‘Who killed Hazel Drew?’
‘Twin Peaks’ reboot revives interest in Sand Lake murder
SAND LAKE, N.Y. >> As a child, spending summers at his grandmother’s home in the town of Sand Lake, Mark Frost would heed her warning not to go into the woods.
“You might run into Hazel Drew,” his grandmother would warn, conjuring up a childhood tale that later served as the inspiration for “Twin Peaks,” the 1990s serial TV drama Frost created with noted director David Lynch.
The series, which starred Kyle MacLachlin as an FBI agent investigating the murder of a homecoming queen, aired on ABC for only one season and part of a second, but garnered a cult follow- ing. Now, a quarter- century after the story was last told in the movie “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me,” an updated version of the series — again starring MacLachlin — is scheduled to premiere next month on Showtime, and Sand Lake Town Historian Bob Moore hopes the publicity throwing this sleepy town into the limelight will help him solve one the area’s most lurid cold cases: Who killed Hazel Drew?
Moore, a retired social studies teacher, discovered the Hazel Drew file amid the collection
of local history about three years ago.
“I thought, ‘ Wouldn’t it be cool to try to solve this?’” he recalled.
After hearing of the “Twin Peaks” reboot, he decided pop culture might be a good vehicle to ignite interest in local history.
The 20-year- old Drew, who lived in Troy, died July 7, 1908. Only days earlier, she spent the holiday weekend vacationing with her aunt in Schenectady. On the day of her death, witnesses reported seeing her picking berries alongside a road; several days later, her body was found floating in Teal’s Pond, near the base of Taborton Mountain.
An autopsy determined she died of blunt trauma to the back of the head, and the case was initially labeled a murder. Described by prevailing journalistic standards as “lurid but circumspect,” her death caused immediate speculation and gained national attention.
The case had long since fallen off the radar until Moore discovered the thin, blue file. He began his personal quest, only to quickly discover he was not alone in wondering who killed Hazel Drew. He met Ron Hughes, a Capital Region native and social studies teacher who now lives in the Catskills and is writing a book about “Twin Peaks,” along with David Bushman, author of “Twin Peaks FAQ: All that’s left to know about a place that’s wonderful and strange,” and Mark Givens, who hosts a “Twin Peaks” podcast on Dear Meadow Radio. While separated by distance, the men talk weekly via conference call to discuss various theories, Moore explained.
The connection between Frost’s fictional creation and the sleepy bedroom community in the southwestern corner of Rensselaer County is documented in “Memories and Photos of Big Bowman Pond,” so many are not surprised to find numerous similarities between the fictional murder of Laura Palmer and Drew’s death. Both bodies were pulled from a pond — Palmer wrapped in plastic and Drew with her gloves and hat neatly folded 20 feet from the shore. Both seemed to live double lives as respectful young ladies — Palmer was a Meals on Wheels delivery driver and tutor, while Drew was a seemingly adored governess — with a darker side tainted by sexual scandal, Moore said.
There are other notable similarities, Moore pointed out. In 1908, Sand Lake was considered the Coney Island of the north, with the nearby Crystal Lake Amusement Park, four or five hotels — much of the original series was set in the fictional Great Northern Hotel — and a plethora of hunting and fishing camps.
“It was a happening place,” Moore said, a summertime destination, unlike the sleepy bedroom community it is today.
While the case of Laura Palmer unraveled a secret life of prostitution and cocaine use, however, much of Drew’s life, and the circumstances of her death, remain a mystery.
Mark Marshall grew up in Troy, near Drew’s home, and now lives close to her burial site in East Poestenkill. A historian and historical re- enactor, Marshall recently joined Moore on his quest to discover who killed Hazel Drew. Both admit there are more theories than answers, and they try to respect the fact that Sand Lake is a small community that is still home to descendants of people involved in the original case.
According to Moore, on the day before her death, Drew returned from a vacation with her aunt and suddenly quit her job after Mrs. Carey, the wife of Professor Edward Carey, asked her to do her laundry. Drew’s suitcase, packed with lingerie that indicated a short trip, was found stored at the Troy railroad station,
and she was seen catching a train to Albany.
Drew is described as living a life beyond the means of a domestic servant, taking frequent trips to New York City and staying in nice places, wearing stylish clothing and monogramed jewelry. Drew had no known boyfriends, but was very close to her aunt and the two were rumored to be seen taking buggy rides with various men, insinuating the two women were engaged in prostitution.
According to Marshall, the aunt tried to stonewall the investigation, refusing to name the men, which raised much suspicion. When she finally relented and provided two names, they were withheld by police from the accident report.
“The investigators did not mention any names,” Marshall said. “That bothered me.” Theories about the case weren’t limited to the immediate area. The July 17, 1908 edition of the Colorado Herald Democrat refuted the murder theory, saying that despite speculation, Drew’s death was accidental, though evidence seemed to indicate otherwise. According to a 2012 article published in The Record, the list of suspects included: • Frank Smith, a farmhand, and Rudolph Gunderman, a peddler of charcoal, both of whom said they saw Hazel on July 7 • A “dark complexioned” man who was spotted on a trolley with a girl who looked like Drew • An unnamed Troy dentist who allegedly had proposed to her, even though he was married
• RPI professor Edward Carey, for whomshe worked as a governess but whose employ she abruptly left just before her death
• Her melancholy and suicidal uncle, who lived near the pond and, in fact, was so near when her body was discovered that he was enlisted to help pull her from the water
• “The stout man with the florid face,” in the words of a newspaper article, who was spotted near Teal Pond around the time of the murder
• A Troy man with hypnotic powers whom Drew’s mother suspected of exercising a mysterious influence over her
• The “half-witted son” of a Sand Lake widow who was rumored to torture farm animals
The whole case revolves around the pond, Marshall said, and a series of unan- swered question.
“How did she get back here?” he asked. “She would normally take a trolley and pick up a taxi, but she definitely was not seen coming in on the trolley.”
There’s also the question of her dress.
“You’ve got her out walking on Tabor Road in heeled Victorian boots and broaches,” he said. “It’s a mile from the trolley and another mile to Teal Pond, so that’s quite a walk.”
The men took what they believe was a big step forward last week, when they identified the home of Drew’s uncle near Teal Pond. The discovery, they believe, lends credence to a theory that after quitting her job, she was in the area near the pond — which was the site of many luxury homes at that time — in search of a new position.
The historical society and the Sand Lake Center for the Arts will host a “Twin Peaks” event Sept. 12 that is tentatively scheduled to include the viewing of an episode of the series and a panel discussion. Laura Palmer’s killer was identified in 1 ½ seasons, but more than 100 years later, the question of who killed Hazel Drew remains unanswered.
Moore hopes the ancestors of some involved in the case will come forward with diaries or documents that can provide new evidence. He can be reached by calling 674-2026, ext. 20, or by emailing history@sandlake.us.