The year was 1905. The place was New York City, New York. The character of this piece had just completed another one of his daring charades and was almost sure he wouldn't get caught. But for Frederick E. Carlton, his time was soon running out. This is his story.
Grand Larceny
In early summer of 1905, Henry J. B. "Harry" Schaub was a machinist in the United States Navy and worked on the submarine the USS Porpoise in the New York Navy Yard. He had also recently come into some money from a trust set up by the Newport Trust Company of Newport, Rhode Island.
He was roommates with another Navy man, Frederick Edward Carlton. The two lived in a boarding house at 198 Sands Street. The home was run by one Mrs. Shultz, and the two men were good friends.
In early summer of 1905, Henry J. B. "Harry" Schaub was a machinist in the United States Navy and worked on the submarine the USS Porpoise in the New York Navy Yard. He had also recently come into some money from a trust set up by the Newport Trust Company of Newport, Rhode Island.
He was roommates with another Navy man, Frederick Edward Carlton. The two lived in a boarding house at 198 Sands Street. The home was run by one Mrs. Shultz, and the two men were good friends.
Upon hearing that Schaub had been sent a check for $700 from the trust, Frederick Carlton hatched upon a scheme. He represented to Harry Schaub that he had insider information on a huge property sale that was going to take place, but needed some cash to make it happen. Carlton intimated that both he and Schaub could become rich very quickly by acting on this information and convinced Schaub to turn over the cash to him.
Nothing became of the money, and Schaub became infuriated. He bugged Carlton to give him back his money, but Carlton had another idea. He had Schaub meet him at the Hotel Saint George in Brooklyn on 6 July 1905, explaining there was some paperwork needed to seal the deal. Schaub met with Carlton there, where Carlton plied him with whiskey and cigars that may or may not have been laced with drugs. When Schaub awoke the next morning, Carlton had absconded with the cash and he knew he'd been swindled.
Instead of feeling sheepish and letting go of the money, Schaub decided to get even. He went immediately to the police and made a complaint. Frederick Carlton was arrested at his mistress' hoarding house on a vagrancy charge, but soon the charge was changed to grand larceny.
But you see, that was just the tip of the iceberg of the crimes of Frederick Edward Carlton.......
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| Frederick Carlton, as depicted on page 4 of The Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Virginia), 1 August 1905 on Chronicling America |
It was soon discovered that Frederick Edward Carlton wasn't who he said he was......
When searching his room at Mrs. Shultz's boarding house on 14 July 1905, police found numerous trunks, including one that contained several nude photographs of his mistress, Eleanor Vandeventer (which caused her to be arrested under Comstockery laws) as well as countless letters.
From those letters, it was soon determined that Frederick Carlton had been operating under several different aliases and corresponding with multiple women. It was also soon determined that even Frederick Edward Carlton was an alias.
What led them to discover this was a letter from a man in Saint Louis, who had seen Carlton's photograph in the paper, and knew him to be a local troublemaker by the name of J. E. McCandless.
In fact, there was a great deal more to be known about Carlton than just his real name.....
A Missouri Man
James Edward McCandless was born 23 April 1868 as the eldest child of Alexander McCandless and Anna Law in Louisiana, Pike County, Missouri. The family relocated to Moberly, Randolph County, Missouri, where James grew up in. It is said he began his life of crime as a schoolboy, and by the time he was a young man, he was well known in the area for being reckless and wayward.
As a young man, McCandless wandered around Missouri, getting arrested in connection to a robbery theft in Clayton and being sentenced to thirty days for loitering in Saint Louis. After getting out of jail, he enlisted as a private in Company D of the Sixth Infantry of the United States Army, being sworn in by one Captain Morgan on 1 November 1888. With his regiment he was shipped to Fort Lewis in Colorado and then to Fort Riley in Kansas. It was here at Fort Riley that he he deserted on 8 April 1890. He received a dishonorable discharge from the Army on 27 Apr 1891 and was sentenced to two years at Fort Leavenworth.
After this, James Edward McCandless seemed to have disappeared from radar, or so most people thought.
Women Scorned
In addition to being identified as James Edward McCandless as a result of his photograph, Frederick Carlton soon found himself being accused of bigamy, as many women wrote to claim that he was their husband.
As stated before, the police found many letters in one of the chests amongst Carlton's belongings. These letters were of a more personal nature, addressed to many different women, under many different names. It seemed Frederick Carlton fancied himself as a lady's man, and had women all over the country.
All of the stories were eerily similar..... Each woman had accumulated some sort of nest egg in the form of savings, inheritance, or jewels. Each woman found herself being wooed by a handsome, often younger, man who claimed he was rich himself, but needed to "borrow" her money to get something done. Then after being convinced to tie the knot, each of these women suddenly found themselves deserted and their nest eggs gone, and their husbands never to be seen again.
Carlton had this to say about the accusations being thrown at him:
Women Scorned
In addition to being identified as James Edward McCandless as a result of his photograph, Frederick Carlton soon found himself being accused of bigamy, as many women wrote to claim that he was their husband.
As stated before, the police found many letters in one of the chests amongst Carlton's belongings. These letters were of a more personal nature, addressed to many different women, under many different names. It seemed Frederick Carlton fancied himself as a lady's man, and had women all over the country.
All of the stories were eerily similar..... Each woman had accumulated some sort of nest egg in the form of savings, inheritance, or jewels. Each woman found herself being wooed by a handsome, often younger, man who claimed he was rich himself, but needed to "borrow" her money to get something done. Then after being convinced to tie the knot, each of these women suddenly found themselves deserted and their nest eggs gone, and their husbands never to be seen again.
Carlton had this to say about the accusations being thrown at him:
"I will say that I expect to be identified by every woman whose husband is missing. It is said she identified a photograph of me. You know that an identification by photograph cuts no ice. The courts have so held repeatedly. By the way, one woman picked me out my photograph and sent her brother to this jail to look me over. The moment he saw me he said I was not the man. Within two days eight persons have been brought here for the purpose of having them identify me, but they failed." ~Times Union (Brooklyn, New York), 28 July 1905, page 2Many women came forward to see if Carlton was the man who deserted them after taking their money, but ultimately the number of women fleeced was narrowed by police to twelve women. These are the twelve, in the order he likely fleeced them:
- Helen Murray from Nebraska, whom McCandless married under either his own name or as John McCandless, probably in 1890. Research cannot locate a marriage certificate for this couple as of yet.
- Jennie Andrew from Yankton, South Dakota, whom he married under the name of Fred Carlton. Like Helen Murray, research has not uncovered evidence to support or deny this
- Rose Cercier or Cherrier from Saint Louis, Missouri, whom McCandless was engaged to under the name of Carl Martin. Newspaper accounts vary as to if they wed, and no conclusive evidence can support a marriage record as of yet.
- Mrs. Lucia Mitchell from Kentucky, whom he married under the name of James Martinez. Research has not proven this marriage as of yet.
- Wiletta S. Bird, whom he legally married 26 Apr 1894 in Manhattan, New York under his real name. This was the first of his marriages that can be proven.
- Mildred "Millie" Peterson, whom he met while under the name James Edward Cartier and didn't marry, but stole from anyway in 1895.
- Mrs. Etta Kingery, a widow in Gordon, Alabama, whom he married 18 Oct 1897 under the name of Edward James Martinez and had a daughter. This marriage can also be proven.
- Mrs. Lulu Kettering, whom he married 20 Dec 1897 in Rochester, New York under the name of William DeRodriques. This marriage does have an existing record.
- Jane Maria "Jennie" Smyth, whom he married 28 Aug 1903 in Brooklyn, New York under the name of Frederick Carlton. This marriage can be proven.
- Mary P. "Mamie" Gorman, whom he married 14 Aug 1904 in Brooklyn under the name of Frederick Carlton. This marriage can also be proven.
- Eleanor Vandeventer,who he didn't marry, but lived with off and on as Frederick Carlton. She was arrested as an accomplice to his crime.
- Frederica "Rickie" Pfeiffer, whom he married 23 Jun 1905 as James Carter Richards. (This is where my connection lies with him, as she was a relative.) While it is not conclusively proven that she was swindled by Frederick Carlton, as she never identified him as her husband, the timing of the crime fits neatly into his saga, and the alias he used is similar to all of his other ones.
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| Graphic of Frederick Carlton and two of his women, as it appeared in a number of newspapers across the US, including Barbour County Index (Medicine Lodge, Kansas), from which this was clipped. Source: Chronicling America |
Interestingly enough, Carlton claimed that he was innocent of all of these crimes. In late July and early August 1905, he was declaring that his "double" was actually responsible for the crimes and that his lawyer was looking for the man. He claimed the man was related to him as a cousin and "was so like him in manner of speech, facial aspect and disposition" but that because they were related though the man's mother, he didn't want to cause the relative any scandal, so kept the identity of his "cousin" a secret. Soon enough though, that story was proved to be just another tall tale told by the con artist.
The Known Wives
Wiletta S. Bird was Carlton's first wife (chronologically) that was proved to be legally married to him, and from who the charges of bigamy were found against later wives. While newspaper accounts reported that Carlton first married Wiletta under the name of Charles R. Farley in May of 1893, this marriage cannot be found. It was also stated they wed first in Eastwood, Bergen County, New Jersey, but Eastwood did not exist in 1893. What is known is, like with his other wives, he took off with Wiletta's savings after the marriage. According to Willetta, when she found him in 1894, Carlton informed her the marriage was not legal because the minister was bogus. He also admitted he was using an alias. The couple was then legally wed a second time (Carlton used his actual name of James McCandless) on 26 April 1894. The minister for this marriage was Rev. Eli Quick, and the couple were married at his home at 725 Greenwich in Manhattan, with a friend and a sister of the bride as witnesses. However, this marriage was not happy for long, as once again Carlton deserted her, but not before trying to poison her with a lethal dose of morphine powders. Thankfully a friend stopped Wiletta from taking the powders. (In a typo, some newspaper accounts in 1905 state this marriage didn't take place until 1904....)
Bluebeard
Two of his bigamous victims, Jennie Smyth and Mamie Gorman, died from tetanus poisoning shortly after they married Carlton, and just under a year apart. Both women were in good health, aside from the suspicious manners in which they each were caused to gain the affliction.The Known Wives
Wiletta S. Bird was Carlton's first wife (chronologically) that was proved to be legally married to him, and from who the charges of bigamy were found against later wives. While newspaper accounts reported that Carlton first married Wiletta under the name of Charles R. Farley in May of 1893, this marriage cannot be found. It was also stated they wed first in Eastwood, Bergen County, New Jersey, but Eastwood did not exist in 1893. What is known is, like with his other wives, he took off with Wiletta's savings after the marriage. According to Willetta, when she found him in 1894, Carlton informed her the marriage was not legal because the minister was bogus. He also admitted he was using an alias. The couple was then legally wed a second time (Carlton used his actual name of James McCandless) on 26 April 1894. The minister for this marriage was Rev. Eli Quick, and the couple were married at his home at 725 Greenwich in Manhattan, with a friend and a sister of the bride as witnesses. However, this marriage was not happy for long, as once again Carlton deserted her, but not before trying to poison her with a lethal dose of morphine powders. Thankfully a friend stopped Wiletta from taking the powders. (In a typo, some newspaper accounts in 1905 state this marriage didn't take place until 1904....)
Mary Etta Bowdon Kingry was a rich widow with a young son living in Gordon, Alabama. On 18 October 1897, she married Carlton in Gordon under the name James Edward (or Edward James) Martinez. He worked under the guise of a physician in Gordon, according to accounts, and wooed Etta. The couple were married by a justice of the peace named F. F. Peet. They had a daughter named Eulia, who was born 1 January 1899, but like the other women, he took her money and ran
Lulu Ritz Kettering was also a young rich widow with a young son. She was living at 50 Lewis Street in Rochester, New York when Carlton wooed her under the guise of a Brazilian coffee plantation owner by the name of William DeRodriques. Lulu's family objected to the couple being wed, as Lulu had some money after her first husband had passed away, but they finally relented, and the couple was wed 20 December 1897 at Christ Church in Rochester. Just ten days later, after securing all of her jewelry, Carlton left Lulu. By the time he was caught in 1905, she had gone back to her first husband's surname of Kettering.
Jane Maria "Jennie" Smyth married Frederick E. Carlton at St. Clement's Church in Brooklyn, New York on 28 August 1903. Carlton was in the Navy at the time as a commissary agent aboard the ship the Dolphin, and was sent to Washington, DC with his unit. Jennie followed him there, and the couple took up residence in a boarding house at 500 D Street. One morning, while putting on her slippers, Jennie pricked her foot with a sewing needle that had supposedly fallen into them. As a result of the wound, she contracted tetanus and died from it on 15 May 1904. Her body was shipped back to Brooklyn, where she was buried on 20 May 1904.
The "grieving" widower wasted little time moving on. While in Brooklyn on leave because of the funeral, he met Mary P. "Mamie" Gorman and began to pursue her. While her family had serious misgivings about him moving on so quickly after his first wife's death and didn't want to see him and Mamie together, he persisted and somehow won them over. The couple wed 14 August 1904 at St. James Pro Cathedral in Brooklyn, just three months after Jennie's death. Like her predecessor, Mamie also mysteriously contracted tetanus, which took her life on 10 March 1905 at Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn. According to Edward, Mamie was supposed to have become infected by a cat scratch, though he practically refused to let anyone treat her until it was too late.
After Mamie's death, Jennie Smyth's father and Mamie Gorman's brother both became suspicious. Their suspicions were heightened when it was discovered that life insurance policies had been taken out on both women by their husband. Jennie was insured for $2000 and Mamie was insured for $3000, and Frederick Carlton was paid out for both deaths. Both families called for Carlton to be tried for murdering his wives.
It was because of these two mysterious deaths that Frederick Carlton was given the nickname "The Modern Bluebeard". He was nicknamed such after the French folktale character of the same name who was a wealthy nobleman who married a number of women in succession, having killed off each one before marrying again.
Maie Gorman's body was exhumed on on 19 July 1905 to be tested for poison, but tests were inconclusive, and Frederick Carlton was never tried for the murder of either wife due to lack of evidence. However, many believed him to be guilty of both deaths, as he was purported to have knowledge of poisons and medicines.
After Mamie's death, Jennie Smyth's father and Mamie Gorman's brother both became suspicious. Their suspicions were heightened when it was discovered that life insurance policies had been taken out on both women by their husband. Jennie was insured for $2000 and Mamie was insured for $3000, and Frederick Carlton was paid out for both deaths. Both families called for Carlton to be tried for murdering his wives.
It was because of these two mysterious deaths that Frederick Carlton was given the nickname "The Modern Bluebeard". He was nicknamed such after the French folktale character of the same name who was a wealthy nobleman who married a number of women in succession, having killed off each one before marrying again.
Maie Gorman's body was exhumed on on 19 July 1905 to be tested for poison, but tests were inconclusive, and Frederick Carlton was never tried for the murder of either wife due to lack of evidence. However, many believed him to be guilty of both deaths, as he was purported to have knowledge of poisons and medicines.
Conviction
Ultimately, on 18 September 1905, Frederick Carlton was indicted for grand larceny. After all, according to one inflation calculator, he managed to fleece his friend out of $700, which is equivalent to over $20000 today!
The same day, he was also indicted for three counts of bigamy, as only the New York marriages were entered into evidence. (My theory as to why he was never officially linked to my great-great-grandaunt Ricka was that she went back to Pittsburgh after being fleeced and either didn't connect her deserter to Carlton or just didn't want to have to deal with him). His marriage to Wiletta Bird was considered his first marriage, subsequently making the marriages to Lulu Ritz Kettering, Jennie Smyth, and Mamie Gorman all bigamous in the eyes of the law.
The same day, he was also indicted for three counts of bigamy, as only the New York marriages were entered into evidence. (My theory as to why he was never officially linked to my great-great-grandaunt Ricka was that she went back to Pittsburgh after being fleeced and either didn't connect her deserter to Carlton or just didn't want to have to deal with him). His marriage to Wiletta Bird was considered his first marriage, subsequently making the marriages to Lulu Ritz Kettering, Jennie Smyth, and Mamie Gorman all bigamous in the eyes of the law.
A week later, on 25 September 1905, in Kings County Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, Frederick Carlton was tried. His lawyer was John S. Bennett and the prosecutor in the case was District Attorney Clarke. One newspaper commented that Carlton never left his seat, and was found guilty on all charges that the court was seeking prosecution of.
The trial for the first bigamy charge took an hour, with the jury out only long enough to place a ballot of guilty. Wiletta Bird proved that she was still married to Carlton as James McCandless by producing the marriage certificate. The pastor that married them, Rev. Eli Quick, and all of the witnesses present were in the courtroom and were prepared to testify. Lulu Kettering was also in the courtroom, as were family members of both Jennie Smyth and Mamie Gormon. Several other women were also present in the courtroom. It is assumed they were other women that McCandless swindled under his aliases, and they appeared to be hopeful to give their testimony. However, due to the swiftness of the trial, and the fact that defense seemed to give no objections to any testimony, they were not needed, much to their disappointment. After the jury found Carlton guilty of the first count of bigamy, he changed his plea to guilty for the other bigamy charges.
On 2 October 1905, Judge Joseph Aspinwall sentenced Carlton to nineteen years of hard labor at Sing Sing Prison for his crimes. At the sentencing, Judge Aspinwall was quoted as saying:
Superintendent of Industries John P. Powers, who oversaw Sing Sing, was hiring convicts to do work they weren't supposed to do, and Carlton appeared to be one of those convicts. He helped the State of New York get Powers fired from his position as Superintendent of Industries at Sing Sing. In exchange, Frederick Carlton was pardoned just six years into his nineteen year sentence by Governor Dix for being a model citizen. The pardon came as a surprise to those who had convicted him.
As of this blog post, it is not entirely known what happened to Carlton after his release, though there is some speculation he may have taken the alias Ted Hall and married and had several children. It is possible that he went back to his con artist ways, and hopefully one day that story may be told. In the meantime, there were other crimes he was charged with, though those charges appeared to not come to fruition. Another post in the future will deal with these charges.
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"Suspect Carlton of Poison Plot," The Standard Union (Brooklyn, New York), 13 July 1905, page 1; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 25 January 2020).
"Suspected of Crime," Evening Star (Washington D.C.), 13 July 1905, page 8; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 25 January 2020).
"To Reveal the Pull of Powers," The Evening World (New York, New York), 23 November 1911, page 17; online images, Newspapers.com (www.nespapers.com : accessed 24 January 2020).
"Two Wives in Ten Months Both Died of Lockjaw," The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York), 13 March 1905, page 5; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspaper.com : accessed 25 January 2020).
"U.S. Army, Register of Enlistments, 1798-1914," database online with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 January 2020), Entry for James E. McCandless; citing Register of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M233, 81 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
"Was His Own Counsel," Evening Star (Washington D.C.), 19 September 1905, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 19 January 2020).
"Women Held as Carlton's Accomplice," The Evening World (New York, New York), 21 July 1905, 4; online images, Newspapers.com (www.nespapers.com : accessed 25 January 2020).
The trial for the first bigamy charge took an hour, with the jury out only long enough to place a ballot of guilty. Wiletta Bird proved that she was still married to Carlton as James McCandless by producing the marriage certificate. The pastor that married them, Rev. Eli Quick, and all of the witnesses present were in the courtroom and were prepared to testify. Lulu Kettering was also in the courtroom, as were family members of both Jennie Smyth and Mamie Gormon. Several other women were also present in the courtroom. It is assumed they were other women that McCandless swindled under his aliases, and they appeared to be hopeful to give their testimony. However, due to the swiftness of the trial, and the fact that defense seemed to give no objections to any testimony, they were not needed, much to their disappointment. After the jury found Carlton guilty of the first count of bigamy, he changed his plea to guilty for the other bigamy charges.
On 2 October 1905, Judge Joseph Aspinwall sentenced Carlton to nineteen years of hard labor at Sing Sing Prison for his crimes. At the sentencing, Judge Aspinwall was quoted as saying:
"You are at heart a villain, murder, swindler and thief, and I am sorry I cannot send you the electric chair. You are one of the most dangerous men in the country." ~ "Carlton Given Nineteen Years," Morning Press (Santa Barbara, California), 3 October 1905, page 1While a prisoner, Carlton was enumerated as a tinsmith in the 1900 Federal Census (in which he was also enumerated as having been married eight times), but newspaper accounts of his release also stated that he was employed in office work.
Superintendent of Industries John P. Powers, who oversaw Sing Sing, was hiring convicts to do work they weren't supposed to do, and Carlton appeared to be one of those convicts. He helped the State of New York get Powers fired from his position as Superintendent of Industries at Sing Sing. In exchange, Frederick Carlton was pardoned just six years into his nineteen year sentence by Governor Dix for being a model citizen. The pardon came as a surprise to those who had convicted him.
As of this blog post, it is not entirely known what happened to Carlton after his release, though there is some speculation he may have taken the alias Ted Hall and married and had several children. It is possible that he went back to his con artist ways, and hopefully one day that story may be told. In the meantime, there were other crimes he was charged with, though those charges appeared to not come to fruition. Another post in the future will deal with these charges.
Sources Used
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