Osa Wilson was born Osa Drummond in Gallia County, Ohio on April 18, 1877. She was the daughter of James T. and M. Neals Drummond. Osa had two brothers and three sisters.
On September 12, 1894, Osa married Scott W. Wilson. Together the couple had six children: Neva Maria, Gretchen, Hobart, James Hollis, and Dorsy. In 1906, the family moved to Ironton. During their years in Ironton, they were members of the Pine Street Church.
Scott W. Wilson, Osa’s husband, was a real estate and insurance salesman. He was four years older than Osa and was born February 5, 1873.
Unfortunately, Osa only spent a five years in Ironton before she fell ill. According to her death certificate, Osa was under a doctor’s care from January 26, 1911 to February 25, 1911. On that February day, Osa succumbed to her illness. She was buried in Woodland Cemetery, where she has gone down in history as the lady with the hand print on her face.
Sometime after her death, the way Osa died came under suspicion. Although it is recorded on her death certificate she died from Neuritis (an inflammation of a nerve or nerves), some people have rumored she met foul play. According to those sources, Osa and her husband fought constantly. She reportedly fell down the stairs and that resulted in her death. Her monument also suggests some questions about her demise. The statue has stains like tears down her face and marks (like strangulation marks) around the neck. Did her husband kill her? Did she fall down the stairs or was she pushed? No one truly knows. However, Scott Wilson had the statue sandblasted many times during his lifetime to get rid of the marks, but they always came back. Was he trying to hide his guilt? Or was there a flaw in the making of the monument?
Scott remarried a year after Osa’s death on November 15, 1912 to Lou Price. He and his second wife never had any children. Scott and his sons, Hobart, James and Hollace, opened Scott W. Wilson & Sons Real Estate. At the age of 56, Scott died on November 6, 1929 at the Marting Hospital.
