A Mother's Fight for Her Son
While recovering from surgery in Spokane, a mother discovers her son has been kidnapped; she eventually tracks him down in Olympia.
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.
Mrs. Jennie Dunham, who claims Portland as her home, through the aid of the Olympia police, has recovered possession of her 9-year-old son, who she says was kidnapped four months ago by a former husband. Mrs. Dunham was a patient in a Spokane hospital undergoing an operation for appendicitis at the time the child was stolen from a school. Since the child was moved from the school by Dunham, the mother has been searching for him in this state. She arrived in Olympia days ago, and with the aid of the police, located Dunham at a nearby town on Saturday. Mrs. Dunham went to the country and returned with the child in her possession.
“Since the child was moved from the school by Dunham, the mother has been searching for him in this state.”
Child abduction by non-custodial parents was a serious issue in the early 20th century, often resulting in complex legal and physical battles. This case highlights how regional police cooperation was critical to reuniting families before modern digital tracking existed.
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