Suncook Town Tragedy (Josie Langmaid) [Laws F21]

DESCRIPTION: Josie Langmaid is on her way to school when she is accosted by (Joseph) LePage. He abuses and kills her. Her family searches for and finds her body. The killer is condemned to hang
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1930 (Flanders/Brown-VermontFolkSongsAndBallads)
KEYWORDS: homicide family execution
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
Oct 4, 1875 - Murder of Josie Langmaid, reportedly by Joseph LePage
Mar 15, 1878 - Execution of Le Page
FOUND IN: US(NE)
REFERENCES (5 citations):
Laws F21, "Suncook Town Tragedy (Josie Langmaid)"
Flanders/Brown-VermontFolkSongsAndBallads, pp. 72-73, "Suncook Town Tragedy" (1 text, 1 tune)
Cohen-AmericanFolkSongsARegionalEncyclopedia1, pp. 21-22 "The Suncook Town Tragedy" (1 text)
Burt-AmericanMurderBallads, p. 57, "(no title)" (1 short text, 1 tune)
DT 684, SUNCKTWN
Roud #2259
NOTES [81 words]: Although Laws shows no signs of doubt about Le Page's guilt, the account in Burt-AmericanMurderBallads makes it seem that the case was at least somewhat uncertain. Langmaid had been abused and then decapitated, but the only evidence Burt-AmericanMurderBallads lists to tie the crime to Le Page is the fact that he had courted young girls (and Langmaid wasn't *that* young; Burt-AmericanMurderBallads lists her age as 17). Le Page even had a partial alibi, but was convicted anyway. - RBW
Last updated in version 2.7
File: LF21

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