A press release just came across my virtual desk that informs me of an event to be held in Carlisle on May 28, 2009. It’s not clear to me if this is to just be a booksigning or a reenactment of the fictional trial described in “A Hearing for Jim Thorpe, An Exercise in Frustration” by Michael L. Sheaffer. Mr. Sheaffer’s website http://mikesheaffer.com/researchmaterials.htm is not clear about where the signing will take place. The Cumberland County Courthouse is depicted as the site of the hearing, but is not identified as the location of the booksigning. It is my understanding that it is not scheduled to be held at Whistlestop Bookshop where many such events take place.
I am at a loss to understand why this book was written and, since it was written, why Bob Wheeler and Florence Ridlon, the people who got Thorpe’s medals restored, weren’t involved.
I don’t know the author and probably move to Carlisle after he left. I will email him about this blog to give him a chance to comment on it. I have not been able to find out anything about Project Jim Thorpe. I have enlisted Freddie Wardecker to help me locate someone who would have been around at the time and might know about that project.
Perhaps the author will tell us more. Who knows? We might like it after we know more about it. It is my hope that Mr. Sheaffer researched original sources and not recent fictionalized accounts. However, his research materials lists only websites.
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