Unearthed: The Inglis Family (Part 1)

This story truly spans the planet. To get to Japan from Chicago, we have to start in Scotland.

Pack a bag.

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Cora: Anastasis (15)

Anastasis: Noun, from Greek. 1. A recovery from a debilitating condition. 2. Rebirth. 3. Resurrection.

I wish I could tell you that Cora Stallman’s inquest led to a dramatic court case, full of more characters, searing accusations, and great and deep revelations about the people around her.

I don’t have a good ending to recount because, frankly, there wasn’t one. That’s not what Cora got in the end.

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Old Ad of the Week: Million-Dollar Smile

“Red-headed dynamite, I calls her!”


I read a lot of old newspapers, which means I see a lot of old ads. Some of them are too good to keep to myself.

Source: Chicago Tribune; March 6, 1938

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Cora: The Many Secret Things (14)

Read the full Cora Stallman series here.


Aug. 31, 1925. Humboldt, IL.

“…[I]t further developed that neither Mrs. Anna Seaman nor Tom Seaman, her husband, knew of the many secret things of Miss Stallman’s life.” — Mattoon Daily Journal-Gazette, Sept. 1, 1925

Late in the last hot afternoon of August 1925, Thomas Seaman stood up from the witness chair and signaled the end of testimony in Cora Stallman’s inquest. Thomas had provided his contradictory, flawed account. His wife Anna, Cora’s sister, had revealed as little as possible. Neighbors and friends told their own stories about the ex-teacher who amused their children and gave gifts unasked. This version of Cora, true and untrue, had all been committed to paper. And now it was done.

A crowd of 300 people waited anxiously for the verdict, peeking in the town hall windows and adjusting their chairs impatiently. But before Coroner Frank Schilling could hand the case to the inquest jury, he had one last matter to discuss.

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Old Ad of the Week: As Gay as a Schoolgirl

I guess being a woman isn’t tough — well, not too tough — after all!


I read a lot of old newspapers, which means I see a lot of old ads. Some of them are too good to keep to myself.

Source: Chicago Tribune; May 16, 1948

Right-click → view image to enlarge.