Man leaves thousands to a stranger, $1 to his wife
When Fred Eggerman died on March 24, 1960, his will left his estate worth approximately $12,000 (about $120,000 in today's money) to the first male child born in Paterson General Hospital on July 2, 1946. He had no idea who that child had been. To his wife he left one dollar.
The lucky beneficiary turned out to be high-school student Robert De Boer.
Eggerman's wife filed suit to overturn the will, together with Eggerman's father and brother. They eventually reached a settlement, but it only got them a mere $850. De Boer kept the rest.
Based on those details it definitely sounds like Eggerman must a) have been a bit eccentric, and b) have hated his wife. That's how many news articles presented the case. But the article below went into some background details which help to explain what Eggerman did.
For a start, he and his wife had been separated for years and had already worked out a property settlement. So there was no particular reason to leave her more.
As for leaving everything to an unknown child:
The lucky beneficiary turned out to be high-school student Robert De Boer.
Eggerman's wife filed suit to overturn the will, together with Eggerman's father and brother. They eventually reached a settlement, but it only got them a mere $850. De Boer kept the rest.
Newsday - Apr 22, 1961
New York Daily News - Apr 20, 1961
Based on those details it definitely sounds like Eggerman must a) have been a bit eccentric, and b) have hated his wife. That's how many news articles presented the case. But the article below went into some background details which help to explain what Eggerman did.
For a start, he and his wife had been separated for years and had already worked out a property settlement. So there was no particular reason to leave her more.
As for leaving everything to an unknown child:
Eggermann just wanted to leave his money to a boy who would be about 10 years old at the time he drew the will. Mrs. and Mrs. Eggermann were childless.
Passaic Herald-News - Feb 8, 1962
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Category: Death | Inheritance and Wills | Lawsuits | 1960s