Person

Helen Helm Dortch

Daughter of Mrs. Hattie Williams Dortch of "Mt. Hebron" Farm, killed when the Knickerbocker roof fell in Washington in January 1922 and buried in Clarke County.

What the sources support

The Clarke Courier of February 2, 1922 reports that Miss Helen Helm Dortch, daughter of Mrs. Hattie Williams Dortch of "Mt. Hebron" Farm, Clarke County, and a descendant of Col. Leroy Peachy, was instantly killed when the roof of the "Knickerbocker Theatre" in Washington collapsed the Saturday night before. The headline says her body was brought here and buried, and calls her a daughter of Wm. T. Dortch, a member of the Confederate States Senate from North Carolina.

✓ Supported by a source
See the source and its limits
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The Clarke Courier of February 2, 1922 reports that Miss Helen Helm Dortch, daughter of Mrs. Hattie Williams Dortch of "Mt. Hebron" Farm, Clarke County, and a descendant of Col. Leroy Peachy, was instantly killed when the roof of the "Knickerbocker Theatre" in Washington collapsed the Saturday night before. The headline says her body was brought here and buried, and calls her a daughter of Wm. T. Dortch, a member of the Confederate States Senate from North Carolina.

What the source supports

That Helen Helm Dortch of "Mt. Hebron" Farm was killed in the "Knickerbocker Theatre" collapse, as reported on February 2, 1922.

Uncertainty

Read from uncorrected OCR, not from the page image. The item dates the collapse only as "last Saturday night" and gives no age. Its account of her descent is the paper's own. Her father has no record here; her mother is linked by proposal.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The February 2, 1922 report of Miss Helen Helm Dortch's death.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 2, 1922

Clarke Courier · 1922-02-02 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, report "Miss Helen Dortch Killed Instantly in Theatre Crash"

Relevant passage
Miss Helen Helm Dortch, daughter of Mrs. Hattie Williams Dortch, of “Mt. Hebron” Farm, Clarke county, and a descendant of Col. Leroy Peachy, one of the first settlers of Clarke county, was instantly killed when the roof .of the Knickerbocker Theatre at Washington Collapsed last Satur ay [Saturday] night. Miss Dortch attended the theatre with two friends

Checked: Existing OCR reviewed. Original image not independently inspected.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Its headline.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 2, 1922

Clarke Courier · 1922-02-02 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, report "Miss Helen Dortch Killed Instantly in Theatre Crash," headline

Relevant passage
MISS HELEN DORTCH I KILLED INSTANTLY I IN THEATRE CRASH. ... Body Brought Here and Buried— ... Daugh •er [Daughter] of Wm. T. Dortch, Member of Confederate States Senate from North Carolina.

Checked: Existing OCR reviewed. Original image not independently inspected.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5) · 2026-09-16. How this project checks its sources

Also indexed as: Miss Helen Dortch. Life dates that aren't known aren't guessed at here.

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