Maine writing legend is no King

Posted by Ted Cohen

From Strange Maine :

Stephen King’s Real Name: Was He Born a Pollock?

Digging into the paper trail of America's master of horror reveals a hidden branch in the family tree.

Stephen King’s biological father, Donald, was born Donald Edwin Pollock.

But somewhere between the ages of 18 and 23, while moving through his early adult life as a merchant seaman, the Pollock name was dropped entirely, and he went by King.

Genealogical records and archival tracking show a heavy blank spot: no official record of a legal name change has ever been found.

Long before he walked out the door for a pack of cigarettes in 1949 and vanished from his family's life, the man passing down the King name had already rewritten his own identity in the shadows.

History leaves gaps. We find the paper trail.

- From Strange Maine

Strange Maine also reports it found Stephen King’s mother's gravesite at Black Point Cemetery in Scarborough.

Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King is alongside her parents and siblings in the Pillsbury family plot.

Etched into the stone are King's grandparents, Guy H. and Nellie W. Pillsbury.

King's mother Nellie Ruth is listed on the bottom as N. Ruth, beneath her siblings; Thelma, Flossie, Guy Jr., telling a stark story of early-to-mid 20th-century family history.

Long before the worldwide fame and legendary horror novels, Stephen King’s connection to Scarborough ran right through this ground: he was born directly across the road from this cemetery and lived in the area for the first two years of his life.

Credit: #StrangeMAIne #StephenKing #ScarboroughME #MaineHistory #BlackPointCemetery #LocalLore