The Truth About Marian

The book, A Murder In Paradise, tells quite a story. Sadly, it  doesn't tell a true story. Readers in general place a total trust in an author when they devote their time to immersing themselves in a book.  I am a fairly tough reader. I lose confidence in material even at the slightest misspelling. I suppose that is the result of my upbringing, my education and the era in which I was raised. To this day I am offended and none to happy when I see misspellings on a crawl on the bottom of the daily news. Holding the passing on of information is a serious task to me. Unless you are genuine in your facts, even down to minutiae, you are simply sharing fiction. The book I referenced above was in good part, misinformation and fiction.

Yes, there are inclusions from the trial. There are paragraphs that expound on some personal contact or brief interview with people who knew Edward Lester Gibbs and others related to him. But it is of incredible importance that no one in Marian Louise Baker's family was interviewed by Richard Gehman, the author. Much was said about her in generality in the book. Much innuendo was printed. But not one person who knew Marian best was given the opportunity to tell the readers about her.

In most cases, books are written to make money. In rare cases, like mine, the task of writing a book that is nonfiction is a purpose to set the record straight, or explain things relating to an event that either have never been revealed before or to tell the whole and complete version of events. In my case, it is also to tell Marian's story, to tell her truth.

Other than gruesome trial testimony and interpretation, the previous story was all about Edward Lester Gibbs. The crime was grisly and horrendous. It shattered the somewhat "Camelot" delusion most held in Lancaster, Pennsylvania at that time in history. Books about grisly crimes and sexual innuendo sell. They make money for the writer and the publishing house. Books about innocent little girls picking huckleberries on the family homestead sell, but much less when placed in the story continuum of a brutal murder.

Marian's story cannot be told without at least a chapter given over to Ed Gibbs and his pathos, his actions and his crime. But the story of Marian Baker was never told. She was bludgeoned by Ed Gibbs on a "dull day" in January of 1950. Afterwards, rumor and supposition took the place of her truth. That stops now.

I couldn't care less if I don't make a penny on Marian's story. It's not about that. It is about someone finally standing publicly to set the record straight. Each human being brings gifts to this world in what could be seen as the smallest of ways. Many of us have had the blessing of a bad day being turned around because of the smile of a stranger, because of the kindness of another human being who crossed our path. The person who offers kindness to others, makes someone's day is a gift not less than the person who settles a world crisis or cures a disease. Many people may benefit from gargantuan feats, but to the person who is having a bad moment benefits from the Marian Baker's in the world just as heavily. It matters to that one person.

I am happy often to recall the story of a person seen throwing a fish back into the water on a beach where hundreds have fish have washed up, flailing in the sand. An onlooker says to the person holding a fish, "Why bother? You can't save em all..." The response resonates with me to this day. "It matters to this one."

Marian's story has to include the3 events of January 1950. It is where her earthly life ended. Her life and story before that have never been unimportant. And although she is no longer walking this earth, she goes on. For no matter the difficult life she was handed even as a young girl, she was blessed with a family that, to this very day, think of her, miss her and carry on her memory. It has struck me deeply that even though the family was fractured and even geographically separated in the early years, the ties and bonds that refused to give way to the circumstances were stronger than anyone can imagine. The utter pain and anguish of not only her horrific death but the resulting attempts to tarnish her reputation would have made many families shove the story and the life experience far down in the file cabinet. One of those things not spoken of.

It has been devastating to lose Marian in the way she was lost. That was compounded by the salacious treatment of her character after her death. It was not deserved then and it is not deserved to this day.

So, this retelling of events will not be a repeat of the degradation of Marian Louise Baker's existence. Rather it will tell the truth. It will set the record straight. To many it will not matter. Many will wonder, "Why bother?" My answer is simple. It matters to Marian. And it matters to those who loved her and think of her today. And to those who wish to grasp tightly to the rumors, I hate to break it to you. This will not be a current version of a True Confessions tabloid. Marian loved reading "True" magazines. Simply because it was so far removed from her real life and her real makeup.

Marian Baker said no to Ed Gibbs. It is a matter of fact that bad things happened when people said no to Ed Gibbs.

Wishing Marian Louise A Happy Birthday.....

Today I am wishing Marian Louise Baker a Happy Birthday. She would be 85 years old today. Many wonder what how her life would have been blessed...children, anniversaries, wonderful memories created with those she loved...
She is not forgotten.

Researching Croghan....

I had a few minutes today to work on some ongoing research. I am currently looking into the Croghan aspect of the Marian Louise Baker murder, namely some follow up to Edward Lester Gibbs' wife, Helen Woodward.
Helen resumed her maiden name when she left Lancaster and Ed Gibbs. She tried to turn the clock back to when she was Helen Woodward...before the nightmare of her marriage to Ed.
It seems that Helen married into the Croghan family and had one son. After the death of Mr. Croghan, she remarried later into the Wilson family.
I have the utmost respect for Helen Woodward Croghan Wilson and will not even begin to invade her privacy with contact. However, if she or any other family member would wish to speak with me, I would be more than glad to hear them tell me anything that Helen or the family would like me to know.
I also was contacted a while back, allegedly, by the daughter of the last surviving juror in the Ed Gibbs murder trial. Unfortunately she never left me any contact information with which I could contact her, and she has never used my various emails in which to contact me. If she is still interested in contacting me, I would love to hear from her or her mother.

As always, I can be reached here, via comment or at s.weik@mchsi.com or PAGirlAtTheBeach@aol.com   Thanks.

Update From F&M Regarding The Portrait

Hi Ms. Weik,

I have forwarded your inquiry to archives and special collections a couple of weeks ago and am waiting to hear back from them as to whether or not they have any information or the photo.  Traditionally such photos have been kept in archives. Unfortunately, the time period you are talking about predates the existence of this museum and even the period prior to collections committee which predated the museum for several decades.  We have very limited records regarding this time period as objects were generally cared for by the departments that held them.   To date, I have not run into any records related to this portrait and have not seen it in the museum's collection storage areas.  We are in the process of finishing a current inventory and should I find anything that is connected to the photo/portrait, I will  let you.

I'm sorry that I don't have any information at this time.

Sincerely,
Maureen Lane
Collections Manager
The Phillips Museum of Art

Welcome Fall.... Time in Lancaster County and Beyond Is Soup For The Soul!

A brief update....
On Friday, October 29, 2010 we returned yet again to Lancaster County for some research, some shopping and to revisit some sites and locations that are very important and dear to us.
We even journeyed to Columbia, Mountville, Ephrata, Adamstown, Reinholds, Vinemont, Galen Hall, Wernersville and beyond.
I have much filing and cross-referencing to do and will update here as I am able. Life is infringing a bit on my passions, which is only a good thing, since it includes our precious new baby boy :) I do have to say that life has cycled into one of the most positive and incredible phases we've encountered in a long time :) Business is booming for all of us, each in our own venue, and things are just GOOD :)
I am still awaiting responses from a few folks in reference to information and articles and materials about Marian. Patience is something I'm learning first hand to be sure.

They Protect Him To This Very Day

The Gibbs family is interred in the Hillcrest Cemetery on Delsea Drive just outside Pitman, New Jersey.

I need to thank a very dear person for helping me with the information from the cemetery itself. I owe you much more than a debt of gratitude and I can only hope that my efforts in this project serve you well in the way that they need to.

For several years, Ed Gibbs' grave was unmarked.

We now know, as of this week, that that isn't the case any longer.

His grave is clearly marked in the family plot.

Ed is buried between his mother and father.

J. Lester Gibbs died in 1964. He wasn't a well man during his son's murder trial and collapsed several times and had a heart attack early on in the proceedings.

Mrs. Florence Gibbs died in 1993.

She placed her son next to his father and then upon her passing, next to her also.

The symbolism there is screaming.

They are flanking him in death as they did in life.

It was told to me that the position of the resting places speaks volumes as to the mindset of the Gibbs parents.

It's only natural that no parent could imagine or believe that their child could have done to Marian Baker what Ed Gibbs did to her.

He confessed and gave the world the details. Not all of them were revealed. The very worst weren't necessary for the success of the trial on the Prosecution's side and they surely weren't going to be revealed by the Defense.

But most parents would somehow, someday, come to grips with the truth and have to admit to themselves that their child was a murderer. They would still love the child, but the truth would become a very dark but tangible part of their reality.

Marian's aunt and uncle, the O'Donels, were faith-filled Christian people. They found peace and forgiveness for the Gibbs family through Christ. They wrote to the Gibbs' several times telling them of their Christian compassion and forgiveness, clearly telling them that they held nothing against the Gibbs parents for what Ed had done.

Not one response ever came back.

The O'Donels were surprised and puzzled.

Now, it seems a bit clearer.

J. Lester died in 1964. Florence lived the rest of her days never truly believing that her Eddie had killed Marian Baker. Her psychological timbre was so fragile that she removed anything to do with the crime, trial and execution from her reality.

Her behavior and demeanor at her son's services is macabre but telling.

Florence Gibbs could finally, for the first time in her life since the birth of her baby boy, Eddie, relax.

She now knew and would know for all time, where he was, if he was safe and what he was doing.

He was "home".

Florence mothered Ed "in a box" for as long as she could while he was alive.

It wasn't easy. And she was a walking nervous wreck.

But now, Eddie was in the big box and he couldn't get hurt, he couldn't fail, he couldn't put a dark mark on the family name and he couldn't challenge the desires and decisions of the family anymore.

Eddie didn't kill Marian. But Eddie passed away.

So Florence made potato salad and hosted the mourners and went on with her life.

And when her husband died, he took his place at the side of Eddie, and she would flank him years down the road.

I almost feel  a sense of defiance in Florence Gibbs.
It would have hurt many mothers to ignore a letter from the O'Donel family. They reached out in Christian love and compassion.

I truly wonder if Florence kept the letters. I would love to know if they were part of her personal effects when she died.

Or if they were thrown in the trash as Florence hummed to quiet the voices in her head.

Two Lines Left Their Points of Origin......And Their Intersection Was Deadly

The Franklin and Marshall College Campus served as the point of intersection for the lines that reperesent the lives of Marian Louise Baker and Edward Lester Gibbs.

Had Marion not been employed there, and had J. Lester and Florence Gibbs not demanded that their only child, son Eddie attend college, they never would have encountered each other.

The photos of the F & M campus show it's beauty from the past. It remains a beautiful campus today.

Steeped in authentic history, it's been the locus of learning of those who have gone into the world to create and generate impact and progress.

Marian Baker loved F & M. She was much more that "just a secretary". Marian was loved and very well thought of. That is precisely why no one even thought of checking the financial records or books when she was reported missing. There was never a question as to her honesty.

Edward Lester Gibbs had been a big fish in a small pond at Pitman High in New Jersey. He had excelled in most sports and was well known and well thought of. His family name was well known and his once uncle had been the Mayor of Pitman. That ended with the 1953 election. I do not for a fact whether his term limits prevented him from running again, whether he ran and lost or given the conviction and execution of his nephew, he decided to avoid the public limelight.

Marian graduated from Penn Manor, having taken the Commercial Course. She was hired shortly after graduation by Hamilton Watch Company, in the cafeteria. By a stroke of good luck, at the time, she was notified of a job opening at Franklin and Marshall College. There was no doubt as to her suitability for any job. She was meticulous, she was a hard worker, a pleasant and respectful and respectable young lady and conscientious beyond measure. She loved her job, she loved the college and she was in the midst of one of the happiest periods in her life. She became engaged at Christmas of 1949 to Edgar Rankin and looked forward to married life.

Marian Baker didn't have a promiscuous day in her life.

She was able to smile and appear to be rather comfortable with others, yet she may have been quite shy on the inside. She smiled easily and was an attractive young woman.

Jealous females who couldn't understand "the draw" of Marian made snide remarks and innuendoes. That practice goes on today, in great numbers and with far more insult included to anyone who the masses don't quite understand.

Marian's easy smile and friendliness, coupled with her lack of promiscuity made her the topic of comments and conversation. In addition to the jealous females, who clearly didn't know Marian at all, the men who got nowhere with Marian added fuel to the fire. The old fashioned, is it really?, practice of claiming to have gotten farther with a female than the facts would support was an insult to Marian.

The salacious claims would have gone down in history unspoken and unknown to all had Marian not been murdered in 1950.

Marian was popular with the college administration and officials. They recognized her loyalty to the school and her class. She was chosen to judge an advertising poster contest of Alpha Delta Sigma on the campus, in early 1949. She joined the ranks of Nancy Stonesifer, the Assistant Professor's wife who also worked with Marian in the Treasurer's Office and Max Hannum, the Assistant to the Dean. Alpha Delta Sigma was the national advertising fraternity. I have been told that Ed Gibbs was a member of Alpha Delta Sigma, being a Business major. Is this where he first met Marian. We know that he knew her from his visits to the Treasurer's Office. But that could have been the setting of Ed's first spying Marian, the beautiful young lady.

Marian participated in the college that she loved so dearly. I have wondered about Marian's later life. Would she have left the college to have children and raise them? Or would she hold the college so dear to her heart and stay on campus and grow and become even more a thread in the fabric of F & M?

The photograph of Marian that hung in the Bursar's Office in East Hall on the campus is of great interest to me and to others very close to Marian. I am in the process of finding out what happened to that photograph.

Did it hang there until the demolition? Was it placed in college storage? I'm anxiously awaiting answers to those questions.

Marian's photograph needs to be rehung. Or a commissioned painting of her needs to replace it.

Her heart belonged to F & M and she would be honored to be remembered there.

What an opposing view of humanity you get when you compare Marian Louise Baker to Edward Lester Gibbs.

There is NO comparison.

Gibbs had his demons. His mother's instability, his father's ineffectual stance.

Overprotected and spoiled, Ed was denied the very tools of development he needed to face life as a functioning adult. But he knew his own shortcomings. He bailed on help at the Guidance Center at F & M.

He needed to stand up to J. Lester and Florence and tell them that as a married adult man he was dropping out of college and getting a job. That was all he needed to do.

His parents needed to allow a separate human being the right to choose how he lived his life.

I hold no pity for Gibbs. I can understand the parts of the horror picture that became his life, but I don't excuse it.

A lack of courage killed Marian Baker.

Gibbs' parents lack of courage in allowing their son to make his own choices and perhaps not live up to the family name.....

Ed's lack of courage in taking a stand and doing what he needed to do. He wasn't going to graduate. He needed to blurt it out, hand his mother a handkerchief and take his lumps.

The Gibbs family in it's entirety is responsible for Marian's murder.

Ed wielded the lug wrench but his parents were sitting on his shoulder.

Societal position and appearance were more important to them than their son's happiness.

I can't imagine the relief Ed would have felt if at Christmas of 1949, when he did indeed tell his mother that there was a chance he'd not graduate, his mother would have shed a few tears and dealt with it.

Instead, her show of histrionics fed Ed's pathological desire to please. So he told her he was just kidding.

Christmas 1949....

Marian is filled with joy and happiness as she becomes engaged to Edgar Rankin.

Ed Gibbs is filled with dark frustration and rage.

And on January 10, 1950 Marian Baker paid the price for the sins of the Gibbs family.

Sad and horrible in its own right.

Now add to that a sloppily written book, by a largely absent author, tossing innuendo and scandal onto the memory of Marian Baker, where it surely didn't belong.

Gehman victimized Marian all over again.

And to this day, those that knew her and love her still just can't cotton to that.

It's never set well. It doesn't today.

Three Trips To The Harnish Cottage and The Hidden Clothing

Ed Gibbs made three distinct trips to the Harnish cottage in West Lampeter Township on January 10, 1950, if he is to be believed. It's already clear that Ed Gibbs lied about much surrounding the events leading up to and including the murder of Marian Louise Baker.
It's difficult to determine if he injected any truth to his statement about his activities after the murder.
His first trip to the cottage was with Marian in his car. He killed her there.
After bludgeoning her to death, he dragged her body down by a garbage dump on the property after having tossed her pocketbook a short distance from where he had killed her. He then got back in his car and drove back to the F & M campus.
He claims he then got undressed, took a shower and returned to his room to get dressed.
He took his coat, sweater and socks and placed them on the backseat of his car and drove back to the Harnish cottage. Gibbs admitted that the coat, sweater and socks were bloody and that is why he wished to dispose of them.
When he got to the Harnish cottage on trip number two, he picked up her purse and left the scene, driving out toward Maple Grove. Behind Maple Grove, the threw the lug wrench, his socks, his sweater and coat as well as Marian's umbrella into the stream. He then got back in his car and returned to the college again.
He picked his wife up at Armstrong Cork Company at the end of her shift .
At 7:30 pm that same night, he took a shovel from the basement of East Hall and drove back out to where Marian's body remained. This would be the third trip to the Harnish cottage.
He claims he took the shovel with him to dig a grave but the many roots prevented him from doing so.
He dragged Marian to the excavation under the cottage, covered her with corrugated tin and a saw horse, scattering leaves around the area and lastly placing the incinerator at the spot where he hid Marian's body.
He then drove to Stump's Service Station and disposed of Marian's rings. He didn't return to the scene of the crime after that he says.
The next day, though, he went back to Maple Grove and grabbed the jacket out of the stream where it was still floating.
On Gibbs' last trip to the cottage the night he killed her, in the dark of night, with a flashlight he purchased on South Prince Street enroute, he removed rings from Marian's fingers but claimed he didn't know why he did so.
After his confession, Gibbs accompanied the police to the attic of East Hall on the F & M campus and showed them where he had hidden his bloody clothes. They found his brown corduroy jacket and his sweater. The socks weren't located at that time. So far, I don't know if they were found later or not.
The complete transcript may tell me that.
The next morning, the authorities were able to locate Marian's purse, the lug wrench and the umbrella, or what was left of it after Gibbs had broken and bent it to make it easier to dispose of.

It strikes me as extremely remarkable that Gibbs not only returned to the murder scene once, but three times.
Three times within less than twenty four hours of killing Marian.

Marian and Nancy Stonesifer had a good laugh when Marian had returned from lunch at the college cafeteria. Marian was rushed, sitting at her desk without removing her coat and realized she had forgotten her umbrella. Much like myself, apparently Marian had quite a habit of losing or forgetting umbrellas! :)
She must have gone back for it. It was with her when Ed Gibbs killed her.
I am now curious as to where Ed Gibbs was when Marian went back for her umbrella.
She took the CTC bus from the corner of College and James Streets. The Sigma Pi house was on James Street. I don't know exactly where. But I wonder if Ed had encountered Marian or spoke briefly with her, knowing that she was headed downtown.
Why did Ed Gibbs tell another student that he had driven Marian downtown that day?
That statement still makes no sense.

My biggest question tonight is this.
Ed Gibbs claimed that he remembered nothing except reaching over to choke Marian, chasing her and continuing to choke her. What he related after that point he claims he had to surmise because he had no memory of it, but came to conclusions based on what he saw when he "came to".
He said that he must have hit her with the lug wrench because of all the blood and the lug wrench in his hand.
He had blood on his jacket, his sweater and his socks. So much blood that he needed to get out of them, get a shower and then dispose of them.
If there is blood flowing to the extent that it greatly covers a jacket, the sweater under the jacket and your socks, how do you NOT get blood all over your trousers or pants?
Not once was Gibbs trousers or pants mentioned.
Again, the official transcript may clear that up. But nowhere, to date, are his trousers even mentioned.
Given that he probably had his shoes on, how much of his socks were exposed? How much was covered by his pant legs?
If Ed Gibbs had trousers on, the blood would have been prevented from soaking his socks by his trouser legs.
Did he scrub his shoes? No mention of them appears anywhere either.
He mentioned that on the second trip to the Harnish cottage, he had taken a towel with him to clean the handle of the inoperative pump on the property. After killing Marian he tried to pump water to wash his bloody hands but was unsuccessful. Worried that his fingerprints could be taken from the handle, he made sure to clean it with the towel.
He never wavered in his story of having choked her, then getting the keys out of the ignition of his car, going to the trunk, grabbing the lug wrench and then "apparently" beating Marian to death.
The autopsy didn't reveal much severe damage to the structures of her throat or trachea.
And if she was at least unconscious from the choking, giving him time to walk to his car, get the keys, go to the trunk, grab the lug wrench, then how did she receive the wounds to the different locations of her head?
The largest wounds weren't in the same anatomical location or region of the skull. One was right frontal, the other left parietal. The left parietal wound extended into and through the ear canal. The force used was monstrous.
She wasn't unconscious enough to be rendered immobile. And he certainly didn't have the opportunity to just saunter to the car for the keys and the lug wrench. Marian wasn't immobilized when he struck her with the lug wrench. Her wounds tell that clearly and unequivocally. In a murderous rage, the killer doesn't lay the weapon down, turn the victim's head to the side and then resume the beating.
Marian sustained other injuries. I will confirm that when I view the photos from the crime scene and the autopsy.
I in no way wish to upset her loved ones with my frank discussion of the physicality of the attack. It is just extremely important to finally understand what Ed Gibbs really did to Marian that day. He lied throughout the trial, even to his own attorney.
The quotes attributed to Hense Brown are confusing. He was sure Ed wasn't telling the whole story.
Clearly. Brown saw the photos and read the report. He KNEW Ed wasn't telling the whole story.
Several people knew that to be a fact. Brown had caught him in several lies.
How and why that was never entered into the court proceedings is an issue unto itself. We'll cover that later.
It is vital to understanding how very innocent Marian Baker was in the progression of events that day.
The lies started when Ed Gibbs offered her a ride. And he stuck to his lies to the bitter end.
He took her life, he helped take a bit of her reputation and he took the truth with him.
Marian deserves that the truth be told, finally.
I can't help but feel that the timing here is significant.
There is a time for everything. And perhaps there were factors in place, people still loving and missing Marian so over the past sixty years that it just wasn't the time for the truth to be told just yet, in the way that it needs to be told. I'm sure no one who ever knew her or loved her wanted the lies and innuendoes to go on; it just hurt so much to delve into it again.
Marian deserves the truth. And she deserves to have the respect that she was shown when she was alive.
Those who really knew her, loved her, worked with her and spent any time with her knew the real Marian.
She was meticulous, witty, funny, caring and a lady.
Those who knew her knew the truth.
It's sad that because of what was done to her, in the societal time in which it occurred, she was presented in a questionable light. And the pain and frustration of having to live with those undeserved rumors and a sullied reputation has to come to an end. And the truth will do that. It will finally show everyone, especially those who never had the privilege or honor of knowing her, just what Marian Baker was made of.
Marian was "good stuff". She still is :)

Meeting A Friend of A Friend.......of Ed Gibbs and Marian Baker

God Bless the world wide web.
Seriously.
Without it I wouldn't be planning a trip back to Lancaster to meet a new but uncannily close friend.
Without going into the details, he and I came to learn about each other through research I've been doing off and on for the past year or so.
Somehow and for some odd reason, we've developed a friendship that intrigues the both of us, I believe.
I asked for his help on a "project" pulling together loose ends from my research, and he responded wholeheartedly.
Since that time, a second project, my revisiting the Marian Baker murder, caught his attention as well. And out of the blue, he contacted me to let me know he has a friend...who was a good friend of Edward Lester Gibbs.
He also knows someone who can tell me about Marian Baker.
Wow.
I can't wait to meet him.
I think we have much in common.
He's a parent and it's clear he loves his kids, and kids in general. His family has had a very successful and prominent role in the history of Lancaster.
He's a family man, very well known, and philanthropic in his activities.
I promised to loan him a book that he's had problems locating.
There must be a tie between us. I have never, ever considered allowing "that book" out of my possession in forty years :)
Marian Baker was murdered in 1950. So many years have passed.
Any yet, in September of 2009, I have been contacted by people from several states who have information to share with me. They have told me what they know, what they remember, where they have been and what they believe led to the brutal murder.
Some are torn between wanting to share and also wanting me to enjoy the full thrill of the chase.
They give me tips or clues and gently push me in directions I need to go.
I am so grateful to have been contacted by all of them.
I so appreciate the suggestions and tips they've offered to me. They've been down this road before and shared with me some very valuable advice that will open certain doors for me.
Now, I just need some 72 hour days, the ability to teleport to various states and locations and I'll have it made! lol
I'm still "on it". I just have been so preoccupied with classes and homework and work in general that my time has been limited. I'm still searching for that organizational balance I need to get it all done. That goal post is a bit fuzzy :)

Word's Out.......

Well word is apparently "out" about my interest in the Marian Baker murder and the trial and execution of Ed Gibbs. Took long enough lol I've only been dealing with this for the past forty years :) Not quite that long as far as serious research is concerned though.
I've been contacted by a few folks who either knew or know a contact or friend of Ed Gibbs. I'd love to get a personal slant from someone who knew him prior to the attack and killing.
My research into the whereabouts and situation with Helen Woodward Gibbs isn't quite as fruitful.
The wall of protection is still intact but I mean her no harm and no disrespect.
I hadn't checked my stat tracker for a while but it was a very interesting read last night.
The interest in the Marian Baker murder stretches rather far and wide.
Thank you to all who have emailed me with your thoughts and/or information. As always, I will never, ever reveal anything about you unless you direct me to.
Your privacy is safe with me. That goes without saying.
I appreciate your help more than you will ever know :)
More on all of this later tonight :)

The Trail Starts Here

Hi all!
It's been a damp, rainy and very windy few days here and we've got some coastal flooding to deal with. I had to reschedule some clients yesterday.... I don't travel with my boat, so getting to their waterfront homes wasn't an option lol
I spent the day in class...what a nice change! Being in a classroom, being instructed and inspired by a professor is one of the places where I am most comfortable :) I loved school. My passion for learning really bloomed in Middle School. And I'm not done yet.
I have my BA in Psych/Spanish, my ADN in Professional Registered Nursing and have unfinished terms in Law. Taxes and Finance/Accounting will round out the list.
My current job/business keeps me mobile most of the day. I did worry about how I'd like being "cooped up" for an entire day with the Saturday classes but I worried over nothing :)
Today was wonderful. I'm already looking forward to next week.
And I have homework! LOL Quite a bit, to be honest. But I really am excited about being back in the learning milieu!
Okay, enough of the "station break"........

This past week I've had thoughts of the Marian Baker murder running silently through the back of my mind as I would go about my day. Almost like 'auto-pilot', the thoughts, scenarios and questions just keep coming.
I've allowed all sorts of scenarios to play out. No angle can be discounted until it's checked out and can be disgarded.
I have no idea what my desired result or goal really is right now.
Of course I'd love to have THE REASON, without question or conjecture as to why Marian Baker was bludgeoned to death on that miserable January afternoon in 1950. But Ed Gibbs is dead. And he refused to elaborate even to his defense attorney.
He was filled with anxiety and shame at his sure knowledge that he was not going to graduate as planned. He broached the subject over the Christmas holiday and his Mother became almost hysterical at the thought of him not graduating. Her reaction made him pretend, to her, that he was just joking. That he was surely going to graduate.
Shame was a button with Ed Gibbs.
The murder of Marian Baker would have been the ultimate shame for any of us to admit to.
It would have been enough for any normal or near normal person.
But not for Ed Gibbs.
There is or was something more shameful in his eyes than admitting the brutal and heinouse killing of Marian Baker. So he stuck to his story of killing her on "impulse".
Was it something as simple as Ed making an untoward pass at Marian and she rebuked him, threatening to tell his wife and filing a report with the college?
Or was it more?
What did Ed know that he willingly and steadfastly refused to open up about, even if it could have helped his defense?
Did he really believe that he would be given the death penalty?
Or did he think he'd spend his life in prison, concealing the real and true facts of what went on that day?
Some of the questions that I will pose here and to myself may bother some folks.
It's natural to hate Ed Gibbs, the convicted killer. To say anything nice about him may bother some.
It's natural to hold Marian in high regard. She was a beautiful, kind and unassuming girl from Conestoga. One who people thought the world of. Having to look into the claims that she was indeed a "party girl" almost seems dirty or close to running the risk of sullying her memory.
That is not the intent.
I plan to just let the research lead where it may. I knew neither of them.
I have no judgement of anyone involved.
I know what I learned from my family, the news accounts, the book and others who have been interested in the crime for many years.
I will be posing a few "what if's".... Please do not take offense. There is none intended.
I will be looking at the big picture, from scratch. No question will be excluded.
I welcome any and all additional contact and emails as I have for the past several months.
You know, it's funny. A few years ago when I resumed my research into this case, I did an internet search using the names of most of the people involved. I found nothing. There was nothing online to be found.
That isn't the case today.
But the real facts aren't online. And they aren't in books or newspapers. They live in the minds and memories of those that still remain.
I hope to meet as many of them as I can and share my respect and interest with them.
I don't want anyone to forget Marian. And in an odd way, I don't want anyone to forget Ed either.

The Questions Keep Popping Up!

I haven't had much time lately to really let my mind wander about the events leading up to the murder of Marian Louise Baker, but today, during a very long drive from far on the Eastern Shore back up to Dewey Beach I did a bit of thinking again....
I still am stuck on WHY Marian would get in a car with a man she verbally claimed "made her sick".
I keep going back to the testimony of Mrs. Nancy Stonesifer, her coworker in the Cashier's Office at F & M. She testified that Marian had returned from lunch, never even removed her coat as she sat down briefly at her desk, and commented that she wished she didn't have to go to the bank since she was suddenly swamped with work. She said she was worried that she wouldn't make her hair appointment, which was scheduled for late afternoon, around the supper hour.
Now WHY would Marian suddenly be so relaxed and have so much free time that she would agree to go for a ride with Ed Gibbs so far out of the way of the college?
Ed Gibbs testified that when he finally stopped the car near the Harnish cottage, the last thing Marian said to him, immediately before he reached over and started to strangle her, was the
"scenery looked pretty". None of this makes one lick of sense. Not one bit.
I can't explain it, but there is FAR more to the story than we have been told. And I aim to find out what it is.
I guess I'm back on the case! :)

Back At The Keyboard!

Hi all! It's been a great week and I've finally got enough done around here to feel as if I can take some time to come back to the blogs!
I made a list tonight of all the daytrips or longer roadtrips I want to make related to the Marian Baker murder.
My son asked me a few days ago why I feel the need to go to the areas or sites related to the case and I had to be honest with him.
I think first of all I truly believe I will come away from it all with a sense of what happened. I have no idea if what I'll come away with will be in keeping with the accepted facts and story, or if I will come away with an even greater sense of covert reasons behind the attack and murder south of Lancaster in 1950.
I hope to create a real timeline, as complete as I can make it for Marian Baker and Ed Gibbs both.
It would be even better to be able to document it all photographically. That may be quite difficult with the chance that previous homes no longer exist, new homes being built on the murder site itself, etc.
Another reason that I feel compelled to do this is to simply make sure that as time goes on, there are some folks who remember Marian Baker. And to some extent, Ed Gibbs too.
They were two young people whose paths crossed and ended up in tragedy for both of them.
Two lives unlived.
When the jury returned with the verdict and sentence of death, even the Judge was stunned.
He did his best to hide it, but he was caught off guard.
When he discharged the jury, he never even thanked them for their service. I think that was in part to his being stunned but also to his shock that the death penalty was handed down.
He presided over the trial in its entirety. He didn't see the death penalty coming.
The horrific tragedy was compounded by the death sentence. The sadness was permeating even further and was so much more widespread.
There is and was some compassion for Ed Gibbs and that has to be acknowledged and accepted as well. Normal people don't bludgeon young girls to death.
And Ed wasn't a monster. He was a tormented and overstressed young man. There were many, many blocks in the road that led him to the wooded area south of Lancaster that cold January day.
And that's IF he did it.
I'm not totally convinced just yet.
I sincerely hope to come away from my own form of revisiting it all with a sense of his guilt or his innocence. That may be too much to hope for.
So, I'm making my plans and trying to do it in a cohesive manner. And once I make the trips, one at a time, I'll document it all here and post all the pics I take.
I just wish I would have been pushier about it all when most of the people "in the know" were still alive. This is going to be extremely hard with them gone. But I love a challenge.

I guess my fascination with what really happened to Marian Baker is very similar to my and others questions as to what really happened in the Roseboro back yard in July of 2008.
We know what happened to Jan. But we don't know how it happened or truly why.
Did Mike snap? Or did he really plan it? Where did the blood go? What caused the puncture wound to Jan's head?
Unless Mike confesses or someone steps forward, we may never know.
Or fifty or sixty years from now, someone may be sitting at a computer, blogging about how the case grabbed a hold of them and how they need to make a road trip to get a sense of what really happened that warm, rainy July night in 2008.....

I Feel As If I've Been Playing Hooky!

Hey all, I feel as if I've been playing hooky lol Of course my blogging isn't my job, nor is it my career, yet! but I am acutely aware that I haven't been hitting the keyboard as much as usual the last few days.
Here's the latest from this end!
I had a few reschedules for this week and it gave me a much welcome chance to spend a good amount of time at home to tackle some much overdue projects!
I'm of the school, " a cluttered house = a cluttered mind". I will never ever be accused of having too little "stuff" or living a barren and simplistic style....
I am very attached to most of my belongings in sentimental ways, but it's time to declutter and get ready for the change in the seasons. I think it's my own form of nesting.
I rearrange furniture. I purge "junk drawers". I like to clean out and declutter right before the change of each season. I just didn't expect it to hit this weekend LOL
So, starting Sunday, I've been working harder at home than I sometimes do on the job. And I love it! It's such a great feeling to look around and see so much accomplished!
There are times when I intentionally schedule "down time" for myself. Those days could include a movie, a day at the beach, a really good book, cooking something I've never made before, online canasta.....But I guess it's my Lancaster County heritage and work ethic that make me "allow" myself an entire day off.
I've been setting things aside for Freecycle, an anticipated yard sale in the Fall, and for Ebay and Craigslist. My to do list is still pages long, but I'm a pretty happy camper tonite :)
And I will get started at the crack of dawn (maybe!) again tomorrow. I am off tomorrow and have tons more to do.
One thing I love about working this hard is how well you sleep afterwards.
I haven't had a Five Hour Energy Shot in days....but I also haven't had one gram of sugar either.
I've learned to read my body and too much sugar really makes me tired and sluggish. So last Tuesday I decided to eliminate it, again.
I've done it lots of times before and sooner or later I cave to an offer of cake or some special recipe someone has made. I know that I would offend them if I decline....you know the rest of the story.
I really don't want to get into the no or low carbohydrate debate with anyone; it gets tedious. And I can only speak for myself and how my system reacts.
But I lived almost zero carbs for three years. My doctor wasn't familiar with Stillman or Atkins and when he saw my lab work he was exuberant.
He told me "whatever it is that you're doing, keep it up!"
Well, an Easter basket from a dear old woman who stood there waiting for me to sample the candy she had so lovingly arranged in that basket, ended the no carb run for three years lol
I had a walking routine also. Six miles a day. Three in the am and three at night. My pace? About 4-4.5 miles an hour. I walk as fast as I can without having to bust out in a sprint.
I'd walk half of it away from home, the other half back....one old farmer, who had watched me for almost a year, finally stopped one day and leaned out the window and smiled at me..."Hey hon, if you'd just keep going in ONE direction, you'd get somewhere!" He laughed and I laughed LOLOL
The humidity finally made me take a break from the walking, but I'm anxious to resume it.
In the meantime, the dreaded treadmill will have to do.
I love walking outdoors, ear buds in place, high energy music blaring in my ears. I do some of my best thinking that way. And not always on purpose.
I remember my daughter going for several jaunts with me a few years back. We watched the progression of the comet in the night sky. That was alot of fun.
So anyway...I'm sugar free, have tons of energy and thankfully the time now to get much done here at home. The weekend and next week will be a different story.
And I start Saturday classes on September 12th.
I think this Fall will be the time of big changes for me.
I'm relearning to think out of the box, and I like it.
I have always looked at life as an adventure, even unintentionally. And I'm looking at it that way again.
So I am back to blogging.
I need to get my notes and thoughts together about several things. The Marian Baker murder in particular.
The trip to Pitman is on hold only because I wanted to get my stuff and my mind in order lol And I think cooler temperatures will make the trip that much more enjoyable. I have heard that New Jersey can be so beautiful in the Fall.
I did find a condensed death notice for Edward Lester Gibb's mother, Florence L. Gibbs.
I'll copy it here and on the Murder in Lancaster County blog. She lived to be 89 years old. She passed away in July of 1993.
I wondered how she lived out her days after her son was electrocuted. Her husband passed years ahead of her. What a tragic thing for any mother to endure. No matter what he did, he was still their son and they loved him completely. As in the Roseboro murder, there were no winners in the Marian Baker murder or Ed Gibb's trial and conviction. His death by electrocution ripped his parents' hearts out. And that is so so sad.

FLORENCE L. GIBBS, 89, of Pitman, died Tuesday at Kennedy Memorial Hospitals/Washington Township Divison.

Mrs. Gibbs attended the First Baptist Church of Woodbury and was a member of the Followers Prayer Group of Gloucester County and the Christian Women's Club of Gloucester County.

Survivors: two nephews.

Services: viewing, 10 a.m. Saturday, Harold E. Haines Funeral Home, 30 W. Holly Ave., Pitman; funeral, 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home; burial, Hillcrest Memorial Park, Hurffville.

Note: Harold E. Haines purchased the S. E. Burkett Funeral Home on Holly Avenue. Burkett was the funeral director that handled the preparation and services for Ed Gibbs, her son, after his electrocution in Pennsylvania.