Evening star., 1944-03-02
Woman LibroryAid
Beaten to Death in
Cathedral BUILDING
Catherine Reordon
Had Been MISSING
Since Yesterday

NV, assistant librarian of the
Washington Cathedral, was
found murdered today in a pit
in the basement of the library
about 40 yards from the main
Cathedral building.
Police Inspector Ira E. Keck said
Miss Rearden had been "brutally
beaten" and that the body was
found in the 5-foot deep pit, neces-
stating the use of a ladder to
reach it.
Police said they were looking for
an unnamed man who was en-
ployed as handyman around the
library several weeks ago and
against whom Miss Reardon was
said to have made complaints to
Cathedral officials, charging that he
was sighting his job.
Miss Reardon, who had been miss
ing from home since late yesterday
when she told her mother, Mrs.
William M. Reardon, jr., that she
was going out for "a little while"
was found shortly after 9 am. by
two library employees, Miss Helen A.
Young, archivist, and John Bayliss,
curator according to Chief of De-
tectives Robert j. Barrett.
The two, according to Inspector
Barrett, found Miss Reardon's hat,
coat, pocketbook and gloves on a
chair in the library shortly after
arriving there this morning. They
Immediately started looking for her
and found her body shortly after
ward in a steam pipe pit in the
basement of the building, which is
| northeast Of the Cathedral.
Skull Was Fractured.
Deputy Coroner Christopher c.
Murphy, who examined the body,
said Miss Reardon's death was
caused by severe blow on the head
with some heavy instrument. Her
skull, he said, was fractured from
front to back He estimated the
time of her death at approximately
6 pm. yesterday.
The body, when found, Mr.. Muir
ply said, was clad only in a slip
and brassiere. Nearby were her
other articles of clothing and a
mans bloodstained undershirt.
DR.. Murphy said that apparently
Miss Reardon was attacked in the
bookstacks in the library basement
where bloOdstains were found
and later thrown into the pit or sub
basement along with the clothing.
Her death, he said, was probably
not instantaneous following the
blow on her head, but occurred
shortly afterward
Aside from the blow on Miss
Reardon's head, DR.. Murphy said,
the only other wound was a small
cut on her throat.
Miss Reardon was described by
friends as an attractive brunei with
graying hair.
Anonymous Police Call.
First word of the murder reached
reporters at the Police Department
pressroom early today in an anon
ymous telephone call. A voice on
the wire said:
"A young woman has been mur-
dered in Washington Cathedral.
You fellows had better get busy"
The speaker would not identify
himself.
Maj. Edward J. Kelly, chief Of
police; Inspectors Barrett and Keck,
with other police officers, hurried to
the Cathedral. They were soon
joined by Coroner A. Magruder Mac
Donald and District Commissioner
j. Russell Young.
Reporters were barred from the
library and received their news in
brief announcements from the in
| Spectors
Shortly after the body was found,
detectives arrived at police head
quarters with two unidentified off,
cials of the Library who came to
give information.
Miss Reardon was born in Alexan-
dria and was educated at Hannah
More Academy, Reisterstown, Md,
and at William and. Mary College,
where she was graduated. She also
was student at the University of
Virginia summer school for several
years and attended summer ses-
sions at Middlebury College, Ver-
mont.
Taught in Virginia.
From 1928 to 1882 she taught
French and Latin at Blackstone
High School, Blackstone, Va, and
from 1882 to 1885 she was assistant
librarian at st. Johns College, An
napolis. Miss Reardon was a mem
ber of Epiphany Parish and had
been active in her religious duties
there. She had been assistant IL
brarian at the Cathedral for more
than eight years.
Orphaned by the death of her
father when she was only 4, Miss
Reardon was described by friend
OF the family as extremely close and
devoted to her mother Only last
week, the friend said, she had COM
pleted making a dress for her
mother. The mother, it was said,
had been in i'll health for more
than year, a fact that worried
the daughter constantly.
| NAAoo AsNuI 0Oll Wdc QCoCllUCQ NY
the friend of the family as being a
spiritual type" whose own health
in recent months had prompted her
to consult doctor several times.
1t was Miss Reardon's custom, the
friend said, to come home from the
library each afternoon about pm.
Afterward she usually went to a
nearby grocery store to purchase
food for dinner. Last evening the
librarian arrived at home about the
usual time and soon afterward told
her mother that she was going out
for a while.
Mrs. Reardon, knowing of her
daughters custom of buying gro
ceries in the late afternoon, thought
nothing of her absence until around
Z pm, when she became worried.
At $3.50 pm. Miss Reardon still was
missing and the mother, now thor
oughly alarmed, notified police.
Mrs. Reardon herself was too
overcome by shock to talk, but a
family friend said that Miss Reardon
| had left no note at home indicating