The Missing Rancher Who Wasn't Murdered
A sensational report of a brutal crime vanishes when the 'victim' walks into a downtown barber shop for a shave.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
It is now clearly established that Joseph Schoenbachler, previously reported murdered in the Telegraph, is alive and well. He was traced by the police to Puyallup and is en route to either Nebraska or Syracuse, N.Y. Investigation revealed he had been having marital troubles; he had deeded his property to his wife and feared losing both her and her labor on the ranch. On Tuesday morning, he walked into Frank A. Keene's barber shop in the Korn block, looking 'dressed up and clean,' and told the barber he was leaving the state. Police Chief Jackson has officially abandoned the murder theory.
“The old man was talkative and related much concerning himself and his family affairs... He gave a full description of the property he owned, or had owned, and valued the place he lived on at $3,000.”
This 1892 story is a classic example of early yellow journalism, where a routine domestic dispute was inflated into a murder mystery to sell papers. It serves as a reminder that local news has always been susceptible to sensationalism and 'clickbait' before the term even existed.
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