New York, March 31 (AP)—Edward W. Browning, elderly and wealthy real estate operator, has again assumed a role in a “Cinderella” tale. This time, however, he is playing the part of the Prince, following his disastrous attempt to be fairy godfather to Mary Louise Spas last year. His secretary today confirmed reports that his engagement to Frances Heenan, formerly of Columbus, O., 15-year-old daughter of a trained nurse, will be announced this coming June when the new Cinderella reaches her 16th birthday.
Frances is suffering from burns on her face, the work, according to Mr. Browning, of “some fiend” who entered her bed room while she slept and threw acid on her. Eight detectives are searching for the malefactor and four nurses are attending the girl.
He refused to confirm his secretary’s admission of the engagement plans, saying “it is a question I can’t talk about at present.” He added that Frances was “a lovely girl—very refined.” Her mother, Mrs. William Heenan, expressed no surprise at the reports of a romance.
The physician, who attended Frances after the mysterious acid throwing, said the burns would not be serious and probably would leave no permanent scars. Mr. Browning said the matter of the scars is “unimportant anyway,” so far as his regard for his new Cinderella is concerned.
From the front page of the Goldsboro News, Thursday morning, April 1, 1926
newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn93064755/1926-04-01/ed-1/seq-1/
-=-
Reading this made me feel uncomfortable, so I decided to look for more information. How old was the “elderly” Edward Browning? He was 51, which I wouldn’t say was elderly, but would be too old for a 15-year-old.
What about the person who snuck into her bedroom and threw acid on her face? Did those private detectives ever find the person. No.
So did he ever marry her? Yes, and he didn’t wait for a wedding announcement on her 16th birthday either. Edward W. “Daddy” Browning, 51, married Frances “Peaches” Heenan, 15, on June 23, 1926. The marriage didn’t work and they separated within months.
Divorce wasn’t quick and easy in 1926. The divorce trial in 1927 was widely covered with the child bride accusing her husband of bizarre behavior, emotional manipulation and inappropriate conduct.
Before his present wife, Browning had tried to adopt a 14-year-old. He described wanting a “companion” who was “young, cheerful, and lively.” He gave expensive gifts to teenage girls. And he openly said he preferred the company of “young girls” to adult women.
If you’re a parent, how would you feel about someone like this wanting to date or marry your 14- or 15-year-old daughter? If you’re a young person, what would you think about a 51-year-old man who approached you like this?
If you’d like more information, you can read about Edward Browning on Wikipedia. There’s a section on his marriage to Frances Heenan and his the divorce trial. The Library of Congress’s Chronicling America project has articles on “Peaches Browning”:
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/pages/results/?andtext=Peaches+Browning (chroniclingamerica.loc.gov in Bing)
No comments:
Post a Comment