Trifles
Susan Glaspell
Emily Trabold
Fig. 9
"The Hossack family posed in front of their farmhouse near Medora, Iowa, in 1892. Left to Right:
Will, Johnnie, Jimmie, John (seated), Cassie, Ivan, Margaret (seated), May, Louie, Annie."
John Hassock and Margaret Murchison were both born in Scotland in the 1840s. While John initially planned to marry Jane, Margaret's sister, they were wed on January 29, 1868 in Stark County, Illinois on the Murchison family farm. John was one of Margaret's father's hired hands but before they were married, he had purchased a large chunk of land in Warren County, Iowa, where the couple moved a few months after the wedding. Margaret never returned to Illinois or saw her family members, except for one visit from her brother. Margaret gave birth to 10 children and had more than 20 grandchildren. John's mood could be described as "moody and argumentative," disagreeing with his wife and children on the way their farm and household should be run, but he was well respected by other farmers in the area (Bryan and Wolf). He actually participated in his community and "took a leadership role in his church, ran for political office, and served as a trustee of the county" (Bryan and Wolf). Two days after John hosted a party for 20+ people on Thanksgiving Day 1900, he was violently murdered in the middle of the night.
Fig. 10
"Murder Scene Illustration"
Many of Margaret and John's arguments arose because Margaret would side with her children when they went against John's wishes. They, including her two sons-in-law, were equally as loyal to their mother and when she was arrested for the murder of her husband, they supported her the entire way.
"Margaret Hossack always maintained her innocence, claiming that she had been asleep when an unidentified intruder attacked her husband. She was consistent in the story she told, and she was an important witness in her own defense at both trials" (Bryan and Wolf).
She died on August 25, 1916.