The 5-Year-Old Twins Fingerprinted By The Police To Avoid Having The Wrong Child Spanked
In 1935, an Illinois parent felt so badly about having spanked the wrong child that he took drastic measures to keep track of his twins
Having identical twins can prove to be trying times for parents. Not only is there double the work, but keeping track of two children who are alike in just about every way is mentally taxing. Finding new ways to navigate such challenges can be a game changer. However, that may or may not have been the case in 1935 when parents arranged to have their five-year-old twin daughters fingerprinted by the police to avoid the wrong one from being unfairly spanked for the actions of the other sibling, after the father discovered he had administered such a punishment to the wrong girl.
William Bortkiewicz was reported as the father of five-year-old identical twins Dolores and Dorothy in Rockdale, Illinois in the February 1, 1935 issue of the Chicago Tribune. The trouble began one evening when he returned from work to find that one of the girls had misbehaved. They had dipped into the sugar bowl and helped themselves to a number of sweet treats. The father decided to mete out punishment to who he believed was the guilty party after conducting a rudimentary…
