Thomas Lynn Bradford

Thomas Lynn Bradford (1872 or 1873 – February 5, 1921) of Detroit, Michigan, was a spiritualist who died by suicide in an attempt to ascertain the existence of an afterlife and communicate that information to a living accomplice, Ruth Doran.^[1] On February 5, 1921, Bradford sealed his apartment in Detroit, blew out the pilot on his heater, and turned on the gas, which killed him.^[2][3]

Thomas Lynn Bradford
Ruth Starkweather Doran and Thomas Lynn Bradford
Born	1872 or 1873
Died	(1921-02-05)February 5, 1921 (aged 48)
Cause of death	Suicide by household gas
Known for	Trying to prove the existence of an afterlife

Some weeks earlier, Bradford had sought a fellow spiritualist in a newspaper advertisement, and Doran responded. The two agreed "that there was but one way to solve the mystery—two minds properly attuned, one of which must shed its earthly mantle".^[4] The New York Times ran a follow-up under the headline "Dead Spiritualist Silent".^[5]

See also

• List of unusual deaths in the 20th century