July 7 – July 20, 1876
The Deserted Husband's Public Warning
Eight Daily Intelligencer items on a Seattle husband's notice denying his wife's debts
8 reports in The Daily Intelligencer, July 7 – July 20, 1876.
The story
Between July 7 and July 20, 1876, The Daily Intelligencer carried repeated items about a Seattle man who placed a newspaper notice disclaiming responsibility for his wife's debts after she left their home. Two of the eight reports name him as Thomas Lilly; the others do not name him, and one describes such notices as a common, legally sanctioned practice in the period. The items are inconsistent about the year of the notice itself, with headlines referring variously to 1874, 1875, and 1876, and none of the summaries quote the notice's text.
Told from the 8 reports below. The reports are the record.
The archive grouped these reports automatically, by date, place and subject.
The reports 8
- The Daily IntelligencerHusband's Public Notice Denies Responsibility for Wife's Debts
In a formal newspaper notice, a disgruntled Seattle man attempts to absolve himself of his wife's debts after she leaves their home.
- The Daily IntelligencerAn 1874 Public Shaming of a Missing Wife
A husband publishes a newspaper notice to strip his spouse of financial agency after she leaves their home.
- The Daily IntelligencerSeattle Husband's Notice Denies Responsibility for Wife's Debts
A curt, Victorian-era public notice posted in a Seattle newspaper marks the formal end of a marriage through a declaration of non-responsibility.
- The Daily IntelligencerThe Deserted Husband's Public Ultimatum
In a 1876 notice, Thomas Lilly takes to the press to publicly disavow his wife's debts after she leaves their home.
- The Daily IntelligencerA Public Shaming in 1876 Seattle
A husband takes to the pages of the local newspaper to publicly disavow his wife, a common, legally sanctioned form of domestic surveillance in the late 19th century.
- The Daily IntelligencerAn 1875 Public Shaming in Seattle
A husband publishes a newspaper notice to strip his wife of her financial agency after she leaves their home.
- The Daily Intelligencer1876 Notice Cuts Off Wife's Credit After She Leaves
A husband in 1876 takes to the local press to declare his financial independence from his runaway wife.
- The Daily IntelligencerThe Unilateral Disclaimer of a 19th-Century Marriage
Publicly declaring he would no longer be responsible for his wife's debts, Thomas Lilly placed this notice in the newspaper to formally signal a separation in pioneer Seattle.
From the pages
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 7, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 10, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 11, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 12, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 15, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 18, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 19, 1876
The Daily Intelligencer · Jul 20, 1876
Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Public domain.