Friday, December 9, 1892
San Diego Union
Her Life in Los Angeles Previous to Suicide
The girl who committed suicide at Hotel del Coronado has made lots of trouble by burning her letters and papers. She has been almost positively identified twice, and her personality is again in doubt.
She is not Lizzie Wyllie, who is living with her paramour in Ontario, Canada. The question is, is she Mrs. Bernard? Little doubt exists that she is wife of the Iowa gambler.
Chief of Police Breuning received a telegram from Chief of Police Glass of Los Angeles yesterday, saying there was small doubt that the suicide was Mrs. Kate Logan of Los Angeles.
The Times of that city contained yesterday the details of the disappearance of “Kate Logan” the day before Thanksgiving, and her life in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles Times
THE CORONADO SUICIDE
Additional Evidence That It Was Mrs. Kate Morgan
Her Trunk Removed to the Police Station – Efforts to Conceal Her Identity – What Mr. Grant Says About Woman
The trunk left by Mrs. Kate Morgan, the young woman who met her death at her own hands at the Coronado Hotel, at Contractor Grant’s, where she worked, was removed to the central police station by order of Chief Glass yesterday.
On opening the trunk further evidence than that given by The Times yesterday, of her identity, was found.
It will be remembered that just before the unfortunate girl took her life by her own hand, she telegraphed to a gentleman in Hamburg, Iowa, for money, and the authorities believed that she was related to him and he was notified of her death, simply stating that he knew her husband, who was a gambler, and that he wired her $25 out of sympathy. For some reason he denied that he knew anything further about the case.
From a marriage certificate found among her effects, it is certain that Hamburg was her home. She was married in that place to Thomas E. Morgan by Rev. W. E. Howes, on the 30th of December, 1885, and her maiden name was Miss Katie K. Farmer.
She has only been on the Coast a few months, and, as near as can be learned, she worked for W. T. Farmer, a supposed relative , at Hanford, Tulare county. Her route has been traced by the police from Chicago to Omaha, to Cheyenne, to Ogden, to Sacramento and to Hanford, where she remained some time and then came to this city, after getting a letter of recommendation from Mr. Farmer.
From the condition of the papers, photographs, etc., in her trunk, she was desirous of concealing her identity as every name, date and address, except the marriage certificate, had been destroyed.
Chief Glass telegraphed the chief of police of San Diego asking if the body had been identified and buried, or had been shipped off. The San Diego officer replied that the body is still unclaimed in Johnson’s undertaking rooms.
A dispatch was also sent to Mr. Farmer of Hanford, but up to a late hour no word had been received from him.
Mr. Grant was seen by a Times reporter yesterday afternoon, and stated that he and his family are positive that Katie Morgan and the San Diego suicide are one and the same person.
He knows that she started for San Diego on the 23rd of last month, and the dead girl’s description corresponds in every way with his former servant.
None of the other servants about the house could induce Katie to talk about her past life to any great extent. She told them that she married a gambler and that she was not happy with him. Mr. Grant never had a better servant in his house, and when she failed to return on Thanksgiving day as she promised, Mr. Grant at once reported the matter to police, and detectives have been working on it ever since.
There has been considerable mystery surrounding the telegraphic report that the woman possessed $1600 when she committed suicide. This report grew out of a common mistake in telegraphic figures. The Coroner at San Diego found $16 on her person and the sum was raised to $1600 in the dispatches.
San Francisco Chronicle
THE GIRL SUICIDE
KATE MORGAN PROBABLY HER NAME
New Facts Which May Tend to Clear Away the Coronado Mystery
Special Dispatch to the CHRONICLE
LOS ANGELES, December 8. – There appears to be little doubt that the girl who recently committed suicide at the Coronado Hotel in San Diego was Mrs. Kate Morgan, who worked for Contractor
Grant in this city, and left for San Diego the day before Thanksgiving.
Mrs. Morgan came here from Omaha about two months ago and stated that her parents lived near that place and that her husband was a gambler, but she did not know what had become of him.
She visited several employment agencies and first secured work as a domestic in R. M. Widney’s residence, and from there she went to work for T. H. Hughes. Shortly before she disappeared she obtained employment at Mrs. Grant’s, 917 South Hill street.
The day before she left this city she was anxious to get some papers signed, and seemed to be greatly worried about something, but what it was no one seemed to know. From a marriage certificate
found among her effects it is certain that Hamburg, Ia., was her home.
She was married in that place to Thomas E. Morgan by Rev. W. E. Howes on December 20, 1885, and her maiden name was Katie K. Farmer. She had only been on the coast for a few months, and, as near
as can be learned, she worked for W. T. Farmer, a supposed relative, at Hanford, Tulare county.
Her route has been traced by the police from Chicago to Omaha, to Cheyenne, to Ogden, to Sacramento and to Hanford, where she remained some time and then came to this city, after obtaining a
letter of recommendation from Mr. Farmer. From the condition of the papers, photographs, etc., in her trunk she was desirous of concealing her identity, as every name, date and address except
the marriage certificate had been destroyed.
Los Angeles Herald
NOT THE CORONADO WOMAN, BUT PLENTY OF MYSTERY ABOUT MRS. MORGAN
The Contents of Her Trunk Throw No Light on the Matter. Her Photograph Shows She Did Not Resemble The Coronado Hotel Suicide – Her Marriage Certificate – Other Details.
A trunk marked “Mrs. Kate Morgan” was taken to the central police station yesterday from the house of L. A. Grant, 917 South Hill Street. Mr. Grant stated that Mrs. Morgan had been
employed in his house as a domestic and that on the evening of November 23rd she left, stating she would return the next day. She took only a satchel, leaving her trunk of clothing.
She did not return. The sudden disappearance was reported at the central police station but no clue was found of the missing woman.
In her trunk was found a tin box marked “Louisa Anderson.” In the box were several photographs. One was that of a man aged about 50 years, with a full beard, tinged with gray; another
was of a man aged about 35 years, black mustache, black hair, thick skull, and who looked something like a sporting character. This is perhaps the picture of her husband, who had deserted
her. There were also photographs of two boys, aged about 9 and 10 years; the photograph of a girl of about 2 years; and still another of a babe.
In a paper was a lock of pretty blond hair. On the paper was written, in rather coarse characters, “Elizabeth A. Morgan’s hair.” On the reverse side of the photograph of the old gentleman,
the name was scratched off but the written word “Visalia” was left. On two other photographs the names had been carefully erased.
A letter was found in the box recommending Mrs. Morgan as an honorable and trustworthy woman and signed by W.J. Farmer, Hanford, California. The photograph of the old gentleman is no doubt
that of Framer, and he is perhaps her uncle.
There were also found the cards of several ladies, together with their addresses, where no doubt she had been sent for work. These were Mrs. J.H. McDonough, San Rafael; Mrs. M.R. Abbott,
Fifth and Mission, San Francisco; Mrs. Ottinger, 602 Stock Exchange, San Francisco.
A cabinet size photograph of Mrs. Morgan, found among the others, shows her to be a woman of about 26 years of age, black eyes, large ears, rather large, open face, and somewhat coarse
features; her mouth is rather large and lips thick. The photograph contained not marks, and had evidently been taken recently. The photograph does not denote the appearance of a woman
accustomed to stopping at first-class hotels as a guest, or one who wears lace shawls; neither does it show her to be pretty, and the features are not those of a highly educated woman.
