Statesville, Sept. 3—The keeping of a dead body in the home is a very unusual and exceptional occurrence. John P. Speaks of Union Grove township refuses to bury the body of his son, Thomas B. Speaks, who was killed in France in October, 1918. The remains of the dead soldier boy were shipped from France to the United States, arriving at the home in Iredell county on the 13th of August, 1921.
The report being circulated that Mr. Speaks was keeping the remains of his son in the home and would not consider burying it caused an investigation on the part of County Welfare Officer W.W. Holland. Yesterday morning Mr. Holland, accompanied by County Physician Dr. Ross McElwee and Sheriff M.P. Alexander, drove in a car to the Speaks home, 20 miles north of Statesville. The box in which the casket was shipped was seen lying under a shed near the house. The casket, draped in a United States flag, was resting on chairs inside the home, where it was placed by the undertaker on its arrival three weeks ago. There was nothing offensive about the casket and the mother and other members of the household were moving around looking after the duties of the home as though the casket were a piece of choice furniture in the best room in the house.
The deceased, Thomas B. Speaks, was born March 3, 1901. Before he was 16, he volunteered for army service, becoming a member of the Iredell Blues. He was later attached to the regular army and was sent to France, where he was killed in action on October 4, 1918. HIs body was buried in a French cemetery, and at the request of the father, was transferred by the government last month.
Had Casket Opened
Immediately following the arrival of the body at the home, the father, who has the reputation of being a man of very peculiar and uncompromising ideas and convictions, first decided that he wanted to satisfy himself that the casket contained the remains of his own boy. He therefore had the casket opened and found little more than a mere skeleton. The shape of the teeth and the dental work, with which he was familiar, the length and size of the body all gave Mr. Speaks good hope that the remains were those of his son. He then announced his purpose to keep the body in the house and not bury it. During the past few days, however, he stated that he meant to build a special room in or near the house in which to keep the body and he is now arranging to have timber cut for that purpose.
Mr. Speaks treated the visitors with special courtesy and consideration. He manifested no stubborn or rebellious disposition in regard to the request of the officers and friends to have his boy’s body buried, stating that he would bury only if required by law to do so, or if it was found necessary from a sanitary standpoint.
“I do not want to bury my boy now,” said Mr. Speaks to a newspaper man, “but I will bury him if I have to, or if it is unsanitary to keep him in the house. I am expecting another son, who is in Germany in the United States Army, to come home in a few months and we might decide to bury him then. I prefer to fix a place for him in or near the house, since he has already been buried once, and keep him until I am dead and have his bones buried with me. I do not want my body left out when I die, and after I am gone I do not want my boy’s body left out, as the farm might change hands and I would not want his body neglected or abused in any way.”
Won’t Collect Insurance
Mr. Speaks refuses to make application to the Government for the $10,000 war insurance which his son had taken on entering the war. Another peculiarity of Mr. Speaks, which was learned through a neighbor, is that, while he does not go to church himself nor permit the members of his family to attend church, still he is said to be a constant reader of the bible, conducts family worship in the home and can quote the Scriptures freely and accurately when the occasion demands.
“What will be done with the body of the dead soldier?” was asked the officers yesterday on their return to Statesville from a visit to the Speaks home. The reply was that nothing could be done. If the keeping of the body in the home was found to be unsanitary, the man could be forced by law to bury it. The county physician does not find that it is dangerous to the health of the fmaily and the officers are therefore at the end of the row.
The members of the Speaks household do not express any dissatisfaction over the trend of affairs. They freely yield to the wishes of the head of the home and state that what he does is satisfactory to them.
So, for present at least, the body of Thomas B. Speaks will rest undisturbed in the modest home of his parents among the scenic hills of northern Iredell
From The Charlotte News, Sunday morning, Sept. 4, 1921
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Body Is Buried After 19 Years. . . Boyd Speaks Finds a Resting Place Beside Mother’s Grave
Following the funeral services held Saturday morning at Smith’s Chapel Methodist Church for his mother, Mrs. J.P. Speaks, the remains of Boyd Speaks, soldier of the First World War whose body was brought home from France in 1922, were laid to rest in a grave beside his mother’s in Smith’s Chapel Cemetery.
The young man, a member of the American Expeditionary Forces, died in France as result of a wound. His body was brought home from France in 1922, but had never been interred. In accordance with wishes of members of the family, it was kept in a house in the yard of the Speaks home, 19 years the box containing the casket had been kept.
The young man’s mother died Thursday morning following a heart attack and it was decided then that the two should be buried side by side in Smith’s Chapel cemetery. The two caskets were carried to the church at the same time and wile Mrs. Speaks’ funeral was held inside, the casket of her son was placed in position at a grave beside her own. Following the funeral there was a committal service and the double interment.
According to the Find A Grave listing, Pvt. Thomas Boyd “Speaks was born March 3, 1901 in Iredell County, N.C., to John Peter Speaks and Gillie Lutitia Templeton. He died in France Oct. 4, 1918, at the age of 17. He was buried beside his mother in Smith Chapel Cemetery, Union Grove, Iredell County.
www.findagrave.com/memorial/31129336/thomas-boyd-speaks. We know the newspaper article accompanying the Find A Grave listing is incorrect because a newspaper article announcing the arrival of Pvt. Thomas Boyd Speaks was published in 1921.
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