Alva Nola Turner, the subject of my previous post, deserves another look. While researching his siblings I stumbled upon new information about Alva that might just explain his penchant for writing dark and somber poetry: he enjoyed pain.

In May of 1924, Alva appeared in local newspapers across Illinois because of an unusual remedy he employed to calm his nerves: self-inflicted bee stings. Holding the bee’s head with a pair of tweezers, Alva allowed the bee to sting him in the back. In a single treatment, he would go through 20 bees. Alva claimed the treatments also gave him more energy.

Did anyone think to hide the tweezers from Alva?

On the 25th and 40th anniversaries of the story’s first appearance, the newspaper that originally ran the groundbreaking story reminded its readers of Alva’s “discovery”. Those were slow news days apparently. I am guessing not everyone was impressed with Alva’s quirky remedy. By the 1930 census, Alva, aged 52, was divorced and living back home with his parents. In the settlement, she got to keep the house and he got to keep the beehive.

Kenfolk: Utlauts
Relation: 2nd cousin, 2x removed 
Common ancestors: Alva’s great grandparents, Stephen and Nancy (Gilley) Turner, are my 3rd great grandparents

Reference:
Lets Bees Sting Him to Calm Nerves, “Peps Up” (1924 May 30). Cook County Herald. p. 6.