Death Amasa Stone

cenotaph on grave of amasa stone @ lake view cemetery.

after 1875, many of amasa stone s businesses suffered severe financial setbacks, , of them failed. suffered stomach ulcers kept him awake 2 hours each night. believed public ashtabula river bridge disaster had affected stone emotionally, causing health worsen after 1876.

by 1882, stone suffering insomnia. year, son-in-law, john hay, took wife, clara stone hay, on long-delayed 18-month honeymoon europe. hay biographer patricia o toole concludes amasa stone was, time, suffering severe depression. wrote hay constantly, ambivalent letters full of muffled cries . stone s depression appeared worsen when several of businesses failed in first 3 months of 1883. first, cleveland rolling mill co. hit bitter strike in 1882, caused significant financial problems. on february 2, 1883, kansas city rolling mill co. failed. union iron & steel co. went receivership few days later, followed brown, bonnell & co. on february 19. stone blamed high labor costs failure, depression of 1882–85 more cause. shortly thereafter, stone asked hay cut short trip , return cleveland, hay (who return united states in may) declined.

at 2 pm on may 11, 1883, stone working @ home on euclid avenue. spoke several times business secretary, , advised wife rest. stone retired bedroom. @ 4 pm, julia stone went check on husband, , found bed empty , bathroom door locked. called butler, climbed through transom , found stone dead. had shot himself in heart , fallen forward head , shoulders lay in bathtub. gun lay side.

it assumed press , public lingering poor health brought 1867 carriage accident, guilt on ashtabula river bridge disaster, , overwork caused suicide.

stone unpopular man in cleveland. many members of public, manner of demise seemed just. mark twain sarcastically observed, apparently nothing pleases almighty picturesque.

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