The Case of the Poisoned Pork Packer
Did Laura Farnsworth Schenk try to kill her millionaire husband?
It was, averred the wealthy snobs of Wheeling, West Virginia, a classic example of what happens when a man marries the help.
A rich young man might indulge in a summertime fling with a pretty maid, but to actually marry one — well, that was like plucking a poisoned flower. Once the sexual attraction dimmed and the blossom wilted, what would remain?
And how much worse if she was a poisonous flower?
“From Kitchen to Mansion, From Mansion to Jail”
John O. Schenk was a wealthy man, the heir to his father’s meat-packing business. His father, Frederick Schenk, had emigrated from Germany and started a butcher’s shop in Wheeling.
A born entrepreneur, the elder Schenk quickly expanded from meat to real estate, purchasing commercial property in Wheeling. By the time of his death, in 1906, F. Schenk and Sons owned a three-acre meat packing plant.
They were also investors in coal, oil, natural gas, and real estate. Upon his death, Frederick divided a fortune of five to ten million dollars between his five sons.
