did not have any men around her the whole time she was here.

Even on the day of her departure for San Diego she seemed to be in fairly good spirits, and promised faithfully that she would be home next day in time to cook the Thanksgiving dinner. The mystery that now surrounds the case is the paper she wanted to get signed or sworn to the day before she left. If that paper could be found the whole mystery would be cleared up. From her conversation, she was fairly well educated, and as her husband was a gambler she has done considerable traveling and has spent considerable of her life in the best hotels, which accounts for the fact that she was so much at home in the swell hotels of San Diego.

The Evening Press, Los Angeles IS SHE THE WOMAN? The Strange Suicide at the Coronado Still a Mystery

On Thanksgiving day, L.A. Grant, who resides at 917 South Hill Street, reported at police headquarters that a young woman named Mrs. Katie Logan, a domestic in the Grant Household, was missing. The woman, whose former husband was a gambler, was described as being very pretty. When she disappeared, she left all her worldly possessions at Mr. Grant’s house.

Friday, December 9, 1892 San Diego Union THE GAMBLER’S WIFE Her Life in Los Angeles Previous to Suicide

The girl who committed suicide at Hotel del Coronado has made lots of trouble by burning her letters and papers. She has been almost positively identified twice, and her personality is again in doubt. She is not Lizzie Wyllie, who is living with her paramour in Ontario, Canada. The question is, is she Mrs. Bernard? Little doubt exists that she is wife of the Iowa gambler. Chief of Police Breuning received a telegram from Chief of Police Glass of Los Angeles yesterday, saying there was small doubt that the suicide was Mrs. Kate Logan of Los Angeles. The Times of that city contained yesterday the details of the disappearance of “Kate Logan” the day before Thanksgiving, and her life in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Times THE CORONADO SUICIDE Additional Evidence That It Was Mrs. Kate Morgan Her Trunk Removed to the Police Station – Efforts to Conceal Her Identity – What Mr. Grant Says About Woman

The trunk left by Mrs. Kate Morgan, the young woman who met her death at her own hands at the Coronado Hotel, at Contractor Grant’s, where she worked, was removed to the central police station by order of Chief Glass yesterday.

On opening the trunk further evidence than that given by The Times yesterday, of her identity, was found.

It will be remembered that just before the unfortunate girl took her life by her own hand, she telegraphed to a gentleman in Hamburg, Iowa, for money, and the authorities believed that she was related to him and he was notified of her death, simply stating that he knew her husband, who was a gambler, and that he wired her $25 out of sympathy. For some reason he denied that he knew anything further about the case.

From a marriage certificate found among her effects, it is certain that Hamburg was her home. She was married in that place to Thomas E. Morgan by Rev. W. E. Howes, on the 30th of December, 1885, and her maiden name was Miss Katie K. Farmer.

She has only been on the Coast a few months, and, as near as can be learned, she worked for W. T. Farmer, a supposed relative, at Hanford, Tulare county. Her route has been traced by the police from Chicago to Omaha, to Cheyenne, to Ogden, to Sacramento and to Hanford, where she remained some time and then came to this city, after getting a letter of recommendation from Mr. Farmer.

From the condition of the papers, photographs, etc., in her trunk, she was desirous of concealing her identity as every name, date and address, except the marriage certificate, had been destroyed.

Chief Glass telegraphed the chief of police of San Diego asking if the body had been identified and buried, or had been shipped off. The San Diego officer replied that the body is still unclaimed in Johnson’s undertaking rooms. A dispatch was also sent to Mr. Farmer of Hanford, but up to a late hour no word had been received from him.

Mr. Grant was seen by a Times reporter yesterday afternoon, and stated that he and his family are positive that Katie Morgan and the San Diego suicide are one and the same person. He knows that she started for San Diego on the 23rd of last month, and the dead girl’s description corresponds in every way with his former servant. None of the other servants about the house could induce Katie to talk about her past life to any great extent. She told them that she married a gambler and that she was not happy with him. Mr. Grant never had a better servant in his house, and when she failed to return on Thanksgiving day as she promised, Mr. Grant at once reported the matter to police, and detectives have been working on it ever since.

There has been considerable mystery surrounding the telegraphic report that the woman possessed $1600 when she committed suicide. This report grew out of a common mistake in telegraphic figures. The Coroner at San Diego found $16 on her person and the sum was raised to $1600 in the dispatches.

San Francisco Chronicle THE GIRL SUICIDE KATE MORGAN PROBABLY HER NAME New Facts Which May Tend to Clear Away the Coronado Mystery

Special Dispatch to the CHRONICLE LOS ANGELES, December 8. – There appears to be little doubt that the girl who recently committed suicide at the Coronado Hotel in San Diego was Mrs. Kate Morgan, who worked for Contractor Grant in this city, and left for San Diego the day before Thanksgiving. Mrs. Morgan came here from Omaha about two months ago and stated that her parents lived near that place and that her husband was a gambler, but she did not know what had become of him. She visited several employment agencies and first secured work as a domestic in R. M. Widney’s residence, and from there she went to work for T. H. Hughes. Shortly before she disappeared she obtained employment at Mrs. Grant’s, 917 South Hill street.

The day before she left this city she was anxious to get some papers signed, and seemed to be greatly worried about something, but what it was no one seemed to know. From a marriage certificate found among her effects it is certain that Hamburg, Ia., was her home.

She was married in that place to Thomas E. Morgan by Rev. W. E. Howes on December 20, 1885, and her maiden name was Katie K. Farmer. She had only been on the coast for a few months, and, as near as can be learned, she worked for W. T. Farmer, a supposed relative, at Hanford, Tulare county.

Her route has been traced by the police from Chicago to Omaha, to Cheyenne, to Ogden, to Sacramento and to Hanford, where she remained some time and then came to this city, after obtaining a letter of recommendation from Mr. Farmer. From the condition of the papers, photographs, etc., in her trunk she was desirous of concealing her identity, as every name, date and address except the marriage certificate had been destroyed.

Los Angeles Herald NOT THE CORONADO WOMAN, BUT PLENTY OF MYSTERY ABOUT MRS. MORGAN The Contents of Her Trunk Throw No Light on the Matter. Her Photograph Shows She Did Not Resemble The Coronado Hotel Suicide – Her Marriage Certificate – Other Details.

A trunk marked “Mrs. Kate Morgan” was taken to the central police station yesterday from the house of L. A. Grant, 917 South Hill Street. Mr. Grant stated that Mrs. Morgan had been employed in his house as a domestic and that on the evening of November 23rd she left, stating she would return the next day. She took only a satchel, leaving her trunk of clothing. She did not return. The sudden disappearance was reported at the central police station but no clue was found of the missing woman.

In her trunk was found a tin box marked “Louisa Anderson.” In the box were several photographs. One was that of a man aged about 50 years, with a full beard, tinged with gray; another was of a man aged about 35 years, black mustache, black hair, thick skull, and who looked something like a sporting character. This is perhaps the picture of her husband, who had deserted her. There were also photographs of two boys, aged about 9 and 10 years; the photograph of a girl of about 2 years; and still another of a babe.

In a paper was a lock of pretty blond hair. On the paper was written, in rather coarse characters, “Elizabeth A. Morgan’s hair.” On the reverse side of the photograph of the old gentleman, the name was scratched off but the written word “Visalia” was left. On two other photographs the names had been carefully erased.

A letter was found in the box recommending Mrs. Morgan as an honorable and trustworthy woman and signed by W.J. Farmer, Hanford, California. The photograph of the old gentleman is no doubt that of Framer, and he is perhaps her uncle.

There were also found the cards of several ladies, together with their addresses, where no doubt she had been sent for work. These were Mrs. J.H. McDonough, San Rafael; Mrs. M.R. Abbott, Fifth and Mission, San Francisco; Mrs. Ottinger, 602 Stock Exchange, San Francisco.

A cabinet size photograph of Mrs. Morgan, found among the others, shows her to be a woman of about 26 years of age, black eyes, large ears, rather large, open face, and somewhat coarse features; her mouth is rather large and lips thick. The photograph contained not marks, and had evidently been taken recently. The photograph does not denote the appearance of a woman accustomed to stopping at first-class hotels as a guest, or one who wears lace shawls; neither does it show her to be pretty, and the features are not those of a highly educated woman.

Saturday, December 10, 1892 San Diego Union NO LONGER A MYSTERY IDENTITY OF THE CORONADO SUICIDE CLEARLY ESTABLISHED Bernard an Assumed Name – Married to a Gambler at Hamburg, Ia. – A Domestic at Los Angeles But Marked “Louisa Anderson.”

The trunk of Mrs. Kate Morgan, who had been missing from Los Angeles since November 23rd. was opened in that city Thursday, and the contents revealed beyond reasonable doubt that Kate Morgan and “Mrs. L. A. Bernard,” who committed suicide at Coronado are the same person. A tin box was found marked “Louisa Anderson,” which is the same name as that marked on the suicide’s handkerchiefs. Photographs and a lock of hair were found. The photograph of Mrs. Morgan was among the lot, and the Los Angeles Herald says that the picture does not resemble the description of the Coronado suicide. Yet other evidence is too strong to admit doubt as to the identification. A marriage certificate was found setting forth Thomas E. Morgan and Kate K. Farmer were united at Hamburg, Ia., on December 30, 1855, by Rev. W. E. Howe. From data found, the history of the unfortunate woman will be learned.

She was employed as a domestic by L. A. Grant of Los Angeles. She was very reticient about her past life, merely saying that she had married an gambler and was not happy with him. The Los Angeles Times says:

“She had only been on the coast a few months, and, as far as can be learned, she worked for W. T. Farmer, a supposed relative at Hanford, Tulare county. Her route has been traced by the police from Chicago to Omaha, to Cheyenne, to Ogden, to Sacramento, and to Hanford, where she remained some time and then came to this city, after getting a letter of recommendation from Mr. Farmer. From the condition of the papers, photographs, etc. in her trunk, she was desirous of concealing her identity, as every name, date and address, except her marriage certificate, had been destroyed.”

A telegram was sent to Mr. Farmer at Hanford and his answer is awaited for instructions as to the disposal of the remains. The connection of G. L. Allen of Hamburg with the case is still a mystery. He knew the name “Bernard” was assumed, as the gambler husband was at Hamburg a month ago under the same name, and Allen said he was an old schoolmate.

In all probability, the unfortunate woman will be buried here.

Sunday, December 11, 1892 Los Angeles Times THE FACTS - CORONADO Further Information as to the Identity of the Coronado Suicide

The only developments in the Bernard suicide case yesterday was the receipt of the following letter:

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 9, 1892 Coroner of San Diego

DEAR SIR: I see by this morning’s Times that the suicide at Coronado hotel is Mrs. Kate or Tom Morgan. If this is true, I have known her ever since ’69. Joe Chandler of Riverton (a miller) is her grandfather, and I think if informed of her death would see that she got a decent burial. Tom Morgan, Sr., her husband’s uncle, lives near Hamburg, Ia., and is quite wealthy. Her husband has a number of wealthy relatives.

My excuse for writing is that it may be of some use to you to know about her relatives. I left there last November. Yours, etc.

A. D. SWARTS

Telegrams were accordingly sent to the parties named, asking for instructions for disposing of the body.

The number of visitors at Johnson’s undertaking parlors to view the girl is as large as ever. The visitors are mostly ladies.

The three trunks at the D-street depot supposed to have belonged to the girl have been claimed by the owners. No doubt now remains but that the suicide is Mrs. Kate Morgan.

Monday, December 12, 1892 San Diego Union HE OWNS HER The Grandfather of the Unfortunate Suicide Will Bury Her

Final instructions regarding the disposal of the remains of the young woman who committed suicide at Coronado were received yesterday, as follows:

RIVERTON, IA., Dec. 11, 1892 Johnson & Co., San Diego Your telegram received regarding Kate Morgan, nee Farmer. Bury her and send me statement. J. W. Chandler

Mr. Chandler is the wealthy grandfather of the unfortunate girl. None of her other relatives have uttered a word, and there is still a mystery as to the cause of her suicide. She will be buried today, just two weeks after she put a bullet in her brain.

Sunday, December 14, 1892 San Diego Union BURIED AT MOUNT HOPE

The funeral of Mrs. Kate Morgan, the unfortunate woman who committed suicide some two weeks ago at the Hotel del Coronado, took place yesterday morning at 10 o’clock at the parlors of Johnson & Co., undertakers, The Rev. H. B. Restarick officiated, reading some passages of scripture and offering prayers. Several members of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew were present, and these with some ladies of the Episcopal church present made responses when the occurred in the service. Quite a number of persons were present. At the close of the service the casket was placed in the hearse for conveyance to Mount Hope Cemetery, where the body was interred.

Los Angeles Times THE CORONADO SUICIDE Her Identity as Kate Morgan fully Established – Farmer’s Letter

W. F. Farmer, the Hanford (Tulare county) man, where Katie Morgan, the Coronado suicide, lived before she came to this city, has been at last heard from by Chief of Police Glass. It will be remembered that when THE TIMES made public the identity of the mysterious Coronado Hotel suicide, while the detectives and other newspapers were floundering around the dark. Chief Glass telegraphed Mr. Farmer, as he gave the unfortunate girl a letter of recommendation but as Mr. Farmer lived out in the county the dispatch had to be forwarded to him through the mails, hence the delay for almost a week. The gentleman’s letter reads as follows:

HANFORD (Cal.,) Dec 12, 1892 Mr. J. M. Glass, Los Angeles – DEAR SIR: Your message received yesterday. I am more than surprised to hear of the tragedy. If it was Kate Morgan you can rest assured that she had no cause for committing such an act. When she left me I told her if she needed anything to send to me and I would assist her. Her people are well-to-do. Her husband, Tom Morgan, has been traveling in the interest of some manufacturing company. His home is Hamburg, Iowa. I have known them for a good many years. She wrote me soon after her arrival in Los Angeles that she has secured a situation at a Mr. Whitney’s, a banker, of the West Side. She had when she left here quite a sum of money, one large, flat-top trunk, two leather satchels and a lady’s gold watch. She said she was going to deposit her money in a national bank for safekeeping. Her relatives are Henry Brookback and Thomas Morgan, Hamburg, Iowa; John W. Chandler, her grandfather, and John Samuella, Riverton, Iowa. I cannot help but think there is some mistake about its being Kate Morgan. She was troubled with rheumatism while here, and went to Los Angeles on account of its fine climate, with the intention of living there if she liked it. You say you have positive evidence that it is her. What is it? She has a second cousin living in this county. She certainly would have written to some one if she contemplated the awful act. Yours most respectfully, W. F. FARMER

There is no doubt about the identity of the unfortunate girl. She answered the description of the Coronado suicide in every particular. That Katie Morgan intended to commit suicide when she left her employer, Mr. Grant of this city, on the 23rd of last month, there is no doubt, for she did everything in her power to conceal her identity.

She defaced or destroyed her name on all of her belongings. The name on pictures had been cut off, and she overlooked nothing except her marriage certificate, and it was through this that her identity was established.

There are several mysteries surrounding the case that may never be cleared up. If, as Mr. Farmer says, she had money when she left him, no one knows what became of it. The day before she left this city she drew up or had signed some kind of legal paper, but the persons with whom she did business are not known, and for some reason they prefer to remain in the background. If she had money she must have disposed of it in some manner on that day, and at her request the matter is probably being kept a secret. The cause of her rash act is also a mystery.

At any rate she had only $16 when she killed herself at Coronado. That her family in Hamburg, Iowa, are satisfied with the identity there can be no doubt, for the body was buried at San Diego at their expense last Saturday. The following Associated Press dispatch from San Diego, received yesterday, says:

The burial of the Coronado suicide of two weeks ago, Mrs. Kate Morgan, nee Farmer, took place at 10 a.m. Rev. H. B. Restarey, rector of St. Paul’s, read the Episcopal burial service. Many women were in attendance. Prominent ladies sent flowers for the casket, but no one followed the remains to the cemetery. The grandfather of the deceased was J. W. Chandler of Riverton, Iowa.

Friday, December 15, 1892 Los Angeles Times THE CORONADO SUICIDE Her Identity as Kate Morgan fully Established Beyond a Doubt

All question as to the identity of the unfortunate young woman who committed suicide on the steps of the Coronado Hotel at San Diego, a few weeks ago, under such mysterious circumstances, was settled yesterday.

Chief of Police J. B. Breuning of San Diego was in this city yesterday, and visited Chief Glass, who has in his possession a photograph of Mrs. Kate Morgan, which was found among her effects at Contractor Grant’s when THE TIMES announced that Kate Morgan, Mr. Grant’s missing servant girl, and the Coronado suicide were one and the same person. As soon as Chief Breuning caught sight of Mrs. Morgan’s picture he remarked “That is the woman beyond a doubt.”

As this part of the mystery is now disposed of, it will be in order for the detectives to ascertain what became of the young woman’s money, if it is true as stated by Mr. Farmer of Hanford that she had quite a sum when she left him to come to Los Angeles. She told him that she intended to deposit it in a bank, and as she had employment all the time she was in this city, and was not extravagant, she could not have spent the money.

If the detectives ascertain what disposition was made of the money, they are sure to get to the bottom of the cause of her suicide.

FARMER FAMILY INFORMATION

Thomas Farmer was born November 11, 1809 in Kentucky, and was among the early settlers of Fremont County. He ran a stage coach station in McKissick’s Grove and served as the first Postmaster. In 1868, he served as the Mayor of Hamburg. Thomas Farmer and his wife, Mary, had eleven children. George W. Farmer, Kate’s father, was the second son and fourth child born, about 1839, in Missouri.

George Farmer married Elizabeth Chandler, who was born on November 12, 1844 in Adams County, Illinois to Joseph Wilson Chandler and Mattilda Savage.

The first child born to Elizabeth and George Farmer was a daughter named Mary, who died April 13, 1866. Her date of birth is not recorded, but she was probably not more than three years old. They had a second daughter, recorded in the 1885 Iowa Census as Catherine K. Farmer, and commonly known as Kate. Her date of birth is not known, and the official records conflict. The 1870 Census records Kate living with her maternal grandparents in Madison Township with her age given as three, placing her birth around 1867. A special census of Iowa was conducted in 1885 and it shows Joseph W. Chandler, age 64, living in Riverton, Iowa along with his new wife, Maria E. Chandler, age 63, and Kate, age 18, which also places her date of birth in 1867; in a petition her grandfather filed in September of 1885, he said she had reached her majority, again placing her date of birth in 1867. All that is known for certain is all of these dates are wrong. She could not have been born after September of 1865, when her mother died at the age of twenty-one.

In another petition filed by her grandfather in August of 1879, he gave her age then as thirteen, making a birth date in September of 1865 possible.

Finally, her Marriage License taken out on December 25, 1885 indicated she would be twenty years old on her next birthday, placing her date of birth in 1864. This is probably the most accurate because it was given by Kate herself.

The death of his wife and oldest daughter just seven months apart may have been more than George Farmer could cope with. Within another year, George gave Kate to her grandparents to raise. Where he was during the years between 1867 and 1870 is unknown, but on November 9, 1870, he was appointed the Postmaster of Hamburg.

Shortly thereafter, he married Lydia Jane Burnett and had two more daughters, Evalena (Eva) – born November, 1871 and Margaret (Maggie) – born May, 1873, both in Hamburg, Iowa. Not long after Maggie’s birth, he left the area and moved to Texas. On May 24, 1874, his father, Thomas Farmer, died; probate records dated in December of that year shows George W. Farmer living in Mason County, Texas, along with his younger brother, James H. Farmer.

After George’s death, Joseph Chandler petitioned the Circuit Court in Fremont County to be appointed Kate Farmer's guardian. In a subsequent petition he filed on August 12, 1879, he described Kate Farmer as the “orphan child of George Farmer, deceased two years since in the State of Texas, as heir to the estate of Mary Farmer." He also stated that Kate had been living with him since she was two years old.

George Farmer’s widow remarried - there is a marriage license in McCulloch County, Texas dated March 28, 1878 for Lydia Jane Farmer and Henry T. Eubank; they were married on April 4, 1878. On June 2, 1880, the decennial census was taken in Brady, McCulloch County, Texas; it shows Henry T. Eubank, age 29, his wife Lidda (Lydia), age 29, and a son, James T., age 2. Also living with them is Evileme (sic) and Maggie Farmer, ages 8 and 7, respectively. They are shown as “daughter in law,” but this obviously was not meant in its usual context. On July 7, 1880 Henry petitioned the court in McCulloch County, Texas to be “appointed guardian of Evalena and Maggie Farmer, minor heirs of George W. Farmer,” with respect to their interest in the estate of their grandmother, Mary Farmer, who died in January of 1878.

On May 28, 1888, a local attorney by the name of R. K. Crandall petitioned the Circuit Court of Fremont County to appoint H. T. Eubank of McCulloch County, Texas as guardian of Evalena and Maggie Farmer for their interest in the estate of Mary Farmer. This was well after the estate had been settled, and the reason for the petition is unknown. It may have been to correct a technical deficiency in the records, because the Eubank family left McCulloch County in 1881 and moved to Ochiltree County, in the northeast corner of the Texas Panhandle. There is no evidence that either Eva or Maggie ever received any inheritance.

In 1880, Joseph Chandler received $112.76 in cash belonging to Kate Farmer as her inheritance from the estate of her grandmother. In 1885, he filed his Annual Report of Guardian:

In the Matter of the Guardianship of Kate K. Farmer, Minor Heir of G. W. Farmer, Deceased, Comes Now J. W. Chandler, Guardian of said minor heir, and reports his doings herein, since the 16th day of August, 1879, the date of his appointment, as follows, to-wit: That on July 10, 1880, he received and was charged with $112.76 cash belonging to his said ward Kate K. Farmer. That on said amount he has received the sum of $34.77 interest making total amount up to this date $146.93.

That since said date his said ward Kate K. Farmer has attained her majority and he has made full settlement with her and has paid her in full, as shown by voucher attached and marked Exhibit “A” and he now asks to be discharged from further service as Guardian of said Kate K. Farmer. Dated this 3rd day of September 1885

Kate Farmer signed a receipt in the county seat of Sidney for $146.93 as her share of the estate of Mary Farmer. She married Tom Morgan four months later, on December 28, 1885.

MORGAN FAMILY INFORMATION

Tom Morgan’s grandfather, Evan Morgan, was born about 1800 in Ohio, the son of Thomas Morgan and Elizabeth Bell, and was reared to manhood in that state before settling in Sangamon County, Illinois about 1822.

Evan Morgan died early in manhood, on the 15th of August, 1834, leaving his widow, Elizabeth, with five children: Delila, Marsena, Lyman, Mercy Jane and Thomas Orr, just one year of age. Melandus Skidmore married Elizabeth Morgan in Sangamon County, Illinois in 1839. They had three children that survived: Sarah, Nancy and Mahalia. In 1846, the Skidmore and O’Neal families all made the trip to Iowa together from Sangamon County. The party consisted of: Melandus Skidmore, his wife, Elizabeth Morgan Skidmore and their children, Sarah, Nancy and Mahalia; Elizabeth’s children by Evan Morgan: Lyman, Mercy Jane, Thomas Orr, and Delila Morgan O’Neal along with her husband, Elliott and daughter, Catherine. They all settled for a time in Atchison County, Missouri, and then in 1848 moved to Fremont County, Iowa.

Elizabeth Morgan’s oldest son, Marsena, remained behind in Illinois, staying with his grandparents. He married Purlina Austin, from Shelby County, Illinois in June of 1855. Their first child, a daughter, died at about the age of three. They had two sons born to them, Thomas Edwin in 1861 and Marsena, Jr., known as “Buck,” in 1863. Purlina died in 1869 and Marsena was left with two young sons to raise. The 1870 Census for Island Grove Township, Sangamon County, Illinois shows:

Name Age Sex Occupation

Morgan, Marcena 48 M Farmer Day, Elizabeth A. 36 F Keeping house Morgan, Thomas E. 9 M Morgan, Marcena 6 M

A household enumerated just three places away from Marsena shows:

Allen, George L. 21 M Farmer Allen, Emily H. 26 F Keeping house Allen, Elizabeth 12 F Morgan, Edward 19 M Farm laborer

In 1865, Emily Hope Dennison married John H. Allen, who had three children from his first marriage: Albert, George and Elizabeth. John died from jaundice in 1869, leaving Emily with his youngest daughter to raise. His death is recorded in the 1870 Mortality Schedule on the line just above Purlina Morgan, who died from “unknown cause.”

By 1870, Albert Allen was twenty-four years old and had left home; Emily, who was twenty-six, was living with her twenty-one and twelve-year old step-children.

In February of 1871, Marsena Morgan married Emily Allen and their first child, Mollie, was born in Sangamon County, Illinois in February of 1872. Later that year, Marsena moved his family to Fremont County, Iowa and located on the Hawley-English farm, in a portion of Madison Township known as McKissick Grove.

ANALYSIS

On December 30, 1885, Tom Morgan married Kate K. Farmer.

A son, Thomas E., was born to Tom and Kate on October 31, 1886, but the baby lived only two days and was buried in the Morgan family plot at the Utterback Cemetery, less than a mile from the family homestead.

There are no land purchases recorded in Fremont County for Tom, so he probably lived with his parents and helped farm the almost 1,000 acres his father owned in Madison Township. Court records do not support the allegation Tom was a gambler traveling the rails between 1886 and 1892. He was present and signed many legal documents in Fremont County during that time period:

1887 - The Sheriff of Fremont County personally served him with a subpoena to appear to testify in the competency hearing regarding his father’s will in April. He and Kate both signed a Quit Claim Deed in May of that year. 1888 - His father’s probate records show he bought a cow from the estate. He joined the Independent Order of Odd Fellows - if he had been known to be a professional gambler, he would not have been admitted to membership in that organization. 1889 - He bought a cemetery plot in April, and in July he signed a receipt in Sidney for his inheritance from his father. 1890 - He signed a receipt for a supplemental distribution from his father’s estate in June and in September he sold a lot he owned in Hamburg. 1891 - He was notified of the Final Report of Probate in February. 1892 - He released the mortgage on the Hamburg lot in October. Kate committed suicide in November.

The Inquest

The coroner listed all the property found in her room after her body had been taken to the mortuary. Martines Chick, the owner of the gun store, said he sold her “two-bits worth of cartridges” along with the revolver. She only needed one bullet to commit suicide – what happened to the rest of them?

There was “considerable medicine” in her room – the coroner found an empty bottle with a note attached indicating she had obtained something from the hotel druggist. The hotel druggist was not questioned at the inquest but was apparently interviewed by reporters later. He did not mention the quinine found in Kate’s room. Did she bring it with her from Los Angeles? It was not known to be a remedy for neuralgia, but it was used to induce abortions. The subject of pregnancy was not raised at the inquest but was the subject of a newspaper article the next day after another doctor examined her. He said she had delivered a child in the past, and thought the symptoms she described were consistent with pregnancy instead of stomach cancer.

A.D. Swarts

A.D. Swarts read in the Los Angeles Times the woman had been identified as Kate Morgan of Hamburg, Iowa. He wrote a letter to advise authorities of her relatives in Iowa. Swarts claimed he had known Kate since 1869. Swarts mentioned only her grandfather, Joseph Chandler, and Tom’s uncle, Thomas Orr. In his book, Alan May suggested Tom wrote this letter and used a false name. Had he conducted a more thorough investigation, he would have found Abram D. Swarts, age 36, his wife Eunice, age 31, and son Stephen, age 5, recorded in the 1885 Iowa census for Fremont County. They were living on the NE¼ Section 11, Twp 67, Range 40 in Locust Grove Township, near Riverton, Iowa. Swarts bought this land in November of 1869 and his continued ownership is verified in the county land plat drawn in 1887.

An Answer to the Question

Mildred Morgan, Tom’s daughter with Jennie Devor, died in 1978. In the years after her retirement, she sat down and wrote notes about her family. The following was written about 1961:

“Thomas Edwin Morgan first married a Kate Farmer at Hamburg, Iowa and they had 1 child – a boy who only lived a day or so and is buried back of Church in lot with my parents. Kate ran away with a step-son of Emily Hope Allen Morgan who was my father’s step-mother … Thomas Edwin Morgan rec’d a telegram about a yr. after Kate left with Mr. Allen, from authorities at Long Beach, Calif. saying identification showed woman who committed suicide … on beach there [was his wife] & what should they do with body – seems said Mr. Allen had deserted her – Dad wired back she left of her own accord and he wasn’t claiming the body. Kate’s folks lived at Hamburg but I don’t think body was ever ret’d to Hamburg.”

Since one of her step-sons, George Allen, was living on the adjacent farm, the person Mildred referred to must have been his older brother, Albert C. Allen.

This statement infers the authorities had become aware of Tom’s whereabouts before Kate’s body was buried on December 15th. If this were the case, the newspapers would surely have printed it. Perhaps they did, and did not realize it.

After receiving the letter from A. D. Swarts telling them about “her husband’s uncle, Tom Morgan, Sr.,” the newspaper said “telegrams were sent accordingly to the parties named, asking for instructions for disposing of the body.” Tom had a son, Thomas E., and strictly speaking, would have been Tom, Sr. His uncle, Thomas Orr, did not have a son named after him. Mildred’s account is confirmed by another newspaper article that has apparently gone unnoticed until now:

San Diego Union, December 17, 1892 The Town Surprised HAMBURG, Ia., Dec 16. – This town was much surprised on learning that the woman who committed suicide a few days ago at San Diego, Cal., and was supposed to have been a Detroit lady, proved to be Mrs. Kate Morgan of this place. Mrs. Morgan had not been living with her husband for several months.

HAMBURG (Ia.,) December 5 - It is not believed here that Mrs. L. Anderson Bernard, who killed herself at Coronado, was Lizzie Wyllie of Detroit. It was learned that there was recently in this place a man named L. A. Bernard, a professional gambler, and he is believed to be the suicide’s husband. Bernard left Hamburg November 7 for Topeka. He said his wife was sick in California and he intended to bring her back to Iowa. He tried to borrow money for that purpose, but failed. No word had since been received from him by his associates since he left for Kansas. G. L. Allen of this place, to whom the woman telegraphed for money, was a schoolmate of Bernard’s in Illinois, and had never met Mrs. Bernard. Simply out of charity he sent her $25. Therefore, it is strongly believed here that the Detroit identification is a mistake.

The newspapers suggested Bernard was really Tom Morgan, using an alias, but this could not be possible. Tom’s family was very prominent in the county and everyone would have known him, especially George Allen – they grew up together. His use of an alias in his own home town would have been ridiculous.

Allen said he went to school with Bernard, so there actually was a man by that name; the Federal Census of 1870 shows a L. Bernard living very close to the Allen homestead in Illinois. Even with the difference in their ages, it is very likely they attended classes together in a one-room school.

Another mystery arises from the bell boy at the Hotel saying “he was told by Joseph Jones, who also arrived at the hotel on Thanksgiving day, that [he] was a fellow-passenger in the same car from Denver with the young woman.”

This information was published in the newspaper the day after the Coroner’s inquest, so Jones obviously made the statement the day of the inquest. To the question, “Do you know anything about her, any circumstances, or the condition of her health?” the bell boy answered, “No, sir, she only told me that she had the neuralgia very bad, she was very sick; she was expecting her brother to come down.” Because the bell boy made no mention of his conversation with Jones at the time he testified, it is likely Jones relayed the information to him after he testified but before being interviewed by newspaper reporters.

The paper reported, “Jones said he had not mentioned the fact, as he was averse to being called to testify before the coroner’s jury.” Had he disclosed the information prior to the inquest, he might have been called as a witness. Why would he hesitate to give the authorities any information that might clear up the mystery? Why was he reluctant to give testimony under oath? Jones stated “the young woman was accompanied by a well-dressed gentleman.” He did not mention what must have been an obvious difference in age between the couple of ten to twenty years. He said “he did not particularly notice the couple until after reaching the coast, when they attracted his attention, and that of others in the car, by high words and bitter quarreling.” If Kate were as beautiful as has been reported, it seems likely that he must have noticed her during the two days it took to travel the 1,000 miles between Denver and Los Angeles. “This they continued for some time. The quarrel ended with her asking her companion to forgive her, which she repeated several times, but he was obdurate and angry, and at length left the train. As nearly as Jones could recollect, the man left at Orange. The lady came through to San Diego.” Jones said he “saw no more of her and thought no more of the matter until he saw her at Hotel del Coronado a day or so afterward. He said he immediately recognized her, and was sure she was the same person.” According to the newspaper account, upon arriving in San Diego, she went immediately to the Hotel Brewster to ask if her brother “and his wife” had arrived. If her companion departed the train at Orange, why would she think he had arrived ahead of her? Some accounts have her going to the Brewster on Monday, the day of her death. Witnesses who saw her that day on Fifth Street reported she walked very slowly, as if in great pain. The conductor had to help her get down from the trolley. It’s unlikely she walked the six blocks to the hotel in her condition.

But if this account were true, perhaps she was looking for the “wife.” If she had been told on the train by her lover he had found someone else, she may have gone to the Brewster to confront her. When she was told by the clerk they were not there, she said, “They must have gone on to the Coronado,” and went there instead.

Assuming Jones’ destination was the Hotel del Coronado, he probably would have gone straight there, and would have arrived and registered before Kate. But her name on the register is above his.

The December 10th issue of the San Diego Union, in a column entitled “Coronado Notes,” contains this note:

J. A. Jones leaves the Hotel del Coronado today for a week of ranch life before returning to his bungalow in India. He will be a guest of the Arnolds at Alpine.

When signing the hotel register, he indicated he was from Boston.

THE FINAL CHAPTER

Harlan County Journal, April 2, 1936 Thos. Morgan Dead

Thos. Morgan died at his home in Alma last Friday noon, following an illness of several weeks duration. Although Mr. Morgan had been in failing health, his death came quite sudden. Funeral services were held at the home last Sunday afternoon, and the body was taken to Iowa for burial. Mr. Morgan had spent a number of years in our little city, and during this time had made many friends who mourn his sudden passing. Due to the absence of the family from Alma, the Journal was unable to secure an obituary for this week but the same will be printed next week.

---

Hamburg Reporter, April 2, 1936 Brought Back For Burial

Thomas E. Morgan of Alma, Nebraska, died at his home on Friday and funeral services were held Monday at the home of his sister, Mrs. [Mollie] Seigel Pauley at this place, conducted by the Rev. D. N. Gillet, and interment was made in the Hamburg Cemetery. He lived in this community many years ago.

Thomas E. Morgan was born in Sanganmon (sic) county, Illinois, on December 3, 1961 (sic) and passed away on March 27, 1936, aged 74 years, 3 months and 24 days. He came to Fremont county when a child, moving to Nebraska fifty-five years ago. He was married to Jennie Devor at Burchard, Nebraska where they made their home until ten years ago, when they moved to Alma.

---

Harlan County Journal, April 9, 1936 Thomas Edwin Morgan

Thomas Edwin Morgan was born near Moequa in Sangamon County, Illinois, on December 3, 1861, the son of Marsena and Purlina Ann Morgan. He came to Fremont County, Iowa, with his parents when he was a child at which place he grew to manhood. About 1890 he located at Burchard, Pawnee County, Nebraska and on December 12, 1893 he was united in marriage to Jennie Devor at that place where they established their home. To this union one child was born, Jane Mildred. In 1916 they moved to Hubbell, Nebraska, and in 1922 they moved to Ragan, Nebraska, and on October 11, 1926 they came to Alma where they were residing when the death angel called at one p.m. on Friday, March 27, 1936, and took away the beloved husband and father.

The deceased had engaged in various occupations, having been a rural mail carrier at Burchard about seven years, when he was appointed postmaster there, which position he held for eight years. While living in the other localities in Nebraska he was engaged in the grain and lumber business until he came to Alma. He held the position of deputy sheriff of Harlan County for some four years and then served as traffic policeman until he was no longer able to work. In February, 1900, he gave his heart to God and placed his membership with the Christian Church at Burchard and later changed his membership to Alma.

The deceased was greatly interested in church work and served as Deacon for many years. He was always of a cheerful disposition and made friends easily and was liked by both young and old, being of a peaceful disposition himself, he always tried to bring peace and harmony out of chaos wherever possible.

In 1883, he became a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Hamburg, Iowa and later transferred his membership to the order at Ragan, Nebr. He was also a member of the Modern Woodmen, Royal Highlander and Rebekah Lodge.

Funeral services were conducted from the family home at 2:30 on Sunday, March 29th with the Rev. H. A. Boerne, local pastor officiating. Favorite hymns of the deceased were sung by the quartette. On Monday afternoon, funeral services were conducted at the home of his sister, Mrs. Mollie Pauly at Hamburg, Iowa, where Rev. D. N. Gilette, resident minister, officiated. Special music was rendered by Faye Weatherhead, assisted by Mrs. Carl Smith and Mrs. Roy Hopkins, nieces of the deceased. Interment was made in the family ground at Mount Zion cemetery, near Hamburg.

WP not the place

I have added the "original research" and "off-topic" tags to this article. Wikipedia is not the place for publishing original research, and much of what is contained in the article is not even about Ms. Morgan but rather about persons connected with her. I recommend deleting the last paragraph of the "Haunting" section as well as all the text below the reference list. Kuyabribri (talk) 21:20, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Deleted accordingly. Kuyabribri (talk) 20:02, 21 November 2008 (UTC)

Johntcullen (talk) 19:08, 14 December 2008 (UTC)

I would like to add that all the info that I deleted was in clear violation of the following Wikipedia policies: WP:NOT#OR, WP:SOAP, among others. I had no regard for who may or may not have contributed the deleted text. Additionally, user Johntcullen is in violation of WP:TPG and WP:OWN and will be warned accordingly. KuyaBriBri^Talk 23:17, 17 December 2008 (UTC)

I have also warned the user who is purportedly named Terry Girardot at his/her last used IP address for violation of WP:TPG. KuyaBriBri^Talk 23:33, 17 December 2008 (UTC)

Johntcullen (talk) 10:37, 18 December 2008 (UTC)

Administrator noticeboard

Be advised I have brought this article and talk page to the attention of Wikipedia administrators for assistance. See WP:ANI to view and/or participate in the discussion. KuyaBriBri^Talk 16:11, 18 December 2008 (UTC)

Article semi-protected

In response to the above report, and on examination of the article history, I have temporarily prevented this article from being edited by new or unregistered users. This protection is a first step towards preventing disruption to the article caused by the apparent on-going content dispute.

Editors are strongly encouraged to discuss significant or potentially controversial content changes here on the talk page before making them. The following points may be useful:

• Talk pages are for discussing improvements to the article, not for discussing the article's subject (see WP:TALK). Off-topic discussion will be removed to the page archive, and persistent offenders may be prevented from editing.
• Personal attacks and incivility are completely unacceptable, and will lead to the offending account(s) being sanctioned. Please discuss the edits, not the editor.
• All Good-faith edits to the article that enhance it with sourced, relevant content are welcome; in providing content to Wikipedia, every editor agrees to the conditions at the bottom of the edit screen, which include: "If you don't want your writing to be edited mercilessly or redistributed for profit by others, do not submit it."
• Wikipedia provides a number of mechanisms of varying formality for resolving content disputes, which can be found here. Please make use of these if necessary.

I hope this helps, EyeSerene^talk 12:11, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

Response

In response to the messages left by User:Kuyabribri and User:24.27.72.98 on my talk page, it's probably easier for me to reply here and keep everything central.

• The first decision that needs to be made is regarding the subject's notability. As a rough-and-ready indicator, a Google search on ""Hotel del Coronado" "Kate Morgan" ghost" turns up only 397 unique hits (results). This, and a quick read through a few of the sites returned and the posts above (which indicates significant disagreement about some of the facts), suggests to me that Kate Morgan may not be sufficiently notable for an article and may not in any case be possible to write about encyclopedically. From the guideline, notability is established by "significant coverage in reliable secondary sources that are independent of the subject"; the place to test this is WP:AfD...

• If the article survives AfD or you decide to continue on the assumption that it will if it gets nominated in the future, Kuyabribri noted WP:1E (which states "If reliable sources only cover the person in the context of a particular event, then a separate biography is unlikely to be warranted.") This means the article may be unsuitable for Wikipedia in its current pseudo-biographical form. There are two possibilities - either the article is renamed to more accurately reflect its subject, or it's merged in a shortened form into another article (Kuyabribri suggested Hotel del Coronado).

• Regarding the article content, I have no opinion on that other than that it should be sourced to reliable sources as mentioned above. Where there is disagreement, this can be written into the article (as long as it, too, can be sourced). Wikipedia is concerned with "verifiability, not truth" (from WP:V) - the way to resolve content disputes is not to know the 'truth', but to bring the best sources ;) Another look at the recommended dispute resolution steps might be helpful. A good starting point is to propose edits for discussion here on the talk page first, with sources that back them up.

Regards, EyeSerene^talk 09:49, 22 December 2008 (UTC)

---

First, you may be correct - under Wikipedia guidelines as stated, there is nothing special about Kate Morgan, other than she seems to be of interest to a lot of people. There may be only 397 unique hits in Google, but how many times have those pages been hit? (By the way, www.kate-morgan.com was mine - it was taken down years ago. It's been pirated and if you click the link, you go to a hard core porno website. So make it 396 unique hits.)

Kate has been the subject of several television shows, including the History Channel. I don't know this to be true, but I was told 20-20 did a segment on her.

The "Amazing Randy" did a show where walked the path from her room to where the body was found, and through his psychic powers "detected" the presence of Tom Morgan stalking Kate, and shooting her on the beach. We know which version of the story he read before "lights, camera, action!"

Mellisa Etheridge also did a show on her.

The Del and its ghost are prominently featured on a regular basis under the category "haunted" in newspapers (USA Today), magazines and the like. I even found a page on the official website of Pakistan - how weird is that?

If Wikipedia decides she is unworthy of a page, so be it. But if you do decide to carry her story, I suggest the material I have supplied be used, as it is completely verifible - the question is, who is going to verify it?

Will you go to the San Diego library and read all at the newspaper articles?

Will you go to the San Diego Historical Society, and read the Coroner's report?

Or, you can accept my representation that I have made a verbatim transcript of this material, which is more than I can say of the other would-be experts. When writing his book, Alan May skipped over sections of the Coroner's report that did not support his theory of murder (the position of the body). Even the "official" story published by the Heritage Department of the Del has several errors ... well, at least it did in the first edition. (The Del suggested a telephone call to Iowa, when in fact it was a telegram). I have pointed those errors out to Christine Donovan, but I don't know if she made the corrections in later editions or not.

I offer the additional family information as an insight into Kate Morgan's life. Tom Morgan's granddaughter supplied me the orginal photograph of Kate, with the explanation written on the back that Kate ran away with another man - a step-son of Tom's step-mother. Is it verifiable? The statement is, but not the fact ... one could only guess why a family member would notate the photograph with such a thing unless it were true.

She also gave me the ORIGINAL telegram from 1892 that notified Tom Morgan his wife had been identified as the suicide and asked for instructions as to the disposition of the remains. How reliable is that?

I believe this telegram was directed to his uncle, Thomas Orr Morgan in Hamburg, and then redirected to Tom in Burchard, Nebraska. I wonder why no note was made in the newspapers that a reply was received? According to his granddaughter, Tom essentially told them Kate left of her own, and she could get back on her own. He wasn't claiming the body. Sounds plausible, doesn't it?

I believe census records and county probate court records are reliable as well; again, who is going to verify them?

It would be sufficient, I believe, if all you did were to publish the newspaper articles and Coroner's report and let the reader draw his/her own conclusion.

One thing of which I am sure: based on this printed information, no one, without an extreme amount of exertion, will ever conclude that the dead woman in the grave is actually Lizzie Wyllie, who was duped into an extortion plot against the Spreckles by a devious Kate Morgan, who then completely disappeared from sight.

By the way, if this continues beyond the arena of discussion, I also have a photograph of Tom taken on the day of his wedding to Jennie Devor, almost exactly one year after Kate's death. He looks more like a dufus than a con man. I have photos of him as an elderly man as well. One other photo that may be of interst (should this continue) is the artist's sketch of Kate's face compared to a close-up of the photograph currently appearing on the Wiki page - the resemblence is remarkable. How would I go about getting that photo on the page?

Thanks for your consideration.

24.27.72.98 (talk) 05:03, 23 December 2008 (UTC)Terry Girardot

Anyone considering this theory should first refer to Occam's Razor for guidance.

Nomination for deletion

I will nominate this article for deletion. If the consensus is to delete, I will edit Hotel del Coronado to incorporate the gist of this article. KuyaBriBri^Talk 05:14, 24 December 2008 (UTC)