Detectivefilter October 28, 2008 4:08 PM Subscribe
Averyoldworld did research.
I am in awe of this bit of fact-finding and want:
a) for everyone else to be in awe,
b) to give user averyoldworld a callout for the great answer, and
c) to know how on earth averyoldworld narrowed it down from the information provided. How?
I am in awe of this bit of fact-finding and want:
a) for everyone else to be in awe,
b) to give user averyoldworld a callout for the great answer, and
c) to know how on earth averyoldworld narrowed it down from the information provided. How?
This is a shitty callout!
Wait, what?
This is good research!
posted by GuyZero at 4:12 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
Wait, what?
This is good research!
posted by GuyZero at 4:12 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
I saw that! I was waiting to maybe sidebar it until we were sure or not, but wow, yeah, wow.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:15 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:15 PM on October 28, 2008
ok ok!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:21 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:21 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
.
posted by stubby phillips at 4:21 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by stubby phillips at 4:21 PM on October 28, 2008
also, this should be a song.
posted by stubby phillips at 4:23 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by stubby phillips at 4:23 PM on October 28, 2008
A wifebeater named Nuckles? Too much.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 4:27 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 4:27 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
I'd love some info on how Averyoldworld tracked this down.
posted by Science! at 4:29 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by Science! at 4:29 PM on October 28, 2008
There should be a feature where we could download all of MetaTalk as a song.
PB?
posted by trip and a half at 4:30 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
PB?
posted by trip and a half at 4:30 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
Note to self: don't commit crimes which may involve MetaFilter somehow, especially if I could otherwise get away with it.
posted by baphomet at 4:32 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by baphomet at 4:32 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
Really, there should be some sort of MetaFilter Detectives Brigade, or something, and you get a sheriff's star on your profile page when you've done something like this.
Cool.
posted by rtha at 5:03 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
Cool.
posted by rtha at 5:03 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
And she would've gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids and your dumb AskMe!
Or something.
posted by wendell at 5:05 PM on October 28, 2008
Or something.
posted by wendell at 5:05 PM on October 28, 2008
averyoldworld sees dead people.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:43 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:43 PM on October 28, 2008 [2 favorites]
Well, if you know how to google, you can find leave a personal kudos on Averyoldworld Nuckles Garcia's blog.
I am awed too.
posted by dirty lies at 6:02 PM on October 28, 2008
I am awed too.
posted by dirty lies at 6:02 PM on October 28, 2008
Howard University School of Law resource maybe?
posted by tellurian at 6:13 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by tellurian at 6:13 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
averyoldworld explains in the thread: Happy to help! Although, I think I might seem less amazing when I tell you how - I googled: "shenandoah junction" "murder of her husband."
That, children, is google-fu.
posted by carsonb at 6:35 PM on October 28, 2008 [8 favorites]
That, children, is google-fu.
posted by carsonb at 6:35 PM on October 28, 2008 [8 favorites]
Averyoldworld is the ghost of the man, longing to tell his story!
posted by Nattie at 6:41 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by Nattie at 6:41 PM on October 28, 2008
Hah! I made sidebar. Well, averyoldworld made sidebar. I, too, am in awe; I expected I'd have to spend hours poring through court records. Never even occurred to me that it would be on Google.
posted by greenie2600 at 7:02 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by greenie2600 at 7:02 PM on October 28, 2008
That, children, is google-fu.
It certainly is because my google returns three results, two of which are mefi, the third being a different murder. I'd have to google "shenandoah junction"+measles to get it as the top result.
posted by tellurian at 7:17 PM on October 28, 2008
It certainly is because my google returns three results, two of which are mefi, the third being a different murder. I'd have to google "shenandoah junction"+measles to get it as the top result.
posted by tellurian at 7:17 PM on October 28, 2008
A wifebeater named Nuckles?
On first reading, I thought that the wife's name was Lily Pearl Neckles. Going through life being named after a money shot could be enough to drive any woman to misandrystic murder.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 7:41 PM on October 28, 2008
On first reading, I thought that the wife's name was Lily Pearl Neckles. Going through life being named after a money shot could be enough to drive any woman to misandrystic murder.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 7:41 PM on October 28, 2008
That, children, is google-fu.
Hell yes. I thought I had it when I was able to track down William DeMille's last living relative eight years ago, and even got a phone number for the guy. This -- I just bowed to the master.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:25 PM on October 28, 2008
Hell yes. I thought I had it when I was able to track down William DeMille's last living relative eight years ago, and even got a phone number for the guy. This -- I just bowed to the master.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:25 PM on October 28, 2008
Ooo, ooo, do me next, do me next!
posted by blue_beetle at 8:45 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by blue_beetle at 8:45 PM on October 28, 2008
Bravo!
posted by The Light Fantastic at 8:47 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by The Light Fantastic at 8:47 PM on October 28, 2008
greenie2600: "I suspect it may have been my bedroom (it's a first-floor room near the front of the house, which is larger than our current living room, and which features a [now-bricked-over] fireplace). But I kind of want it to be my bedroom, because that's way spookier."
Look, daddy, I'm a torso!
posted by dgaicun at 9:08 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
Look, daddy, I'm a torso!
posted by dgaicun at 9:08 PM on October 28, 2008 [1 favorite]
My paternal grandmother's maiden name was Nuckles, but she was from the southern coal fields of West Virginia, not the eastern panhandle.
posted by netbros at 9:36 PM on October 28, 2008
posted by netbros at 9:36 PM on October 28, 2008
also, this should be a song.
Here are some lyrics, if anyone wants to take a crack at it:
"Never lay a hand on my daughter,"
Lillie Pearl said when she shot her
Husband Warren
Her husband Warren
That night at Shenandoah Junction
Lillie Pearl she had a compunction
She did mourn
Oh she did mourn
She went to her neighbor Betty
And she said words of regret, she
Shot him dead
She shot him dead
She said he had beaten up Pat
And Lillie wouldn't stand for that
So he died instead
He died instead.
Warren fell on February 5th
In the year 1966
With a bullet in him
A bullet in him
There is a memory of Warren inside
The Maryland house where he died
But it's growing dim
It's growing dim.
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:01 PM on October 28, 2008 [12 favorites]
Here are some lyrics, if anyone wants to take a crack at it:
"Never lay a hand on my daughter,"
Lillie Pearl said when she shot her
Husband Warren
Her husband Warren
That night at Shenandoah Junction
Lillie Pearl she had a compunction
She did mourn
Oh she did mourn
She went to her neighbor Betty
And she said words of regret, she
Shot him dead
She shot him dead
She said he had beaten up Pat
And Lillie wouldn't stand for that
So he died instead
He died instead.
Warren fell on February 5th
In the year 1966
With a bullet in him
A bullet in him
There is a memory of Warren inside
The Maryland house where he died
But it's growing dim
It's growing dim.
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:01 PM on October 28, 2008 [12 favorites]
Can I be a little contrarian here? The story: spectacular. The results: one in a million. The links to newspaperarchive.com: goddamn useful. But I didn't learn how to be a better researcher as a result of Averyoldworld's answer. There are no new techniques to be gathered besides "permute your searches" which is kind of the Google-fu mantra anyhow.
Averyoldworld, fantastic work.
posted by Plutor at 4:00 AM on October 29, 2008
Averyoldworld, fantastic work.
posted by Plutor at 4:00 AM on October 29, 2008
This is excellent. Perhaps particularly dedicated ask.metafilterians could band together and moonlight as a detective agency to earn back their $5.
posted by eponymouse at 4:16 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by eponymouse at 4:16 AM on October 29, 2008
Thanks for pointing this out in Meta...I saw that question earlier and remember thinking "psh yeah, right. Good luck with that!". Impressive!
posted by Grither at 5:11 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by Grither at 5:11 AM on October 29, 2008
Wow. Thanks, guys. I feel all special now.
As for the how. . . I've done a lot of electronic discovery work, and before I go building big ol' nested searches with scads of proximity operators and the like, I try to think of a phrase or two (or at least some words in a certain proximity to each other) that almost have to be in what I'm looking for.
Then I search for them and dial in as needed. Like Plutor said, permutations are the way to go. Up next would've been: "shenandoah junction" "of her husband" (murder OR homicide). And sometimes I get really lucky.
tellurian: Well-played.
posted by averyoldworld at 5:53 AM on October 29, 2008 [2 favorites]
As for the how. . . I've done a lot of electronic discovery work, and before I go building big ol' nested searches with scads of proximity operators and the like, I try to think of a phrase or two (or at least some words in a certain proximity to each other) that almost have to be in what I'm looking for.
Then I search for them and dial in as needed. Like Plutor said, permutations are the way to go. Up next would've been: "shenandoah junction" "of her husband" (murder OR homicide). And sometimes I get really lucky.
tellurian: Well-played.
posted by averyoldworld at 5:53 AM on October 29, 2008 [2 favorites]
Hey AVOW I'm thinking of a number between 1 and ten hundred quadrillion bet you can't guess it
posted by Damn That Television at 7:03 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by Damn That Television at 7:03 AM on October 29, 2008
cashman, check out the OP profile. Ask me how 'measles' figured.
posted by tellurian at 7:05 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by tellurian at 7:05 AM on October 29, 2008
cashman: I looked in greenie2600's profile hoping he'd put a location down. And sure enough, there it was. Which is good, 'cause I was interested, but not what's-the-likeliest-very-small-town-in-Jefferson-County interested.
posted by averyoldworld at 7:16 AM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by averyoldworld at 7:16 AM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
AVOW, when the legend becomes fact, post the legend.
posted by katillathehun at 7:25 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by katillathehun at 7:25 AM on October 29, 2008
I looked in greenie2600's profile hoping he'd put a location down. And sure enough, there it was.
And then…
posted by tellurian at 7:26 AM on October 29, 2008
And then…
posted by tellurian at 7:26 AM on October 29, 2008
Do we have some sort of list of these sorts of things accumulating somewhere? I mean, Givewell, this one, but there have been a bunch more.
Somewhere, someone is doing research on this phenomenon. And they're looking at you.
posted by scrump at 8:45 AM on October 29, 2008
Somewhere, someone is doing research on this phenomenon. And they're looking at you.
posted by scrump at 8:45 AM on October 29, 2008
Yay, good job.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:39 AM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:39 AM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
Sorry, no don't believe you, you must have had outside help.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:43 AM on October 29, 2008
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:43 AM on October 29, 2008
I've done a lot of electronic discovery work
Can you find my lost emails from 2002?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:29 AM on October 29, 2008
Can you find my lost emails from 2002?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:29 AM on October 29, 2008
Can you find my lost emails from 2002?
Depends on which email address lost them. home.com? connectsavannah.com? comcast.net?
Seriously, though, they're in your sock drawer, wedged at the back.
posted by averyoldworld at 12:57 PM on October 29, 2008
Depends on which email address lost them. home.com? connectsavannah.com? comcast.net?
Seriously, though, they're in your sock drawer, wedged at the back.
posted by averyoldworld at 12:57 PM on October 29, 2008
The ones from @uwc.ac.za and @byu.edu
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:22 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:22 PM on October 29, 2008
and I don't wear socks!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:24 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:24 PM on October 29, 2008
and I don't wear socks!
Which is exactly why you can't find those emails.
Tell me, though, does "nomadic ink" mean you have free-range tattoos? I'm really hoping it does.
posted by averyoldworld at 1:48 PM on October 29, 2008
Which is exactly why you can't find those emails.
Tell me, though, does "nomadic ink" mean you have free-range tattoos? I'm really hoping it does.
posted by averyoldworld at 1:48 PM on October 29, 2008
I'm TAKEN.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:01 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:01 PM on October 29, 2008
I have your emails and I won't give them back until you apologize for that thing that you did.
posted by Astro Zombie at 3:08 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Astro Zombie at 3:08 PM on October 29, 2008
Ok, how did you figure out you had to add measles?
posted by dirty lies at 3:09 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by dirty lies at 3:09 PM on October 29, 2008
Yeah, what's up with this measles thing? I do not understand the measles.
posted by greenie2600 at 3:52 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by greenie2600 at 3:52 PM on October 29, 2008
I am going to wrote a story about a boy named Measles. I think that's a great name.
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:15 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:15 PM on October 29, 2008
Hey, February 5, 1966 was my birthday. Can I get a verse in that song too, Astro Zombie?
posted by matildaben at 4:44 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by matildaben at 4:44 PM on October 29, 2008
On Feb 5 was born matildaben
So that's the verse I've added then.
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:47 PM on October 29, 2008 [2 favorites]
So that's the verse I've added then.
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:47 PM on October 29, 2008 [2 favorites]
I apologize that I voted for the non-zombie candidate.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:47 PM on October 29, 2008
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:47 PM on October 29, 2008
The measles thing is from the page that had the text of the articles. As far as I can tell, the OCR of a scan of the original article had the name as Measles instead of Nuckles.
posted by averyoldworld at 6:02 PM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by averyoldworld at 6:02 PM on October 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
*horning in
Google gets hold of MeFite detective stories. Yesterday, putting MetaFilter into Google I noticed a dropdown index, which included MetaFilter + Sonseed. Curious, I clicked and happened across this one.
After the MetaFilter post by xmattxfx on September 12th, the David Crowder Band performed a fun cover of Jesus is a friend a week or so later.
It might be fun to have a Detective stories heading on the MeFi Wiki. Does anyone know how to do that?
posted by nickyskye at 10:38 AM on October 30, 2008
Google gets hold of MeFite detective stories. Yesterday, putting MetaFilter into Google I noticed a dropdown index, which included MetaFilter + Sonseed. Curious, I clicked and happened across this one.
After the MetaFilter post by xmattxfx on September 12th, the David Crowder Band performed a fun cover of Jesus is a friend a week or so later.
It might be fun to have a Detective stories heading on the MeFi Wiki. Does anyone know how to do that?
posted by nickyskye at 10:38 AM on October 30, 2008
We all do actually! It's as easy as entering a URL and then editing it.
I did a starter page. You can go to that page and click the edit tab on the top [it may ask you to log in, you may need to create an account] and then you can change what I wrote or add new stuff. I put three examples in there which anyone can delete or replace with good MeFi Detective stories.
Reminder: the last thing you will have to do before you save a page you have edited is answer a little math problem at the top of the page. A lot of people miss this and then don't know why their changes weren't made.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:02 PM on October 30, 2008 [1 favorite]
I did a starter page. You can go to that page and click the edit tab on the top [it may ask you to log in, you may need to create an account] and then you can change what I wrote or add new stuff. I put three examples in there which anyone can delete or replace with good MeFi Detective stories.
Reminder: the last thing you will have to do before you save a page you have edited is answer a little math problem at the top of the page. A lot of people miss this and then don't know why their changes weren't made.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:02 PM on October 30, 2008 [1 favorite]
Oh YAYY jessamyn! Thank you! :) Logged in, added the averyoldworld story. Thanks so much for the formatting tips. So handy, much appreciated.
posted by nickyskye at 9:46 PM on October 30, 2008
posted by nickyskye at 9:46 PM on October 30, 2008
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 4:10 PM on October 28, 2008