On 10 January 1950, Marian L. Baker was brutally murdered by Edward Lester Gibbs. This collection contains W. Hensel Brown's copies of the clerk's file, transcripts, appeal briefs, and other court records from the murder trial of Edward L. Gibbs, 1950. Newspaper articles report on the 1950 trial and his 1951 electrocution.
Admin/Biographical History
Edward Lester Gibbs (1924-1951), veteran (98th Bombardment Group, 15th Air Force) and husband of Helen Woodward, was from Gloucester County, NJ. In 1950, he was a student at Franklin and Marshall College. (1)
Marian Louise Baker (1928-1950), the daughter of Walter M. Baker and Helen Beatrice Soule Britcher, was originally from New Bloomfield, Perry County, PA. (2) She had spent much of her childhood in Conestoga, PA with her aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. LeRoy O'Donel. (3) In 1950, she worked as a cashier and secretary in the treasurer's office at Franklin and Marshall College (4) and was engaged to Edward Rankin. (5)
W. Hensel Brown was the attorney chosen to defend Gibbs.
"On January 10, 1950, Marian Louise Baker was brutally slain by being
beaten to death with a lug wrench. Eight days later Edward Lester
Gibbs, defendant, confessed the killing. Thereafter, he was indicted in
Lancaster County, tried by a jury, and convicted of murder in the first
degree with the penalty fixed at death. Prior to his bringing this appeal, his motion for new trial was denied and sentence was imposed in accordance with the verdict.
At the time of the killing, defendant, a married war veteran twenty-five years of age, was a student at Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. *185 In the early afternoon of January 10, 1950, he was in downtown Lancaster when he saw Miss Baker, an employee of the college. He offered to drive her back to the campus in his car and she accepted. However, instead of returning directly to the college, they rode out of town and into the open country. When they reached an isolated spot several miles from the city she commented on the view and defendant stopped the car so that they both might enjoy it. While sitting there he suddenly reached over and began choking her. She broke away and got out of the car. He followed her and after choking her again, he returned to the car, unlocked and opened the luggage compartment, removed the lug wrench, and beat her over the head with it until she was dead. He then left but later returned to hide the body and remove any incriminating evidence. The body was not discovered until four days later.
On January 18, 1950, defendant admitted committing the crime and on that same day he signed a statement setting forth the facts as we have synopsized them here. Neither at the trial nor at any other time did he deny the truth of that confession and substantially all of the facts contained in it were verified by the independent investigation of the Pennsylvania State Police." (6)
1 "Edward Lester Gibbs," Find A Grave, accessed November 27, 2018, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/76555590/edward-lester-gibbs.
2 "Marian Louise Baker," Find A Grave, accessed November 27, 2018, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/76632108/marian-louise-baker.
3 "Vintage photos, the 1950 murder of an F&M secretary," PennLive.com, last modified January 8, 2016, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/01/vintage_photos_the_1950_murder.html.
4 "Marian Louise Baker," Find A Grave, accessed November 27, 2018, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/76632108/marian-louise-baker.
5 "Vintage photos, the 1950 murder of an F&M secretary," PennLive.com, last modified January 8, 2016, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/01/vintage_photos_the_1950_murder.html.
6 "Opinion by Mr. Chief Justice Drew, November 20, 1950," Justia, accessed November 27, 2018, https://law.justia.com/cases/pennsylvania/supreme-court/1950/366-pa-182-0.html.
The work of Eleanor Fulton, a professional researcher. Contains information on the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster County, including First Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Donegal Presbyterian Church. Also, genealogy notes for local families and St. James Episcopal Church.
The Mayor James H. Ross Collection documents Ross's political career from 1933-1937. James Ross, a businessman and civic leader, served as mayor of Lancaster from 1934-1938. The collection consists primarily of correspondence and a scrapbook. The letters are related to his mayoral election and responsibilities, the James H. Ross Ready to Wear Department Store, and personal matters. The scrapbook, compiled by his wife, contains information about his political career, the department store, and other local merchants, and provides a good background on the housing issues that threatened Lancaster City. The collection gives a fragmented picture of life in Lancaster in the 1930s, including commercial transactions, the Depression, religious charitable organizations, politics, and the Democratic Party.
Admin/Biographical History
James H. Ross was born in Green County, Ohio. When he was six, Ross's family moved to Monroe County, West Virginia where he attended school until he was seventeen. His family moved back to Ohio where he finished his schooling at Bowersville High School. After graduating, Ross moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania and began working for M. T. Garvin & Co. Ross left M. T. Garvin & Co. in 1928 and established his own store, James H. Ross Ready to Wear Department Store, in December of that same year. James H. Ross was elected Mayor of Lancaster as a Democrat in 1934.
Please make an appointment with the Research Center staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org to view the scrapbook.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-58
Classification
MG0058
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Scrapbook, Career of James Ross, Former Merchant and Mayor, was previously housed in the Scrapbook Collection, Book 121. Scrapbook, Career of James Ross, Former Merchant and Mayor, was cataloged and preserved with funding from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, ME60112, 2007-2008.
Appraisements of real estate for inheritance tax. Some personal property appraisals are also included. Appraisals include: name of decedent; location and description of real estate; description of personal property; valuation of real estate and personal property; and assessed tax. May also include names of heirs. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by first letter of decedent's last name. Handwritten; from 1886, handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by first letter of decedent's last name.
The Mary Warfel Collection contains materials collected by or pertaining to Mary Warfel, world renowned harpist from Lancaster County. There are scrapbooks, newspaper articles, programs, reviews, event announcements, and correspondence.
Admin/Biographical History
Mary Warfel was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1888 to a family of exceptional musical talent. Both her parents were musicians and her grandfather was a Viennese baritone. From an early age Warfel is said to have shown signs of her brilliance as she displayed unusual common sense and sound judgment. As a young lady Warfel decided to follow in the footsteps of her family as she went to study music at St. Mary's College, Notre Dame in 1905. While at St. Mary's Warfel studied the harp and the piano. Warfel wrote in her diary which she kept through the duration of her time at St. Mary's that the harp was her favorite instrument to study. Finishing her studies in 1906 Warfel would go on to graduate with honors.
Upon leaving college Warfel traveled to Philadelphia where she would study under the tutelage of Constantin von Sternberg. During this period of her life Mary Warfel's studies were more focused on the piano however the harp still remained her first love and she never abandoned hope of someday becoming a prominent harpist.
After her time with von Sternberg Warfel returned to Lancaster where she began her music career. Warfel kept track of her career by saving the newspaper articles and various letters wrote to her throughout her career. The first record that Mary Warfel saved came from a concert in Philadelphia on April 11, 1909 where she played the Woodland Presbyterian Church. From this point on until her breakout season Warfel played a handful of concerts every year mostly being recognized as a auxiliary performer barely getting much recognition.
Warfel's career took off after she played a concert in New York City on Palm Sunday in 1914. This was Warfel's final performance of the 1913-14 season. The 1914-15 season would turn out to be huge for Warfel as she would play concerts in Lancaster, York, Harrisburg, Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia and New York City.
The 1916-17 season would be even bigger for Warfel as she became a well-known name in New York and played several large venues such as the Biltmore Hotel and Carnegie Hall. Despite Warfel's success on a grand stage she never divorced herself from her home town. For Mary Warfel, Lancaster City was home and she prided herself on trying to make Lancaster a premier music town by bringing in various big name artists to play concerts. Fritz Kreisler was one of the big names that Warfel brought to Lancaster, who was referred to by the local paper as the world's greatest violinist. Warfel also never stopped playing local venues herself. Throughout her career and no matter how big her name got Warfel had always played concerts at the Iris Club and the Fulton. By the end of the 1916-17 season Warfel's prestige had grown greatly and she became recognized as an elite harpist being compared to Ada Sassoli another great harpist of the era. A newspaper article that Warfel saved towards the end of the season mentioned that she was in high demand in New York.
Warfel's career would continue to grow and her reputation would as well. Her prestige grew to the point where she became recognized as the premier harpist in the United States and throughout all her success her attitude never changed. An article from a paper in Altoona in 1918 described Mary as, "Someone who distinguishes herself by not being the type of musician who will not do something because it is not in her contract." She was known to go out of her way to do things for others and such behavior gained her a great deal of followers.
During the twenties Warfel played less concerts and focused on her music series, bringing prominent names to Lancaster. Mary Warfel certainly would have been a well-known name amongst music lovers during her lifetime. Unfortunately she did not leave much of a legacy because all of her work consisted of live performances. The remaining records of Mary Warfel are newspaper articles from various cities that she saved, personal letters addressed to her, and several short excerpts from history books on Lancaster County. Regardless of what Mary Warfel did or did not leave she still stands among Lancaster's most distinguished citizens as a nationally recognized musician who played one of the most difficult instruments to master.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Box #, Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
The items in Folders 10 and 11 were a gift of Paul Kaseman.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Folder 16 is restricted. All other items in the collection may be used--contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit or request at the Reference Desk.
Copyright
Collection items may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-138
Classification
MG0138
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Processed and finding aid by PW. Biographical information by DJ, Fall 2014. Added to database 26 December 2023.
This collection contains the scrapbook of Mathias Zahm (1760-1844). Mathias Zahm kept this scrapbook of journal entries and clippings from Lancaster's German language newspapers from 1800 to 1833.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Zahm Family Collection, 1800-1831 (MG0914), Box #, Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. URL if applicable. Date accessed (day, month, year).
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions. Please request at the Reference Desk or contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit.
Copyright
Collection may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
The S. S. Haldeman Papers are an overview of Haldeman's career. The collection contains biographical information about and published works of Samuel Steman Haldeman on the freshwater univalve mollusca, language, and agriculture. There is also a handwritten biography on Ben Keywood.
Admin/Biographical History
Samuel Steman Haldeman was born in Locust Grove, Lancaster County circa 1812. He was the eldest of seven children of Henry Haldeman and Frances Steman. (Haldeman genealogy chart) Samuel was raised in the family mansion in Bainbridge and developed an interest in science and nature by wading in the Susquehanna River. There he collected shells, eels, Indian relics, minerals and insects. (Barber, 53) He was educated in public schools and attended Dickinson College for two years before withdrawing. Samuel left Dickinson because he found college to be irksome and that he could learn more on his own. After college Samuel educated himself by going to lectures, analyzing specimens, and studying books.
Also after college he moved into the mansion near Chickies Creek, which he designed. In 1835 S. S. Haldeman married Mary Hough of Bainbridge and they had four children. (Haldeman genealogy) Haldeman was not a religious man and was born protestant, but when he was in his thirties he converted to Roman Catholic and was a member of St. Mary's Church in Lancaster City.
During his life, Samuel was the author of scientific works, as well as many works on the study of language. One of his more famous works was A Monograph of the Limniades and other Fresh-Water Univalve Mollusca of United States. Samuel published these volumes during the 1840s. These volumes on mollusca were viewed as authoritative by most of the scientific world including Charles Darwin. (Sunday News, Lancaster, Pa.) Haldeman was considered an expert of many of the subjects he wrote about because of his attention to detail. He worked 16-hour days going over different specimens and spent time practicing the correct way to pronounce words and letters in different languages. (Croll)
Haldeman was the author of over 150 articles on natural science, zoology, ethnology, language, natural history, and archaeology. His publications include several newspaper articles for Lancaster County newspapers, the Marietta Times and the Intelligencer Journal. Additionally, he was the editor of the Pennsylvania Farm Journal for three years. Haldeman's articles were also published in Silliman's Journal, better known as The American Journal of Science, and Popular Science Monthly. (Croll)
However, Haldeman's career was not limited to publishing. His interest in the sciences led to careers in teaching and geology. In 1836 he began working for the State Geological Survey in New Jersey as an assistant and later held the same position in Pennsylvania. He received his first professorship to teach zoology at the Franklin Institute of Philadelphia in 1841. Haldeman was elected professor of natural history at the University of Pennsylvania in 1851, and then in 1855 he became a professor of natural history at the University of Delaware. He returned to the University of Pennsylvania as a professor in 1876 and retained that position until his death in 1888. (Barber)
Haldeman did not limit his career solely to science. He managed the First National Bank of Marietta. He was also a partner with his brothers in the iron business that his father had built. The original name of the furnace was Chiqusalungo. It operated under the name E. Haldeman and Co. The brothers later built another blast furnace, and called the two furnaces Chickies 1 and Chickies 2. These furnaces were located along the Susquehanna south of Marietta. Haldeman perfected the practice of smelting iron with anthracite coal. Some of his articles on the use of anthracite coal in blast furnaces were published in Silliman's Journal during the 1840s. (Gramm)
Samuel Steman Haldeman brought the forefront of science to Lancaster County. He worked on issues relevant to his home and community. He was never involved in any business that did not affect his home or family and worked hard to the end of his life. He returned home, tired and exhausted, from a convention in Boston in 1888. Samuel Steman Haldeman died six days later of a heart attack at age 68. "Thus peacefully ended a useful life, full of years and honors." (Barber)
Works Cited:
Barber, Edwin A. "The Late Professor S.S. Haldeman" The Museum; 1885. MG-344 S. S. Haldeman Papers, Lancaster County Historical Society.
Croll, P. C. "Famous Pennsylvania Germans; Professor Samuel S. Haldeman, LL.D." The Pennsylvania German, v.6 1905.
Gramm, Bertha Sue, The Ironmasters of Marietta and vicinity during the period 1848-1878, Lancaster County Historical Society: Lancaster, Pa. 1948.
Haldeman genealogy chart prepared by Horace L. Haldeman, 1893. Haldeman Family file, Lancaster County Historical Society.
Haldeman Mansion Preservation Society https://haldeman-mansion.org/
Related Item Notes
Haldeman Family Papers and Business Records (MG0736)
Curatorial Collection
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), S. S. Haldeman Papers (MG0344), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
See the attached finding aid for a list of S. S. Haldeman's publications.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please use photocopies of newspaper articles.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-344
Classification
MG0344
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged and finding aid prepared by AV, Fall semester 2006. Added to database 22 August 2017.
This collection contains genealogy for some of the descendants of Philip Lefever. Family history includes family sheets for several descendants, the family crest and a family tree. Copies of the will and estate inventory of Martin K. Lefever are among the documents. Minutes are preserved from the Adam Lefever Descendants Reunions, 1945-1979. There are also legal papers and information for the Philip Lefever Cemetery and Philip Lefever Burial Ground Association, including the rededication of the cemetery in 2001.
