GEORGE MONTAGUE
November 8, 1902
Arizona Republican Newspaper
A week ago The Oasis presented to its readers the shocking
intelligence that George Montague, superintendent of bridges
and building for the Sonora Railway, had been so severely
injured by an accident to his track velocipede that recovery
was impossible and that his death was expected at any hour.
Thursday evening nearly a week after the accident the
inevitable result was reached and his spirit took flight.
Mr. Montague had been in the employ of the Sonora railway
from the beginning, having been with the surveying party
which made the preliminary surveys, the locating survey
and upon the work of construction. After the road was
finished he filled successively the posts of roadmaster,
division engineer and superintendent of ridges and
buildings. He was a fine engineer and in the service
of a company which employs only the most expert talent
in that line. Nogales Oasis.
D. MOORE
November 24, 1902
The dead and mangled body of a man was found beside the
Southern Pacific track west of Casa Grande last Thursday
morning. In the absence of a local justice of the peace
an inquest was held on the following day by Justice Perry
M. Williams of Maricopa. The only witness of any value
was a man by the name of Fred Callahan, who said that he
had met the dead man whose name was D. Moore or O'Moore
at Raton, N.M. a week before.
They were beating their way on passenger trains up to the
time of the accident when they were on the trucks of the
west bound Rock Island train. When the train reached Casa
Grande Callahan got off and called to Moore to get off.
They had ridden in that position from Deming and were
exhausted. Moore did not answer him and Callahan saw
nothing more of him until his mangled body was found a
short distance west of Casa Grande.
Moore had told Callahan that he was a barber and had come
from Jefferson City, Missouri and was on his way to
Hanford, Cal. where he had an uncle living. He also
said that he had a relative or friend in Jefferson
City by the name of Ed Miles. The coroner's jury
rendered a verdict of accidental death.
Baby MORRELL
April 13, 1902
Arizona Republican Newspaper
Investigation of the mysterious death and burial of the
babe on the Morrell lot was continued yesterday by Coroner
Gray and the jury. Mr. and Mrs. Lafayette Morrell, Sarah
Morrell, the mother of the child and Lucy Morrell, a
sister, were examined and the inquest continued till
Tuesday afternoon, when it is expected other witnesses
will be present to testify. It appears from the
testimony yesterday that while there were preceding
irregularities, the death of the infant which was
always sickly was natural. Its burial was no special
secret thought there were few neighbors sufficiently
interested to be apprised of what was going on and no
attempt was made to give the incident unnecessary
publicity.
Mrs. Morrell, the grandmother of the babe, testified
that it was thirteen days old when it died and that at
midnight preceding the morning of the death she arose
to take care for it. The babe was then ill as it had
always been. Early in the morning Mrs. Morrell arose
to get breakfast and in due time called her daughter.
As she did not respond after a few minutes Mrs. Morrell
went into her room and found her daughter Sarah holding
the dead child in her arms. Sarah Morrell said that
when she awoke she found the child dead. These facts
were quite well established by all the witnesses
examined yesterday.
Sarah Morrell, when asked to name the father of the child
said that his first name was Charlie and that he was a
youth who had not yet grown a moustache or beard but
that she did not know his last name. She also said he
had left the valley previous to the birth of the child
and that his post office address was not among her
papers. The remains of the babe have been removed
to the cemetery.
End of the Inquest
April 16, 1902
The inquest upon the remains of the babe of thirteen
year old Sarah Morrell, which were found a week ago,
buried in the rear of a house in Irvine Addition where
the Morrell famliy used to live, was concluded before
Acting Coroner Gray. The babe lived thirteen days and
died the week before Christmas. It was four months
later that the irregular burial was brought to the
attention of the authorities. There was a suspicion
that the babe had been murdered and that suspicion has
not been wholly dissipated, yet there was not only no
proof of that crime but on the contrary there were
certain circumstances indicating that death was the
result of natural causes.
It was shown that the babe had been ill and the little
mother could not care for it. The jury accordingly
found that death resulted from neglect and failure to
secure the services of a physician. There have been
three sessions of the coroner's jury. Most of the time
was spent in trying to settle the question of paternity.
The girl and her mother confused the situation with a
great variety of stories. At one time she said she had
been attacked by a tramp, at another time she implicated
a crowd of boys and finally she settled down upon the
story of a lover, an American boy called Charlie. She
did not know his surname, though she had known him four
months. She said he was a frequent caller at her home
but her mother swore she never saw him.
The authorities believed yesterday that they had come
into information which would solve the problem. They
believed that what had been suspected could be proved,
the girl's step father, Fayette Morrell, was the father
of the child.
There were four new witnesses. The first was a Mrs.
Morales who was present at the confinement of the girl.
She knew nothing. The next witness was Frank Wagner, an
uncle of the girl. He said that the boy Charlie ws a myth.
He believed that Morrell was the guilty man and he said that
he had accused him of having illicit relations with the
child as long as eighteen months ago. Morrell's reply
was a laugh. He said that subsequently Morrell told
him of an incident at the house amounting to a practical
admission of his guilt. Two other witnesses testified.
They knew nothing but said that the unnatural relation
was the talk of the neighborhood.
E. MORROW
November 29, 1902
City Marshall Kinney received a telegram yesterday
from Bowie, Ariz., announcing that E. Morrow, who
lived on North Fifth Street, had been killed there
the night before, and requesting him to inform the
dead man's family. The police were unable yesterday
to find the family though they learned that some time
ago the family lived at 332 North Fifth Street. There
were no particulars in the telegram, regarding the
nature of the man's death, whether accidental, murder
or run over by a train.
JOHN MOSHER
December 7, 1902
John Mosher, an employee of the Gila Valley railway,
was killed south of here yesterday by falling in a
well. His skull was crushed by the fall. He was
repairing the pump at the time of the accident.
James Neville
April 11, 1902
Arizona Republican Newspaper
James Neville of New York died yesterday morning of
consumption after a long illness. Mr. Neville was a
jockey by profession and was well known in racing circles.
He came here very ill over a year ago. His father is a
prominent hotel man of New York and was communicated with
yesterday. Instructions were given to hold the remains
until the arrival of a brother of the dead man. Mr.
Neville was 28 years old.
