Mary Millicent Thompson was born April 23, 1863 in Orange County, NY, the daughter of David Henry and Elizabeth Sayre (Watkins) Thompson. She was married 11 Aug 1880, in Orange County, NY, to John Newton Luquer. They had seven children: Elizabeth Thompson, Clarence Newton, Esther Caroline, David Thompson, Herbert, Edith Katherine and Minthorne Quackenboss. The oldest and youngest children died as infants.
Although they remained together for over 25 years, the marriage was not a happy one. In 1907 they legally separated, and Mary left her husband and her four older children, taking the youngest daughter with her. She eventually moved to Bridgeport, CT, where she earned a living doing practical nursing.
In 1913-4 she was the center of a scandal involving her wealthy aunt Hannah Thompson Cross, who had sought Mary's help in escaping the care of her adult sons, who, she claimed, were abusing her. Mary assisted her aunt to escape to Bridgeport, and cared for her aunt Hannah for several months until Hannah died in late 1913. Hannah was the widow of a prominent Manhattan jeweler and her estate was worth over one million dollars. Hannah had left Mary $15,000 and her jewelry in her will, which Hannah's sons tried to contest. At one point Mary was even accused by Hannah's sons of poisoning Hannah to hasten her inheritance, but a coroner's inquest in early 1914 determined that Hannah, who had been in poor health for some years, had died of natural causes. Because of the prominence of her aunt's family and the lurid nature of the alleged crime, newspaper accounts of the coroner's inquest were on the front page of the Washington Post (but only the second page of the New York Times!) and accounts were used as "filler" by other newspapers across the country.
Mary continued to live in Bridgeport for several years, but finally settled in the Bronx where she died of pneumonia on 22 Feb 1930. Attempts to reconcile her with her husband at various times sadly failed.
Although they remained together for over 25 years, the marriage was not a happy one. In 1907 they legally separated, and Mary left her husband and her four older children, taking the youngest daughter with her. She eventually moved to Bridgeport, CT, where she earned a living doing practical nursing.
In 1913-4 she was the center of a scandal involving her wealthy aunt Hannah Thompson Cross, who had sought Mary's help in escaping the care of her adult sons, who, she claimed, were abusing her. Mary assisted her aunt to escape to Bridgeport, and cared for her aunt Hannah for several months until Hannah died in late 1913. Hannah was the widow of a prominent Manhattan jeweler and her estate was worth over one million dollars. Hannah had left Mary $15,000 and her jewelry in her will, which Hannah's sons tried to contest. At one point Mary was even accused by Hannah's sons of poisoning Hannah to hasten her inheritance, but a coroner's inquest in early 1914 determined that Hannah, who had been in poor health for some years, had died of natural causes. Because of the prominence of her aunt's family and the lurid nature of the alleged crime, newspaper accounts of the coroner's inquest were on the front page of the Washington Post (but only the second page of the New York Times!) and accounts were used as "filler" by other newspapers across the country.
Mary continued to live in Bridgeport for several years, but finally settled in the Bronx where she died of pneumonia on 22 Feb 1930. Attempts to reconcile her with her husband at various times sadly failed.
Mary Millicent Thompson was born April 23, 1863 in Orange County, NY, the daughter of David Henry and Elizabeth Sayre (Watkins) Thompson. She was married 11 Aug 1880, in Orange County, NY, to John Newton Luquer. They had seven children: Elizabeth Thompson, Clarence Newton, Esther Caroline, David Thompson, Herbert, Edith Katherine and Minthorne Quackenboss. The oldest and youngest children died as infants.
Although they remained together for over 25 years, the marriage was not a happy one. In 1907 they legally separated, and Mary left her husband and her four older children, taking the youngest daughter with her. She eventually moved to Bridgeport, CT, where she earned a living doing practical nursing.
In 1913-4 she was the center of a scandal involving her wealthy aunt Hannah Thompson Cross, who had sought Mary's help in escaping the care of her adult sons, who, she claimed, were abusing her. Mary assisted her aunt to escape to Bridgeport, and cared for her aunt Hannah for several months until Hannah died in late 1913. Hannah was the widow of a prominent Manhattan jeweler and her estate was worth over one million dollars. Hannah had left Mary $15,000 and her jewelry in her will, which Hannah's sons tried to contest. At one point Mary was even accused by Hannah's sons of poisoning Hannah to hasten her inheritance, but a coroner's inquest in early 1914 determined that Hannah, who had been in poor health for some years, had died of natural causes. Because of the prominence of her aunt's family and the lurid nature of the alleged crime, newspaper accounts of the coroner's inquest were on the front page of the Washington Post (but only the second page of the New York Times!) and accounts were used as "filler" by other newspapers across the country.
Mary continued to live in Bridgeport for several years, but finally settled in the Bronx where she died of pneumonia on 22 Feb 1930. Attempts to reconcile her with her husband at various times sadly failed.
Although they remained together for over 25 years, the marriage was not a happy one. In 1907 they legally separated, and Mary left her husband and her four older children, taking the youngest daughter with her. She eventually moved to Bridgeport, CT, where she earned a living doing practical nursing.
In 1913-4 she was the center of a scandal involving her wealthy aunt Hannah Thompson Cross, who had sought Mary's help in escaping the care of her adult sons, who, she claimed, were abusing her. Mary assisted her aunt to escape to Bridgeport, and cared for her aunt Hannah for several months until Hannah died in late 1913. Hannah was the widow of a prominent Manhattan jeweler and her estate was worth over one million dollars. Hannah had left Mary $15,000 and her jewelry in her will, which Hannah's sons tried to contest. At one point Mary was even accused by Hannah's sons of poisoning Hannah to hasten her inheritance, but a coroner's inquest in early 1914 determined that Hannah, who had been in poor health for some years, had died of natural causes. Because of the prominence of her aunt's family and the lurid nature of the alleged crime, newspaper accounts of the coroner's inquest were on the front page of the Washington Post (but only the second page of the New York Times!) and accounts were used as "filler" by other newspapers across the country.
Mary continued to live in Bridgeport for several years, but finally settled in the Bronx where she died of pneumonia on 22 Feb 1930. Attempts to reconcile her with her husband at various times sadly failed.
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