There is absolutely NO defense for that.He treated these babies like they were nothing more than a puppy mill money making machine. Oops, we were unable to send the email. I know abortion was illegal at the time, and then I think he was running into people who couldnt afford adoptions, he told the New York Post. Did the births take place at the Hicks Clinic? Its time the truth came to light. Dr Harshi Dhingra is a licensed medical doctor with a specialization in Pathology. Natalie. And youve had children with them??? When she woke she only had one baby. He gave them good care. What we have now is the mothers side of the story. In 1964, the town sheriff arrested Hicks for performing illegal abortions. Using DNA, door-to-door interrogations, and a mausoleum search, Taken at Birth continues the quest to reunite the Hicks Babies with their biological families. She assumed it was a legal adoption until he told her otherwise. He also delivered the babies early, between 31 & 34 wks causing them to have low birthweight and health issues. This is a carousel with slides. Thus, the legacy of Dr. Thomas Hicks remains an unanswered mystery of many residents in the dual border towns of Copperhill-McCaysville. I was convinced something was in there, Linda told Narratively. Obituaries | Cochran Family of Funeral Service I only wish Mama had lived long enough to know her baby is most likely alive. Dr. Thomas Hicks died more than two decades before the black market baby adoptions came to light, but the doctor was not buried with his secrets. My dad moved us to New Mexico when I was in my early teens but I have a brother who stayed in Michigan. Just keeping an RN on duty, even in the 1950s -60s, was a big expense. Enter your email address to receive notifications of new posts by email. Thomas Hicks was a well-respected doctor in the small town of McCaysville, Georgia. Funeral service Saturday, September 7, 2013 at 11:00 AM with The Reverend Dr. Claude Y. Stewart officiating at Finch Cochran Funeral Home Chapel in McCaysville, GA. Interment following at Crestlawn Cemetery in Copperhill, TN. in Psychology and enjoys writing about health and wellness. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. Hicks was the beloved town doctor in the tiny mountain town of McCaysville, but women came from miles around to seek his services. In a previous article we discussed the Tennessee Adoption Scandal that originated in Memphis and involved a high-price adoptions criminal enterprise led by Georgia Tann. He delivered my oldest brother. Dr. Thomas Hicks: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com TLCs "Taken at Birth" will explore Thomas J. Hicks. He died at age 83 in 1972 of leukemia, according to Appalachian History. "I think he was a good man. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. They werent all there for abortions!! 2008 - 2023 INTERESTING.COM, INC. Honestly, I am grateful for the life I have had. Instructions for how to transfer the raw data file to MyHeritage and FTDNA are here: https://thednageek.com/how-to-transfer-your-ancestrydna-test-to-other-databases/. I was waiting for one mother to come on and say that they were told that their baby had died, but nope. I came from a messed up family, too. My mother remarried in 1969 in GA, I cannot locate any information about her daughter except a clipping cutout from the obituaries in michigan, NO GRAVE, BIRTH OR DEATH RECORDS can be found, can you help, The connections of Georgia and Michigan and Ohio seemed odd, we desperately desire to locate her, Do you know where she was born (which clinic or hospital)? He ran the Hicks Community Clinic and offered his services to poor copper mining families. The story has been featured in many TV specials, including on TLCs, Taken At Birth, which originally aired in 2019. You have several options when it comes to learning about your DNA, KnowYourDNA is the best source for finding all things related to DNA. Has your family done any dna tests like 23andme or ancestry? GOOD NIGHT DEAD DAD, GOOD NIGHT GOOD NIGHT. Try again later. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. Dr Thomas Hicks was a small-town Georgia doctor who was posthumously accused of selling hundreds of babies in illegal adoptions. Dr. Thomas Hicks has a large mausoleum which bares his name at Crest Lawn Cemetery, standing tall above many of the other cemetery plots marked with headstones. I owe my life to him, but he has also been the cause of so much pain and suffering. Janice, I am from Polk County Tennessee as well and Dr Hicks delivered my oldest brother before they ran him out of Tennessee. His family did not live like they had money in fact most of his money appeared to be put right back into the town of McKaysville into businesses which kept folks employed and kept the town thriving. How can this man NOT be vilified?! If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA. Do you have your fathers original birth certificate? At least 49 of the babies were sold to parents in the Akron, Ohio area. Mama told me they ran the doctor out of Tennessee after that because he was killing so many babies. There is a problem with your email/password. Your email address will not be published. Thanks, John and Cyndy were just two of more than 200 newborns sold by Dr. Thomas Hicks, a doctor in McCaysville, Ga., who was selling babies out of the back door of his clinic in the 1950s and '60s. The late Georgia doctor, Dr. Thomas Hicks had quiet a great earning considering his career as a successful doctor and also through his illegal activities. With the judges help, she learned that the clinic sold babies while they were still open. Interesting. But he didn't stop the illegal adoptions. Black Market Adoption - Thomas Hicks - RootsWeb And, even though it was illegal, many women thought they were having an abortion. The mind-blowing story is the subject of a new three-part TLC series (premiering Oct. 9), Taken at Birth, which attempts to crack open the mystery of the doctors scheme and reunite some of the Hicks babies with their birth families. Blasio first traveled to McCaysville in 1988 to search for her birth mother. https://t.co/900llb4znH, Angel Patriot?? This practice was tolerated by the community and he normally was allegedly paid about $100 to perform the illegal practice. Search above to list available cemeteries. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. Now, my family has to wonder, is he out there? He deserved to be paid for his time and services as well after all, this was time he could have spent seeing other patients, and medical equipment and supplies are not cheap. My parents lived together for 62 years and went on to have seven more children but my Mama grieved the rest of her life for the son she lost! Cutts and Rev. He sold those babies for a profit. Long-Secret Black-Market Baby Scandal Uncovered This account has been disabled. That $1000. In spite of the illegal practices of selling babies and performing abortions in the two states, he was never charged criminally with either of these offenses. To have an unequivocal reference sample for any other Hicks children who want to know their origins. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. Many of the Hicks babies also began searching for their biological families. Hed do anything for anybody sometimes hed pay a price for it, she said. Dr. Thomas J. Hicks performed abortions in the 1950s, long before abortions were legalized in Roe v. Wade. She named him Von Gordon. I used AncestryDNA to solve all of the Hicks cases I worked on. as I say, not perfect . And he gave the babies to equally desperate childless parents. pic.twitter.com/aTH43ks3Co. Have The Hicks Babies Been Reunited With Their Birth Parents Or Birth Families? amd im 13 so i have a long way to go . My brother was born in the middle 1930s. I can empathize because of some similarities, but I cannot fully understand. Failed to report flower. 23andMe is on sale right now, so its a good time to buy. It turned into a business. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. To date, no one knows the exact number of babies he stole and sold on the black market. https://thednageek.com/dna-tests. Then you missed the entirety of the story. He buried them for her (such a nice guy) and gave her a birth certificate stating they were stillborn. I would love to be able to find him or maybe some of his family. Dickson and Mrs. George Bradley, both of Kingsport, Tenn. "We Loved Thee for Thy Astute Mind, but We Loved Thee Better for a Heart that was Gentle and Kind. Babies born that early would need to remain in the hospital. Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters. Those who were adopted have few places to turn to track down their origins. If shes still alive and knows shes adopted, she may be looking for you using DNA. Hicks died at age 83 in 1972. She is a member of a Facebook groups which joins the Hicks babies. Im sorry but thats a totally twisted way of thinking in my view!! Think about it, some of these folks could fall in love with a relative and not even know it. All in all, I cannot condemn him. Youve got poor, pregnant, unmarried women, who then need to come up with a story for their friends and/or families as to why there is no newborn . Dr. Hicks was considered a cornerstone in the Copperhill-McCaysville community where he served as the town doctor. Oh well for them, I was raised in those mountains and Im not afraid of them. No one with half a brain can even think that is good. Women came to have abortions and he told them it was a successful procedure, only to take that premature baby and sell it to someone. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9119311/walter-lynn-hicks. As part of his practice, Hicks performed abortions, which were illegal at the time. . He was married to a Baptist Sunday school teacher, according to PEOPLE. Cock being laughed at each time someone ask his name. Now fast forward 50 years, memories are skewed, you feel differently now, maybe you wish things were different. I have hicks show up in my DNA results. cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. Dr. Thomas Hicks. Im saying I saw the man do a lot of good.. Babies came to the mountains with him and babies left the mountains with him. Try DNA ancestry.comI found my biological father this waybest way to find out if you have family is through DNA, Take a ancestry dna That is the test they are using, My brother died in 1966 but he was born in Michigan . But still, deep down, Stapleton has a desire to learn more about his birth family. Jerry Summers: Copperhill-McCaysville's Adoption Scandal It is suspected that many of them did and there is rumor that perhaps he disposed of those little bodies in the river. During the documentary they interviewed a dr that runs a NICU and he said absolutely many of these babies died from there extremely low birth weight and the adoptive parents would have had no choice but to just discard them. He died - apparently of leukemia - at the age of 83 on March 5, 1972. That son adopted Sallie, who was featured in the show. The secret of the baby-for-sale scandal lay pretty much unknown until around 1997. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. The illegal adoptions came to an end in 1964, when Hicks was caught performing illegal abortions. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Thomas Hicks (9119259)? [But] I dont think it initially started that way., SAD STORYwith a happy ending for a brother & sister, John & Cindy were just 2 of more than 200 newborns sold by Dr. Thomas Hicks, a doctor in Georgia who was selling babies out of the back door of his clinic in the 50s & 60s. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. Numerous Google sites display heart wrenching stories about this unfortunate period in both small towns' histories. And she has never given up.. I believe that he provided a valuable service, giving women an alternative, giving a baby a chance at life, giving a couple a chance to be parents. Still, she defends her late grandfathers actions. There are always three sides to any story: One side, the other side, and the truth (which is usually somewhere in between). TLC's 'Taken at Birth' and the True Stories of Georgia's Hicks Babies Dr. Thomas Hicks died more than two decades before the black market baby adoptions came to light, but the doctor was not buried with his secrets. Dr. Hicks, who passed away at the age of 83, was born in 1888 in Picket County, Tennessee. Elkins was exonerated through DNA testing and the true killer was convicted. Test prices are here: https://thednageek.com/dna-tests/ This account has been disabled. Hicks gave up his medical license to escape prosecution, according to Appalachian History. Melinda, of the Hicks Babies, I have a missing, supposedly deceased infant sister, born in supposedly michigan in 1967, 1968 or 1969. ET on TLC. There was an emergency in Heaven and John Harold Hicks Jr. . Search above to list available cemeteries. All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. cemeteries found in Polk County, Tennessee, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. The corrupt doctor's misdeeds didn't end at illegitimate adoptions; he also. So telling a mother that her baby died at birth while he sold it out his back door was fine with you? So far, there are no positive DNA matches between babies and parents from the database. He sold at least one more baby after he was shut down. i hope everything gets better for those kids and those parents. Dr Thomas Hicks told Thelma her baby had died. But he didnt know about the black market.. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. Her only health problem was asthma. All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. Despite the illegality of the abortions, Hicks would advertise the service at phone booths, bus stations and bridges, according to Appalachian History. I may have a couple brothers out there. It would give me great peace to know I found him or his family for my sweet Mama. He is buried in Crest Lawn Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia. Bruen, Matthew Steven. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. Those who were adopted have few places to turn to track down their origins. Some of those in his town defend his actions, according to Narratively, saying he was providing a service. My parents were young and married and wanted their first son! It has come too late for others as their real parents have died. What people dont realize is Doc Hicks started his practice in Tennessee. She was 6 years old when her adoptive father sat her down about it. He was married and had two children, a son and a daughter. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Walter Hicks (9119311)? His birth certificate when he ent into the service was different than the one his parents had, so all I know its June 19 or 20, 1941. My thoughts exactly. Thus, the legacy of Dr. Thomas Hicks remains an unanswered mystery of many residents in the dual border towns of Copperhill-McCaysville. Selling babies wasn't Dr. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks' primary business in McCaysville. [But] I dont think it initially started that way.. If there was no demand for the service, Hicks would not have been doing it. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. The illegal adoptions came to an end in 1964, when Hicks was caught performing illegal abortions. To give Sallie an answer. "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SPQ5-SW1: accessed 10 April 2021), A G Hicks, Copperhill, Polk, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 10, sheet 1B, line 89, family 17, "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K4ZJ-HRF: 11 January 2021), Thomas J Hicks, Civil District 3, Polk, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 70-8, sheet 11B, line 42, family 207, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Those who likely knew what happened may have died as well. Mama named my brother Von Gordon. I am currently fixing to do my own dna test. Personally I hope that Dr Hicks is burning in hell! Have you taken a DNA test yourself? You arent responsible for their sins. Learn more about managing a memorial . In Stapletons case, his biological roots are just starting to poke through the surface. Obituaries . I wondering how far the rabbit hole goes with him. A Skilled and Talented Physician, He Lived, Served and Died for Others. Resend Activation Email. she weighed a little over 4lbs I wonder if theres any connection between those doctors. They wanted to be rid of their babies and were desperate. New York Times, accessed 17 September 2019. L.C. So many of the women were told their babies had died. One of the Hicks Babies, Melinda Dawson, told CBS that her adoptive parents paid $1,000 for her in 1962. Dr. Dhingra has of over a decade in diagnostic, clinical, research and teaching work, including managing all sections of Pathology laboratory including histopathology, cytology, hematology and clinical Pathology. DNA ancestry testing offers a way for people interested in family history (genealogy) to, Our Verdict: My reports from GPS Origins arent nearly as comprehensive as the ones, FamilyTreeDNA has tons of features and information that you wont get with most of, Many affordable DNA tests can help you quickly discover your genetic makeup. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. You are right, Dr Hicks was an evil man. Who Are the Hicks Babies? - Who are You Made Of? can you imagine waking up one day to find out accidently that you were adopted and come to find out through this show or other means that your wife is your sister or first cousin? He was born in April 1964 Sumner County TN from what he knows. In 1964 he surrendered his medical license for performing an illegal abortion. They theorized he was buried next to the mausoleum, instead of inside of it, so his body was not disturbed, according to the article. Failed to delete memorial. To date, seven of the biological mothers have come forward. I personally think he is a sociopath and I wonder if he could have been a Serial Killer as well. I hope all the people that are involved will find what ever it is they are looking for. $1000 was not a tremendous amount of money when you think about the birth mothers room and board for one month (they had no money, they paid nothing) prior to the birth, plus 24 hr a day Nursing care. (If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact Mr. Summers [email protected], The Chattanooga Area Veterans Council announced that the Chief Reviewing Officer for this year's Armed Forces Day Parade will be General Duke Z. Richardson, Commander, Air Force Materiel Command, more, Your voice will be able to be heard well beyond Dalton when a new podcasting lab at the Mack Gaston Community Center opens in May.