Frank Spicka's Murder-Suicide

Frank Spicka was the brother of John Spicka, and therefore Mildred Spicka Quaid’s uncle. In 1897 he married Marie Rezabek, and over the next ten years they had seven children, five of whom survived childhood. The last child, Sylvia, was born in October 1907, and by December Marie had died of pneumonia, according to my Mom.

In 1909, Frank married Mary Mastni or Mastney, born Mary Havik. She had a daughter from a previous marriage, also named Sylvia. This Sylvia was born in 1899, so she was about 8 years older than Frank’s own daughter Sylvia, and indeed a little older than all the other children. About this household, my Mom wrote:

Frank Jr. (Franktisek - born May 20, 1902, died April 13, 1996 in Timken, KS, age 94) wrote a letter (in 1995) to Aunt Helen that she shared with me telling about the mean step mother.  He said that his brother George had had his eyes blackened (apparently by the step mother) and that Frank Jr. was disciplined by having to kneel on a broom handle in a dark basement (while his step sister Sylvia - the one that Frank Jr’s father shot) banged on the door in order to scare him).

In December 1911 Mary also died, in this case of acute peritonitis following an operation on a pelvic abscess, again according to Mom. In late January of 1912, Frank shot his stepdaughter and then himself.

Chicago Tribune, page 1, Jan 25, 1912

Frank Spicka’s mother was named Josie, not Anna, and was not yet 70 when this happened. Frank died immediately, and Sylvia died a couple of days later.

My Mom appears to have had newspaper articles that I haven’t seen. She wrote:

Anyhow - as I understand this saga - the first wife died in 1907, Frank Sr. married again probably around 1909 to a Mrs. Marie (or Mary) Mastna.  She had two daughters: Sylvia, age 15 and another daughter, name unknown.  This second wife died 13 December 1911 (probably of acute peritonitis).    According to the newspaper article neighbors and friends testified that Sylvia Mastna (the step daughter) was a malicious, obstinate, willful and disobedient girl who was frequently the cause of confrontations with her (step)father.  In 1912  Frank shot his step daughter Sylvia, and then shot himself in the head.  This is a simplistic report of a very serious situation.  Aunt Helen says Frank told his step-daughter Sylvia to clean the meat block in the store and she refused - probably not just cause for shooting someone.  Frank's death cert says cause of death was shock and hemorrhage due to bullet wound in forehead - suicide.  The newspaper article said that Sylvia had angered her step father by a note she had written - he tore it up - she re-wrote the note on butcher paper and the newspaper alluded to the idea that she might have alluded to some delicate matters between herself and her step father!

According to Mom, Frank’s other children, aged 4 to 12, were taken in by Frank’s mother Josie. Her husband Vaclav had died in 1896. She died in the 1918 influenza epidemic, when several of the children were still young. In the 1920 census they’re all living with separate relatives.