On December 9, 1927, a travelling inspector of immigration arrived at the North Battleford Mental Hospital. He was there to assess an inmate, Andrew Owstroski, for deportation. Andrew had been convicted of vagrancy a few months before and deportation proceedings had been initiated. He was two months into his sentence when he, to quote multipleContinue reading “Confession at the North Battleford Mental Hospital”
Author Archives: melaniecolewriter
Murder in Moose Jaw: The Heroism of Margaret Regan
Dr. William Brown was in good spirits when he left for his office on the afternoon of Monday, October 3, 1927. He’d just played a cribbage game with his wife, Mina, who reminded him not to hurry home that evening. She was in charge of a meeting of the Daughters of the Empire (a deeplyContinue reading “Murder in Moose Jaw: The Heroism of Margaret Regan”
Mostly Useless
For the past few weeks my husband and I have been working on some home renovations and I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m mostly useless. Not entirely useless, but pretty close. I’m the equivalent of an eager kid who wants to help but generally just gets in the way. Except for, you know, theContinue reading “Mostly Useless”
The Shooting of Rosie Schmidt
It was close to 5:00PM on Tuesday, Dec 28, 1926 that Rosie Schmidt and her friends, Katie Tiesenbach and Agnes Fenske, stepped off the streetcar and began walking up the sidewalk towards the parliament building in Regina, Saskatchewan where they worked as charwomen (cleaners). Rosie had been lamenting her financial situation on the ride over,Continue reading “The Shooting of Rosie Schmidt”
Fall Drinks and the Books That Go With Them
It’s that time of year again. Shortening days, beautiful foliage, the hint of winter around the corner. It’s fall. And that means it’s time to get cozy and curl up with a good book and a hot beverage. And no matter what cozy fall drink you choose, I have a book to match. So let’sContinue reading “Fall Drinks and the Books That Go With Them”
Arsenic in the Milk: The Poisoning of George B. Reed
When George B. Reed died on Friday, April 26, 1935, it was sudden, but not completely unexpected. He was sixty years old and had been ill for two years, spending more than a year of that time at the Gull Lake Hospital, returning home six weeks before his death. He suffered from paralysis in hisContinue reading “Arsenic in the Milk: The Poisoning of George B. Reed”
Manhunt in Dunkirk
Thursday, January 7, 1932 It was still dark at 7:00AM when Peter Jeanotte got up and went out to the barn to do his chores. He was a farm hand on the Fitch farmstead in Dunkirk, Saskatchewan and had been working for his friend of seven years, Robert Walter Fitch, since October. Fitch, who wentContinue reading “Manhunt in Dunkirk”
The Yorkton Hammer Murder
June 4, 1933 It was a typical Sunday on the Steberl farm, just 12 miles northeast of Yorkton near Rhein, Saskatchewan. Gustav Steberl and his wife Rosie had gone into Rhein that day with their hired man, Henry Suppes, before returning to the farm around supper time. Earlier that day Henry and Gustav had gottenContinue reading “The Yorkton Hammer Murder”
Happy Blog-iversary!
Greetings everyone. It is my very first blog-iversary, which is like an anniversary, only embarrassing. Telling people you have a blog is like telling people you’re starting a podcast, only worse. Blogs reached the end of their heyday a solid decade ago, whereas podcasts may have a fully overstaturated market, but at least are stillContinue reading “Happy Blog-iversary!”
The Haunted Skull of the Kerrobert Courthouse
As those of you who’ve been reading along already know, my fall down the rabbit hole of Saskatchewan murder started with the Kerrobert Courthouse. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, take a moment and read this. Don’t worry, we’ll wait for you. Done? Okay, great. As I was saying, it was nearlyContinue reading “The Haunted Skull of the Kerrobert Courthouse”
Melanie Cole 