They called it the " House of Mystery ". It was more like the house of Horrors in Bellevue

In early 1900's a young woman who became pregnant out of wedlock was seen very differently than it is today.
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 

What ever happened to" Wild Bill " who lived in the woods of Penn Hills

He was a former City of Pittsburgh Police Officer who accidentally killed a young child when responding to a call. Bill Reinstien or Wild Bill as everyone knew him slowly went from an average guy to a Hermit  in the 1990's a restless soul who walked around the town with a backpack and lived in a tepee made of blue plastic tarps  in the woods after his home got so bad the township tore it down. He never bothered a soul but some people especially kids taunted him with the name " Chester the Molester" a fictional character from Play boy magazine
The township went after bill in 1995 to remove the tepee and he was arrested at one point and ordered to tear it down but he persisted in living in the woods in late 1990's   his tepee caught fire and when I was with Penn hills 4# we responded and put the fire out .
Supposedly funds where  raised to help get him into a personnel care or other supervised setting but no one knows if it ever happened or where Bill is no he would be 80 years old today he supposedly had a police pension his sister managed but again all speculation. I was reminded of wild bill when I saw a homeless man who looked just like him sitting in a park in monroeville couple days ago was it bill sure could be he may be 80 but age means nothing to some people.
  Last time I talked to Bill was at the Old Dairy Queen on Saltsburg Road in late 90's
  and he was still full of mind and just wanting to live life his way not the way the gov told him.




Thallium The Poisoners Poison and the case of a large quantity of it missing in Penn Hills

I have driven down Sandy Creek road many times in Penn Hills over the years past several small manufacturing plants and assorted business  and never really paid attention to the small place along the road near the top where Verona Road meets . Then one afternoon in 2009  while driving by this small plant there where all kind of environmental and emergency vehicles sitting outside. OK something going on will have to watch the news this evening .



Former Industrial coatings plant. 
Well it ends up there is a major concern seems 2 gallons of Thallium the Poisoners Poison as it is known  from mystery writers novels is missing from the former industrial diamond  powders processing facility.  which had closed in 2003  a relative reported it missing and they where ready at one point to break up a cement slab in drive way to see if it had been disposed of there. But after an extensive search and back round investigation of the relative of the plant they pretty much are sure he is just making up a story as he has a history of questionable activity's in his life. Yet he still claims it is missing and it may well be missing as there does not appear to be any records as to how it was disposed of when the plant closed along with a bunch of other dangerous items. Too many times things get spilled on the ground or buried  and forgotten which could be very bad situation with this product which could poison the entire town if it gets in the water table .
The building has since become headquarters for a company which remodels homes for flipping purposes. 
but the case is still open.