°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±Ö±²¥

Neahkahnie Mystery

EliotFamily

The Eliot kids in spring 1919, at the W.G. Eliot vacation cottage in Hood River, Oregon (left to right): William G. Eliot III ’19, Calista Eliot ’20, Craig Eliot ’24, Ruth Eliot ’21, Mignon Eliot ’22, and Ted Eliot ’21.

In the latest issue of the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±Ö±²¥ magazine, I read the letter to the editor “Etched into the Rocks.” The author, a parent of a current °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±Ö±²¥ student, alludes to carved initials on Neahkahnie Mountain: “T.S. + M.E. Eliot, 1925.” He was wondering who they might have been. This piqued my curiosity, so I looked through the T.L. Eliot family file this morning and found a possible answer. My best guess is Theodore Sessinghaus Eliot ’21 married to Mignon Hoover Eliot ’22—Ted was T.L. Eliot’s grandson and William G. Eliot Jr.’s son. 

—Mark Kuestner

Special Collections, °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±Ö±²¥ Library