Worcester, Vermont, USA
1901 - Worcester Suicide

Worcester, Vt. Feb. 7. - Nathaniel Hersey, one of Worcester’s, oldest residents, committed suicide yesterday afterhanging himself with a rope in
the hallway of the house in which he lived. The community is very much stirred up over the matter and today it is the talk of the town. Much conjecture has been made regarding the cause for his act and it is the general belief that during a fit of despondency he went to the hall and committed the deed.

He was a man 70 years of age and for the past few years had been troubled more or less with a cancer. About a year ago he had to leave off active work and since that time has been confined to the house.

The scene of the affair is a good sized farm house of two tenements. In one of these Mr. and Mrs. Hersey lived, and it was in the hall way of this part of the house that Mr. Hersey hung himself. In
the other part of the house live Mrs. Mary Hall, their daughter, and her husband.

The story told regarding the matter is this: Mr. and Mrs. Hal! droveaway early yesterday afternoon to attend a funeral. They left their children in care of Mr. and Mrs. Hersey. Everything was all right until about two o'clock, when Mr. Hersey
got up from bis chair, and, taking a dollar from his pocket, handed it to one of the little girls, telling his wife at the same time that she had better look out for it or the little one would lose it.

He then put on bis hat and went out, saying that he would be back in a few minutes.

Mr. Hersey had been gone about half an hour, when his wife became worried at his absence and started on a walk through the rooms looking for him. She first Went to tue kitchen, but he was not there.
Fearing that possibly be might have become tired she went to the bed room and looked in. At the same time she called him. He was not in the bed room. Upon this she became thoroughly frightened
and did not dare to look further, so returned to where the children were and coutinued to amuse them until Mr. Hall and his wife returned. She told her son-in-law what she thought and how her husband bad been gone away for some time. The three peopie then started on a tour of inspection, going from one room to another until they had reached the hallway, and there the horrible sight of a man hanging by bis neck presented itself.

A heart rending scene followed for the man was dead when they reached his side. Nothing could be done, so he was tenderly taken down and conveyed to his bedroom. As Mr. Hall did not reach home until after four o'clock it is thought that the man probably bad been dead nearly two hours as his body was cold When he was taken down.

When found he was hanging at the end of a piece of clothes line attached to a twenty-penny nail on which Mr. Hersey had usually hung his overcoat. When found his feet were dragging on the stairs. It is supposed that Mr. Hersey, after he had determined to do the deed, found the rope and went to the stairway, made one end fast to the nail and threw the noose over his head, then throwing himself forward be hung that way uutil death overtook him.

The people about the house say that he has never shown any symptoms of being out of his head and just before he went out to commit the deed was in his usual frame of mind. It is reported however that some time ago, when the trouble first came upon him, he said that he would never die a natural death but that be would sooner cut his throat or hang himself than die from the effects of a cancer.

Mr. Hersey has always been a hard-working farmer and in a way has been quite successful. It is said that he made the most of his money in trading farms and property, showing at all times shrewd and far sighted business characterists.

In town affairs he was never deeply concerned and never took much interest in them, and because of that never held any of the town offices, although he had his friends.

Besides a widow, who is well advanced in years, he is survived by a son, Jay Hersey, a merchant of Hardwick, one daughter, Mary, wife of Harry Hall, of Worcester, four brothers, Lorenzo of Morrisville, George, of Worcester, Calvin, of East
Moutpelier, and Harvey, the present mayor of Barre; also three sisters, Mrs. Lucinda Gould of Moutpelier, Mrs Betsey Slocomb, of Worcester, and Mrs. Oscar Templeton, of Washington.

Arraugements have been made to hold the funeral tomorrow afternoon at 2 o'clock.

Argus and Patriot
Montpelier, Vermont
February 13, 1901

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