The Unsolved Disappearance of John H. Wisely
A man disappears from his home in broad daylight, only for his body to be discovered days later on the shores of Elliott Bay.
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.
On the 3rd of last month, John H. Wisely, a store clerk in Astoria, procured a marriage license, and on the 5th day, he and Miss E. Brinkman of upper Astoria were married. The news of the 6th day, Monday, September 6th, was received with great surprise. Various rumors were indulged in and various theories advanced, but no one could tell that he walked out of his home about 7 o'clock, fully and unaccountably, towards the wharf. Officers were informed, a search made, and diligent inquiry instituted but to no avail. The matter was kept a secret by all except the family and intimate friends, when they reported to the Coroner last Sunday the finding of a dead body on the beach near Captain Lear's farm, last Sunday morning. The fact that there was a ring with the initials 'J. H. W.' found on one of the fingers led to the opinion that it was the body of the missing man. Although it was soon known that he wore a ring with those initials engraved thereon, Coroner Rose, William Bock, John Tate and Hans Loebbe went down to the spot yesterday morning, and before getting to where the body was lying, identified it as the remains of John H. Wisely, where they had been brought from the beach. The watch was in the shirt pocket, the watch had stopped at 9:40, a little over an hour after he had left the house. The body was brought to the Coroner's office, and, being stripped, disclosed no marks of violence. It was evident, therefore, that, whether accidental or otherwise, death had resulted from drowning. While the cause of his death must ever be a matter of mystery and sadness, it is a melancholy satisfaction to his relatives and friends to know the truth and be able to give the body decent sepulture, and not be forever haunted by suspense and the ignorance of his fate.
“While the cause of his death must ever be a matter of mystery and sadness, it is a melancholy satisfaction to his relatives and friends to know the truth.”
In an era before modern forensic science, the 'mystery of the tides' was a common way for newspapers to account for unidentified bodies found on Seattle's waterfront. Today, the stretch of the industrial shoreline near Salmon Bay remains a place where the city's private struggles often meet the public reality of the Puget Sound.
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