Edinburg’s Skeleton Mystery

Edinburg's Skeleton Mystery

 

October 20, 2000 

The skeleton that hung in Mrs. Tucker's High School Biology Class disappeared -- back in about 1954 or so.  Its ostensible purpose was to teach us about the structure of the human body.  But, as much as anything, it served to remind us of ghosts and goblins that haunted our spiritual lives. For some, it may have served as a reminder of our own mortality. But that was a pretty silly notion because our own death was something that we shoved back into the recesses of our mind and tried to ignore and deny as much as possible. Our parents and teachers reminded us constantly about the life-threatening dangers that we faced daily, but we were skeptical. When we drove Sugar Road at night in Eddie Haddock's Cadillac, at speeds exceeding 100 mpg, we behaved as if we were immortal. 

Lavinia Tucker

 

When we dove from the concrete walkway at Cheva Checks down into the large washout far below, we narrowly missed hitting the concrete apron which would have cracked our skulls. This danger only added to the thrill. Yes, there was a rumor that swimming in canals caused polio; but not to us — we were invincible and likely immortal.

Anyway, somebody or something had removed the skeleton. For those of us that believed in the supernatural, it might have seemed possible that the skeleton had simply walked away.  Or, maybe the skeleton's ghost had returned to claim its own remains. Where did that skeleton come from anyway? In those days, the plastic models of skeletons were not available, so the skeleton was authentic — made up of real human bones. How did that human die? It seemed likely that the body of some unfortunate person showed up at a morgue and the mortician made a little money by selling the bones. But it was also possible that some poor sucker was killed so we could obtain a greater understanding of human anatomy. The thought of Mrs. Tucker reaching the end of her endurance with some ornery student and taking his life with one of her frog dissecting knives would have stretched our credulity — but was it possible?  Some of us would have taken perverse pleasure in suggesting such a scenario to one of our more squeamish or gullible classmates.  It is possible that one or more of us were afraid to turn our backs on our mild-mannered Mrs. Tucker during class.

Most of us likely thought the skeleton disappearance was not due to any supernatural event — but that a classmate had pilfered the skeleton as a prank.  Over a period of a few days, almost everyone in school knew the answer.  The culprit took considerable pride in telling his friends about the skill and daring required for such a feat — how he had gained entry into the biology classroom, concealed the skeleton as he exited the building and explained where the bones were now stored.  Friends told classmates who were overheard by teachers, and so it was no great surprise when our principal, Mr. Morris, announced in assembly, "I don't know who took the skeleton, but would John Hardin please return it.”  

Note: Thanks to Jerry Kaml for remembering this yarn and any trivial exaggerations are his alone.  Right?  Also, remember that John Hardin's father was a judge or attorney so that John likely received no more than a scolding for his reckless and rebellious misadventure. Yes, he paid some price for his actions, but John certainly enjoyed his newfound notoriety.  Also, many thanks to Mary Jane Allen for resurrecting this yarn from some dead-letter file.

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