11. McCurdy’s Adulthood Started Better Than His Childhood But Ended in Disaster
In the mid to late 1890s, Helen and Sadie sent McCurdy to live with his grandfather. McCurdy then became an apprentice plumber. For a little while, it seemed Elmer McCurdy was turning his life around. The people whom McCurdy worked for said he was a good worker. McCurdy began to live comfortably until the economic drop of 1898, which cause McCurdy to lose his job. Then, two years later, both his mother and grandfather died within weeks of each other. After this, McCurdy’s life changed for the worst. He began drinking heavily again and was unable to hold a job or keep a home.
After losing his grandfather and mother, McCurdy went out east to look for work. He received a job as a lead plumber but could not hold this job. He then moved to Kansas but lost that job due to his drinking. In 1905, Elmer McCurdy was arrested for public intoxication. McCurdy then went into the army in 1907 and received an honorable discharge in 1910. However, this did not help McCurdy turn his life around. A couple of weeks later, McCurdy was arrested for possessing burglary paraphernalia. Yet, McCurdy was found not guilty the following year and released from jail.