100 years ago: Husband, abandoned, seeks wife in Spokane

Ralph Jackson of Anderson Spur, north of Blanchard, Idaho, came home one night from work and found all of his furniture missing. Also missing was his wife, 35, and his daughter, 13.

They had left home, and Jackson said he had no idea why. Even his clothing had been removed and sold, although the purchaser, after hearing Jackson’s tale, returned them.

Jackson spent months looking for his wife, in such far-flung places as St. Louis and Denver.

No luck. Finally, he placed an ad in The Spokesman-Review asking for the whereabouts of his wife.

He received an anonymous letter telling him that she could be found in a house on Second Avenue in Spokane, living under the name of Mrs. Smith.

Jackson immediately jumped on a bicycle late at night and set off on a 60-mile ride to Spokane. It was so dark he crashed several times. When he arrived, covered with bruises, he contacted Spokane police, who apparently agreed to help him.

A detective went to the house in question and a woman came to the door. She said she was Mrs. Smith, but when the detective told her she had to accompany him to the police station, she argued vociferously.

The argument ended when the officer realized that she was the wrong Mrs. Smith. The correct Mrs. Smith had vacated the premises the night before. Jackson’s long search would continue.