Post by feathers on Jan 11, 2017 20:36:52 GMT -5
I thought I would see what I could find out about Hermina Koren, the mysterious "woman in green" who confronted Condon at the Hauptmann trial.
To review, toward the end of Reilly’s cross-examination of Condon (starting at page 794 of the transcript), he asked Condon if he knew Captain Barnard Eels and Mrs Peacock. Condon admitted he did, saying that Mrs Peacock was a tenant of his on City Island.
Reilly then showed him a letter. Condon admitted receiving it, but said he could not remember when he received it – particularly whether it was during the negotiations. It was marked exhibit D-8 for identifidcation.
Reilly then showed him a second letter. Condon stated that the date had been torn off the letter but he did receive such a letter. He guessed the date was about November 1932. The letter referred to a property of Condon’s – a little bungalow at the Corner of Minneford Avenue and Beach Street. It was marked as exhibit D-9 for identification.
Condon said that he had left the letters on his deck in the bungalow at City Island.
Reilly then asked if Condon remembered getting a visit from two ladies during the “time you were conducting these ransom investigations”. Reilly asked “Mrs. Corran” to stand up and she stood before Condon so he could see her. She was wearing a green dress and was promptly labelled the “Woman in Green” by the press.
Condon recalled her and said there were two ladies – this one and Mrs. Bush. Condon said he gave the letters to Mrs. Bush.
Reilly asked if Condon had told them that the handwriting on the two letters were the handwriting of the kidnappers. Condon denied it.
Reilly asked if Condon had told them that the kidnappers were four in number. Condon would not say either yes or no.
Condon said that Mrs. Bush had said that she formerly lived in Flemington, New Jersey. Reilly tried to show Condon a cheque from Mrs. Bush that she allegedly showed him to prove she was from Flemington. Condon said she didn’t show him a cheque, but that she said she came from the vicinity or neighborhood of Flemington. Condon admitted that Mrs. Bush had said that she was familiar with Hopewell.
Reilly asked if Mrs. Bush told him that she was in the real estate business, but Condon denied it.
Condon had asked her where she lived down near Flemington and she said she owned two farms – she bought two farms here and worked one herself.
Condon said the conversation was in March 1932 on the front veranda and in the front room.
Reilly then moved on, but Wilentz asked for the letters to be read to the jury. Reilly explained that “it will be much more intelligent to the jury as we progress to have this lady go on the stand and give her conversation connected with the letter in evidence”.
He stated the “letters in themselves are not so important as to what the letters contained insomuch as it is the handwriting of the writers… t is the handwriting and the conversation of the Doctor when he turned the letters over.”
The lady’s name was later revealed to be Hermina Koren. Reilly later told reporters that “Mrs. Koren is a very important witness who must be kept from contact with the press”.
The next day, newspapers published an interview with Ralph Hacker. Hacker claimed that, in late 1933 or early 1934, lots of people were coming to Condon’s home. Mrs. Koren came with Mrs. Busch. Mrs. Busch said she was a widow living near Hopewell and that she was in contact with the kidnappers. Condon later reported the incident to the Department of Justice.
Later Mrs. Busch came back and insisted she speak with Condon. Hacker finally went and got Condon who listened to her. She demanded that “she be given a sample of the handwriting of the ransom notes” he had received.
Hacker claimed that Condon suggested privately to him that he give her some random letters from Condon’s desk and if she were actually in contact with the kidnappers she would know the writing did not match. Hacker said he gave her two “loosely folded sheets of paper” without saying what they contained and Mrs. Busch left.
Reilly did not end up calling either Mrs. Koren or Mrs. Bush and the letters were never read to the jury.
It is clear that what Reilly was trying to do was demonstrate that Condon had told these two ladies that these two letters, which made reference to people and property on City Island, were in the handwriting of the kidnappers and clearly did not match Hauptmann’s. Thus either Condon would be exposed for telling a variety of different stories or implicate a larger gang on City Island.
Whether Reilly decided to not to call Mrs. Koren given Hacker’s explanation (and availability as a rebuttal witness) or whether she disappeared on her own, I don’t know.
Was Hacker's story true? It neatly fits the facts, but he may have been covering for erratic behaviour by Condon.
Mrs. Koren and Mrs. Bush however reappeared in the news in in 1939 (See Long Island Star Journal, April 20, 21, 29, June 7, 1939).
Miss Rose Zanthro sued Sylvester Bush and his wife Hermina Koren Bush for $500 for furnishings and belongings that she claimed the defendants refused to return to her after she moved out of their apartment in Long Island City. “Sylvester Bush” however claimed that she was “Sylvia Bush”, that she was always a woman and that she would produce doctor’s certificates to that effect. The Plaintiff however said that Sylvester was a man, was married to Mrs. Koren, and had three previous wives whom he had never divorced or been annulled.
Mrs. Bush questioned Miss Zanthro as to why she always kept her trunk locked while she lived in the apartment. The latter said it was because she had “certain evidence” which it was not desired was known. Mrs Bush told her to go ahead and tell what it was. Miss Zanthro said it was “the letters in the Hauptmann case”. The judge, by this time baffled, asked what the Hauptmann case had to do with the case on trial.
Mrs. Bush said “I really wasn’t mixed up in the Lindberg-Hauptmann case, but I did some investigating on my own hook”.
Miss Zanthro then handed Whipple’s “Trial of Bruno Richard Hauptmann” to the judge pointing to the page referring to Mrs Koren.
At one point later the Judge asked Mrs. Bush about the marriage to Mrs. Koren. Mrs. Bush replied “Now look, Judge, why talk about that? If everybody here knew the real reasons for it, I would get a medal”.
Ultimately the case was settled.
The 1930 and 1940 census records indicate that Hermina Koren, dressmaker, was living with Sylvia Bush, real estate agent, who was her boarder.
There really was, however, a marriage certificate between Sylvester Bush and Hermina Koren in December 1925 in New York City.
My guess therefore is that the Mrs. Bush referred to during the Hauptmann trial was Sylvia Bush. As to why the two of them decided to launch their own investigation I couldn’t say. However, if they were in fact a same-sex couple, then it would be apparent that they would be easy targets for Wilentz’s “dirty tricks” department and easily dissuaded from testifying. But I have no evidence that actually occurred.