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What girl doesn't love a "bad" boy?

Cecilia Goodman was born to Irish immigrant parents on a homestead located on the headwaters of Plum Creek in Woodland township, Sauk county, Wisconsin.  The setting was idyllic with large trees surrounding the cabin and a small pond located just steps from the front door.  But the homestead was isolated.  The closest towns were Wonewoc and Hillsboro, small villages with little to offer a young woman looking for excitement and opportunity.  Luckily for Cecilia, she had an uncle, a brother-in-law and nieces and nephews that lived in the city of Janesville, located in southern Wisconsin.  

Cecilia Goodman Moyer
Cecilia got more excitement than she was hoping for when she met young Ira Sankey Moyer in Janesville.  Ira was born in Indiana but was attending a school in Janesville studying telegraphy.  Ira and Cecilia married on 2 August 1904 in Union City, Juneau county, Wisconsin.  At the time of their marriage Ira was living in Harvard, Illinois, working for the railroad while Cecilia was working as a domestic in Janesville.  Within months of their marriage, Ira absconded with silverware, table linens, bed linens and clothing belonging to Cecilia, and had married again by Christmas of the same year to a young woman in Keokuk, Iowa, without benefit of a divorce.  Ira and his new wife, Lelia, fled Iowa and were found in February 1905 in Colorado Springs, Colorado where Ira was arrested for bigamy and, shortly after his arrest, extradited to Keokuk for trial.  


The newspapers were full of stories about Ira and his previous wives.  It was reported that he had anywhere from three to nine wives previous to his marriage to Cecilia.  One story told that when he couldn't get his hands on money that Cecilia had received after the death of her father, he deserted her.  At one point, Ira testified that he was not married to Cecilia at all.  That lie was quickly quashed by the testimony of the priest that had married them in Union City.  

Ira entered a plea of guilty to the charge of bigamy, but only after the state had presented all of their evidence.  On May 23, 1905 Ira was sentenced to 2 years and five months in the state penitentiary at Fort Madison, Iowa. Never fear, this was not the end of the story.

Soon after his conviction a letter writing campaign began asking for the governor of the state of Iowa to pardon Ira.  Hanry E. Cooper, who had known Ira his entire life, confides that he has always regarded Ira as a young man of excellent character and habits.  H. Bank, Jr., the judge that sentenced Ira to the penitentiary, also petitioned the governor to parole Ira after he had served a year of his sentence.  Ministers, lawyers, and the editor of The Constitution-Democrat, the Keokuk local paper, asked for a pardon to be provided.  Letters from Cecilia were also among those that reached the governor.  The sentence was suspended in January 1906, after almost 7 months in the penitentiary.  Ira was pardoned of his crime in October of 1906 and restored to citizenship.  

By the time of his pardon, Ira and Cecilia were living in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  Cecilia did not have an easy life.  She worked as a servant in the home of N. C. Roberts in Fort Madison while Ira was imprisoned and was noted to be a "good, hard working and most worthy woman".  After Ira was freed Cecilia bore two children, Helen, born in December 1906, and Robert Harold, born in July 1908.  Two months after the birth of Robert, Cecilia died of acute nephritis (kidney disease) at the age of 32.  


Ira went on to marry two more women.  At least he was smart enough to divorce one before marrying another!  Ira's name hit the papers again when he refused to pay alimony to his ex-wife.  In fact, Ira said he would rather "rot in jail" than to pay the alimony he owed.  And rot he did, for over a year, until he decided to pay his back alimony and settle property on his ex-wife.  







Prefers to Rot
Upper photo: Ira Moyer, Colorado Springs carpenter, who says he will rot in jail before paying his wife $50 monthly alimony.  Lower photo: Mrs. Ira Moyer [Lillian Myers], who is willing that her husband shall rot, if he does not pay.  Moyer is worth $10,000.











Selected References:
Marriage certificate, 2 AUG 1904, State of Wisconsin.  Accessed at Wisconsin State Historical Society. Microfilm
Rockford Daily Register, Rockford, Illinois, 1 MAR 1905, page 4, Accessed at Newspapers.com
Iowa City Daily Press, Iowa City, Iowa, 10 MAR 1905, Accessed from Newspapers.com
Colorado Springs Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 8 APR 1905, page 5, column 3; Accessed from Pikes Peak Library District.
Governors Papers, Iowa State Archives, papers related to petition for early release and pardon




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