OH OH - Ruth Baumgardner, 21, Delaware, 4 May 1937

[marie-chantal]

According to People Search Ora F Hardwick of Cleveland, Medina, Oh is alive and 102 years old. Her husband Richard J Hardwick is 110 years old.

Ruth's sister was Ora F Baumgardner Hardwick. She lived in Medina Ohio at the time Ruth was abducted.

Could this be Ruth's sister? Anyone live near Cleveland, OH?

I wish that I did live near Cleveland. I'd try to meet with her (if she'd be able and willing to meet). This is a great find. Maybe we could find relatives of hers. I remember reading earlier in this thread (posted several years ago) that her relatives did know what happened, but they weren't willing to talk about it. Maybe they've changed their minds?

 

[JeannieC]

I'm new to this so I hope I didn't make a mistake by posting something about a living person or persons. I grew up in Akron but have lost touch with most of my friends from there. Wish I could take a road trip though.

They are probably in a nursing home.

 

[girlinblue]

I just spent the last 45 minutes reading this thread. Wow. Talk about a mind-garbler. Right around the middle I got an adrenaline rush, then it just sort of splattered out towards the end because it feels like it went right back 'round to no-clue-in-the-world again.

It's interesting that the family wanted it put to rest then, but even now, years later when most of that branch should be dead and new generations would only know it in a family lore kind of way, descendents are still tight lipped.

One thing I'm confused on, and forgive me if it's something I just glossed over from not thoroughly reading -- it's 2 AM here, "Ruth" was an accuser/witness...did she testify somewhere? Or the Conn murderers just all collabed and said she was there? I plan on taking some time to click through a lot of the links I skipped when I've got more of a mindset for it, although I think it will probably make even less sense after.

We all know truth can be stranger than fiction. It seems pretty fair that there was some sort of cop-to barter made. Conn was a blue, and officers and law officials were fiercely loyal to each other back then.

Shades of Walter and Christine Collins, anyone?

 

[marie-chantal]

Hi girlinblue. I'm not familiar with Walter and Christine Collins (I'll have to look them up) but what I do believe is that during the time of the shooting of Conn, Ruth was nearby. I don't know if she specifically saw anything, but what it sounds like to me is that she was inside the house when Conn was shot (I think he was shot outside). These four guys (Masulla, Sereno, Ford and Johnson) were involved in trafficking women to brothels. Conn was either planning to bust this brothel, or he was tailing these guys for a traffic violation. He confronted them outside of this house and Masulla shot him. Ruth was most likely kidnapped by these guys and forcibly drugged and taken to this brothel. My guess is that she was working in this brothel. Her family hired a private investigator to figure out what happened to her. It sounds to me like the PI located her. I don't know if she was found after this shooting when the women were most likely taken in. This part of the case is where we don't seem to have any answers. It is believed that after she was found, she was taken to a mental institution. We are all wondering what happened to her after that.

We're also wondering what happened to the woman who was supposedly in the car when Masulla shot Conn. Her name was Bernice Bradley and she supposedly disappeared after the shooting. Based on the news articles we have been able to read about this case, she was never located. It's a really intriguing case, and I'm glad you're here with us. I only discovered this case about a month ago, but I'm hooked. Several of the others have been researching this case for years. I'm so glad they've kept this case in the spotlight.

 

[girlinblue]

Thank you so much, marie-chantel, for taking the time to sum it up for. Much appreciated.

I'm not very familiar with the Conn case. I think that's where I was getting confused. At some point I started thinking that Bernice and Ruth were being referenced as the same person. Sometimes it's hard to follow the train of thought if you haven't been with the thread the whole time, and I always appreciate it when some kind user can enlighten me.

 

[JeannieC]

Evaline Polland AKA Bernice Bradley

Read this:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...5691,2677902

The article begins on page 1 and ends on page 3 but you can't link to page 1........sorry

They located and questioned Bernice Bradley and she said she left Masulla in Aug before the Conn Killing. They let her go. I quess she was Masulla's girlfriend. I think I said previously she was Sereno's.

 

[marie-chantal]

Evaline Polland AKA Bernice Bradley

Read this:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...5691,2677902

The article begins on page 1 and ends on page 3 but you can't link to page 1........sorry

They located and questioned Bernice Bradley and she said she left Masulla in Aug before the Conn Killing. They let her go. I quess she was Masulla's girlfriend. I think I said previously she was Sereno's.

I wasn't able to open the link, but thank you for the info! I was under the impression that she was in the car during the killing. I wonder what happened to her.

 

[JeannieC]

We all thought she was in the car. I believe the transcripts from the trial stated that Bernice was in the car when Officer Conn was murdered, or at least according to Ford she was.......

I might be wrong but I think this article contradicts the trial records. I'll go back and check it out.

 

[Claudette]

Evaline Polland AKA Bernice Bradley

Read this:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...5691,2677902

The article begins on page 1 and ends on page 3 but you can't link to page 1........sorry

They located and questioned Bernice Bradley and she said she left Masulla in Aug before the Conn Killing. They let her go. I quess she was Masulla's girlfriend. I think I said previously she was Sereno's.

You're an excellent researcher. You need to go to the Evelyn Hartley case now LOL! (everyone seems to have that *one* case that they can't forget, Evelyn is mine)

 

[JeannieC]

You're an excellent researcher. You need to go to the Evelyn Hartley case now LOL! (everyone seems to have that *one* case that they can't forget, Evelyn is mine)

Thank you. I can relate to that ONE case. Check out Thomas Sumerix, Ruth Guthrie, and Marion Joyce Brubaker 1960's. I remember these from my childhood and they have never been solved. I'm at dead ends on all of these. Very few articles in the papers. I contacted the Sheriff's office and they are open and unsolved.....

I'll check out Evelyn Hartley but I promise there are a lot of people on here better at this than I am...........

 

[JeannieC]

I'm not sure I have seen this posted. It is from Aug 16, 1941. A Sheriff lead a hunt for Ruth that lead them to Campbell, Oh. Unsuccessful though.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=LiBKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zoUMAAAAIBAJ&dq=ruth baumgardner&pg=2684,8446

 

[JeannieC]

In Dec 1946 Mr and Mrs Baumgardner told the press they did not believe Ruth was still alive and they did not want to have to keep talking about it. They were having a hard time carrying on without having it brought up to them. (This is a quick summery and not exact).

 

[marie-chantal]

In Dec 1946 Mr and Mrs Baumgardner told the press they did not believe Ruth was still alive and they did not want to have to keep talking about it. They were having a hard time carrying on without having it brought up to them. (This is a quick summery and not exact).

Whoa! That's weird (and really sad, IMO). It kind of makes me wonder if they were trying to cover something up. I'm still kind of sold on the idea that she ended up in a mental institution after she was located. I know that it was very common for people to be institutionalized (especially women) for things that were considered unpleasant back then. Maybe her parents were feeling shame about the situation with Ruth and instead of saying she was in an institution, they just decided to say she was dead. I still don't get all the sightings, though. I wonder if maybe she left the institution at some point? This case just gets stranger with each day. I'm glad that articles and documents are becoming more available on the internet. It will be interesting to look at the census figures for her family when they become available.

 

[JeannieC]

I agree. It does seem strange to me too. I'll give you a funny tidbit that might be THE Peter Sereno.Peter P Sereno gets divorce.
These two articles show a Peter P Sereno divorcing his wife because she's stripper and doesn't want to have children because it will mess up her figure.

If it is the same Peter Sereno that's hilarious! A man who dealt in white slavery!


Wife a Stripper
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=o3YbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0UwEAAAAIBAJ&dq=peter sereno&pg=3120,3375108

Disreputable dances
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=p3YbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0UwEAAAAIBAJ&dq=peter sereno&pg=6720,5165893

 

[marie-chantal]

I agree. It does seem strange to me too. I'll give you a funny tidbit that might be THE Peter Sereno.Peter P Sereno gets divorce.
These two articles show a Peter P Sereno divorcing his wife because she's stripper and doesn't want to have children because it will mess up her figure.

If it is the same Peter Sereno that's hilarious! A man who dealt in white slavery!


Wife a Stripper
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=o3YbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0UwEAAAAIBAJ&dq=peter sereno&pg=3120,3375108

Disreputable dances
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=p3YbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0UwEAAAAIBAJ&dq=peter sereno&pg=6720,5165893

I had a good laugh at the second divorce case in the first link-wife chose dog over her husband.

If she really was a stripper, it's pretty interesting because Bernice was listed as being a "dancer" in one of the news articles. If this is true, and if this is the same Sereno, then he obviously had a type. He sounds like a real jerk, IMO. My guess is that he was a small-time .

 

[JeannieC]

I had a good laugh at the second divorce case in the first link-wife chose dog over her husband.

If she really was a stripper, it's pretty interesting because Bernice was listed as being a "dancer" in one of the news articles. If this is true, and if this is the same Sereno, then he obviously had a type. He sounds like a real jerk, IMO. My guess is that he was a small-time .

I agree. I laughed at the wife choosing the dog too. Hey, at least the dog is always agreeable, loves you in a good mood or bad, and they are house-broken! LOL

I thought the same thing. I wonder what she looked like. If she could be the woman they mistook for Ruth............

Or it could be that Ruth's parents really couldn't bare to talk about her.

I know a man who can't talk about his little girl's murder. She was 5 years old and her murder was never truly solved even though they knew for years who committed her murder. LE couldn't prove it. The man did go to prison for the murder of another little girl and he died in prison. This crime is listed on sleuths but I'd rather not tell everyone I knew her father at the time she disappeared and was murdered. I respect their privacy.

 

[marie-chantal]

I agree. I laughed at the wife choosing the dog too. Hey, at least the dog is always agreeable, loves you in a good mood or bad, and they are house-broken! LOL

I thought the same thing. I wonder what she looked like. If she could be the woman they mistook for Ruth............

Or it could be that Ruth's parents really couldn't bare to talk about her.

I know a man who can't talk about his little girl's murder. She was 5 years old and her murder was never truly solved even though they knew for years who committed her murder. LE couldn't prove it. The man did go to prison for the murder of another little girl and he died in prison. This crime is listed on sleuths but I'd rather not tell everyone I knew her father at the time she disappeared and was murdered. I respect their privacy.

I'm so sorry for your friend. I cannot imagine what that must be like. I can understand the need for privacy. I'm sure that the loss of Ruth (whether it was literal or otherwise) must have taken its toll on her family. I just wish we knew what actually happened to her (now that her parents are gone, I don't mind sleuthing this; if they were alive, I'd probably be more mindful of their privacy). I have a feeling that Sereno probably ended up in the news more than once throughout his life. He seems like someone who wouldn't have been able to turn away from crime, IMO.

 

[JeannieC]

I'm so sorry for your friend. I cannot imagine what that must be like. I can understand the need for privacy. I'm sure that the loss of Ruth (whether it was literal or otherwise) must have taken its toll on her family. I just wish we knew what actually happened to her (now that her parents are gone, I don't mind sleuthing this; if they were alive, I'd probably be more mindful of their privacy). I have a feeling that Sereno probably ended up in the news more than once throughout his life. He seems like someone who wouldn't have been able to turn away from crime, IMO.

I agree, Sereno probably stayed in trouble his entire life. I'll bet he ended up in prison for a long time.......

I located a son of Ora and Richard Hardwick. Carl R. Hardwick. Born: Jun 21, 1927 and passed away Feb 28, 1989 in Medina, Ohio 44256.

So far he is the only child I have located. The 1940 census comes out in Jun 2012 so I guess we will have to wait on it to see if there were others.

Dang the 72 year law!

 

[marie-chantal]

Great find Jeannie! June 2012 really isn't that far away, but hopefully something else will turn up in the meantime.

 

[JeannieC]

Great find Jeannie! June 2012 really isn't that far away, but hopefully something else will turn up in the meantime.

I wish we could locate his obituary. I don't subscribe to any so I'm out of luck. It might tell if he has a wife or children. And it might tell if he is associated with a funeral home. Baumgardners and Hardwicks in Oh had several funeral homes.