ON THE ONE HAND…A biological boy, raised for nineteen years as a girl. A regional scandal on the eve of the Great Depression. Unanswered questions, whispered rumors. A family drama as front page news. Neighbors betrayed, a town ashamed. Hurt, anger, and disbelief.

ON THE OTHER HAND… An individual’s choice to claim a new identity. A family sticking together through unthinkable hardship. A brand new life emerging from the shell of the old. A second act more vibrant than the first.

This private story turned public sheds light on the culture of small-town Pennsylvania in the 1910s and 1920s, the print media between the wars, and the ways in which “small” lives have an unexpected richness to them to rival the most elaborate novel. Come explore the story of Marion Bodmer in these five chapters:

⁂ June 1910
⁂ Childhood
⁂ Revelation
⁂ Media Storm
⁂ Aftermath


⟩⟩ Illustrations by Dakota Hornak ⟨⟨