Found Dead Near Lovett Considerable mystery surrounds the death of John Murphy of the Tenth Ward, Johnstown, near Lovett, some time between 8 o’clock Monday evening and early Tuesday morning. Coroner Miller held an inquest into the affair and after all available testimony was placed before his jury, they brought in a verdict to the effect that the deceased had come to his death from the effects of a blood clot on the brain caused by a fracture of the skull near the left ear and that the circumstances of the case were suspicious and seemed to indicate foul play. Monday afternoon Mr. Murphy in company with James Fardy, William Keyser and John Heistern, all Conemaugh borough men, hired a surrey at Dell’s livery stable. It is said that all the men had been drinking. It was the intention of the party to go to Portage where Keyser had a sister whom he wished to visit. They left Johnstown about 2 o’clock and about 8 in the evening turned up on Lovett, after having lost their way. When about 100 yards from Ed Costlow’s hotel, just at the Beaver spur which leaves the Pennsylvania railroad there, the front axle on the surrey which they were driving broke. Fardy and Keyser made their way to the hotel, put up the horses and went to bed. What happened to Heistern and Murphy is not known. Tuesday morning Heistern was found asleep behind the hotel stable, after a railroader had found Murphy’s remains over in the woods with a couple of ugly bruises back of the left ear. The dead man was clad only in his coat, vest and shirt; his trousers, drawers, shoes and hat had been taken off. Coroner Miller was notified of the ghastly find and ordered the body removed to a place where it would be protected from the gaze of the curious spectators. He started at once to drive to Lovett and arrived there before dinner. The body was taken from a toolhouse in which it had been placed to a school house near by, the only available place where Dr. Miller performed a post mortem examination and discovered the clot on the brain. The deceased was a man of about fifty-eight years of age. He was a bachelor and lived with his widowed mother and three sisters at No. 1088 Center street. Aside from his mother, Bridget, and these three sisters – Mary, Elizabeth and Bridget, at home – he is survived by Annie, wife of Thomas Matthews of the Second ward; Michael of Conemaugh street; and Patrick of Conemaugh. Local relatives were notified of the occurrence at Lovett and Undertaker Brady and a brother of the deceased left the city that afternoon to bring the remains home. Death of Thomas P. Reese Thomas P. Reese, a well-known citizen of Ebensburg, passed away at his residence in the East Ward, Saturday afternoon at 1 o’clock, aged seventy-seven years. He had been sick about a week with general debility. Besides his sister, Mrs. James, Mr. Reese is survived by three sons and a daughter – Winfield of Johnstown; Miss Harriet, at home; and Joseph and Edward of Johnstown. He is also survived by four grandchildren, all of whom reside in Johnstown. Thomas P. Reese has resided in the vicinity of Ebensburg all his life. For many years he was engaged in farming in Cambria township. He was a lifelong member of the Congregational church of Ebensburg and was a staunch Republican. The funeral took place at Ebensburg Monday afternoon and interment was made in Lloyd cemetery. _________________________________________________________________ Want to read Hotmail messages in Outlook? The Wordsmiths show you how. http://windowslive.com/connect/post/wedowindowslive.spaces.live.com-Blog-cns!20EE04FBC541789!167.entry?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_hotmail_092008