Frank Fee

FEE

Posted By: Renee Rimmert (email)
Date: 10/26/2021 at 13:08:14

Centerville Citizen
Wednesday, December 26, 1883
Page 3

Suicide

At an early hour Christmas morning the town was startled by the report that Frank Fee had shot himself through the head. The circumstances of the case seem to be, that John Larson, who works for Williams & Son, came to the store on Christmas morning between sunrise and daylight to make the fires and open up and heard a strange noise on the second story but did not go up at that time. He made the fires and was doing the chores around the room and still hearing the noise, he started up to see what it was, when he saw a foot sticking over the stairway and knew it was a man. He immediately telephoned to Sheriff Gay who was there in a very short time and they went up to investigate. By this time it was daylight and several other parties had come along and stopped to see what the matter was. When they washed the blood from his face it was found to be Frank Fee.

He was laying directly in front of the door of his father's office, with his feet just over the top of the stairs, with a revolver lying at his left side with one chamber empty. He must have laid down before firing the shot, as he had on a stiff hat, which was not knocked off, as it must have been if he had fallen. The bullet passed entirely through his head, going in on the left side, a little above and in front of the ear and coming out on the other side a little back of the ear. The pistol was as Colts' six shooter revolver caliber 38. When found he was breathing hard and making a noise peculiar to people shot in that manner. Dr. Udell was immediately called by telephone, and he was carried into the office and then taken home to the residence of his father, T. M. Fee, as soon as possible, where he lived until 8 p.m., but never regained consciousness. He would have been 21 years old in May. What the motive for doing the deed could have been is hard to say. He was in good health and a young man well thought of in the community. He was rather low spirited the night before, and had bidden some of his friends good-bye saying that he was going away in the morning. He had a long talk with J. D. Joiner that night, and they parted at about 3 a.m. at the Keystone, he being in very low spirits at the time. When next seen he was found as above.

The funeral will take place at 2 o'clock p.m. to-day.

https://centerville.advantage-preservation.com/viewer/?i=f&by=1883&bdd=1880&d=01011880-12311889&fn=centerville_citizen_usa_iowa_centerville_18831226_english_3&df=151&dt=160
 

Appanoose Obituaries maintained by Renee L. Rimmert.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen