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Notes
About Uncle Bill White
Marie Smith lived in Whitesville, a small district southwest of Asbury Park, just across the Asbury border. One encounters the surname White very frequently when researching local history. "Uncle Bill White", for example, is the "eccentric" who, I briefly report on page 225, persistently responded to Investigator Scholl's questions with "I might and might not have seen this or that done." For some reason, I had not readily associated "Uncle Bill White" with the well-known White family and unconsciously assumed that this person was lost in the depths of the past, probably unknown to anyone now living. Well, my unconscious was wrong! B.C.S., former resident of Asbury Park and a certified genealogist, knows (among other things) who "Uncle Bill White" was! She explained in an email to me, Pg. 225 - old "Uncle Bill White" eccentric, was my grandmother's first cousin 1x removed, as well as the same between Uncle Billy and Ellsworth White (p. 257). Ellsworth White and my grandmother were 2nd cousins. It was Ellsworth White who moved the old White homestead (built in 1687) from S/W corner of Asbury and Railroad in 1924, later to be moved to 26 Lake Drive, Wanamassa, where it stands today. Here are references to "Uncle Bill White" that I did not include in "The Murder At Asbury Park." In the following, Investigator Charles Scholl is occupied with Mooney the plasterer, who he thought might be familiar with the kind of bag (the "blood soaked" bag) that was found in the dump.
On another issue: William S. Benson, the man who found Marie's body, encountered Officer William Truax ("Truax" is another well-known local name) at the Smith home when he went to get help (p.53). About the officer, B.C.S. writes, "Police officer William Truax was my grandmother's first cousin and was born in 1883, lived at 1508 Sewall Ave, and his parents lived at 1313 Munroe Ave. which would be near the Peter Smith home." B.C.S. also tells us that reporter Harrison Hurley (mentioned once, on p.345) lived right next door to Reporter Alvin B. Cliver on Third Avenue in the 1200 block. ("Hurley", by the way, is one of the most well-rooted surnames in the area.
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