She Married Her Son. How Could It Happen? The Complete Documentary

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  • Опубликовано: 9 июл 2016
  • My team and I made this PBS television special, Sins Of Our Mothers based on an interview that I had done way back in the mid-1970s with 89 year old reporter Nettie Mitchell . The documentary tells the story of Emmeline - and the story is amazing. Without her knowledge, Emmeline sinned and paid a heavy price for it. The director of this documentary Rocky Collins was young but very very talented when he made this. It has a unique slow and strange Puritan New England tempo and mood that absolutely fits the story and how Nettie told it. When this was recorded in 1976, Nettiehad an excellent memory and was a very serious reporter who cared about telling the truth exactly as she saw it. She had spent a lifetime doing it.
    Every rural area in the country and certainly in Maine has its folktales. Some commentators on this video say that this is a folktale and that it couldn't have happened. Nettie personally met and dealt with Emmeline and it or something very much like it did happen. It is possible that some details are incorrect although we spent more than six months researching it when we did made documentary and some of those who met Emmeline were still alive.
    Sex in Puritan culture was a sin under most circumstances. Women were certainly seen as of less value and importance than men. Remember The Scarlet Letter. Some commentators have pointed out that the Puritan sect of Christianity had long disappeared in Manie but in my experience as a person who lived in Maine in a small town for more than 20 years, some of the values are held by a segment of the people who live in these towns today. The concept of sin. The concept of sinful sex. The concept of women as less than. And more.
    Many commentators have pointed out the connection between this story and Oedipus. Unquestionably true.
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Комментарии • 6 тыс.

  • @franmack3154
    @franmack3154 4 года назад +3518

    First her parents sent her off alone, an older man basically raped her at age 14, baby born and given/taken away, she was sent home, did not date, met and married a younger man. Found out it was her son, divorced him, her family and the town turned their backs on her. She was told that she was a sinner. Who’s the sinner?????The freakin Town and her family!!!!!!

  • @MMWEST01
    @MMWEST01 3 года назад +2148

    I am getting worried about my RUclips history because my recommendation keeps getting weirder and jaw dropping!

  • @opybrook7766
    @opybrook7766 2 года назад +381

    When I married in the early mid 1970's, he revealed to me that I was his property and he could do as he liked to me and any children that would later come. For example for over a decade I was only allowed 2 pair of underwear, one to wear, one to wash... I shall not say all the horrors he subject my children and myself to.
    It took me over 14 years to get my children and myself away from the evil man, the devil itself he was.

    • @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker
      @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker  2 года назад +89

      A horrible story that sickens me. I am glad you have gotten past him.
      David Hoffman filmmaker

    • @janetsides901
      @janetsides901 Год назад +32

      I'm glad you got away from h8m

    • @jessicathomas73
      @jessicathomas73 Год назад +37

      I am so sorry you went through that. Very glad you were able to get away.

    • @reginalively4021
      @reginalively4021 Год назад +1

      Maybe that ******* former husband is now in prison rotting in a jail cell, in preparation for the Final Judgment when he rots in Hell, etarnally.
      We can only hope…

    • @cherther13
      @cherther13 Год назад +10

      💕💕💕

  • @elliot5691
    @elliot5691 11 месяцев назад +102

    Nettie seems like she was a wonderful child, who grew up to be a compassionate old woman who felt it was important for people to hear the sad story of Emmeline. ❤️

  • @MusicandDancing4Ever
    @MusicandDancing4Ever 3 года назад +1286

    If you feel bad about Emmeline. Just know there are people today who have no one, alone, outcast, for whatever reason. If you see someone alone, befriend them. That’s the best way to pay emmeline back.

    • @missmoxie9188
      @missmoxie9188 3 года назад +23

      Thank you

    • @kpeezyforsheezy
      @kpeezyforsheezy 3 года назад +14

      ♥️

    • @moonshine814
      @moonshine814 3 года назад +42

      So true. It's the best thing u can give someone, a little empathy goes a long way!

    • @mosescarolina9733
      @mosescarolina9733 3 года назад +16

      I love this❤

    • @mosescarolina9733
      @mosescarolina9733 3 года назад +31

      @@kpeezyforsheezy Definitely not a Dr Drew fan at all BUT something he said way back stuck with me bc it so true.
      "The world would be a better place if everyone had an ounce of empathy."

  • @COOLSUAVESHIT
    @COOLSUAVESHIT 5 лет назад +3117

    "There is no greater poverty than being unwanted, uncared for, and unloved."

    • @johnbrotherton9012
      @johnbrotherton9012 5 лет назад +80

      so true It happens in todays World more than ever.

    • @Ccal488
      @Ccal488 5 лет назад +34

      So true 😔

    • @bubbles5599
      @bubbles5599 5 лет назад +52

      Your words are so touching and so true made me cry

    • @opalfruitcake
      @opalfruitcake 5 лет назад +19

      @@johnbrotherton9012 very true, my love x

    • @MissMaria1988
      @MissMaria1988 5 лет назад +38

      Same in Norway. Children had to work at the farm as small kids, or had to work other places as servants. It was so far into the 20 the century. It's all not so good traditions comming from us here in Scandinavia and Europe. Including not treating children well like giving spankings. Travelling over to America people became even more ultra religious. One can see it even to day in America. So much religious fanatism.

  • @thejoycatcher8189
    @thejoycatcher8189 2 года назад +185

    The Bachilers are my ancestors. Rev Stephan is also Emmeline’s ancestor so we are distant cousins. What a fascinating and heartbreaking story. I’m glad I found this. The more we talk abt things once considered taboo the more educated we become and prevent tragedies like this from happening. 🙏🏻❤️

    • @Arthur_Hastings
      @Arthur_Hastings Год назад +10

      Have you ever done a DNA test to see how close you are to Emmiline?

    • @tracyworley1995
      @tracyworley1995 Год назад +13

      Like a Greek tragedy. She must've felt cursed. Lucky they didn't burn her at the stake as a witch. Very depressing.

    • @gypsy_gallus
      @gypsy_gallus Год назад +8

      Nowadays many kids are trafficked and killed during rituals.

    • @elph77
      @elph77 Год назад +5

      She didn't have an incestuous relationship with her son. A census record from 1880 states that her husband was 12 years older than her.

    • @suzycreamchez123
      @suzycreamchez123 Год назад +11

      @@elph77 they said she had two marriages. One of them for 20 years.

  • @mikelclark9723
    @mikelclark9723 2 года назад +836

    I let it be known that I was being molested by my grandfather and some uncles and my family just doesn't talk to me and this was years ago I'm 46 years old now and if it wasn't for my kids I would be by myself people can be really cruel but as long as you don't let that make you cruel you'll come out all right because I'm fine no I have a warm heart I'll do anything for anybody my kids adore me my neighbors Adore me it's just the family they don't want to discuss the truth so that made me an outcast

    • @deniserodemich6268
      @deniserodemich6268 2 года назад +86

      My mother was molested by her grandfather. No one believed her either. It really damaged her, may she Rest In Peace.

    • @ellavek1998
      @ellavek1998 2 года назад +55

      You are NOT an outcast. Your family is. You should have gone complete public. My dad would have had a shit fit if that were happening to me

    • @JNJG1999
      @JNJG1999 2 года назад +38

      @@ellavek1998 I agree with you. I was molested by mum mum (who is a social worker.) and my family cut me off

    • @yjontiiaalfred5243
      @yjontiiaalfred5243 2 года назад +44

      You know what.. you're an amazing woman nd blessed .. The karma brewing for THEM won't be nothing nice .. Best believe. There's a special place in HELL for scummy despicable ppl who abuse children. Smh. God bless You honey...

    • @monstermcboo7282
      @monstermcboo7282 2 года назад +42

      Mikel, sometimes the trash takes itself out. You’re better off without the ones who shun you, believe me. Stay well and stay faithful. You’re on the right path. ❤️

  • @mauherkan
    @mauherkan 5 лет назад +1127

    The beginning is just priceless. 3:45:
    "When where you born?"
    "I was born a 103 years ago, you figure it out."

    • @karenwhite4141
      @karenwhite4141 4 года назад +79

      😍🤗 Reminds me of my grandmother when I would ask her how old she was: "I don't know, baby. I think I'm 94 or 5 or 6. Idk ninety-something. Maybe..."

    • @RoseGoldPressure
      @RoseGoldPressure 4 года назад +15

      I literally recorded that moment n sent it to my friends

    • @KateLove21
      @KateLove21 4 года назад +14

      1885 or 1886.

    • @Wowwwzaaa
      @Wowwwzaaa 4 года назад +5

      mauherkan cos she did not know how to add herself lol

    • @kt114
      @kt114 4 года назад +15

      I didn’t catch that at first. 😂 Sassy old lady.

  • @sweetwillows555
    @sweetwillows555 5 лет назад +1796

    What the heck was wrong with those people????? Emmeline never committed a sin, the moment she and her son found out who the other was, they both divorced, it was a mistake, not a sin!!

    • @beatrixthegreat1138
      @beatrixthegreat1138 5 лет назад +91

      and its sad they didn't have a mother son relationship at least :(

    • @sweetwillows555
      @sweetwillows555 5 лет назад +156

      @@beatrixthegreat1138 I agree, they should have been allowed to pursue as mother and son, but I can only imagine that it would have been quite awkward afterward. Poor Emmeline just flat out got the short end of the stick in life, I sure hope she is happy in heaven, she deserves it. bless her heart.....

    • @pinklady7184
      @pinklady7184 5 лет назад +69

      God help Emmeline. I bet her son was shocked and shattered.

    • @shesomadeline
      @shesomadeline 5 лет назад +61

      ᔕωєєтᙡιℓℓσω those days were brainwashed. Men brainwashed woman. "It's always a womans fault". Men ALWAYS had the POWER over women. Woman were severely brainwashed im sure they not only lived in fear but were most likely desensitized- im surely even their emotions were controlled by the asshole men!

    • @janetreece475
      @janetreece475 5 лет назад +92

      Back in the 60s my aunt was 70 years old , a neighbor 20 years old raped her. people treated her so bad
      even saying that she caused it.

  • @supertoshaful
    @supertoshaful 2 года назад +182

    I’m 53 years old and found out my grandmother was a child bride from Georgia. My grandfather was 21 and my grandmother was 11. She had my father at 12. How does one process this? How am I supposed to feel? Almost wish they had kept that secret.

    • @simonasweet9085
      @simonasweet9085 Год назад +11

      I'll pray for you and you pray for me too I know all too well about learning things about your family that you wish you could un-hear

    • @jacksano369
      @jacksano369 Год назад +7

      You shouldn't feel bad . People waste to much time of life .

    • @neighbor9672
      @neighbor9672 Год назад +6

      Life is traumatic. Processing the trauma is different for everyone. I did therapy. It helped.

    • @jennym7465
      @jennym7465 Год назад +5

      Are you having difficulty because you loved your grandfather and are having a hard time with that love now? What was your grandmother like? Did they stay together until one of them passed?

    • @maybudd5793
      @maybudd5793 Год назад +10

      It is a pity that she lost her childhood in having children.
      Child marriage has long been an issue in America. These days most states want you to be 17 or 18, but it’s not well regulated.
      The main question, though, is did they love one another? Did they basically have a good life?
      If they did, then it worked out in the end.
      If you are a person of compassion, and it seems like it, some of it came from your upbringing. If your Grandmother raised your Dad that way, it was partly because she loved him and wanted him to be a good man!
      Take heart. Teen mothers do wish now and then that they’d started later, but they still love their babies very much!!

  • @larry-naylor
    @larry-naylor 3 года назад +152

    I'm just so glad that Emmeline had Nettie to tell her story with love and compassion. It doesn't make up for what she went through but at least Emmeline no longer lives in ignominy and shame. The lack of compassion from her people is truly heartbreaking but at least she rests with Nettie's love.

    • @outdoorloser4340
      @outdoorloser4340 Год назад +3

      Nettie told the story so beautifully. Made me cry a little.

    • @tessagodsAsset3N21
      @tessagodsAsset3N21 Год назад +2

      Yes, exactly! Emeline's story Breaks my heart. I Had To post this & share it on Facebook page.

    • @maryferlauto5510
      @maryferlauto5510 4 месяца назад

      Emmeline is in the arms of Jesus getting more love than a human can comprehend. As far as her sister I feel that is the parents fault for teaching her wrong and that when something horrible happens to you it is never the victims fault like my family makes me out to be because my brother and 2 cousins molested me as a child. Of course they lied about it and now my family has abandoned me when I have Complex Regional Pain Syndrome which is the most painful disease that exists and they won't even take me to get an operation that I desperately need. They call me crazy because I got PTSD at the age of 9 and was never given any help. This story is so sad I could cry except for the thought that she'll never have any type of pain again and never shead another tear.

  • @Mori-Chan613
    @Mori-Chan613 5 лет назад +1756

    As a child, I never imagined that all of the real monsters in the world would be *HUMANS*

  • @MysticSkullivine
    @MysticSkullivine 3 года назад +1665

    I really hate that Emma’s sister exclaimed “she finally paid for her sins” at her own sister’s funeral. That’s atrocious

    • @tonibayless6772
      @tonibayless6772 3 года назад +97

      You are so right!! Hopefully that self righteous monster paid the ultimate price.She should have stayed away..

    • @sarakhaldi5085
      @sarakhaldi5085 3 года назад +60

      I agree! That’s the part that made me the most upset aside from what happened to the poor thing as a woman and as a little girl growing up.

    • @annetteyoutube742
      @annetteyoutube742 3 года назад +63

      @MysticSkullivine .. I agree. People who act like they're God are the least Godly.

    • @capebeauty4499
      @capebeauty4499 3 года назад +63

      Still today, people look the other way, to save their own buts. The whole world revolves around majority following the rule makers like sheep, too afraid to speak up, too afraid to be unpopular, its actually disgusting. Majority is mostly wrong.

    • @sherreewilson925
      @sherreewilson925 3 года назад +18

      I’m furious.

  • @daybird2
    @daybird2 2 года назад +68

    This story will remain with me for the rest of my life. Life is hard and sometimes cruel. May Emmeline rest in peace.

  • @user-bn7bk5mw4s
    @user-bn7bk5mw4s Месяц назад +5

    In 1999 i knew a lady who was...no lie...108. She told us she remembered when the Titanic sank. Her name was Beulah Smith and she had been a teacher in TN. Her son was about 75 a doctor and still practicing at the time.

  • @jeanbarraza5433
    @jeanbarraza5433 4 года назад +754

    May everyone watching this story take it heart and use it as an example of how not to treat people.

    • @sisteroflight
      @sisteroflight 4 года назад +7

      What goes around comes around! The wrong that you do comes back to you!

    • @consighneeseal5202
      @consighneeseal5202 3 года назад +6

      Two cousin of my, whose family were separated due to an argument.They met at work,fall in love and on the wedding day, they discovered that they were family,they decided to marry in spite that the whole family walked out the wedding .Their marriage never lasted three months.Now they were sure stupid because they knew

    • @patlivesley5398
      @patlivesley5398 3 года назад

      @@sisteroflight I find myself torn on this subject. The awful stuff that is happening to a person ....is this payback for stuff they did in a previous life ?

    • @utabrookes6707
      @utabrookes6707 3 года назад

      Why do we need to know all this evil crab in the world nothing new it repeats itself best never hear about it at all find better happy things and let by gone be by gone in some normal believes that some of us still have

    • @Jessen2204
      @Jessen2204 3 года назад +3

      Poor Emalline. RIP

  • @CityThatCannotBeCaptured
    @CityThatCannotBeCaptured 5 лет назад +515

    Not only is the poor woman completely innocent, the town's people are guilty of killing her.

    • @skatergrl51savh45
      @skatergrl51savh45 5 лет назад +36

      I bet she had dreams of moving far away and starting her life over, that’s my plan. I can’t put it into words the horrible pain of being outcasted but it’s true, my life has turned out a lot like Emmaline’s. I’ve never had anyone to call good friend. The one decent family member I had has died, My father made him mentally handicapped, that was my darling brother my two sisters are the golden children. I am the black sheep, scapegoated, ostracized, My mother told the police she didn’t want to see me when she was dying. She didn’t have dementia, she was fully aware, it is not what she intended to happened she was manipulated by my older sister in that sisters to Sons. The reason is the rest of my family banded me and my identical twin from my mothers deathbed for no reason, my father was a malignant narcissist, and for the most part the rest of the family was as well. My mother had developed Stockholm syndrome. I have really healed I only cried a little bit during this, I don’t have the luxury of being upset and hurt anymore it’s all about survival. My identical twin sister did a 18 year shame in smear campaign on me which is still going on and my older sister has her own shame and smear campaign against me as well. There are people who hate me that I don’t even know, they just hear lies from others and family who hate me. I tried to go to church, the pastor’s wife embarrassed me in front of everyone questioning me about why I don’t go to church more often, I was sick for the first 50 years of my life, so even gas/fuel to drive to church is unaffordable. I’m 51 years old I have regained some of my health and strength, life is better than it ever has been. My head is so messed up about weather people would ever like me or not that being in settings with other people who just too painful and I get sensitive my perceptions get distorted at the same time my perceptions are correct, I don’t fit in. I asked the pastor to lay hands on me to help me bc of some back pain, to pray for me, to give me some hands on healing, he asked someone else to do it for him relaying that I was demon possessed, that person didn’t want to do it either. Upon learning that while feeling desperate I caught the ear of someone who was unaware of what I just mentioned above, I got this person to lay hands on me and she prayed for me. And in my desperation I told this person briefly my entire life story in matter of several minutes just the highlights of my life. Felt good to get it out it always feels good to talk about it I’ve never had psychiatric help they always wanted to put me on pills not for me, but the people who hurt me on pills not me. Unfortunately this person was way too afraid to hardly ever speak to me again, She even walked away for me while I was talking on another occasion after that. I had committed to going to church for a one year every Monday night classes so this happened twice, twice class was canceled, no one told me, I was the only one that showed up the second time, guess they don’t realize how broke I am and that it wasted my gas/fuel twice when I am in the fight for my life to play catch-up after being sick for 50 years. Pls Don’t feel bad for me I had a near-death experience when I was four years old, and I’ve had my solid proof of God since I was blessed to have this experience ever since. As for my future I’m going to give it my best shot and go after some things I’ve always wanted I have my health back, my days are really short. I have so much to do I’m overwhelmed I don’t know how I’m going to get it done in the short time frame. I isolate because I’m too afraid to be hurt. If I could only convince myself that I don’t need anyone to love me, that’s what I’m working on. I can tell you she/Emmaline brought the chickens in the house for two reasons, one for companionship the other was to protect them. I can tell you it was hard for her to eat them and I can tell you that she had no choice but to eat her chickens. I could tell you that she probably cried a lot, I can also tell you at the same time she was very strong from having gone through all that she had gone without. I can tell you that it hurts her that her family sent her way and that she wanted someone to love her, that she thought it would be easier when she got older to get the love that she didn’t get as a child. I can tell you that she had a lot of love to give. It was said that she was approached by children taking her goods and that she was very sweet, I can tell you this is true because she would have given anything to have made a connection with a single person as we humans naturally want to have a connection with another soul. I can tell you since everyone thought the worst of her that she went out of her way to be really good and not even have negative thoughts, because this is what you do when your own family thinks that you are worthless and dislikes you. Hideous that adults sent children to check on her. Ridiculous that people didn’t want anything to do with her but they wanted to go to her funeral. My identical twin sister, a malignant narcissist never let me know her now young adult three kids, two of which are a set of twins, my older sister would not let me know her two kids either. They have seen meet in public and looked away when I waved in the past, it was extremely painful. Recently my identical twin sisters twin daughters’ boss And his wife invited me to come see my niece At the restaurant she works at as a hostess, I hope that I can finally finally establish a relationship/friendship and be a part of her life, wish me luck pray for us, I hope so. I’m scared, I found out about a month ago about where she works, I’m trying to get past Christmas I made it past Thanksgiving I don’t want to approach the situation during the holidays because it would be awkward especially painful if I don’t get a holiday invite because it’s too close to the holidays, maybe I’m just making excuses because I’m scared maybe I should just buy three gifts and wrap them and take them over there to their home. The kids have moved out of my sisters home and in with their father, so I won’t have to deal with my narcissistic twin who hates me, it’s not safe to try to have a relationship with her btw, if I even had the option. Oh yeah I absolutely have tried over and over it’s not gonna happen, not my choice, wasn’t my choice in the past but it is my choice now, don’t want a single thing to do with her, forgive and move on. Emmaline’s sister was said to have raised her hand saying she paid her debt, why couldn’t she stand up and do that for her sister while her sister was still alive, and do it in front of Emmaline? It is so painful when your own family doesn’t want you like you love you, it’s very difficult to realize/imagine that anyone else would care to when your own family wants nothing to do with you. I screwed up family we’ll always try to fix it self by scapegoating at least one family member, to put the blame on them. She was manipulated by the rich boss, she wanted someone to love her. And again is any of this is true is it all just rumors? Whadda these darn ppl really truly kno?!? There is a very good chance that none of this is true, I’m sure it has happened somewhere in history but there is absolutely no proof here, closest thing to it is these old people who remember taking her items when she was a white haired little old lady, but were the parents telling these kids to take her goods just passing judgment on her based on rumors and lies? Absolutely it is very possible that none of her sins that she is accused of is even a bit true.
      Thanks for reading, I don’t have anyone to talk to so it feels better to get it out. The most important thing that I have recently finally got my brain wrapped around is this, for every action there is equal reaction and I must be happy if I want to get happy back in return. I must remember that if I do think or manifest anything negative that’s what I will get back. So my plan is as I move forward to focus on love when I am confronted w life’s daily struggles. ThankYou for your prayers thank you☮️💕🌷
      RIP EMILY

    • @sanchagaspard
      @sanchagaspard 5 лет назад +19

      SkaterGrl51 Sav’h Wow!!! And I'm mad cause my family cares so much they're smothering me!!! I don't like to talk much unless I have something important to say, but if u need someone to listen, I'm here. Nobody should be so alone😊. Love and light from the islands😊😊😊

    • @Hbxafsar
      @Hbxafsar 5 лет назад +12

      @@skatergrl51savh45feeling sad god bless u

    • @sharondavidson2581
      @sharondavidson2581 5 лет назад +10

      So true they did kill her in my way of thinking!

    • @lisaescatel1138
      @lisaescatel1138 5 лет назад +1

      Spoiler alert

  • @benmcreynolds8581
    @benmcreynolds8581 2 года назад +76

    Bless the hearts and souls of these old ladies who chose to document this story about humanity in its rawest form. It's so kind to hear the story of the little girl walking the snacks to Emeline ❤️ I hope we all love those around us a little better after this ❤️

    • @adrianaevseev7655
      @adrianaevseev7655 11 месяцев назад

    • @tiggercampbell6198
      @tiggercampbell6198 10 месяцев назад

      uhmm she married her son? you are a rare bird to see that simple and beautiful act..and I pray that I always see the positive like you do..God bless

  • @BobbieXxoo
    @BobbieXxoo 2 года назад +87

    The sad part of this story is ....its still happening to this very day! My heart aches knowing there are old people who are out there hungry, cold, alone. Nothing ever changes. Humans are capable of such great things...n yet...we're so cruel.

    • @jax993
      @jax993 Год назад +3

      humans can be so horrid is very sad

    • @monica1811
      @monica1811 Год назад +3

      @@jax993 Exactly. They will wring their hands talking about a century ago, but wouldn’t cross the street to do a kind deed for the worst off among us.

    • @JokersNtheOddball
      @JokersNtheOddball 2 месяца назад

      We have pseudo scientists preaching humanity descends from Africans running prestigious colleges without thinking about reality. Until this stops the problems will continue.

  • @kitkatpitterpat4498
    @kitkatpitterpat4498 4 года назад +853

    This is a horrible, heartbreaking story. Poor Emmaline was failed by everyone from the youngest age. I hope she rests peacefully, and knows the world now stands with her.

    • @kitkatpitterpat4498
      @kitkatpitterpat4498 4 года назад +11

      Shabazz Rgt Peace from God, from faith, from no longer enduring cruelty. It isn't a cliche. It's hope. If you have none then just pass on by instead of perpetuating more negativity on her. That's all I'll say--- I don't have time to waste on people who have no hope or faith.

    • @vickiehaper4615
      @vickiehaper4615 3 года назад +1

      For sure Vickie

    • @HattieMcDanielonaMoon
      @HattieMcDanielonaMoon 2 года назад +2

      @@vickiehaper4615 Aren't you Vickie?

    • @b.boston8529
      @b.boston8529 2 года назад +7

      I wish her son had gone to see her and made sure she was all right.

    • @steenystuff1075
      @steenystuff1075 2 года назад

      I knew a man many years ago who was adopted. He said he used to fantasise about finding his mother, having sex with her and then telling her who he was. I was horrified to hear his thoughts about it. He said that the reality of meeting her was entirely different (thank goodness) and that he understood how difficult things were for unmarried mothers back in the day.

  • @aaronmcconnell7358
    @aaronmcconnell7358 3 года назад +572

    Whe I was in my early teens my dad became a pastor of a church in small town pa there was one beautiful young girl in the church that people talked about behind her back saying she was a whore and no good but she was kind to me I was always left out of play by other kids ,but she would always invite me . after some time I found out she was being molested by her stepfather a "deacon" in the church I told my dad a d he started looking Into what was going on and then contacted the police, but the girls stepdad was well liked in the community so it was swept under the rug, and the church fired my dad now I see that beautiful young woman now aged by drugs a trauma ,I feel terrible I didnt do more. Sorry for poor punctuation

    • @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker
      @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker  3 года назад +85

      A tragic story. Beautifully told. Thank you.
      David Hoffman filmmaker

    • @joannahernandez4608
      @joannahernandez4608 3 года назад +57

      You did all you could as did your family, honored to hear about your braveness and kind heart, you knew right from wrong and did all you could to help her as did you father who God has a special place in heaven for, thank you for standing up to wrong.

    • @aaronmcconnell7358
      @aaronmcconnell7358 3 года назад +29

      @@joannahernandez4608 its something that gets overlooked everyday we have only moment to do what's right if one person reads this and helps someone may that cycle can continue and break the other.

    • @ossianatepfenhart7022
      @ossianatepfenhart7022 3 года назад +28

      I could have been that girl in another life. I was sexually abused most of my life by my classmates as well as older people. I was constantly called a whore too. I know you feel bad, but you might still be able to do something. Have you considered reaching out and saying what you said?

    • @aaronmcconnell7358
      @aaronmcconnell7358 3 года назад +39

      @@ossianatepfenhart7022 this happened 30 years ago about 10 years after it happened I seen her one day she had started using hard drugs I tried to get her some helped but the more I tried the more she pushed away she moved and I had lost contact I've tried over the years to find her without any luck.it was hard seeing her go down that path I pray to one day see her again health an healing

  • @roccobruno8027
    @roccobruno8027 2 года назад +83

    What a truly heartbreaking story. What the community did to her was simply deplorable.

  • @syrenasketches6902
    @syrenasketches6902 3 года назад +39

    Wow, what an incredibly sad story. I will never understand how the older generations would blame a minor for being taken advantage of/raped by an adult. It makes no sense to me. Also, it's very clear that Emmeline had no idea that the man she married was related to her. It's so frustrating to hear how her people treated her. If only we could go back in time and make things right...

  • @possumbuddy
    @possumbuddy 5 лет назад +1650

    It never ceases to amaze me how people can use religion to be cruel.

    • @juneribbons5196
      @juneribbons5196 5 лет назад +25

      Yes I agree, but it no longer surprolises me

    • @jacobstevens9334
      @jacobstevens9334 5 лет назад +81

      Religion is evil

    • @TheTheurgist
      @TheTheurgist 4 года назад +8

      @Thomas Farrell indeed
      Ontological Certainty:
      The Great Enabler

    • @shaneo5436
      @shaneo5436 4 года назад +29

      Or were they cruel because of religion?

    • @theresabollman8061
      @theresabollman8061 4 года назад +55

      Yes, Debra. God commands us to be merciful and not judge others. We should be kind to others. We all sin.

  • @maureennolan2784
    @maureennolan2784 5 лет назад +413

    I am so sorry, Emmeline. You were abused by more than one person and all the while you were the innocent one.

    • @deeward729
      @deeward729 5 лет назад +1

      Maureen Nolan

    • @karencarney7595
      @karencarney7595 4 года назад +7

      All the beauty and kindness within her, will live on forever. Thank you for sharing!

    • @gloriabrunson2556
      @gloriabrunson2556 4 года назад +8

      This is so sad oh my God have mercy on all of us that would judge like that.

    • @RavenWolfDrum69
      @RavenWolfDrum69 4 года назад +3

      😢😢😰😰😤

  • @jay1prauve1998
    @jay1prauve1998 Год назад +17

    Today, I somehow came upon this documentary about Emeline Gurney. The story of her life brought tears to my eyes. Emeline's birthday, January 30, is two days after my birthday. She was an Aquarius. Also, I noticed Nettie Mitchell passed away on my mother's birthday, March 7. My mother is deceased and has a brother named Mitchell who is alive and well. I am an empath. I love and care for people. GOD BLESS Emeline and Nettie. May they dwell in HEAVEN WITH GOD, JESUS AND ALL OTHER BENEVOLENT ANGELS FOR ALL OF ETERNITY! 🙏❤️💕😢

    • @anaiis_salles
      @anaiis_salles Год назад +2

      I, too, came upon this powerful docu-drama! Goddess bless Nettie Mitchell. Aren't we glad for that one true compassionate soul? I know that I am.

  • @NickiSixx1
    @NickiSixx1 3 года назад +88

    It’s not “ Sins of our mothers” it’s crimes committed by men if anything. Guess they didn’t know better back in the days. I wouldn’t call them Christians though cause it’s nothing Christian about how they treated that poor, poor lady.

    • @maywalker997
      @maywalker997 3 года назад +16

      The most patriarchal societies always have the least sympathetic views towards the plight of women & girls. I think it is interesting how they say Emmeline "yeilded" to the older man when she was 13, but the reality was that rape & sexual abuse of poor girls was very common during these times and that when girls became pregnant, it was they who were blamed for it, often with the view that even if it was rape, the girl "asked" for the abuse in some way or another (and what amounted to "asking" for it could be any number of slight or unavoidable factors). I also hate this view that if you grow up around animals then you are not innocent about sex, because it really isn't always like that.
      Sadly, cultures like these (slut shaming, rape blaming, ocstracisation of women, sexualization of underage girls, etc) still persist in many places even in American society today.

    • @NickiSixx1
      @NickiSixx1 2 года назад +5

      @@92fc Yes they do but in the case of this video it’s not the sins of our mother is it?

    • @kathleenroberts6931
      @kathleenroberts6931 2 месяца назад

      Relijin was created by man to divide & control the people 😡

  • @TC-firstclasscloser
    @TC-firstclasscloser 3 года назад +165

    The saddest part is the fact that Emerlines was taken advantage of, at such a young age, by a man who promised her family a better life for her. 🙁🙁😞

  • @iamjustapudgiebudgie3137
    @iamjustapudgiebudgie3137 3 года назад +637

    My Grandmother grew up on a pig farm during the Great Depression and her Father owned a mill. Her Uncle had fruit trees and during the depression my Grandma and her sisters would go to their Uncle’s house to get peaches. In return, their Uncle would molest them and grope them in “exchange” for the fruit. My Grandma’s sister was raped at 12 years old by their Uncle and she had their baby at 13 years old. When news got out, people would drive to their house in hopes to get a look at the “bastard child”. She was blamed and shunned for having the child. She was treated like a freak show. Nothing was done to the Uncle, as their father did not know his brother was the father until the bastard had finally died.
    My Great Aunt took great care of that child and he is a wonderful person. I hate to hear what the women of my family, and many others, went through during these times JUST TO SURVIVE.

    • @joycebrannen1943
      @joycebrannen1943 3 года назад +38

      Curious gossipers are evil beings. Poor Auntie! So much pain in this World-not asked for-not deserved.

    • @MakavelithePrince96
      @MakavelithePrince96 3 года назад +8

      @@joycebrannen1943 dammit...I wanna puke at the fact some kid marries his mother

    • @straightfromthecommentsect5346
      @straightfromthecommentsect5346 3 года назад +18

      These happened to ALOT of people around that time.añd was swep under a rug.hopefully all these victims are in a better place

    • @ranaeid2390
      @ranaeid2390 3 года назад +15

      Your Great Aunt is a hero..

    • @claudiorodrigues671
      @claudiorodrigues671 3 года назад +13

      Thank you for the sharing. It’s a sad, but very real of the world that is not far away. Reality is more strange and grotesque than the ficcional stories. Again, thank you, and a kiss from Portugal 🇵🇹

  • @aleaiacetaest9132
    @aleaiacetaest9132 Год назад +55

    It’s heartbreaking to hear Emmeline’s story. Today we know that Genetic sexual attraction is not uncommon in cases like this and that it might me a byproduct of missed bonding. Our biggest enemy is ignorance. RIP Emmeline 🙏🏻

    • @WhatWouldVillainsDo
      @WhatWouldVillainsDo 10 месяцев назад

      Inceist is wrong, but understanding how sexuality shines some light on it's reason. My mother told me some stuff about the first time as a young girl when she had sexual dreams, they were actually about her grandfather..and it kinda has to do with genetics playing a cruel joke. My father alao mentioned something similar as to that as I got older I would find my self attracted to a women like my mother and he said it's not uncommon and happens to alot of men.

    • @MsAmique
      @MsAmique 10 месяцев назад

      This is disgusting. No way to make it okay. Anyway who can wrap their head around this is sick too!

    • @cecileroy557
      @cecileroy557 9 месяцев назад +1

      @@MsAmique We can't blame either mother or son -- they had no idea!!!! These kinds of things happen sometimes... like a son coming home from college with his girlfriend & after a while his mother realized the girlfriend was actually a daughter she had given up for adoption. Or the daughter who had never known her father falling deeply in love with an older man... and they eventually discovered he was her father.

  • @anye76
    @anye76 Год назад +14

    I think Emmaline's story resonates today because there are people right now living extraordinarily similar lives. What a reality check for all of us. How do I treat others who are or perceive as different than I? Yes a predator could have attacked her chickens but they were also her companions 💔😔

  • @sarahturner6918
    @sarahturner6918 5 лет назад +471

    What happened to this woman is utterly disgusting. The thought of her finding and falling in love with her boy is so heart breaking, they must have been longing for each other before they met. They didn’t know and should not be equated with intentional incest. May you Rest In Peace sweetheart ❤️👼🏻

    • @conniecrawford6429
      @conniecrawford6429 5 лет назад +24

      Very sad.. That poor little girl..

    • @Byezbozhnik
      @Byezbozhnik 5 лет назад +18

      She would have been even too old to have children with him, so no third party would have suffered the consequences of a biologically incestuous relationship. Clearly a victimless crime.

    • @kattalady8114
      @kattalady8114 4 года назад +21

      Genetic Sexual Attraction is a real thing that sometimes happens between family members who meet for the first time after decades

    • @judisnyder4868
      @judisnyder4868 4 года назад +20

      Also, she most likely was raped wanting to stay away from men, yet, why wasn’t the man in authority condemned for raping her? She bore the outstanding blame as most women do because they’re the ones who get pregnant.

    • @charlottesummers1119
      @charlottesummers1119 4 года назад +5

      @@kattalady8114 I know an 80 year old man who is still married to his 78 year old cousin, this seems odd to me but I have since met many Mennonites who share similar stories... They are truly "equally yoked".

  • @lovingmayberry2000
    @lovingmayberry2000 3 года назад +824

    Gandhi said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. They are not very Christ-like."
    So true!

    • @makubegysman6160
      @makubegysman6160 3 года назад +46

      Gandhi was a racist

    • @makubegysman6160
      @makubegysman6160 3 года назад +24

      @@GH-im3lj ghandi died in 1948 . He supported the apartheid regime in south Africa

    • @ms.chellylumpkins1143
      @ms.chellylumpkins1143 3 года назад +28

      @@GH-im3lj He was a vehement racist who supported white supremacist ideology. He will be remembered by Africans as such.

    • @DiandraStarShine
      @DiandraStarShine 3 года назад +6

      @@makubegysman6160 stop lying and go back to watching Fox Faux News..from you own mother's basement, of course.

    • @DiandraStarShine
      @DiandraStarShine 3 года назад +4

      @@makubegysman6160 and so, you have AT LEAST 8 other RUclips accounts, you INCEL basement dweller.🙄

  • @firstlast2514
    @firstlast2514 3 года назад +12

    Poor woman. Poor girl. At first I was like "well of course she was shunned, she married her own son" but it wasn't on purpose. What a shame for her not only to be shunned, but to lose her whole lively hood because of a childhood mistake is really sad.

  • @mitzuone
    @mitzuone 2 года назад +7

    The Internet (RUclips )is wonderful because it gives you a chance to talk about some horrible things that happened in your life and it also gives you the good and loving people that as abused people we didn't know excisted. God is good Bless all the people on this page that send their love and caring to us that have our pain, I can't speak for all of us, I am in my 70's so I will speak for myself. Bless you.

    • @mitzuone
      @mitzuone 2 года назад +1

      Thank you David for the heart, I am humbled my story is also being starved but I was a child at the time. If you know the story of the man that had electrical tape on his shoes ,that's how I went to school and was laughed at (King Edward Public School 1962 ) Sincerely Valerie.

  • @Awebreeze-zm3st
    @Awebreeze-zm3st 5 лет назад +713

    My grandmother's mother died and her father remarried. The new wife didn't like my grandmother. So she was farmed out to help neighbors. My grandmother never had a doll so one day in her fifties she went to a thrift store and bought herself a doll. That doll sat on her coffee table for years till she died. It was so sad. She was three when her mother died and abused by her step mom. At eight she was passed from neighbor to neighbor. I don't know if she was given up because of the abuse but the irony of it was her father was a minister. I have her personal bible and she left many secret notes of her beliefs and wants. Broke my heart when I first read it. She was actually a tad confused on religion but had obviously not been taught by her father. I can't imagine her heart break knowing as a child she wasn't wanted. So sad.

    • @vilmacamacho9402
      @vilmacamacho9402 5 лет назад +29

      Heartbreaking

    • @ladybug-mv8tn
      @ladybug-mv8tn 5 лет назад +23

      It seems to me that so called Christian's back in the day were not very nice. Most Christian's theses days are nice people

    • @georginacat7667
      @georginacat7667 5 лет назад +4

      Alright... go write a book

    • @reddogmom3365
      @reddogmom3365 5 лет назад +3

      Awebreeze 0353 😞

    • @reddogmom3365
      @reddogmom3365 5 лет назад +42

      georgina cat shut up

  • @sharonbosarge4866
    @sharonbosarge4866 4 года назад +423

    How does someone just let someone starve too death and die alone? God love her she lived through hell on earth. Raped at 13 , her child taken away, then out casted her entire life and left too starve to death. I hope shes dancing and has plenty to eat and is laughing every second there is in her after life.

    • @missmoxie9188
      @missmoxie9188 3 года назад

      Reminds me of Ocey Snead

    • @theshoestringstrangla5547
      @theshoestringstrangla5547 3 года назад +3

      Why would she be eating in the afterlife?

    • @jojojojo-lk8cs
      @jojojojo-lk8cs 3 года назад +11

      @@theshoestringstrangla5547 cause food tastes good

    • @elbertkitching9906
      @elbertkitching9906 3 года назад +3

      So sad . Yet it still happens today

    • @josiefarrell2101
      @josiefarrell2101 3 года назад +4

      Sharon, while I certainly hope she gets rewarded by God, according to the Bible, Emeline is asleep for now, as everyone else, who has died. Only Jesus Christ remains resurrected. Ppl die and sleep. Also nobody turns into guardian angels after death, no matter how cute, noble, gentle, young or old they were. God has plenty of angels (millions). It is appointed unto men (ppl) once to die and then judgement. At judgement, God will either say, “well done” or “depart from me, I never Knew you!”. Only those who repent and seek God’s forgiveness and guidance in Jesus Christ will be able to receive an immortal body and never ending life in the new earth.

  • @possumbold
    @possumbold Месяц назад +2

    My grandfather was a woodcutter and he and his wife had 11 children and another on the way. The youngest child at 5hat time was my mother but the baby yet to be born would become her younger sister in a couple of months. My grandfather would go out for a few days at a time, but this time he was overdue. Woodcutters would paint the tree stump with arsenic and it appeared that he’d cut himself with his axe and arsenic had entered his blood stream. By the time he’d been found, he’d tried to crawl out for some days, but succumbed to the poison and the injury. He was dead. My grandmother had to bring up 12 children without any government help for widows. She took in washing and grew vegetables to sell. It was a tough life in those days, though there were older brothers and sisters to help. Times were different.
    I have no trouble believing this story as I know people had to fend for themselves. It is a shame she didn’t know she married her son. It was wrong not to let her know.

  • @collechka_
    @collechka_ Месяц назад +2

    Fascinating story! I am so sorry to hear about what happened to Miss Emmeline. During this time in history, my ancestors lived close by in the province of New Brunswick, and I wonder had this played out in NB if the results would have been the same. So many questions! I wish I could have helped her.

  • @stevenbilodeau6627
    @stevenbilodeau6627 7 лет назад +126

    I'm from there and remember the story well. I also remember many of the people interviewed. Nettie Mitchell used to come to our classroom at school and tell us stories of the past.

    • @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker
      @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker  7 лет назад +39

      Lucky you were to have seen Nettie Mitchell tell her stories. She was a wonderful person and a great storyteller. I felt very lucky to be in her presence and to record her stories.
      David Hoffman-filmmaker

    • @phyllisrollins7359
      @phyllisrollins7359 5 лет назад +9

      I moved to Fayette 4 years ago. It's a beautiful little town and the people I've met have been, in general, pretty nice. My husband-to-be is from Fayette and part of his family use to own the general store. His mother moved down from Kent's Hill to Fayette where she has lived her entire life.

  • @myfairlahey5738
    @myfairlahey5738 3 года назад +378

    I would have been talking to chickens too if no one else in the world talked to me Great things about animals - they never judge you

    • @elbertkitching9906
      @elbertkitching9906 3 года назад +4

      Absolutely.. pure love

    • @cindymorgan5280
      @cindymorgan5280 3 года назад +6

      Think we're all guilty of speaking outloud to animals

    • @forgetmeknotts3044
      @forgetmeknotts3044 3 года назад +2

      Love it when people say what they "would have done." Easy to say from the year 2021 🙄

    • @edrooney9580
      @edrooney9580 3 года назад +2

      Tbf most big animals in the wikd are judging u..judging whether they can eat u or not

    • @johnrwhite4479
      @johnrwhite4479 3 года назад +4

      So sad ! To be ostrisized / Shunned ! Is an unbearable horrible thing for any people or persons one to another to do it is not of a Devine godly nature . But to be shunned away from all who you have loved after going through. hardship with an entire family is even worse ! I’m living it myself but have already forgiven all who have looked the other way ! It’s worse than Alzheimer’s. Because of the memory you have ! Alzheimer’s for those shunned away would be bliss. and a painless death !

  • @thethinkinglady2957
    @thethinkinglady2957 Год назад +9

    It's only appropriate to cry. What a touching story! The word ostracized was said many times in the story. My heart aches for Emmeline. May her soul continue to rest in peace. Sad! 😢

  • @witchypoo2424
    @witchypoo2424 2 года назад +6

    I live in Maine and I'm glad I got to see this video. It's nice to learn about how life was those many years ago.
    Thank you for sharing this story.

    • @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker
      @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker  2 года назад +2

      Thank you Laurie for your comment. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that RUclips is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
      David Hoffman filmmaker

    • @witchypoo2424
      @witchypoo2424 2 года назад +1

      @@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker I just went back to your video and couldn't find a thank you to click on.
      I would have if it was available.

  • @Open2OpenUT
    @Open2OpenUT 5 лет назад +159

    This story really touched my heart, the sadness I feel for a woman long gone is overwhelming and I know I will recall this story for the rest of my life. Sleep softly sweet Emmaline.

  • @texastea5686
    @texastea5686 3 года назад +93

    😔😔😔 imagine being that young Nettie taking this little old lady some food and finding out later she died of starvation. 😞

    • @classic-1593
      @classic-1593 3 года назад +2

      It happened more than you think!!

  • @krystalrobin3164
    @krystalrobin3164 2 года назад +1

    What an amazing tale. I enjoyed this so much, thank you. The American Experience was always a favorite of mine when I was younger.

  • @a.s.8632
    @a.s.8632 13 дней назад

    You (and your team) make some absolutely incredible videos! This was posted 7 years ago, but it's still being enjoyed in 2024.
    The narrator has an amazing calming but attention grabbing voice for late night podcast/radio program.

  • @personalcheeses8073
    @personalcheeses8073 5 лет назад +384

    The narrator called it a moral indiscretion but it could only be that if Emmaline had been aware that the young man was her son. She did not make an immoral decision because she had no idea he was her son

    • @faithrada
      @faithrada 5 лет назад +5

      @@reginasherman8822 Hu? It is still, by nature, a really bad idea. A piece of paper changes nothing.

    • @cecedubois5147
      @cecedubois5147 5 лет назад +12

      And when it was discovered, they parted forever. What a challenging life this poor woman lived.

    • @maryisabell8760
      @maryisabell8760 5 лет назад +10

      Cece DuBois U R so correct . I also ‘think’ that the natural and good love between a mother and son was there . It was mistakenly
      felt as a couples love / romance . They knew no better . Since the son left immediately proves this point .

    • @blobby273
      @blobby273 5 лет назад +1

      the sin was having sex with her boss not accidentally marring her own son .

    • @jeanroeder5534
      @jeanroeder5534 5 лет назад

      Regina Galloway
      Your statement ???

  • @Flamerider68
    @Flamerider68 5 лет назад +171

    " I was born 103 years ago, you can figure it out." Love it!

    • @dats3
      @dats3 4 года назад +5

      LOL! Yeah, that was great. Reminds me of my own grandmother. :-)

    • @hayaq9991
      @hayaq9991 4 года назад +3

      Lol and that was her opening statement

    • @fooddrugadministrator4079
      @fooddrugadministrator4079 4 года назад +3

      She was born 1916

    • @franklinarevalo8493
      @franklinarevalo8493 4 года назад +1

      Chituga Khalifa can’t be because these interviews are from the 70s

    • @mnb4414
      @mnb4414 4 года назад

      Chituga Khalifa wring she was born probably in 1875 or 1876 or sometime around then

  • @mattmorelli9833
    @mattmorelli9833 2 года назад +7

    God I love the look of 16mm. All our modern high definition is stunning and true to the details of subject in frame. However that special something, the almost dreamlike character of film, is just beyond replication. The way the colors "feel" is like paint on canvas. It is evocative and stirring and totally imperfect and just everything this medium strives to achieve.
    Sorry i know this isn't relevant to the content but I just wondered if anyone else feels the same way?

  • @technomickdocumentalist2495
    @technomickdocumentalist2495 11 месяцев назад +1

    I’m so glad I gave this a chance, what a story, a sad story indeed, but lessons are to be learned from this, for me “ empathy “ is key, and I’m glad I’ve always had a good understanding of this.

  • @virginiafry9854
    @virginiafry9854 3 года назад +132

    How can it be considered shameful when neither person knew that they were related?
    Their ‘love’ for each other was a new emotion to them and neither could have known that it was maternal-filial love.

    • @Silvermoonscorpion
      @Silvermoonscorpion 2 года назад +10

      I think maybe their souls recognized each other but they misunderstood the relationship connection.
      I have to go back & re-listen as I'm not quite certain how anyone knew absolutely that they were kin.

    • @jakestroll6518
      @jakestroll6518 2 года назад +6

      @@Silvermoonscorpion No need to revert to primitive explanations about souls. Science has answered this one. It's called Genetic Sexual Attraction. 1st degree relatives usually live together which cancels out the attraction. This is the Westermack Effect. When they don't even know they're related, they'll experience this attraction and mistake it for true love.

    • @Silvermoonscorpion
      @Silvermoonscorpion 2 года назад +3

      @@jakestroll6518 maybe. No one truly knows anything. Not really. It was just a shame the way she was treated, period. Wasn't even her fault.

    • @maybudd5793
      @maybudd5793 Год назад +1

      Cynic. I know about the effect as well, but I at least partially disagree.
      I do believe they loved one another.

  • @indez23
    @indez23 7 лет назад +358

    The worst part is i wasn't really her fault

    • @misfitfromtoyisland.9940
      @misfitfromtoyisland.9940 5 лет назад +18

      "really"...it was in no way her fault.

    • @peggymorin8944
      @peggymorin8944 5 лет назад +21

      Let's drop "really". It absolutely wasn't her fault.

    • @shayeshephard7487
      @shayeshephard7487 5 лет назад +6

      @@peggymorin8944 I totally agree. Though it would be a sad story I feel there should be a movie made of her life. Maybe it would soften hard hearted people and show others how blessed they are not to have lived in her day and time.

    • @shadfour
      @shadfour 5 лет назад +1

      Emerline is a novel.
      A must read. So sad to have had her childhood. She was not responsible for marrying her son. Emerline had
      no knowledge that her husband was her son.

    • @denisseparker1358
      @denisseparker1358 5 лет назад +5

      The people that asked her parents to let her work for them knew what they were doing.Why didn't they ask the father to work for them &send money home to his family?Those people planned to take advantage of that young girl all along.

  • @Vinceproved
    @Vinceproved Год назад

    This was deeply moving, haunting. Thank you for posting this David

  • @elisebrodeur-jacobs5215
    @elisebrodeur-jacobs5215 2 года назад +1

    This was incredible, thank you!

  • @WESTSIDECALI916
    @WESTSIDECALI916 4 года назад +317

    She gets raped by a grown man yet she’s the one to blame.Damn shame and if she didn’t know it was her long lost sold son it was not something she did wrong purposely very sad story.She went from being abused as a child to be abused being elderly👎🏽👎🏽👎🏽👎🏽

    • @MsJ32
      @MsJ32 4 года назад +9

      Heartbreaking..

    • @dianaguidetta4677
      @dianaguidetta4677 3 года назад +11

      Yes I guess it’s easier to blame the victim !! That happens more times than we know .

    • @mazieg7072
      @mazieg7072 3 года назад +7

      The men always get away with abusing girls and woman!!!! Why woman who know what men do protect them always disgusts me beyond belief!!!! Having lived it myself I will never comprehend it and can only pray the men who abuse the innocent girls and woman and woman and men who then protect those pos all rot in hell forever without a moments relief!!!!!

    • @vickiehaper4615
      @vickiehaper4615 3 года назад +3

      You got that right how about that Vickie

    • @brendajeanratanaphichetcha1287
      @brendajeanratanaphichetcha1287 3 года назад +3

      Abused all her life. Heartbreaking

  • @xaraxania
    @xaraxania 5 лет назад +326

    poor Emiline i hope you found a thousand loving friends in the aferlife

    • @freespeechforall1069
      @freespeechforall1069 5 лет назад +11

      This Lady i think has many friends alive today after hearing the way she was treated by her community. RIP.

    • @ArnaGSmith
      @ArnaGSmith 5 лет назад +6

      I hope there is an afterlife . . .

    • @robdrich8556
      @robdrich8556 5 лет назад +12

      There is no afterlife. But don't worry because death is absolute. Her pain ended when she died.

    • @sayitwithlove273
      @sayitwithlove273 5 лет назад +2

      That poor lady 😢

    • @MissMaria1988
      @MissMaria1988 5 лет назад +7

      @@robdrich8556 oh... you are in for a major surprise :) you are NOT your body Mr.

  • @sheronsimmons3811
    @sheronsimmons3811 2 года назад +11

    I feel sorry for this lady. She didn’t know he was her son. I hope she was able to find some peace in he life.

  • @benmcreynolds8581
    @benmcreynolds8581 2 года назад +2

    These stories, no matter how difficult, should be told. We learn from heartache, struggle, shame. It teaches us to reach for light and love and understanding.

  • @KessO2424
    @KessO2424 3 года назад +637

    The fact that they call it the “sins of our mothers” is what baffles me.
    Always finding a way to bash the women.

    • @Kae4YHWH
      @Kae4YHWH 3 года назад +10

      🙄

    • @knowledgeseeker6123
      @knowledgeseeker6123 3 года назад +38

      When the father was actually the sinner. She did the right thing by breaking up with him after finding out the guy was her son.

    • @niche9015
      @niche9015 3 года назад +15

      You clearly don't understand the concept of irony.

    • @KessO2424
      @KessO2424 3 года назад +33

      @@niche9015 There are many ways they could have advertised this excluding irony. I get the concept. The point i'm making is it does not help the documentary in anyway. Please don't be a smart ass.

    • @KessO2424
      @KessO2424 3 года назад +15

      @stupidcomment Thanks for the clarity. In this day in age, the title just doesn't sit right with me. There were many titles it could have been called in order to make ppl think. But once again thank you and thank you for speaking respectfully. Because others seem to live off negative energy in these comments.

  • @1456Sassy
    @1456Sassy 3 года назад +410

    It's a shame Emeline was ostracized. It's not like she knew the young man was the son she gave up for adoption. Shame on the adopted parents for not being upfront with the son when he became of age! Let this be a lesson to adoptive parents. Tell the truth before the child you adopted ends up in a sexual relationship with a possible close relative.

    • @msleemastyles7452
      @msleemastyles7452 3 года назад +8

      Right... why do some feel like bcuz they raise someone’s child the child somehow is really theirs

    • @lmd2454
      @lmd2454 3 года назад +54

      Honey, she didn't give that baby up for adoption. She was raped, then had her baby stolen from her and sold for profit...all too common a practice back then. That's why the family who bought the baby didn't tell him about his real mother. This is an example of horrific human trafficking that has existed for thousands of years and continues today. Truly a tragedy.

    • @JudgeJulieLit
      @JudgeJulieLit 3 года назад +5

      @@lmd2454 In the USA the 1865 13th Amendment to the US Constitution formally abolished slavery, the trade in human beings as chattel, property. So by such Amendment, any "sale" of a human being is a federal offense, violates the US Constitution, and is void from the start and unenforceable.

    • @dianaa.1735
      @dianaa.1735 3 года назад +16

      As an adult adoptee, I can tell you that it isn't that easy. Our birth records are sealed and we (and our adopted parents) are not allowed to see them. In my particular state, you usually go thru an adoption attorney if you can afford it-they're pricey. A representative of the lawyer will look up those people named on our original and sealed birth certificates. Then the rep does the research re birth parents-are they alive, is birth father known, etc. If a parent is alive, the rep explains the situation. Only IF the birth parent gives consent for info to be given or a meeting arranged can we go further. If a birth parent refuses to give out health info and downright refuses to see the now-adult child they gave up, that's the end of the search. Now if both birth parents are dead, we automatically get our original birth certificates, which at least have our REAL mothers' names on them. My male birth parent was listed as unknown & birth mother died so I automatically got the info I wanted so badly.
      Most adoptive parents DO tell a child that he or she is adopted but without names of birth family, no "truth" can be told about the adopted child's blood parents. They still remain anonymous.

    • @goforbroke4428
      @goforbroke4428 3 года назад +8

      @@msleemastyles7452 if they raised the kid it is theirs.

  • @TeeDohJackson
    @TeeDohJackson 2 года назад +8

    Every couple of years I end up coming back to watch your videos again and this one has always stuck out for me in my head. BTW, when Nettie Mitchell says that there was no telephone or RFD's back in those days, I didn't know what that meant and was unfamiliar with that acronym. I guess that it stands for "Rural Free Delivery (RFD)" So I just spent an hour researching the history of Rural Free Delivery 🤣

  • @beefstickswellington1203
    @beefstickswellington1203 Год назад +4

    Man, that last scene, hearing the person speaking about their grave at it, dubbed over their actual grave after they passed... that was really powerful and caught me off guard completely. Like watching them slip away before your eyes. Passed on into the ether of history.

  • @teceyS3
    @teceyS3 5 лет назад +488

    how could they call it a sin or a transgression when neither she nor the son even knew that they were related- holy smokes, you can't judge people for something they don't know about.....

    • @GlennaVan
      @GlennaVan 4 года назад +7

      God doesn't.

    • @sydneyprescott3374
      @sydneyprescott3374 4 года назад +18

      People can be so judgmental over something that was none of their business

    • @jasonbarnes3188
      @jasonbarnes3188 4 года назад +11

      The religious fanatics considered sex and a child out of wedlock her sin what a tragic life for that poor girl

    • @texas1949
      @texas1949 4 года назад +8

      Jason Barnes It was not her sin!

    • @jasonbarnes3188
      @jasonbarnes3188 4 года назад +10

      Texas 1 I understand that I am just saying the people of that day saw that as her sin she was an abused abandoned child

  • @lynneh9744
    @lynneh9744 5 лет назад +219

    Poor Emmeline. She is utterly blameless. My heart goes out to her. What chance did she have; a child of 13, working in a mill, when the older owners son took advantage of her? She had no-one she could turn to. And then to marry her own son in ignorance of who he was. It is a shame she didnt have the means to leave that town and start afresh, but money aside, I can see that after previous experience of life in a city and working in a factory ( little better than slave labour in those days) she would probably have felt safer staying put n surroundings she knew. Shame on those townspeople; I am so glad there were one or two who had compassion. May she rest in peace.

    • @barbaramathis5844
      @barbaramathis5844 5 лет назад +12

      I wonder what happened to her son / husband?

    • @jensivers2079
      @jensivers2079 3 года назад +5

      @@barbaramathis5844 and her other son from her first marriage. How can you just leave behind the woman who gave birth to you? People remark on kids today. There were horrible people through out history.

    • @susanratz9343
      @susanratz9343 Год назад

      Emmerline

    • @Patienthost
      @Patienthost Год назад

      @@barbaramathis5844
      Can't you just say son?
      Jesus! You're like one of those towns people.

  • @BaronFeydRautha
    @BaronFeydRautha 15 дней назад +1

    "When were you born?"
    "Oh about 103 years ago, you figure it out."
    I love her already.

  • @Thikbody1979
    @Thikbody1979 Год назад

    I’m grateful for RUclips and the people for there content it definitely passes the time for me at work

  • @lootleo4022
    @lootleo4022 5 лет назад +119

    This is such a heartbreaking story. I hope she’s found peace, wherever she is.

  • @callmecarmella
    @callmecarmella 4 года назад +181

    “Mrs Murphy when were you born?
    “I was born 103 years ago you figure it out 👵🏻😂 #precious 💕

  • @shiwooify
    @shiwooify 2 года назад +5

    My late uncle was a Catholic priest back in 1950s/1960s. He left the priesthood in the early 1970s, partially because he was disillusioned. He told me a story about his time in Peru with Maryknoll Seminary. Of the sumptuous feasts they would eat daily. One night he saw starving neighborhood children at the gates of the seminary begging for food. He went and got all the leftovers to give to them. He was admonished by his superiors for doing so. they told him that once they started that, they'd never get rid of them, and they'd have beggars at the gates every night. I remember how disgusted he was when he told us that story.

    • @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker
      @DavidHoffmanFilmmaker  2 года назад

      That is a shocking and sad story.
      David Hoffman filmmaker

    • @daughterofenoch677
      @daughterofenoch677 10 месяцев назад +1

      Hi
      Did you Uncle leave that religious organization to pursue a truthful walk with God or he left to go agnostic ?

    • @shiwooify
      @shiwooify 10 месяцев назад +2

      @@daughterofenoch677 As far as I remember he remained a deeply religious man

    • @daughterofenoch677
      @daughterofenoch677 10 месяцев назад

      @@shiwooify
      Thank you for responding. I did wonder. Cos I seen a number of clergymen go agnostic after a bad experience.

  • @evangelistofyhwh.
    @evangelistofyhwh. 2 года назад +1

    Astonishing wow thank you for allowing us to see through the lens of Emmaline’s life

  • @deniselandmesser9966
    @deniselandmesser9966 4 года назад +507

    "He without sin cast the first stone"

    • @karencarney7595
      @karencarney7595 4 года назад +7

      I wonder how your family got their last name.. lol.

    • @dianagraham8093
      @dianagraham8093 4 года назад +4

      Amen.so be it.

    • @lambchop786
      @lambchop786 4 года назад +8

      @@karencarney7595 The name is German. It's occupational in origin and means to measure land. Likely the ancestor was a land surveyor. Probably not what you originally assumed it to mean in English.

    • @ChristinaOstil115
      @ChristinaOstil115 4 года назад +9

      Wait a minute. You would be going crazy if a daughter married her own father. God never wants to us to marry or have sex our own parents.

    • @PutinsMommyNeverHuggedHim
      @PutinsMommyNeverHuggedHim 4 года назад +6

      Ok! I was never forced into marrying my father and then shunned. Here are a bunch of stones and I’m about to cast them

  • @HeyGooch
    @HeyGooch 3 года назад +1095

    My recommendations in 2020 just keep getting wilder and wilder 😂
    Update: 2021 is just as wild as 2020.

  • @LOAblue
    @LOAblue 2 года назад +6

    I remember hearing a similar story on the Sally Jessie Raphael show back in the 80's. A married couple found out they were actually brother and sister. They had both been adopted as babies, but neither of them knew anything about their biological parents. They only found out because the husband had some serious medical condition, and he started researching his background. I wish I could remember how they dealt with it.

  • @tracycraft2971
    @tracycraft2971 Год назад

    Just found your channel and I’m so blessed! Emma’s story will live on forever!!❤

  • @diannepearce7458
    @diannepearce7458 3 года назад +96

    What a terrible tragedy. To have everyone shun her especially her parents when she needed someone so badly it was awful. How was she supposed to know he was her son, its tragic

  • @10AntsTapDancing
    @10AntsTapDancing 5 лет назад +168

    That was pretty much the saddest story I've ever heard. To be entirely innocent and yet be the victim of gossip and intolerance. I don't think much of the human race.

    • @cupcake5867
      @cupcake5867 4 года назад +7

      This is still going on to this day.
      I have here also neighbours here who laugh about me.
      Who talk sh.it about me.
      Who get other's to believe them and that they are victims.
      Without me doing anything but sitting in my own garden.
      Bullies still exist.
      These days with the convenience of facebook gossip travels faster then ever.
      That's why i hate people now.

    • @drphil4ril161
      @drphil4ril161 4 года назад +1

      Cup Cake
      There is a commandment for you also, forgive those whose persecute you and love your enemies.
      I know exactly what you saying.

  • @mixville2
    @mixville2 Год назад

    I remember well seeing this when it first ran on American Experience in the late 80s (?). Simply a brilliant piece of work David, as so much of your work is. A compelling and moving story, beautifully told, with brilliant touches of artistry - like the old fashioned dancing doll. Thank you.

  • @reha1066
    @reha1066 2 года назад +1

    I am very interested in these sort of stories. Well done!

  • @jeanniemarie3850
    @jeanniemarie3850 3 года назад +318

    I read the book "Emiline" years ago. I didn't know it was based on a true story. It makes you wonder what all manner of awful things could happen to beautiful spirited women & girls back then.

    • @rage.against.the.regime1913
      @rage.against.the.regime1913 3 года назад +27

      It hasn't stopped.

    • @melonyfossing528
      @melonyfossing528 3 года назад +22

      They still happen today

    • @FastNCurious88
      @FastNCurious88 3 года назад +8

      The pedo agenda is in full force. They have infiltrated and infected every part of our society.

    • @nikolatovar9884
      @nikolatovar9884 3 года назад +7

      @@FastNCurious88 It's sadly true. You can read it in this comment section even, smh. A comment above had an individual praising the rapist and bragging about his own children. I can't go any further.

    • @kristiskinner8542
      @kristiskinner8542 2 года назад +2

      @@FastNCurious88 🙄 pedo agenda? You mean stuff thats happened since mans walked this earth

  • @Alexandria87
    @Alexandria87 5 лет назад +269

    At first I was gonna leave a smartass comment due to the title alone. Then the more I kept viewing, the more heartbroken I got 😢

    • @cristyramirez7329
      @cristyramirez7329 3 года назад +6

      Alexandria, I am glad you didnt You are too beautiful to be so ugly inside. Thank you for being true and honest.

    • @truthmatters592
      @truthmatters592 3 года назад +5

      I use to do such just by the titles, but now I realize I have to watch the entire video before passing judgment

    • @dianepearsall5958
      @dianepearsall5958 3 года назад +1

      SLAVERY!!!!

  • @LeFouGallois
    @LeFouGallois 2 года назад +18

    It breaks my heart and boils my blood that this happened, and that we still haven't learned from the past. Women have always become the scapegoats for what others inflict on them. It has always been the woman who gets ostracized or punished for crimes committed against them.

  • @LollyAndSweets
    @LollyAndSweets 2 года назад +3

    This is a reminder to always show compassion and kindness throughout our daily lives at any opportunity that presents itself, because we never know what suffering or trauma the people we come into contact with, have been, or are experiencing 🙏 🌎 ☮️ 💖 God bless her 💫

  • @MariaEspinoza-cr2gj
    @MariaEspinoza-cr2gj 5 лет назад +155

    😭 The sickest, saddest, & most frightening part of Emmeline's life story (true or false - fact or fiction) is that her's is not the last nor the only one of her kind to be told.... Out there... somewhere, in the ugliest, darkest depths of this earth we walk around in,,, are more "Emmelines",,, children,,, being ostracized, banished, traded, starved, abused, beaten, raped, and abandoned by whole families or towns... *TODAY*
    Wake up people... children are precious. And we all know in the 1800's it was a different, far more struggling time than *today*....
    They had an excuse... no proper education on treatment of children/adult alike....
    So what is society's excuse today??? R.I.P. and carry on.... all of you beautiful Emmelines🥀🥀🥀

    • @boundariessetinstone5893
      @boundariessetinstone5893 4 года назад

      Now we have severe narcissists preying on women.

    • @laquerisma
      @laquerisma 3 года назад +1

      Children are our most precious resource.

    • @southernbridal
      @southernbridal 3 года назад

      @@boundariessetinstone5893 do you not believe they were narcissistic in days of old?

    • @SG-pu3rx
      @SG-pu3rx 2 года назад

      I agreed with you till the excuse part. Neighter they did nor do we have an excuse.

  • @foxopossum
    @foxopossum 3 года назад +24

    I love hearing people from small isolated rural towns talk. It’s different for every region, of course. But very interesting and beautiful.

  • @cherialbaugh1741
    @cherialbaugh1741 2 года назад

    Thank you for sharing this Documentary of human life and her tragedy 🎭
    The beauty of tragedy is that it is a story we can all relate to in ways of comparing, compassion, leading yo understanding of one another. The fame we have on earth, whether in our youth, or old age, or after we gone is the beauty of this story.

  • @JustFluffyQuiltingYarnCrafts
    @JustFluffyQuiltingYarnCrafts Год назад

    Very sad story, but informative of the times in which they occurred. Thanks for sharing. ❤

  • @lburns7952
    @lburns7952 5 лет назад +438

    I am descendant from slaves. As hideous as that was, this is just heartbreaking. You don't always need chains to oppress a person.

    • @Yaya-mg8sb
      @Yaya-mg8sb 5 лет назад +6

      elle415 touche!

    • @LambentIchor
      @LambentIchor 5 лет назад +21

      @fluffyduckbutter's sister Nonsense. The Irish were never slaves.
      As an Irish person myself I would be the first to support you if it were true, but it's not.
      psmag.com/social-justice/the-irish-were-not-slaves

    • @beebeemcgee4047
      @beebeemcgee4047 5 лет назад +26

      @fluffyduckbutter's sister my grandmother's mother came to the US as an Irish indentured servant. Not quite a slave, duties of a maid for a rich family.

    • @robrandolph5199
      @robrandolph5199 5 лет назад +24

      @fluffyduckbutter's sister That is nonsense, I am a descendant of Irish immigrants (my username isn't my birth name) and we were never enslaved during the nineteenth century. In the seventeenth century Irishmen were sent to the Caribbean as indentured servants, but were not slaves. the MAGA hat has nothing to do with Irish or Irish-American history, Donald Trump isn't an Irish American, and most Irish-Americans live in the Northeast which is arguably the most liberal part of America after California and Oregon. Show me your evidence that Americans of Irish descent in the 2000a were turned down for jobs? You're full of shite!

    • @fred1382
      @fred1382 5 лет назад +8

      Everyone is a defendant of slaves

  • @consighneeseal5202
    @consighneeseal5202 3 года назад +163

    I knew of a brother and sister who were separated as children,met,fell in love ,married ,had children and found out they were siblings.They got divorced ,ppl never treated them well,but it was no fault of theirs.

    • @joemurphy9549
      @joemurphy9549 3 года назад +7

      That is dreadful story. Those poor two people

    • @edwardstarling1835
      @edwardstarling1835 3 года назад +3

      Did the kids come out like appalachian people?

    • @consighneeseal5202
      @consighneeseal5202 3 года назад +7

      @@edwardstarling1835 This happen in the caribbean,the kids migrated to the USA .In my own family,there was a dispute.One family moved to the deep south of the island,in the 60's.. Those day there were no phone and limited transportation.Two kids met in work,fell in love and decided to marry.On the wedding day they found out they were cousins. Dis spite the family walking out of the wedding they got married .The marriage didn't last 3 months.That was a real baccannal as we here would say .I was 10 back then,now i'm 52.

    • @edwardstarling1835
      @edwardstarling1835 3 года назад

      @@consighneeseal5202 jeez that’s a mess

    • @consighneeseal5202
      @consighneeseal5202 3 года назад

      @@edwardstarling1835 ur sure right,the elders got up and there were a lot of quarreling.They walked out of the wedding and the bride said ''oh,hell high waters i'm going to get married today''. They were cousin and was told that it was a sinful act.

  • @HolocaustStudies
    @HolocaustStudies Год назад +7

    This is one of most heartbreaking stories I have ever heard. Not one single thing that happened was Emmaline's fault and she was ostracized for it all. I'd like to say how different people are now and how something like this could never happen in our time. But sadly. It's still happening in the world today.

  • @bearlylivable
    @bearlylivable Год назад

    Great story and like you I wander around looking for the things that provide deeper meaning is the life we ultimately share.
    I try to do it with nature and animals, but I believe you have inspired me to focus back on people who I’ve kind of lost faith in.
    Thank you for this and you definitely have a new subscriber

  • @amyferguson8856
    @amyferguson8856 5 лет назад +81

    The title of this video really cheapens it. I almost didn't watch it. I am glad I did.

    • @adrienneclarke3953
      @adrienneclarke3953 3 года назад +1

      Agree, perpetuating the cruelty againt Em as a taboo freakshow

  • @myrahatton6812
    @myrahatton6812 5 лет назад +205

    Humans are so awful.. Rest In Peace sweet lady 💖

    • @E-Kat
      @E-Kat 5 лет назад +3

      Some are awful and some are just like angels and prepared to sacrifice so much to help a total stranger! I'm the one on the receiving end I wake up not believing such people are real!

    • @reet6271
      @reet6271 5 лет назад +2

      Yes humans are both
      I have to remember at times there are a lot of good people in the world

    • @cristinadin1910
      @cristinadin1910 5 лет назад +6

      Myra Hatton animals are much more kind and loving than human

    • @faithrada
      @faithrada 5 лет назад +1

      @@reet6271 More good than bad. The bad just get more Press. : (

    • @brandireichert6941
      @brandireichert6941 5 лет назад

      I agree Myra. Many people younger and older people are a disgrace. God Bless her and blessings and Love sent to you and your family and loved ones.

  • @christinazerites3006
    @christinazerites3006 2 года назад

    Loved this story but so sad. Thank you for sharing.

  • @ladyjane9980
    @ladyjane9980 11 месяцев назад

    The dialogue is wonderful! What a story!

  • @JoshuaMuse
    @JoshuaMuse 3 года назад +135

    Talk about being dealt a bad hand. People are heartless and cruel. Robbed of her innocence and youth.

  • @starquant
    @starquant 5 лет назад +111

    This story represents the sad truth of misogyny. It doesn't matter what a woman does, she is held accountable for everything.

    • @interstellarbunny
      @interstellarbunny 2 года назад

      Eye roll

    • @starquant
      @starquant 2 года назад

      @@interstellarbunny Face roll back at ya troll, with no content and subscribers. Go crawl back under your bridge.

  • @kathleenroberts6931
    @kathleenroberts6931 2 месяца назад +1

    Thanks for this story, David Hoffman 🤗

  • @melodymccullough5262
    @melodymccullough5262 2 года назад +3

    This is truly one of the saddest stories I have ever heard. I'm sure that Miss Emmeline is much happier up in heaven than she ever was on this earth. We as people need to be kinder to others than some of our ancestors. 🙏