Obituary: Rock County, Wisconsin: S. E. DUDLEY

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Submitted by Ruth Ann Montgomery, <rmontgomery@cishome.com> April 2008

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Suicide of S. E. Dudley

Mr. S. E. Dudley, an old resident of the town of Union, but since May last
a resident of Janesville, committed suicide by shooting himself in the
heart, on Friday of last week, upon his own premises about a couple of
miles north of the city. The circumstances of the sad affair are as
follows: He has been subject lately to fits or spells of despondency,
particularly since selling his farm in this vicinity. On Friday evening
just before he committed the fatal act, he was in the house, and his wife
asked him to set down to supper, which she had prepared for a couple of
ladies who were visiting her. Replying no, that he would wait and eat with
the men, he left the house and went towards the barn. Shortly after, the
report of a shot was heard, followed immediately by two groans. Mrs. Dudley
and the ladies together with the men, who were stacking grain close by,
hurried to the barn and there found Mr. Dudley partially sitting and laying
with his back against the barn door, dying, and with the pistol with which
he had fired the fatal shot still grasped in his left hand. On a board near
him he had written with pencil directly his wife to look in his big pocket
book for a letter which was there. The letter was dated June 27th, which
shows that he had long contemplated the act. The letter refered to his
selling his farm here, said life was a burden to him, directed his wife to
make sundry improvements upon the farm which he mentioned, left his
respects for all his old neighbors, mentioning them by name and sundry
other details. His funeral took place form his residence on Monday
afternoon.

August 11, 1880, Evansville Review, p. 3, col. 4, Evansville, Wisconsin