TLC's Taken at Birth, which first aired in 2019, is a three-part . AND IN ALL ACTUALITY HICKS LIED TO HER TO GET HER TWIN BOYS AND MADE OVER 2000 OFF OF HER PAIN. Such an evil man to cause such heart ache! I Just dont understand how anyone could possibly think what he did was right or just or in any way good at all!! As a result, he could not provide information that would help the babies find their parents or the other way around. Besides his charitable practices, he performed unauthorized abortions. He deserved to be paid for his time and services as well after all, this was time he could have spent seeing other patients, and medical equipment and supplies are not cheap. When mothers came in to the clinic and expressed hesitancy about carrying their pregnancies to term, the doctor would persuade them to have their babies. He induced births, told mothers their babies died and sold them! During the years that he ran his clinic, the town was at its population peak of between 1,800-2,000 residents. TLC Barbara, I shuttered when I read your comment! If you have any questions about something that you read in this post, please join in the discussion below. I dont trust my own memories, let alone 50 year old memories. She hopes DNA testing will enable them to find their birth parents. Busted not for selling babies, but for the abortion clinic. A New York Times profile of Blasio appeared in 1997, which was around the. Brother of Lucy Elizabeth Ketron; John Willie Hicks; Samuel Earnest Hicks; Infant Daughter Hicks and Carrie Ellen Dickson. I did do a DNA test with no response. These types of adoptions can cause extra hurt for families, since they were financial incentives, coercion is often a factor, documents dont exist to help adoptees locate their biological families, and lies are often told to protect the adults involved in the illegal adoption. we do not know where these births occured most of our family is deceased. Try DNA ancestry.comI found my biological father this waybest way to find out if you have family is through DNA, Take a ancestry dna That is the test they are using. He wasnt going around knocking girls up and holding them hostage in his apartment until they delivered their babies so he could sell them.. THIS POOR WOMAN THOUGHT HER TWIN BOYS HAD DIED. Hicks died at age 83 in 1972. She said she heard her baby cry then Doc Hicks told her he was still born. More than 200 babies, known as the Hicks Babies, were sold by Hicks through a back window of the Hicks Community Clinic in McCaysville, Georgia during the 1950s and 1960s. At-home DNA testing wasnt available until recently. With the judges help, she learned that the clinic sold babies while they were still open. If there was no demand for the service, Hicks would not have been doing it. Same ears, chin/jaw line, nose, and eyes. Hicks beliefs did not fully mesh with abortions, and he would sometimes convince women that he would handle adoptions if they carried the babies to term, according to WKYC in Cleveland, Ohio. Unless you were one of the babies there is no way you could know what its like to have this to happen to you. Looking for a DNA test that's accurate and can tell you about your health and heritage? Dr. Thomas J. Hicks performed abortions in the 1950s, long before abortions were legalized in Roe v. Wade. He took HUGE risks for essentially very little in return, in fact he did lose his medical license in 1964 for performing an abortion. You gotta wonder if this was a routine operation throughout history. Geni requires JavaScript! Buying or selling A CHILDTHERE IS EVERYTHING WRONG WITH THAT! I submitted my DNA in hopes that I might find my brother or some of his family. 1997. He also told the mothers that their babies died, gave them death certificates but then sold the baby out the back door for $1000. I have had two of my children die. I dont know. But not all of the babies have been reunited. Those who were adopted have few places to turn to track down their origins. During the documentary they interviewed a dr that runs a NICU and he said absolutely many of these babies died from there extremely low birth weight and the adoptive parents would have had no choice but to just discard them. Father of Dr Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, Jr; Dr Walter Lynn Hicks and Private Her only health problem was asthma. My Grandma has been gone several years now, but she told us numerous times that in 1952 when she gave birth to my aunt that she remembers having two babies and the nurse telling her she had a boy. His wife and son have both passed away. How many women died themselves never knowing that they had a child or children out there and how many children, now adults, will never know their biological parents because its just too late and most of them have passed? The method of the illegal adoptions has left many questions for those who started their lives in Hicks clinic. Instructions for how to transfer the raw data file to MyHeritage and FTDNA are here: https://thednageek.com/how-to-transfer-your-ancestrydna-test-to-other-databases/. If it wasnt Hicks, there was someone doing the same thing during the war years adopting babies out to Akron. They wanted to be rid of their babies and were desperate. Theres probably a lot of dead babies because of his practices. Enter a grandparent's name. She carried him to full term and went to Dr Hicks to deliver her baby! She said the whole time she was having the babies that there was a very nice dressed lady sitting in the room across the hall from her. Hicks' wife and son had already passed away. And, even though it was illegal, many women thought they were having an abortion. Somehow I missed this Documentary the first time it aired. Why am I rehashing this. That is crazy! Hicks was forced to give up his medical license in 1964 after being charged with performing illegal abortions, and he died in 1972 at the age of 83. Several in the town told the outlet the story was sensationalized. Jane Blasio, The Hicks Baby Who Broke the Black Market Baby Adoption Case: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know. His birth certificate when he ent into the service was different than the one his parents had, so all I know its June 19 or 20, 1941. For him to lie to these women is unforgivable. He died at age 83 in 1972 of leukemia, according to Appalachian History. Im going to play a little devils advocate. Categories: Fannin County, Georgia | McCaysville, Georgia | Hicks Clinic, McCaysville, Georgia, WIKITREE HOME | ABOUT | G2G FORUM | HELP | SEARCH. Those who were passed through the window as babies to adoptive parents have stopped by to see where their lives changed direction so early in life. My oldest would have been born in Akron in 1960. Son of David Fleming Hicks and Mary Louise Hicks v. Wade legalized abortions. He gave them good care. He was born October 18, 1888. Perhaps your dad was referring to the equipment used to save preemies. So that he could make money. She did NOT go to him for an abortion, she went to deliver MY BROTHER. i was told i was born in raymond wa. He surrendered his Georgia medical license to halt his prosecution.2. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks in MyHeritage family trees (Sompayrac Web Site) Dr Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, Sr in 1940 United States Federal Census Thomas Hicks in U.S. Social Security Death Index (SSDI) view all Immediate Family Chassie Hicks wife Dr Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, Jr son Dr Walter Lynn Hicks son Private child Mary Louise Hicks mother She is a member of a Facebook groups which joins the Hicks babies. Babies For Sale: The Secret Adoptions That Haunt One Georgia Town. When families came to his clinic to adopt babies, Hicks made the women pretend they had just given birth. But many aspects of his clinic remain a mystery to this day. Dr. Hicks created fake birth certificates and listed the adoptive parents as biological parents. It was discovered that Dr. Thomas J. Hicks had been selling newborns from the small-town facility's backdoor for $1000. What we have now is the mothers side of the story. Blasio confirmed with the county birth records that she was likely one of the hundreds of babies sold between 1950 and 1965.2. 4. Im disgusted that someone would think that this is ok. What is the Levant DNA Region on Ancestry. The story of the "Hicks Babies" broke almost 20 years ago when a researcher discovered that between 1950 and 1965, a Dr. Thomas Hicks of McCaysville, Georgia, sold babies he delivered in his clinic to couples looking to adopt children. Do you know how that can mentally affect a woman? Some were children of women Hicks convinced not to have abortions. Still, she defends her late grandfathers actions. Jane needs to get a DNA test and compare it to Doris Abernathy, the town historian. Read our best DNA test page to find the best one for you. You can see for yourself google him. His wife was a Baptist Sunday school teacher, according to PEOPLE. In these cases, Hicks would forge a birth certificate and give the baby to adoptive parents in secret from his Georgia clinic. This man was worse than the plague! The son, Gillam Thomas Hicks, and his family will be featured in next week's column. Starting in 1955 and running through the early 1960s, Hicks offered secretive abortions and adoptions here. i come from to sides of a family that are both messed up. Women came to have abortions and he told them it was a successful procedure, only to take that premature baby and sell it to someone. New York Times, accessed 17 September 2019. I dont know the truth, the people involved back THEN know. Im sure there are also many, many Hicks babies out there that have no idea they are Hicks babies. I know abortion was illegal at the time, and then I think he was running into people who couldnt afford adoptions, he told the New York Post. To protect their privacy, I have chosen not to mention any of the individuals who were adopted by name in this article. Labor was induced at 31-34 weeks (based on the birth weight of the survivors). Son of David Fleming Hicks and Mary Louise Hicks Hopefully he got his comeuppance. Join the search for truth. If you fully watched the documentary you would know that almost all the babies were 4lbs at birth weight or even SMALLER and he was doing this to hurry along the money. After watching this documentary I can see how he got away with it for so long. I came from a messed up family, too. Just keeping an RN on duty, even in the 1950s -60s, was a big expense. My mother grieved for her baby the rest if her life! What years was he operating in TN, and where? He was inducing them around 30 weeks handing out 4lb babies to people. She assumed it was a legal adoption until he told her otherwise. More than 200 babies, known as the Hicks Babies, were sold by Hicks through a back window of the Hicks Community Clinic in McCaysville, Georgia during the 1950s and 1960s. It wouldve been 1964. Many of those from Hicks small town defended his actions. Town Secret Is Uncovered In Birth Quest. [But] I dont think it initially started that way., SAD STORYwith a happy ending for a brother & sister, John & Cindy were just 2 of more than 200 newborns sold by Dr. Thomas Hicks, a doctor in Georgia who was selling babies out of the back door of his clinic in the 50s & 60s. Despite the obstacles, the investigative team - with the blessing and cooperation of the Hicks Babies community - works tirelessly to try and bring answers to the families impacted by Dr. Hicks' actions, from conventional DNA searches and door-to-door interrogations, to a mausoleum search. Dr. Thomas Hicks died of leukemia, a type of blood cancer. Mama never got over this. He was protecting himself due to his many illegitimacies & looking out for his own financial interest!!! Dr. Hicks died a disgrace in 1972, one year before the Roe v. Wade decision. I would love to be able to find him or maybe some of his family. Before Doctor Hicks opened his practice in Georgia he was just across the state line in Polk County Tennessee in the 1930s. Some babies were that small but not all of them. DNA ancestry testing offers a way for people interested in family history (genealogy) to, Our Verdict: My reports from GPS Origins arent nearly as comprehensive as the ones, FamilyTreeDNA has tons of features and information that you wont get with most of, There are plenty of cheap DNA tests you can purchase if you want to, The offerings from each DNA testing service vary wildly, so it can be difficult. ALL OF THOSE CHILDREN WERE MESSED UP FROM THIS. Test prices are here: https://thednageek.com/dna-tests/ Below is the list of best dr thomas hicks family tree website where you can find anything related to dr thomas hicks family tree. Dr. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, the man behind the Hicks Babies, ran a small clinic in the tiny town of McCaysville, Georgia. Dr. Hicks died of leukemia in 1972 at the age of 83. We can tell ourselves stories, and they become our truths. The story broke across the U.S. in 1997 when an Akron woman named Jane Blasio learned that her parents bought her from a clinic in Georgia. He may have done it to avoid suspicion and keep the transactions discreet. This is the process by which it was alleged to have worked: The doctor would advertise adoption services and prenatal care, in addition to care related to the termination of pregnancies, in the local community and surrounding areas. Her initial search was unsuccessful, so she contacted a Georgia probate attorney. I understand the concept of not being able to conceive and being grateful to receive a child but that was not a win/win situation by any stretch of the imagination. What an awful tragedy. Stories of young girls dying from botched abortions in the early 50s still exist in the living memories of those from the region. His family did not live like they had money in fact most of his money appeared to be put right back into the town of McKaysville into businesses which kept folks employed and kept the town thriving. Are you kidding me. He also has a living granddaughter named Sally Sompayrac. Thankful for the granddaughter who went beyond what most would have to get answers. I think he was a good man. Thats a totally twisted way of thinking!!! The story is told on Taken at Birth. They may not even know theyre adopted. I hope you guys can find what your looking for. I just wanted to say I watch this show about a little girl. i just hope i wont go made like them. #TakenAtBirth, a 3-night special event, begins TONIGHT at 9/8c. Dr. Hicks died of leukemia in 1972 at the age of 83. Despite the illegality of the abortions, Hicks would advertise the service at phone booths, bus stations and bridges, according to Appalachian History. Dr Thomas Hicks Family Tree Do You Know These Top Templates? You dont want to vilify him? Kriste Hughes is reunited with her mother, Thelma Tipton, and big brother Roger Tipton, after Dr. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks illegally sold her to adoptive parents . Dr. Thomas Hicks family tree Even though Dr. Hicks is not suspected to be biologically related to any of the Hicks Babies, some people might find his ancestry and family tree to be of interest. Both of Dr. Hicks parents were born in Tennessee. Cristine Santander is a content writer for KnowYourDNA. Barbara, you clearly have no idea what you are talking about. The truth about the adoptions came to light in 1997, more than two decades after his death, as some of the Hicks Babies began seeking out their biological parents. Ideas for Getting Responses from DNA Matches. Apparently these women were seeking abortions, not babies. There were cases where Hicks talked women out of abortion. He delivered my oldest brother. pic.twitter.com/aTH43ks3Co. After years of wondering about her birth family, will Diane finally have closure? She was present when authorities opened the mausoleum. The Hicks Community Clinic has been closed for years, but the building still stands. In the small town, the. As I watched this documentary it made me think of the story my mother told many timesas her grandmother told hershe (my mother) was born in Oliver Springs TN.. (a little over two hours from McCaysville GA) A Dr Stone dilivered her and told her mother that she didnt make it meanwhile shes lying on a cart covered up with a sheet outside the room when her grandmother realizes shes there picked her up blew into her mouth then spanked her bottom and she started crying. I do hope your brother survived and is out there somewhere. But honestly, my suggestion would be for them to live for today. What he provided were lies to young mothers and fathers who wanted their babies ! 2016. My dad moved us to New Mexico when I was in my early teens but I have a brother who stayed in Michigan. The extra mouths to feed were simply too expensive. What Happened To Dr. Hicks And His Associates? Dr Harshi Dhingra is a licensed medical doctor with a specialization in Pathology. Dr. Hicks was married and had two kids a son and a daughter. This is a story of a doctor who saved lives?? Today, these babies are referred to as "Hicks babies.". A legacy linked to illegal adoptions in rural North Georgia, Woman illegally sold to couple by doctor as newborn speaks out with new book: 'story isn't just about me'. GOOD NIGHT DEAD DAD, GOOD NIGHT GOOD NIGHT. Thanks, Dr. Hicks did lose his medical license in 1964 due to an infraction unrelated to the illegal adoptions. My parents were a young married couple and very much wanted their baby! In 2014, around 30 suspected Hicks Babies traveled to Tennessee to undergo DNA testing. There was no reason not to dig up his grave. View Ancestry DNA Matches By Ancestor With ThruLines. He was arrested for performing illegal abortions in 1964. He lied to many and told them their babies died! The story has been featured in many TV specials, including on TLCs, Taken At Birth, which originally aired in 2019. Wow! I have been advised by a man named Bill Miller from Cleveland Ohio that I was a Hicks baby but cannot find out if this is true. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA. Blasio also created a confidential registry to help Hicks babies find their parents and siblings. But he didn't stop the illegal adoptions. He is buried in Crest Lawn Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia. "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MN5X-3HV: 3 February 2021), Thomas J Hicks, 1920. Curiously, Dr. Thomas J. Hicks is not buried in a mausoleum that bears his name, but beside it. And he gave the babies to equally desperate childless parents. About 15 of the 200+ babies have been reunited with their biological parents. All of Dr. Hicks grandparents were born in Tennessee, as were many of his great-grandparents. Prior to that, he was practicing just across the state line in Copperhill, Tennessee, and could well have been selling babies then. Uncover your ancestry, paternity, and health risks for peace of mind, Get affordable medical tests that you can privately take at home, Test your gut bacteria and learn ways to restore its balance, Discover healthy diets and apps that can help you lose weight, Lose weight without sacrificing your nutrition and health, Straighten your teeth at home and see visible results in months. It may have started with good intentions, but these babies deserve the truth and they deserve it now. He reportedly performed abortions, which were illegal at the time, for $100. "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MGFJ-W52: accessed 10 April 2021), Thomas J Hicks in household of D Fleming Hicks, Civil District 10, Sullivan, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 162, sheet 7B, family 136, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9119259/thomas-jugarthy-hicks, See: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:McCaysville%2C_Georgia Thank you for visiting dr thomas hicks family tree page. Theres a documentary on the Hicks Babies that Im assuming you havent seen. Categories Searching for Biological Family. Barbara, the very same thing happened to my Mother. There was a tip-off, though. Well he and Alannas birth father very similar. It is possible that deaths like these convinced Dr. Hicks that something needed to be done.. Dr. Thomas Hicks was a small-town Georgia doctor who was posthumously accused of selling hundreds of babies in illegal adoptions. 2008 - 2023 INTERESTING.COM, INC. I have a great sample of relatives going back many generations. Our filters are much different than the ones from that period of time. Babies born that early would need to remain in the hospital. My decision is there was something very wrong going on. Even though Dr. Hicks is not suspected to be biologically related to any of the Hicks Babies, some people might find his ancestry and family tree to be of interest. i hope everything gets better for those kids and those parents. He sold at least one more baby after he was shut down. Time is running out. Many of the Hicks babies also began searching for their biological families. How can this man NOT be vilified?! Love and hugs to them all! Would love your thoughts, please comment. The Dr Hicks who ran the black-market adoptions had a son who became a dentist. Blasio first traveled to McCaysville in 1988 to search for her birth mother. Interesting. There are about 200 people, now adults, who are among those who are sometimes referred to as Hicks Babies. What he did has no merit. He sold those babies for a profit. He was married and had two children, a son and a daughter. 2015. She was 23. Some of the ads and links on this website are affiliate links which pay me a commission if you purchase through them. All of the babies were children of mothers who were persuaded to give up their children for adoption, and were not biological children of Dr. Hicks. I cannot imagine being one of these babies. Their lower-priced test is fine for your purposes. Once they have grouped their DNA matches in to several groups, they can study the descendants of the ancestors to find where they connect to each other. He also delivered the babies early, between 31 & 34 wks causing them to have low birthweight and health issues. Thomas Hicks was a well-respected doctor in the small town of McCaysville, Georgia. Could you imagine the survival rate back then for babies 3lb or 4lbs. Dr Hicks induced some babies early, and they would have been put in incubators had then been born that early today. Its time the truth came to light. So all of what you said is ridiculous. Jane Blasio, who broke the story of the Hicks Babies and leads investigative efforts, wrote her thoughts about Hicks on her website. Shameful + Sinful + Criminal + Evil!! He ran the Hicks Community Clinic and offered his services to poor copper mining families. 1910 - Civil District 10, Sullivan, Tennessee, USA, Lucy E Hicks, Carrie E Hicks, Laura A Hicks, David Fleming Hicks, Mary Louise Hicks (born Holt), Thomas Jugarthy Hicks Jr, Walter Lynn Hicks, Margaret Mary Brown (born Hicks), est Hicks, Lucy Elizabeth Ketron (born Hicks), John William Hicks, Hicks, Carrie Ellen Dickson (born Hicks), Anna Laura Bradley (born Hicks), Samuel Ernest Hicks, Lucy Elizabeth Ketron, John William Hicks, Unknown Hicks, Carrie Ellen Dickson, Anna Laura Bradley (born Hicks), Samuel Earnest Hicks, Lucy Elizabeth Hicks, John William Hicks, Unknown Hicks, Carrie Ellen Dickson (born Hicks), Annie Laurie Hicks, Lucy E Hicks, Carrie Ellen Hicks, Anna Laura Wisdom Bradley (born Hicks), Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, Walter Lynn Hicks, Margaret Brown (born Hicks), Mary Edith Rogers Davis, Thomas J Jr Hicks, W Lynn Hicks, Margaret Hicks, Bloomingdale, Sullivan County, Tennessee, United States, Copperhill, Polk County, Tennessee, United States, Crestlawn, Polk County, Tennessee, United States. she weighed a little over 4lbs I wonder if theres any connection between those doctors. I had a brother who was given up for adoption by his mother in Tennessee. There are many people who were adopted at birth who can use similar strategies to learn more about their recent and distant ancestry. Father of Dr Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, Jr; Dr Walter Lynn Hicks and Private The biological mothers of these individuals were persuaded to give their babies up for adoption and they were allegedly sold to their adoptive parents through the Hicks Clinic, owned by Dr. Hicks. These babies were born between 3.5 and 4.75 lbs.. very unfavorable!! I can empathize because of some similarities, but I cannot fully understand. Facebook His name would have been Von Gordon Prince. Hed ask them to put on a medical gown and lay down on a table. I agree totally with you.This all sounds awful. My parents were young and married and wanted their first son! Thank goodness your grandmother was there and knew what to do. I Just dont understand how anyone could possibly think what he did was right or just or in any way good at all!! Because the adoptions were illegal and their birth certificate were forged, there are no records of their biological parents which would allow them to find their origins. Estimates show Hicks sold about 200 babies from the 1940s to the 1960s.3. 2019. Aside from families that might eventually tell their adult children, the only hope Hicks babies have of finding their biological relatives is DNA tracking. So no, I cant completely vilify as I just dont know. Women came to give birth, and were told their babies were stillborn!