I'm going to speak with cultural historian Scott Sandage, I've asked him
to research Jesse wheat uppercu is life after his acquittal this is a historical
timeline that we created from the research okay in city directories the
census newspapers from that time starts in Evanston mm-hmm Evanston Illinois
here in 1880 right and we had the household so Jesse wheat uppercu age 30
his wife Laura was a year younger and then his three children now he seems to
have been a bit mobile at this point he's in Fargo Dakota Territory Fargo in
1884 First National Bank trial oh my gosh doesn't know anything about that we
do here is an article from the st. Paul Globe newspaper okay
Moorhead news JW uppercu who was on trial for the embezzlement of eighteen
hundred dollars from the First National Bank
Wow so he was on trial again eighteen hundred dollars
what is died in like today's eighteen hundred dollars in 1884 would be
equivalent to fifty to sixty thousand dollars today well has a lot of money it
was a time when there's so much money being spread around and not very good
procedures in place to keep track of money
it was the Gilded Age the Gilded Age took place in the u.s. in
the last decades of the 1800s and was a time of vast economic growth while
expansion and Industry banking and transportation transformed the nation
this surge was accompanied by political corruption and worker exploitation as
money flowed mainly towards the wealthiest Americans ambitious men like
Jesse wheat uppercu also strove to make their own fortunes in this newly booming
economy the man was a collector for the bank and stated that he lost the money
out of his pocket upper Q was found not guilty by the jury the sympathy of most
of the people of the community is with the gentleman just discharged he's just
saying he dropped the money and that was a good enough excuse for it is possible
that he may have lost the money yeah it's possible okay
okay yeah 1886 May through August he's in st. Louis Missouri Jesse wheat
uppercu sues for divorce from his wife Laura who he claims complains too much
of the condition of the streets and water in st. Louis so that family is
just off
1886 September 29th st. Louis Missouri Jesse wheat uppercu is arrested
pull it together Jesse what happened I need a moment just saw okay do we have
any information about that we do in fact and this is an article from the Missouri
Republican newspaper arrests of lawyer up oq Jesse W epicures a young lawyer
practicing at the st. Louis bar he has for the past 12 months been collecting
attorney for Beck and Marshall carpet company
I guess Jerry morning the firm issued a warrant for his arrest charging him with
embezzlement to the amount of $200 so again with embezzlement whatever
happened with that the charges were dropped
and so he was not ultimately prosecuted for this he came up with the money and
there was no way to prove intent so he ended up paying back the money
correct okay that's good to know in 1893 Hoboken New Jersey marriage
record Jesse uppercu and Sadie canta he in 1893 marries his second wife Wow as
of now my great-grandmother will have been his third wife 1897 Philadelphia
City Directory uppercu Jesse lawyer he's 47 here so he's moved to Philadelphia
now right it's mind-blowing how much she moved around yeah and in a certain way
exclamation points follow him everywhere he goes you know murder
yeah investment yeah I'm starting to draw conclusions that he he was a bit of
a conman and
I feel that's a bit accusation of me to say but you know I I don't know how else
to digest in it what happens after 1897 does he stay in Philadelphia this is as
far as we've taken the research so let's put in an uppper cute Dave range let's
say 1897 to 1900 okay here's something gold-seekers begin the journey at 4:30
for Tuesday afternoon 65 men comprising the Alaska Klondike cooperative
expedition left Broad Street Station Philadelphia for the Alaskan gold fields
my gosh um what what is this year what year 1898 1898 they sail and the charge
steamer from Tacoma to Fort Wrangell at the head of the party is lawyer JW upper
Q a 504 Walnut Street who was the promoter of this trip he's found the
ultimate sideline which is gold mining so how would you even know Alaska is
someplace he would go to to find gold that's a question you're gonna have to
ask in Alaska okay Alaska
so I need to go to Alaska where specifically in Alaska Wrangell Alaska I
don't even know what that is I have never even heard that place so while
you're in Alaska we'll continue the research here and try to follow Jessie
out to the end of his life and whatever we find will send you oh that's great
thank you thank you all these details are really filling in for me the
character of the type of person my great-grandfather was accused of murder
and being arrested for embezzlement twice is a big deal as of right now I
have very little faith and nn
he's constantly surprised me with these turns in his life I mean I think I want
for him to have roots and to have family and now Alaska
I'm more of an indoor kid so we'll see how I do
you