Wednesday, January 14, 2009

John Klumpp Missing five weeks, is found

This blog is the first half of a 2 night blog, the second part of this blog will be posted tomorrow night.
I chose the Klumpp family as the feature of this blog. For those of you who do not recognize the Klumpp family name, they were one of the most prosperous families during this period of Rich Hill History.

This article is from the July 5, 1934 Rich Hill Mining Review newspaper.

A Boy Tramp Asking for Food gives Mrs. Chas E. Klumpp the Clue Idenifies Him by picture.

Discovered at Carthage

Suffering from Amnesia, Gives No account of his waderings, Taken to Kansas City Hospital

The response of Mrs. Chas. J. Klumpp to a pitiful plea of a boy 17 years old, a tramp, asking for something to eat about 7 o'clock Wednesday evening, led to the startling discovery that John E. Klumpp was alive and to be found at Carthage, 75 miles south of here. He has been missing five weeks.
Since John Klumpp's disappear­ance Mrs. Chas. Klumpp has made it a habit to question every stran­ger, hoping to find some clue. The boy, Harry Hocum, 17 years old, was questioned and gave a straight story that impressed Mrs. Klumpp. He was shown a picture of the missing man and he said that he met Mr. Klumpp some two weeks ago at the "Jungles," a rendezvous for tramps and job­less men near Carthage, and talked with him, Mr. Klumpp saying that he bad "bummed" his way from Kansas City to Carthage over the Kansas City Southern railroad; that Mr. Klumpp then complained of pains in the side of his head, evidently suffering from amnesia
Having confidence in the boy's story, Mrs Chas. Klumpp, Mrs. John Klumpp, Mac Wilson and Sam Klumpp, accompanied by the Hocum boy, left here in a motor car, arriving at Carthage at 10 o'clock in the evening. The went at once to the ' jurgle" camp and there found John E, Klumpp, the missing man.
He was found to be suffering from lapse of memory, as he failed to recognize his wife or any mem­ber of the family. He appeared in a wretched condition, both physically and mentally, showing evidence of enduring hardships in his wanderings. He failed to give any account of his wanderings over the country the past five weeks.
A physician was called and Mr. Klumpp was taken to the Carthage hospital, where he was given emergency treatment, before leaving for the Research hospital in Kansas City, by Mrs. Chas. J. Klumpp, Mrs. John E. Klumpp; Chas. J. Klumpp joining the party at 2 o'clock last Thursday morning when they reached Rich Hill. Here Mr, Wilson and Sam Klumpp were dropped off.


JOHN E. KLUMPP'S CONDITION SERIOUS
Mr. and Mrs. Joe P. Klumpp, Mrs. Burl Holland and Mrs. Will Vogel returned late Friday night from Kansas City where they vis­ited John E Klumpp at the Research hospital where he was taken after being found at Carthage last Wednesday night at the "Jungle Osmo" through a clue given by a 17-year-old boy who, tramping through Rich Hill, stopped at the Chas. E. Klumpp home for something to eat, which was given by Mrs. Klumpp, then questioned closely, and stating that he had met Mr. Klumpp and, when shown a picture, recognized Mr. Klumpp and then accompa­nied the members of the Klumpp family to Carthage.

J P. Klumpp after his return home said his brother was still suffering from amnesia, that his memory is very cloudy, and that his condition is yet very serious. Three hospital physicians are at tending Mr, Klumpp, but were averse to giving an opinion as to the outcome of the case at this time.

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