Suicide In The 1800's

Did They, Didn’t They?: A Question of Suicide in the 1800’s Evansville, Indiana has changed drastically over the past 130 years, and as the city, along with the rest of the world, changes, so do the structures of many occupations. One such occupation that has changed would be that of the coroner, which is now primarily called a medical examiner. While the office of the coroner has always been an elected position, the requirements to fulfill the position have changed radically since then, thanks to the introduction of forensic medicine. They have become more restricted and refined in the way that decisions are made. These advancements have been the pathway into helping coroners and medical examiners make decisions into the causes of death they investigate, and more specifically, are a key factor into making the ruling of suicides more precise.
Death inquires covered by the Vanderburgh County coroners were recorded in several volumes of Coroners Records over many decades. Each volume contains a set number of years, where the in-office coroners made note of the deaths that they were called to investigate. Most important to the following information: the years 1888 to 1894, where the elected coroners were Alfred Andrews (December 1888 – December 1890) and Charles P. Beard (December 1890 – December 1894), were taken note of. Neither of the …show more content…
At least, there weren’t any evidence to fully prove that there was an Evansville Chapter of the International Suicide Club, but during Charles Beard’s run as the County coroner, there were a string of drowning suicides in the summer of 1893, two of which that happened within the same day, though not at the same location. While these deaths could have no connection whatsoever, it is still worth mentioning, due to the concern from the Evansville Journal at the time over the possibility of these clubs popping up in the