Who was buried in Red Dave's grave?

Posted 11/1/22

Near the waste gate of Arctic Mill, a group of young boys were swimming in the pond on the afternoon of July 28, 1892. Sighting what appeared to be a log floating along on the water, one of the boys …

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Who was buried in Red Dave's grave?

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Near the waste gate of Arctic Mill, a group of young boys were swimming in the pond on the afternoon of July 28, 1892. Sighting what appeared to be a log floating along on the water, one of the boys went towards it only to realize that it was a decomposed body.

Horrified, the boys clamored out of the water and ran for the police. After law enforcement officers removed the corpse from the water, the coroner arrived at the scene. He noticed several bruises and lacerations on the body and a deep, jagged wound on the back of the head. His report stated that he believed the male body to have been in the water for five or six weeks.

The body was clad in a white and red-striped cotton shirt, a blue and white-striped jumper, blue overhauls and a black coat. In one of the pockets was a flask filled with water. The man appeared to be about 45 years old, partially balding with hints of red hair. He was removed to the undertaking rooms of James Gough & Son where several people came to view the mysterious find in hopes they could identify him.

A 39-year-old River Point man named David Mercure, known locally as “Red Dave”, had been reported as missing from home since the previous month. Although the discovered body was in no condition to provide easy identification, those who knew David announced that the flask was one which had indeed been his property. They believed that David had either come to his death by falling drunkenly into the water, or falling victim to foul play. On July 30, the body was laid in a potter’s field grave and a final goodbye was said to Red Dave.

If foul play was involved, there would have been good reason for someone to feel vindicated in killing David Mercure. Nine-year-old Laurie Etta Vogue, of Oakland Beach, had been violently assaulted by him on June 1. He disappeared shortly after that and managed to successfully evade the police. But then Red Dave suddenly appeared. On the afternoon of Aug. 11, a police officer recognized him in Providence and served him with a warrant, charging him with rape. Mercure was put on the 10 p.m. train to Apponaug.

Now, the mystery of the Arctic Mill pond corpse became a topic of conversation in Warwick once again. It was finally decided by most locals that the man had to be 44-year-old Harley Hawkins of River Point who had been missing from home for quite some time as well as from the saloons he frequented. But others weren’t so sure. Several people swore that they had seen Harley only a few days earlier and one man claimed he had helped move him out of the Arctic crossing just a few hours before the boys found the greatly decomposed body floating in the water.

Harley’s stepmother, however, was convinced the body was his as the height was the same, as well as the clothing. Like David Mercure, Harley was slim and partly balding with traces of red hair. Having been employed by the Pike & Son Lumberyard in River Point for many years, he was known for being a hard worker when he wasn’t intoxicated.

The single aspect of the body which became the best factor for determining identity was the sores upon the legs of the deceased. Mrs. Murray, the woman who kept the boarding house near Clyde Depot, came forward to report that Harley had rented a room from her for almost 11 years. She said that he liked to imbibe in alcohol and would go on sprees which would keep him away from home for weeks. According to Mrs. Murray, every time Harley went on a bender, he would buy himself new shoes and stockings and that her other boarders had told her that he had terrible ulcers on his legs. The unidentified body, clad in new shoes and stockings, had evident sores upon the legs.

Content that the mystery was at last solved, residents allowed Harley Hawkins to lay at peace in his grave within the potter’s field – at least we are led to assume it’s him.

Kelly Sullivan is a Rhode Island columnist, lecturer and author.

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