A Milburn Tragedy

A Former Red Banker, a Principal in the Affair

Philemon B. Crelin, Sr., a former resident of Red Bank and Scobeyville, and father of Philemon B. Crelin, Jr., of Lincroft, killed his wife at Milburn last Thursday, inflicted wounds on his daughter which will probably terminate fatally and then tried to take his own life. Crelin moved from Scobeyville to Milburn a short time age and was employed as a special officer to guard houses that were quarantined on account of smallpox. The wife whom he killed was once deserted by him for another woman, but he had gone back to her after the death of this woman a short time ago. His daughter, Mrs. Fulkerson, is a widow with three children and they all lived together at Milburn.

On Wednesday night Crelin and his wife had a quarrel. The daughter interfered and Crelin threatened his daughter’s life. On Thursday night he went home with a revolver and said that he was going to carry out his threats against the daughter. When the first shot was fired his wife dropped to the floor dead. She was a consumptive and it was thought that she died from a hemorrhage produced by fright. Later a bullet wound was found under her left arm. Crelin pursued his daughter to an adjoining room and shot her twice, once in the abdomen and once in the left breast. He then sent a bullet into his own breast and fell to the floor. He and his daughter were taken to a hospital at Orange. The daughter’s wounds will probably prove fatal but it is though that Crelin will live to pay the penalty of his crime.

Source: Red Bank Register, Wednesday, Feb 19, 1902

Some additional excellent resources for your research are:

• New Jersey Census, 1772-1890 - Ancestry.com

• Calendar of New Jersey Wills, 1670-1760 - Ancestry.com

• Interment.net - NJ ~ New Jersey Cemetery Transcriptions on the net.

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