Friday, May 24, 2013

Peggy Moorehead Revealed

 1925
 1923
 1924
1921

Cleveland High School Ukulele Club


Friday, May 17, 2013

Let Me Be Frank

I have been beating my head against so many brick walls and finally, I think, I have pushed my way through one.  We all know now that Peggy Moorehead committed suicide.  We all know that Molly refers to "Frank" telling Peggy out of the blue that they would "quit."  I have scrutinized every single Frank, Franklin, Francis or anybody having an F in their name in Dayton Ohio and I think this man is the Frank that Peggy ended her life over.

Here is my logic.  I know there is such a thing as public transportation and I know that in the late 1920's that it was commonly used, however, unless you were a social butterfly with a big income you just didn't go wandering out of your neighborhood looking for love.  Typically romances begin when you have contact with somebody during your everyday life.  We know that Peggy was a nurse in Saint Louis at the Jewish Hospital.  We know that she came to Dayton in the fall of 1928.  We know that Peggy would be familiar with the substance she used to take her life and we also know that it was not readily available to the public but was something that a nurse would come into contact with often.
I put it to you that Peggy continued her nursing career once she relocated to Dayton.  Her parents lived less than a mile from the Miami Valley Hospital.  This hospital has been in operation in the same location since the turn of the 20th century so the building that is there now has always been this hospital.  It has grown and changed but it is the same place.  Daily, if you worked there, you might travel that distance with a walk to work.  If you did you would pass the same people at the same time every single day.  On this route are two notable things that lead me to my conclusion.  The first is the hospital itself and its location.  The second is an address that happens to belong to Frank G Belanich.  Between 1002 and 1010 South Main Street there was an apartment building called Fairlawn Apartments.  In that building lived Frank George Belanich.  He had an apartment with one room mate.  He was a teacher and had attended Dayton College.  Peggy died in July of 1929 and the census for 1930 happened slightly less than 9 months later.  Even then a lease would be signed and it would cost you money to break it and Frank did not make that kind of money.  It is worth noting that by 1931 he had moved further away but continued in his profession as a teacher and by 1932 he had moved again.  He remained single while in Dayton.  Frank did not marry until 1943 and by then he was living in Cleveland.  Frank continued his teaching in Cleveland and by 1960 was dead.  He was about 56 when he passed away.  Of course I cannot prove any of this but this Frank was the closest in location to Peggy and her family.  There are none others as close to their location or a location that Peggy might work at.  Something to think about anyway.