The Wycoff Letters #10: To Mrs. Russell (Lucy) Wycoff From Mabel B. Mankey

This letter and the accompanying obituary concerns the death of Glen "Bud" Mankey even though the newspaper apparently spelled his name wrong in the byline.

In his obituary it states that his wife Mabel's maiden name was Brooks so perhaps Lucy was formerly a Brooks as well. We may find out in the ensuing pages of the letter.

I hate to be insensitive to the matter but in the letter Mabel gives a step-by-step accounting of Glen's last days. 80 long days to be precise and he never once complained. Considering that Mabel was married to him for 52 years she is entitled to such a dramatic rendering.

Glenn missed the folks in Detroit and vice versa. Since he wasn't a Detroit native it stands to reason that Mabel probably was and hence the connection.

The attending physician and nurses were mentioned in the newspaper clippings and the superintendent sent Mabel a letter thanking her for the kind words.

Glenn, though dying, maintained an upbeat and happy persona up until the last moments when he uttered his dying words "Good night Mom. I'll see you in the morning." For him the morning did not come in the living realm.

I'm not sure if there is a page missing but the third page starts with lowercase and would seem to indicate as much. No matter. 570 people signed Bud's hospital registry.

John, Mildred and Al are mentioned but no significance is placed upon their names so I must assume that they are relatives known to both parties.

After the funeral Bud's brother was diagnosed with "bad cancer." Bud's own non-cancer ailment seems to have arisen from a surgery in 1971, or at least so says Mabel. Who, if possible, would like to visit Detroit if she could make it from her home in Amity, Pennsylvania.

Comments

A Dudley Randall Poem in Milestone 2

I bought this Milestone 2 poetry Magazine at a Livonia estate sale this week. Milestone was the literary publication of Wayne (State) University and this second issue dates to 1949. While I don't recognize most of the names, Dudley Randall was both a nationally known poet and the librarian for the Wayne County General Hospital at Eloise via the Wayne County Library System. The poem featured is The Southern Road which was a revised version of the completed poem from 1948 that h as a handful or two of word differences between the two. I don't know if Randall edited the poem for later collected works editions or earlier but this link features it in its likely final form in 2009. Neither version particularly enchants me but the block print in the magazine is an added bonus.

A Cabinet Card of a Dead Man Lying in Repose From Wayne Photographer Susan Doolittle

The City of Wayne, Michigan was not a large village at the turn of the 20th century so it stands to reason that there wasn't a glut of photographers practicing their trade there. As such, the 3 cabinet cards and carte de visites that I own represents roughly a quarter of the early ones. Considering that the wives of Frank Hickok and William Corlett, first Village President of Wayne, took over after Frank's death in 1892 the list grows smaller beyond those two families. Had I snagged the Doolittle dead man cabinet card I'd be even that much more Wayne-rich in photographs. Speaking of Susan Doolittle, of whom I have learned very little about, it is interesting to note that Wayne had three women photographers in an era oft dominated by men in that very field. This photograph of a corpse is a startling example of her work.

Frederick Soop: Not An Equal Opportunity Restraunteer

Detroit Free Press , March 28, 1890 If you don't want to hear a racist tale of a suburban namesake then close your eyes now. As early as 1876 Frederick Soop had left his Belleville farm once again, having done a stint at the Hawkins House in Ypsilanti during the Civil War and the City Hotel in Detroit thereafter, and ventured off to Chatham, Ontario to run the Rutley Hotel , which was conducted as a Temperance House. Detroit Free Press , August 17, 1879 In 1879 he was searching for a good restaurant or small hotel to operate. Eventually he ended up on Washington Avenue near State Street running a dining hall which he ran until around 1890. Detroit Free Press , April 16, 1890 It was in 1888 when the aforementioned racial incident occurred at his dining establishment. It was then that William H. Haynes, a black doctor, sat down with his former classmate S. W. Barkwell for dinner. The men ordered but when the food was served none was placed before Mr. Haynes who, ironically, ha...

The Nankin Township Historical Society

Search This Blog