Beckham County, OK - Deaths: Thomas Parmer, 1908
Tuesday, 16 Sep 2008
Submitted by: delma25@pldi.net (Delma Tindell)

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PARMER, THOMAS
(11 Jun 1908, Sayre Headlight, Sayre, Beckham Co, OK):
Committed Suicide
Word was received here Wednesday that Thomas Palmer (sic) had committed
suicide at his claim about nine miles south east of Erick.  Judge Bell and
Co. Attorney Smith went out and held an inquest over the body Wednesday
afternoon.  Following are the names of the Jury:  R. L. Cook, foreman; P.
J. Ryan, A. O. Craig, J. H. Lamin, J. W. Craig, N. A. Tercoth, whose
verdict was death by strangulation or hanging self inflicted on or about
June 8th.
Mr. Palmer owned the farm on which he lived but having no family and no
known relatives and owing to the fact that the body was badly decomposed
it was deemed advisable to bury the body on the farm.  We are informed
that Mr. Palmer was at one time a patient in a Hospital for the Insane, he
ended his life by using a hitching strap putting it around his neck and
over a rafter of his box house then getting on the bed and stepping off. 
When Judge Bell arrived there he found it necessary to remove part of the
side of the house in order to get in as the body was against the door.
(11 Jun 1908, Erick Altruist, Erick, Beckham Co, OK):
Hanged Himself
Tom Palmer, who lived alone near Warren Kenyons, 7 miles north east of
town, was found Tuesday morning in his shack hung.  He was last seen alive
by his neighbors on Sunday morning.  He was at one time an inmate of an
insane assylum (sic) and his neighbors say that he still had crazy spells,
and it is supposed that while so deranged he hung himself.  He has no
relatives known to the neighbors.
(11 Jun 1908, Thursday, Beckham County Democrat, Erick, Beckham Co, OK):
Tom Parmer living seven miles northeast of Erick committed suicide.
The supposition is that he committed the deed sometime between Sunday
evening and Tuesday morning.  He was last seen alive Sunday evening by a
number of his neighbors.  Wednesday morning, the neighbor not seeing Tom
as usual, concluded that something was wrong and Charlie Latta and A. A.
Gordon went over to investigate and discovered Parmer hanging from a
rafter in his house.  They at once notified the authorities.
Deceased was a single man, about forty years old and leaves no relatives
in this part of the country that anyone knows of.  He owned his place
which is valued at about $350.  It is reported that Parmer was at one time
an inmate of the insane asylum at Norman and that he was subject to an
attack of insanity at intervals and it is supposed that he was insane when
the deed was done.

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