San Francisco County CA Archives Obituaries.....Rippey, Wesley C. January 15, 1896 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Steve Harrison raleighwood@juno.com January 14, 2010, 5:39 am San Francisco Call, January 16, 1896 “WANTED TO KILL MACKAY Wesley C. Rippey, the Assailant of the Millionaire, Is Dead. Since the Event of February 24, 1893, He Has Lived in Poverty and Isolation. Wesley C. Rippey, the old man who on February 24, 1893, tried to kill Millionaire John W. Mackay, died early yesterday morning in a little room in humble lodgings at 428 Natoma street. He breathed his last as he had lived since the almost fatal event, in poverty and isolation. For some time past Rippey has been sick, growing weaker day by day. Dr. W. A. Newell of 815 1/2 Howard street attended him and did whatever he could, but the lonely old man's physical endurance gave out at last. Dr. Newell signed his death certificate that the death had been due to natural causes, principally old age and Infirmity. When Rippey passed away there was nobody at his bedside. He had roomed in the house a long time, subsisting how nobody seemed to know or care, and paying for his room with a miserable weekly pittance. Not knowing what to do with his body after he was discovered the landlady notified the Coroner's deputies, and Deputy Coroner John Tyrrell responded. Mr. Tyrrell recognized the name and the body at once as being of the old man who tried to assassinate Mackay. The assurance that it was not a case of suicide found in Dr. Newell's certificate satisfied Mr. Tyrrell and the body was left at the house. Rippey's assault on Mackay is still fresh in the public mind. He saw the rich man turn into Lick alley, off Sutter street, and fired a revolver at him, shooting him in the back. Then he sent a bullet into his own body. Both recovered after being laid up for some time, and Rippey was tried for attempted murder and served one year's sentence in the County Jail. The jury was easy on him on account of his age and decrepitude, and convicted him only of simple assault. Various theories were given for Rippey's deed. By some persons his would-be murder was ascribed to a heavy loss on the stock market, and his belief that this mining man was responsible; others gave the motive as that of intended robbery. Most people, however, put Rippey in the same category of cranks as Prendergast, who shot Mayor Carter Harrison of Chicago, and Norcross, who tried, to kill Russell Sage in New York. Rippey hailed from Cincinnati, where thirty years ago he had been engaged in steamboating on the Ohio River. For a while he was in Denver, Colo. In 1879 he came to San Francisco and embarked in the grocery business at 1131 Mission street. Later he had a restaurant at 523 Clay street, and was next a barkeeper and lookout on the steamer Mary Garrett. During the '80's and the first two years of the present decade he was frequently on Pine street and gambled a great deal in mining stocks. He once visited James C. Flood's residence at Menlo Park and represented that he had lost $9000 in stocks of the Utah mine, for which bad fortune he seemed to think Flood responsible. He was ordered from the premises, but would not go until he was given $10. A few days later he wrote a letter to Flood in which he said he had lost heavily, and, inclosing a certificate of Utah mine stock, he demanded restitution. Captain Lees investigated his conduct, and, being assured by the detective that Flood had nothing to do with the stock, Rippey ceased his importunities. He died at the age of 75 years.” END Additional Comments: San Francisco Call, January 16, 1896 (Thursday). Page 13, Column 7. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/sanfrancisco/obits/r/rippey36ob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/cafiles/ File size: 4.1 Kb