Addie’s story has been picking up steam and gaining a wider audience. This ustream video – a recording of a talk I gave in Lake Mills – has had more than 700 hits (as of September 28, 2011). In the last month, more than 7,000 people have come to my website to read about Addie.
It’s reassuring to know that so many people care about my great Aunt Addie, a beautiful 29-year-old woman, who was murdered by her husband in 1901.
And I’d like to share – with my readers – the reason that *I* am so interested in getting to the bottom of this story.
There are five primary reasons.
For starters, I’m a nut about history. And early 20th Century America is my favorite time period. When I wrote The Houses That Sears Built, I spent four years, buried in library basements across the Midwest doing research. And I loved it.
Reason #2: I grew up without grandparents or cousins or aunts or uncles (they all lived 3,000 miles away in California), and my whole life, I’ve yearned to know what it’s like to be part of an extended family. Learning about Addie and her family (my family) has helped assuage that powerful longing. Solving her murder (or at the very least, discovering the truth about this old legend) will also be very satisfying.
Reason #3: “All it takes for evil to prosper is for good men to do nothing.” While it’s true that all the principals in this 110-year-old murder mystery are dead and buried, it’s also true that evil (especially something as dark and horrific as murder) needs to be exposed to the sunlight of truth. This evil has hidden in the dark shadows for long enough. It’s time to drag it out into the bright light and learn the truth and settle the question. Evil, regardless of its specific guise, needs to be unmasked and uncovered and destroyed.
Reason #4: Addie was my great-grandmother’s little sister, and she was also the youngest daughter of Homer and Julia Hoyt, my great, great grandparents. If someone I loved had been harmed or hurt (like Addie), I’d hope and pray that there’d be someone in the world who loved family enough and/or loved me enough to take on the task of uncovering the truth about their demise. Addie was a 29-year-old woman when she was murdered. She was still a young girl. I have children that age.
Reason #5: It’s the right thing to do.
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Whenever I start to wonder if I'm doing the right thing, I revisit this picture. It always re-inspires me to push forward with Addie's case.
When I look at her face, and see the swollen lips, twisted nose and puffy eyes, I am reminded that Addie's life could not have been an easy one.
Life before and after Enoch. These photos were taken less than five years apart. She was 29 in the photo on the right.
Her life ended when she was 29 years old.
Addie was a beautiful young woman.
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Addie in her wedding gown.
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My favorite photo of all. I love the detail and the beauty and the opulence.
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Close-up of the bed.
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Close-up of my great, great Aunt Addie Hoyt Fargo
Another view of the lavish interiors of the Fargo Mansion.
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Addie's bright-white dress looks almost ethereal in this photo.
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I'm comforted to know that Addie had happy days at the mansion.
The fam departing on a buggy ride.
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I just love it that she's wearing a sailor suit.
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With a matching cap.
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Old Enoch didn't age well.
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The fam sitting in front of the house in Lake Mills, WI. Enoch is at the top, with Addie below him. Enoch's two daughters are Elsie (top right) and Mattie (lower right). Elsie (1876-1959) married a McCammon. Mattie (1883-1956) became Mattie Fargo Raber.
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close-up
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Addie loved cats.
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And the cats tolerated her.
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Addie preparing for a trip.
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Addie in profile.
Tennis anyone?
The Fargo Mansion, as photographed in 1896, 15 years after it was built.
To learn more about the mysterious death of Addie Fargo, click here.
If you have any information to add, or if you’d like to express an opinion, please leave a comment below.
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The photo of Addie in the boat — are those some buildings in the background? Houses? I see something in the top left hand corner. I am not sure if that is some sort of building. Perhaps they will help you identify the lake. Or the spot on the lake. I would guess this is Lake Mills, but I suppose it could be somewhere else. I keep going back to look at your photos. It is a fabulous collection!