In the latest episode of “Heenan in the News” I thought I’d share a strange little story about James Heenan, a resourceful man in California.

This snippet is from The San Francisco Chronicle of 13 June  1919, page 6

The image is a little difficult to read so here is a transcript.

Missing Finger Retrieved and Sewed In Place

James Heenan, a porter at the Terminal Hotel, lost a finger yesterday while hunting for an elusive collar button that had fallen under the bureau. Heenan was in a rush to keep an appointment and in the confusion dropped the button. While moving a trunk to search for it, one of his index fingers was severed and fell under some luggage. heenan then changed his hunt from the collar button to the missing digit which he found under some baggage. Grabbing the finger he rushed to the Harbor Emergency Hospital where Dr J H Roger sewed it on .

Who was James Heenan?

The newspaper report doesn’t give many clues about his identity other than he worked at a hotel.

The nearest census return is for 1920 where there is a James Heenan listed in San Francisco whose occupation is an elevator operator at a hotel.

If this is the same man, we learn that he is a single man, aged 56, born in Ireland and both parents were from Ireland. He is living as a lodger at number 11 James Street in the 70th Precinct of San Francisco. His year of immigration to the USA is recorded as 1893.

About Heenan in the News

This is a regular feature in which I share information from historical newspapers about people with the Heenan surname. I look out for items that are unusual, intriguing, strange, humorous or add details to people already in my database.