Elsie Paroubek was a Czech-American girl born in 1906. On April 8, 1911, Elsie left her home to visit her Aunt, but was abducted on her way. When she did not return home, her parents assumed that she was staying at a friend’s house, and did not call police until the following morning when she had not shown up back home.
Police were convinced that gypsies had taken the girl because there was a large gypsy camp near the area of the abduction. Many tips were provided by citizens but none resulted in meaningful evidence. On May 9, 1911 an electrical engineer named George T. Scully spotted a body floating in the drainage canal near his work. He immediately called police and Elsie’s parents were brought in to identify the body. Due to the poor state of her remains, the coroner was unable to determine an exact cause of death, but concluded that it had been violent.
The funeral for Elsie Paroubek took place on May 12, 1911 and was attended by approximately 3,000 people. Elsie’s father died on the 2nd anniversary of Elsie’s funeral at the age of 45, and Elsie’s mother died on December 9, 1927. The three are buried together in the Bohemian National Cemetary.
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