Member-only story
The Man Who Went to Bed For the Rest of His Life
Over a century ago, a man decided he never want to get up from bed again and spent at least the next decade doing just that
After a long day, there are few things that feel as wonderful and relaxing as slipping into bed and getting a good night’s rest. It’s a cycle that repeats on a daily basis, with a noted exception for an Illinois man who went to bed around the turn of last century and decided to stay there for good — a promise he kept.
The March 14, 1909 issue of the New York Times reported on the unusual case of John Mumcra, who was a resident of the Jerseyville Jersey County Farm, a work facility just outside of St. Louis for the impoverished. Despite being in good health, he had gone to bed a decade before and vowed to never rise again. Incredibly, he was good to his word.
Mumcra’s pro-bed stance was problematic on a number of levels, not least of which the farm’s strict rule that everyone living there was required to get out of bed and ready for the day by 5 a.m. However, for some unknown reason, the administration cast a sideways eye and permitted his permanent slothfulness. The superintendent, Richard Mourning, explained the actuation:
“I am ready to hold up my hand and swear that he has kept…
