The Bismarck Lodge Brawl
A disagreement over lodge business turns into a physical altercation between two Tacoma women, leading to a police warrant.
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.
With the swearing out of a warrant yesterday afternoon for the arrest of Mrs. William Heath, of Bismarck, there came to light the story of a lively duel fought in the streets of Bismarck last Sunday between Mrs. Heath and Mrs. Paul Stoltz. The warrant was sworn to by Paul Stoltz, a Tacoma bartender and husband of one of the combatants, before Justice Frank Graham. Heath, husband of the other alleged duelist, appeared immediately and placed $100 cash bail in the hands of the justice in lieu of the arrest of his wife. Both women are members of the Maccabees' lodge, and the duel is said to have started over a disputed lodge matter. As a result of the free-for-all, Mrs. Stoltz is confined to her home under the care of Dr. Pearsall.
“The duel is said to have started over a disputed lodge matter.”
Public altercations between community members were often sensationalized in the press of the time. This incident highlights how fraternal lodges, which were pillars of social life in 1910s Tacoma, could be the settings for intense local conflicts that spilled into the public sphere.
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