Cathedral Grad Writes About Famous Massacre of Geist Resident’s Ancestors

What does a Geist resident, a Cathedral High School graduate and a horrific family massacre have in common? The answer includes a newly published book of historical fiction, “Philadelphia First Ward Horror”, which is based on the largest mass homicide in the city’s history.

The story, written by 19-year-old G. Jordan Lyons, now a freshman at University of Indianapolis, portrays  the ancestors of Geist resident Susan Deering Kushner, who is the great-granddaughter of the sole survivor of the tragedy.

Reading like a Hollywood movie, the book details the Deerings, a family of prosperous Irish immigrants who had made a new home for themselves in Philadelphia. The year was 1866, and the entire city was stunned when a German immigrant took an axe and murdered the parents, plus six children, all in the name of greed. The lone survivor, William Deering, was away at school, and escaped the bloody massacre.

So how did this shocking tale, filled with intrigue, mystery, suspense and drama, end up on the pages penned by a teenager?

Kushner was having dinner with family and friends in December 2007, and the discussion turned to her colorful ancestry. Lyons, then only 17-years-old, was intrigued by the story and asked dozens of questions about the murders. Weeks later, Lyons approached Kushner about the idea of writing a book.

“Needless to say, I was a bit skeptical considering he had just turned 18 a few days before,” says Kushner. “But I gave him the go-ahead to give it a try. He said he would write a chapter for me to review, and I could then make a decision based on what he presented,” she adds.

Lyons conducted preliminary research and created excerpts for the Kushners to review. “I was floored by what he presented to me,” says Kushner. “I could not believe that this writing came from a high school senior. He obviously was very gifted in his writing skills, and he exuded excitement and passion to know all about these people, my ancestors. I wholeheartedly agreed then to forge forward with him writing the story.”

The rest, as they say, is history. And now with a book on the shelves, Kushner and the Deering family have seen their own past come to life.

“This is a piece of lost history,” says author Lyons, who is currently a history major. “There were so many things going on in the country at the time, the story didn’t garner as much national attention as you’d think,” he says. “But there were actually more in attendance at the Deering family funeral procession than there were at Abraham Lincoln’s,” he adds.

When asked about the research involved with writing the book, Lyons details the vast amount of time and energy he poured into the project, all while functioning as a normal, active high school senior. “I sorted through a huge collection of facts that the Deering family had gathered over the years,” he explains. “I visited Philly, visited the sites from the story, and I explored archives in city hall, as well as personally spoke with historians to find out as much as I could.”

Lyons also sifted through stacks of newspapers from 1866 to gather every detail possible. And while he was able to account for most details, he had to then weave his own story around them. “Even though the book is technically historical fiction, it really did happen. I found it hard to write about the gruesome events, because I didn’t sugar-coat it at all. It was difficult,” he says.

Meeting members of the Deering family was a special honor to the author, and Lyons says that he feels honored to be able to document the family drama. “I found that most family members were very emotional about the book, because it was a lifelong dream for many of them – to have this historical event in print,” he says. “I think the family members now have a little bit of closure, and they seem touched and grateful for the book, which is humbling and flattering to me.”

“It was actually a surreal moment for me,” says Kushner, when describing what it was like to see her family story in print. “It was a longtime ambition of my father’s – to be in that moment, the moment of completion, of realizing his goal.

“Sadly, he passed away before he realized his goal, so for me to be holding in my hand a book that was such a large part of him was melancholy in the fact that my Dad wasn’t here to enjoy it,” says Kushner.

Interested readers can find “Philadelphia First Ward Horror” at the Border’s in Castleton, as well as online at www.gjlyons.wordpress.com.