"For eight years, a man without a memory lived among strangers at a hospital in Mississippi..."

[Nevilledog]

Link to tweet

https://magazine.atavist.com/searching-for-mr-x-amnesia-mississippi-radio-mystery/

On a summer day in 1931, a man was found wandering South State Street in Jackson, Mississippi. He appeared to be lost. He was white, with gray hair and a thin, angular face. His clothes were worn and rumpled, but on his feet were a pair of tan Borden low-quarter dress shoes, the kind that sold for more than ten dollars at S. P. McRae’s department store on West Capitol Street. He had shell-rimmed eyeglasses and a belt buckle with the letter L on it. In his pocket was a cheap watch and a single penny.

When police questioned him, the man seemed dazed. He was unable to supply his name, his address, or an explanation for why he was in Jackson. He was arrested for vagrancy. After a few days, he was placed in the custody of Dr. C. D. Mitchell, superintendent of the Mississippi State Hospital. Upon his arrival at the facility, the man, who was estimated to be about sixty, was entered into the patient ledger as “Mr. X.”

Who was he? Where had he come from? How did he wind up alone on a street in the Deep South, at the beginning of the Great Depression, without his memory? Months passed, then years. Mr. X remained at the hospital, and the mystery of his identity lingered. For reasons no one could discern, his past was beyond his reach.

Formerly known as the Mississippi State Lunatic Asylum, in 1931 the hospital was a warren of overcrowded barracks so decrepit that patients kept getting injured by pieces of plaster that fell from crumbling ceilings. Worse yet, the hospital was a firetrap—its buildings were full of mattresses, linens, and other combustible material. One blaze after another destroyed parts of the facility, necessitating reconstruction.

*snip*

[Hoyt]

1. Some of those "mental facilities" back then were horrendous. Not sure much better now.

My state among the worst. State funding was deficient and admin sucked.

[Ex Lurker]

4. The one he stayed in was pretty nice, according to the article

which is perhaps why he stayed there so long. It was better than any of his other options.

[LeftInTX]

6. Read the entire article. He was moved to a brand new facility and he liked it there.

[Sgent]

11. Today they are all nicer -- they have a very airy, ephemeral feel to them

because they don't exist. The only long-term mental institutions now are those found are in prisons for those found not guilty by reason of insanity.

It is unlikely this guy even gets an admission rather than discharged with no follow-up in MS currently -- at best a phone number for a regional mental health outpatient facility with a 6-month waiting list for a counselor and a year+ for a psychiatrist. Unless you are actively suicidal, homicidal, or can afford 30+k / month out of pocket, you are not getting admitted.

[royable]

2. A fascinating and moving and well-written essay. Thank you for sharing! n/t

[TygrBright]

3. Fascinating story, well told. Thanks for posting!

[Doc Sportello]

5. Fascinating story

It's a fairly long read but I highly recommend for anyone who loves a good mystery.

[srose58089]

7. Fascinating Read

I had never read any writings of "BY LAURA TODD CARNS" but will try and read more. More of her articles can be found at

https://muckrack.com/laura-todd-carns/articles

[LeftInTX]

8. He's in Family Search

For those who have a free account. Apparently there is an obituary for him, but I don't have a subscription to genealogy bank.

https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/sources/LCC7-FGP

I'm apparently a distant relative of his, apparently sharing like 10th great grandparents from the 1600's. However, I have no idea whether those trees are accurate and documentation about my 3rd great grandfather's birth location is scant on Family Search.

[Raine]

10. Very interesting ... THANKS so much

for posting this. 👍

[Nevilledog]

13. ...

[NJCher]

12. It certainly points out the need

For social services and for programs like Social Security. The thought of this man wandering around looking for work at an advanced age is very distressing.

At the same time, he did receive love and caring at the mental institution. They were enough of a “family” for him that he returned for visits several times.

While the writer is unquestionably talented, I have to wonder about her life philosophy and values. For example, she noted his own family did not go back to the mental institution for the birthday party. Well, of course not. Why would they?

At the end she is, as she puts it, irrationally angry as she sees the errors and wear to the grave marker. She seems angry that this person did not get more respect in life.

However, when one considers he had little aid in terms of readying himself toward any type of meaningful work, why does she not direct that anger toward the lack of a social support system, such as what we now have in terms of a community college system today?

In short, I think the writer missed an opportunity to make a point about how a society can interact with an individual to make a life meaningful.

[panader0]

14. Great story and well-written.

[HipChick]

15. Back in the day...there was a Duchess admitted into one of these places

Back in the UK
Nothing was actually wrong with her, the Duke placed her in there simply because he wanted 100% of her wealth

Wealth was 100% on her side of the family, and with no children, he wanted to guarantee a path to his wealth

So he had her locked away....

[NJCher]

16. NJ politicians do that

We have a facility in the state where potential tell all mistresses go. also assistants who messed around with the politician, whoever he might be.

I learned about it from a student who worked there.

This was a decade or so ago, though. Probably not still that way, especially since Me Too.