Louisa Pierce was born on Oct 30, 1825 to Amos and Abigail Pierce of Newton, Massachusetts. She was the youngest of three children, all daughters. Abigail Pierce passed away in 1851, when Louisa was a young woman. However, she remained single to care for her wealthy, eccentric father until his death in 1884. By then, Louisa was 59 and any thought of marriage was long past.

The majority of her life was a quiet one, lived in comfort and relative seclusion. That changed in the spring of 1900, when Louisa, now 74 years old, met Charles H. Barnes, age 32. After  a whirlwind three-week courtship, the couple appeared in the office of the town clerk and requested a marriage license.

It was likely due to Miss Pierce’s wealth and the highly questionable nature of Charles Barnes that the story gained so much traction. As soon as it was rumored that Miss Pierce might really intend to marry Charles Barnes,  it became a major story covered in the Boston area.

A montage in the Boston Globe about the couple’s romance

Newton Assistant Registrar Frank Rideout listened to the request with obvious amazement. Most papers later reported that he had simply refused to give them the license they requested.  But one Boston paper gave a more detailed and alarming account.

“Miss Pierce seemed feeble, and she had entered supported by Mr Barnes. Dressed in black, with a dark hat trimmed with blue, Miss Pierce wore a heavy cape, which she gathered about her as if she felt cold. Mr Barnes seated her in a chair, and as she sat with her head thrown forward she seemed weary, and entirely impervious to her surroundings.”

Asst. Registrar Rideout began asking the standard questions but soon noticed that all of them were being answered by Charles Barnes. Miss Pierce, on the other hand, seemed to be almost dazed. Rideout grew concerned and turning, spoke directly to the lady.

“He asked her if she wished to get married, and she motioned to Mr Barnes to answer. Mr Barnes said she did wish to marry him.

Mr Rideout asked: “Do you know what you are doing? Do you know what you are here for?”

Miss Pierce shook her head, and Mr Barnes bent low and spoke in her ear: “You are here to get a marriage license.”

Mr Rideout again asked her if she knew what she was about to do, and again she did not give any intelligent answer.”

Rideout told the couple they should leave and come back in an hour.  He wanted time to think. He did not like the look of the situation.

However, when the couple returned one hour later, the Registrar was still willing to give Barnes the license he requested if he could be persuaded that Miss Pierce knew what she was doing. Rideout had called the health department, and soon Dr. Shea entered the office. Mr. Rideout asked Miss Pierce to speak to the doctor privately in another room—without Charles Barnes—but here the prospective groom intervened. He would not hear of it.

Barnes then called in the cab driver to serve as a witness and demanded repeatedly that Mr. Rideout give them the license they came for. When Rideout continued to demure, Barnes grew frustrated.

“Come along,” he said to Miss Pierce. He took her arm and led her out, explaining the registrar had refused them a license.

Frank Rideout was interviewed later. “I could not give them a license this morning,” he protested. “Certainly not after the way the woman acted in here. I would be criticized for granting anyone a license who did not appear to know what he or she was doing. Miss Pierce did not seem to know what was going on. I could not get any answers from her. I called Dr. Shea, thinking he might talk with her and perhaps judge of her condition, but Mr. Barnes would not let the doctor talk with her.”

This strange episode intrigued Massachusetts readers but many of those who knew Miss Pierce dismissed the story as a crazy rumor. What they did not know was that Charles Barnes was a determined man.

Stay tuned for Part 2!