1925: Mystery woman leaves fortune to unknown heirs

What would you do if you inherited a fortune from a mysterious, long-lost relative? This thought exercise was on track to become reality in 1925, as attorneys searched the Ozarks for the unknown heirs of a wealthy Chicago woman.

Newspapers also scrutinized the options available to Southeast Missouri’s unsheltered, elderly and disabled residents in 1950, and covered two consecutive rockslides on a local railroad.

No issues available: Feb. 22, 1925; Feb. 23, 1975.

SATURDAY

75 years ago

Feb. 22, 1950

• Butler County’s farm for indigent persons failed health inspections last year, and its patients were recently relocated to nursing homes and other facilities. This led the Daily American Republic to investigate how other counties cared for unsheltered, impoverished, elderly and disabled residents with nowhere else to go.

It was found Ripley, Wayne and Carter counties make no provisions for them, leaving people to rely on family, friends or neighbors. Dunklin and Stoddard counties operate modern county homes costing $40 and $20 per resident per month, respectively. The Stoddard County home cultivates an extensive garden and sells livestock each year to reduce costs.

50 years ago

Feb. 22, 1975

• The Cotton Boll Council and Girl Scouts are teaming up for a massive tea party. Over 600 past Girl Scout leaders can expect invitations in the mail for the Hidden Heroines Tea on March 9. Past leaders who don’t get an invitation are also welcome.

SUNDAY

100 years ago

Feb. 23, 1925

• Stoddard County apprehended the two men responsible for the hit-and-run death of a Dexter preacher.

Sherman Tippett, 40, of Advance and Curtis Tucker, 30, of Gideon were arrested yesterday in connection with the killing of Rev. C.O. Fitzpatrick, whose body was found in the road between Dexter and Bernie on Feb. 11. He was apparently refilling his radiator when he was struck by a vehicle. Witnesses sighted a bloodied car some distance from the accident but details were scarce, and a regional manhunt ensued.

Tippett is the accused driver and Tucker was a passenger. Tucker confessed to a friend who later shared the information, which made its way to police. They arrested the men yesterday.

(Editor’s note: Fitzpatrick was also called Kirkpatrick in previous editions.)

75 years ago

Feb. 23, 1950

• Missouri Pacific’s fast train between Texas and St. Louis derailed last night after striking a boulder that fell onto the track from a cut rock face. The accident occurred near Gad’s Hill, 46 miles north of Poplar Bluff. Both diesel engines and the baggage car overturned, but neither passengers nor crew were injured.

MONDAY

100 years ago

Feb. 24, 1925

• A wealthy “mystery woman” has died and her heirs might be somewhere in Southeast Missouri.

Minnie Price, who also went by the married name Minnie Crowley, had over $20,000 when she passed away in Chicago recently. On her deathbed, she told a priest the names of her father and two half-sisters: Joseph Price, and Rose and Maggie Skaggs. She also said she was born near Powhatan, Arkansas in 1870.

The Skaggs sisters’ whereabouts are unknown, though Maggie was reportedly last heard from in Wisconsin. Probate genealogist W.C. Cox is traveling the Ozarks in search of Price’s heirs. He’s discovered she was a waitress in Poplar Bluff in 1886 and later a domestic servant in Little Rock. She and her known relatives have reportedly lived across Southern Missouri and Northeast Arkansas.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, $20,000 in 1925 is roughly equivalent to $369,000 today.

75 years ago

Feb. 24, 1950

• The Gad’s Hill railway rockslide was cleared just in time for a second one yesterday afternoon. The DAR reported trains were being rerouted to other lines while Missouri Pacific dynamited “any rock in the cut that looked at all suspicious” and cleared the debris with bulldozers.

50 years ago

Feb. 24, 1975

• Safecrackers struck Bell City High School over the weekend, taking about $1,400. Deputies believe the burglars entered through an unlocked study hall window and used a cutting torch on the safe. They also opened a soft drink machine and teachers’ desks.

Stoddard County Sheriff Ralph Mouser urged businesses to watch for singed bills, since the torch probably scorched the stolen money.