The Bizarre Story of The Collyer Brothers
Few unheard, uncelebrated historic names
People love collecting things all the time. The best of us are guilty of this act. This hobby of collecting a few things seldom transforms into hoarding. It is then that life takes an ugly turn and ends up taking lives.
Yes, you read that right.
History reveals a story of two Collyer brothers, who lived in the same house where they had amassed 120 tons of junk for years, which ultimately killed them.
The First Time World Heard of The Collyer Brothers
When New York’s 122nd Police Precinct received a complaint against a pungent smell emanating from an abandoned house, they sent an officer immediately. When the policemen entered the place, they discovered that a view they didn't expect.
They noticed the place to be jam-packed with all kinds of things. The place was filled with junk to the extent that they could not find their way inside. The bizarre part was — there was no telephone or bell at the place. Instead, junks of all kinds including newspapers, boxes, chairs, piano and decaying items occupied the space.
This left the policemen no other option than to break into the house through the window. Noticing the lack of area on the floor they were left with no other option than to throw away waste near their feet, outside on the street.
Only after they cleared a small section of the apartment near the window, they discovered a decaying dead body of Homer Collyer — one of the two Collyer brothers.
The Aftermath
After the autopsy reports came out, it was concluded that due to starvation and a major heart problem, Homer Collyer had died ten hours ago. It had taken the policemen an additional five hours to clear out the junk to accidentally discover his dead body.
This provoked them to search for the second of the duo. But after being unable to spot his body in the mess, it was concluded that missingLangley Collyer may be responsible for his brother’s death. After a series of manhunt in a couple of states, the police was hopeless.
Langley Collyer was nowhere to be found.
The Shocking Discovery of The Other Brother
While the state-wide manhunt was in process, the members of authorities were trying to clear up the junk in the apartment that reached the ceiling. Every time they cleared a small section they saw things found in no other house — including an X-ray machine! While they cleared the crowd watched the workmen in awe, unloading the house.
Here comes the climax of this story.
After three long weeks of cleaning the garbage that occupied the Collyer apartment, the workers came across the dead and almost decayed body of Langley Collyer, sandwiched between drawers and bedsprings.
The autopsy confirmed that Langley Collyer died a couple of weeks before his brother. His body lay ten feet from his brother’s during his final breaths. Both the bodies were consumed by the junk they had collected over the years, in their rotting house.
The Story Behind Their Mess
Their rotting house was discovered only in 1947, almost a decade and a half after the Collyer brothers had started sealing themselves inside their apartment.
These brothers were well known among the members of their society for their bizarre habits of collecting junks in large amounts and hoarding them inside of their house.
How did they end up that way?
The lives of the duo took a drastic turn in 1932. Homer suffered from a stroke causing him to lose his eyesight. This made the elder brother quit his job and stay at home and take care of his brother. Both brothers remained confined to the comforts of their home all day long.
Langley formulated a diet plan which had 100 oranges a week, black bread, and peanut butter on the list. His theory behind this diet was that it could heal his brother’s blindness completely. He would read out books as entertainment for his brother and play classical piano for him.
Growing older and not any better day after day, neither of the duo married or held any romantic sentiments. Over weeks, another calamity befell them. Homer developed rheumatism which left him completely paralyzed. Despite multiple issues surrounding the two, both of them still rejected any kind of medical help.
Lack of jobs depleted all their sources of income. Their utilities had been shut down because they could not pay their bills anymore. Being a skilled engineer, Langley converted their family’s old Ford Model T into a generator for their house and used a small kerosene heater to provide warmth for the house. As for water, they depend on the water pumps at local parks.
Due to the lack of any social contact, Langley’s mental health started deteriorating. He refused to leave the house during the day. Instead, he would go out past midnight to get things and pick up random junks on his way back — including rusted bikes and carriages, tin cans, used bottles and anything he could find in the junkyard. He hoarded unused items, books, and fabrics. He stacked up newspapers and justified that they were for his brother — who would read after he gets his sight back.
The Increasing Fame of Collyer Brothers
Because of their unusual eccentricities, The Collyer Brothers already started gaining attention from the neighbours. In fact, they became so famous that The New York Times featured them stating they had turned down a $125,000 offer for their Harlem apartment, which contained great material wealth.
Naturally, with the increasing popularity, there were a large number of thievery attempts at their house. This led Langley to build booby traps all around the house doors. He even sealed every window of the house shut. The brothers, funnily enough, seemed to have stored enough money to survive even extreme circumstances.
The End of a ‘Hoarding Era’
After years of collecting and hoarding, The Harlem house overflowed with surplus goods that they never used. The duo lived and slept in the small nest-like space that they had created amidst the junk.
It has been theorized that being surrounded by traps and trash of all kinds, Langley must have tripped over a booby trap he created to keep away burglars. According to the authorities, this must have been the probable cause of his death. Also, because of a lack of food and other provisions, his brother Homer must have experienced a painful death as well.
The Harlem House Now
Now, the site which once contained the legendary Collyer brother’s hoarding area had been converted into a small park, named in their honour.
It bears testimony to the fact that some histories which have been penned are not intentional. Not all historical pieces are as pretty as they seem.
