Clara
Johnson
Submitted by Carol Sanman 6 March 2023
The Tennessean, Sunday, 29 September 1901, page 9
LETTER FROM BISHOP
It Came Just in Time to Stop a Marriage in Kentucky
CINCINNATI, Sept. 28—The proposed marriage of Mrs. Clara Johnson,
a widow, of Dayton, Ky; to Mr. Peter Baron, a wealthy merchant, of Ontagu,
Mich., came to a sudden stop and sad ending Thursday night by the bride’s
parents proving to their daughter that the man of her choice was married and had
a houseful of children. This not only caused Mrs. Johnson to refuse to have
anything further to do with him, but caused him to leave the city. The story
told by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Spitzelberger, is as follows:
Mrs. Johnson is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Michael
Spitzelberger, of 312 Clay street, Dayton, but lives with her sister, Mrs.
Littner, in Taylor Avenue, Bellevue. Her husband died about a year ago, and six
months later she went to visit friends at St. Paul, Minn., where she met Baron.
Two months later he visited her in Dayton, proposed marriage, and of course, was
introduced to the old folks.
The marriage was put off for a few months, and this gave Mr. and Mrs. Spitzelberger an opportunity to find out who there new son-in-law-to-be was. They wrote to the Bishop at Ontagu, Mich., and received a reply that Baron was 42 years of age, a prosperous merchant and had a wife and four children.
The news was as such that they withheld it from their daughter,
believing that Baron would never show up again. They were mistaken, for he
arrived in Dayton on Thursday evening and was anxious to get married
immediately. They arranged for the wedding to take place in the minister’s
parlors, adjoining the Sacred Heart Church, on the following morning, when the
license could be procured.
After making these arrangements, Mrs. Johnson decided to take her
intended down to call on her parents and get their consent. His reception was
exceedingly cold, but nothing was said until he asked Mr. and Mrs. Spitzelberger
for the hand of their daughter. He was then shown the letter from the Bishop in
Michigan and then ordered out of the house. Mrs. Johnson is prostrated over
their affair and has not been seen since.