PA PA - Philadelphia, WhtFem 40-60, UP17721, upper denture w/D Spizzirri, frontal lobotomy, May'72

[ExitNow]

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/greenwich-ct/lucy-greene-10298533

Found Lucy

 

[Goecke]

Two things-
The find a grave page for Dorothy lead me to her father Frank's page, and his obituary. Interestingly, his two daughters (M and M) are listed as surviving him, but there's nothing about Dorothy (or Frank Jr). He died in 1968, so Dorothy would have been alive at the time if she's our Jane Doe. Sadly, if Dorothy and Frank Jr were both institutionalized, the family may have just acted like they didn't exist, which wasn't uncommon for the time period.

The other thing I was wondering was if our Jane Doe's abdominal scar could have been from a hysterectomy (or other sterilization procedure) instead of a c-section. Involuntary sterilization of disabled and/or institutionalized women was quite common at the time due to the eugenics movement.

Hysterectomy and Disability Among U.S. Women - PMC

Hysterectomies are the second most common surgery performed on women in the United States, and most are done for elective reasons. Although women with disabilities appear to have an increased risk of undergoing the procedure, little research has ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[ExitNow]

Marianna Spizzirri (1903-1978) - Find a Grave...

www.findagrave.com

Also, reviewing Census records of 1950, I found a family in Providence, RI. There is a person named Dora 41 y.o. no working and not able to work. She lives with Josephine, who I assume is her mother. There is a tombstone that shows she passed away 1953 and Dora passed away 1954. Hear me out... there is a brother Alfred who is shown to have died in 1952 who also does not work and can't work. Mom also does not work. Speculation, mom is the caretaker of her 2 handicapped adult children. Bedlam hospital was notorious for lobotomies. Marianna, George, and Adolph all work and are also in this home. If mom got sick or passed and could not care for them, it is not too far of a stretch that she may have been sent there and when Wyatt v. Stickney (1971) set standards for mental health, they released her. Family may not have been notified. I can't find an actual death for Alfred or Dora. The region, chain of events and age all line up. I need help rule her out as a possible match.

 

[ExitNow]

Two things-
The find a grave page for Dorothy lead me to her father Frank's page, and his obituary. Interestingly, his two daughters (M and M) are listed as surviving him, but there's nothing about Dorothy (or Frank Jr). He died in 1968, so Dorothy would have been alive at the time if she's our Jane Doe. Sadly, if Dorothy and Frank Jr were both institutionalized, the family may have just acted like they didn't exist, which wasn't uncommon for the time period.

The other thing I was wondering was if our Jane Doe's abdominal scar could have been from a hysterectomy (or other sterilization procedure) instead of a c-section. Involuntary sterilization of disabled and/or institutionalized women was quite common at the time due to the eugenics movement.

Hysterectomy and Disability Among U.S. Women - PMC

Hysterectomies are the second most common surgery performed on women in the United States, and most are done for elective reasons. Although women with disabilities appear to have an increased risk of undergoing the procedure, little research has ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

I really wish we could get a death certificate because PA requires proof of passing before they will search for mental health admission. We meet the 50-year threshold for HIPAA. I would really love to see if Dorothy or Dora were patients and released from there in 1972. Also, your absolutely right about sterilization. Maybe I should submit to PA cold cases with the leads. They would be able to get access to the records. Confirmation will be difficult if they cremated original remains but its worth a try.

 

[Mfleish]

I really wish we could get a death certificate because PA requires proof of passing before they will search for mental health admission. We meet the 50-year threshold for HIPAA. I would really love to see if Dorothy or Dora were patients and released from there in 1972. Also, your absolutely right about sterilization. Maybe I should submit to PA cold cases with the leads. They would be able to get access to the records. Confirmation will be difficult if they cremated original remains but its worth a try.

I believe 1972 death certificates should be released on Ancestry this year. The death certificate is available at the state archives. I believe I have found her in the death index if anyone wants to request the death certificate.

https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/phmc/documents/archives/research-online/documents/D-72_T-U-V.pdf

She is located on page 95, under Unknown Female found May 7, 1972.

 

[crcgirl]

Two things-
The find a grave page for Dorothy lead me to her father Frank's page, and his obituary. Interestingly, his two daughters (M and M) are listed as surviving him, but there's nothing about Dorothy (or Frank Jr). He died in 1968, so Dorothy would have been alive at the time if she's our Jane Doe. Sadly, if Dorothy and Frank Jr were both institutionalized, the family may have just acted like they didn't exist, which wasn't uncommon for the time period.

The other thing I was wondering was if our Jane Doe's abdominal scar could have been from a hysterectomy (or other sterilization procedure) instead of a c-section. Involuntary sterilization of disabled and/or institutionalized women was quite common at the time due to the eugenics movement.

Hysterectomy and Disability Among U.S. Women - PMC

Hysterectomies are the second most common surgery performed on women in the United States, and most are done for elective reasons. Although women with disabilities appear to have an increased risk of undergoing the procedure, little research has ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The coroner noted removal of some reproductive organs but I believe only on one side.

 

[UnlicensedPI]

The ME's office and her nephew are both aware of her likely identity. Last I heard, the ME was trying to see if any records still exist from any of the mental hospitals she stayed in that might help confirm her identification

 

[Goecke]

The coroner noted removal of some reproductive organs but I believe only on one side.

That makes me feel a lot better, if it was only one side it was probably for a legitimate medical reason.

Glad to know that the ME and Dorothy's nephew are aware of this lead. As for Dora, is there a way to confirm she actually is buried at that cemetery? That would be the easiest way to definitively rule her out. The apparent lack of a death certificate is strange, though.

 

[UnlicensedPI]

That makes me feel a lot better, if it was only one side it was probably for a legitimate medical reason.

Glad to know that the ME and Dorothy's nephew are aware of this lead. As for Dora, is there a way to confirm she actually is buried at that cemetery? That would be the easiest way to definitively rule her out. The apparent lack of a death certificate is strange, though.

Deaths- Providence, January 1-9_097 | Rhode Island State Archives Digital Archive

sosri.access.preservica.com

 

[summergirl1]

Her death certificate would state where she is buried. She may or may not be findable for the purposes of getting DNA.

 

[LilacStar79]

If you Google the cemetery name on the certificate, you can look her burial record on their website. It seems they have it spelled Spizziri instead of Spizzirri.

 

[beavt]

One last thing to add... In the 1930 Census report of Elizabeth and John Spizziri living at the home of Charles Myres, it was also noted that Elizabeth's first marriage took place was when she was age 15. I wonder if she was married to someone else before Frank. If so, I wonder if Stephenson/Stevenson her not maiden name but (maybe) the last name of her first husband?

@fred&edna here’s an article from:
The Evening Times - Page 7
Dated Friday, August 13, 1926
Sayre, Pennsylvania
www.newspapers.com/image/353152844/?match=1&terms=anna%20stephenson

 

[summergirl1]

That's not her death certificate. That person died in 1954..

 

[fred&edna]

still hoping this lady will eventually become identified.

 

[fred&edna]

@fred&edna here’s an article from:
The Evening Times - Page 7
Dated Friday, August 13, 1926
Sayre, Pennsylvania
www.newspapers.com/image/353152844/?match=1&terms=anna%20stephenson

i keep re-visiting this case over the years and i don't keep notes as i should. however, i've generally assumed elizabeth was the mother of daurtha/dorothy who was reportedly born in 1929, but it appears elizabeth/libbie died in 1926, thus anna would be the mother. i'm mostly just posting to keep things more clear in my mind.

i can't remember the census year/s elizabeth was reported to be living in the home of charles myers/meyers. i thought it was the 1930's but that can't be correct.

oh so confusing and such a sad situation.

jmo

 

[summergirl1]

I'd venture to say that she's buried at the former City Cemetery/Potter's Field on Dunks Ferry Road, which was in use from 1956 to the late 1980s. But when exactly she was buried I don't know. I've found articles for burials done in '74, '75, '76 and '79 but none (yet) for '72 or '73. I'm thinking '73. The attached article snip (Philly Daily News 10/15/1974) says burials at Potter's Field were done once a year.

Dunks Ferry 1974

Clipping found in Philadelphia Daily News published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 10/15/1974. Dunks Ferry 1974

www.newspapers.com

Remembering The City’s Last Potter’s Field

Reporter Michael Buozis finds himself in the Far Northeast hunting down the city's last potter's field, its only marker spray painted on a utility pole

hiddencityphila.org

I would say she is buried here as well. Sometimes in the past, they haven't been able to find unidentified people buried here. However, in Sept 2024, they were able to find and exhume some unidentified people buried here. This article mentions unidentified women from 1972 to 1984. It doesn't seem like she was one of them, but the mention of 1972 makes me wonder. If she wasn't one of them, are her remains findable? Philadelphia police exhume 8 bodies from a potter's field in the hope DNA testing can help ID them