They where publicly shamed and hidden from society sent to special boarding schools to have and then raise their child or have it adopted.
So it was not uncommon for those in society to prey on these unfortunate young girls performing the Back Alley Abortion in a home where a young girl was often lucky to be alive after the procedure.
But one such operation run by Charles C. Meridith MD in a large looming residence high on a river bluff in Bellevue was not discovered until a well know socialite Dorthy Arnold from New York City disappeared and was believed to have died and remains disposed of in what became known as the " House of Mystery"
It is believed as many as 20 young girls went missing and their remains where incinerated in the homes massive heating furnace after dying during the botched abortion procedure.
Dr Meridith was well respected citizen but the citizens had no idea the horrors in his home that where going on. To this day the remains of Dorthy Arnold have not been recovered but Meridith's undoing was the death of Mrs. Myrtle Allison whose remains where found. I am trying to dig out all the details on this story and share it with you in a further article. . The residence is believed to have been leveled and sat about where Brighton auto service now sits .
Unfortunately these types of horrors go on to this day with a recent case in Philadelphia