The Divorce of the 'Pretty Little Cripple'
A husband’s suit for divorce against his wife, whom he accused of erratic behavior and opium use, reveals a harrowing counter-claim of domestic abuse in 1893 Seattle.
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.
The divorce suit of F. J. Wilder, a ticket broker formerly of this city but now of Chicago, against his pretty little wife, Nellie H. Wilder, who is a cripple, was heard by Judge Humes. The divorce was granted. Under her cross-complaint, she is given $2,900 alimony from Wilder's property. Wilder filed for divorce alleging his married life was unbearable by reason of his wife's spiteful temper. He claimed she had been a confirmed opium eater, had become irritable, and on one occasion had fired a revolver out the window. In her answer, Mrs. Wilder claimed all the opium she used was medicine to allay nervous twitching in her leg, which had been amputated at the knee. She alleged that her husband had knocked her down, choked, beat, and kicked her in the most cruel manner. Neighbors and her mother testified corroborating her allegations of brutal treatment. A letter from Wilder to his wife was introduced where he states frankly that he hates her.
“He states frankly that he hates her, and accuses her of misrepresentation to him before their marriage, with consequent unhappiness.”
Divorce cases in the 1890s often served as the only public record of domestic violence, as the legal system required high burdens of proof to dissolve marriages. This case captures the raw, often tragic reality behind the 'society' reporting of the era, highlighting how vulnerable disabled women were to systemic gaslighting in the courts.
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