Biography
Schrank was born in Erding, Bavaria on March 5, 1876. He emigrated to the United States at the age of 9. His parents died soon after leaving Schrank to work for his uncle, a New York tavern owner and landlord. Upon their deaths Schrank's aunt and uncle left him these valuable properties from which it was expected he could live a quiet and peaceful life. But Schrank was heartbroken not just because he had lost his second set of parents but because his first and only girlfriend Emily Ziegler had died in the General Slocum disaster on New York's East River.
Schrank sold the properties, and drifted around the East Coast for years. He became profoundly religious, and a fluent Bible scholar whose debating skills were well-known around his neighborhood's watering holes and public parks. He wrote spare and vivid poetry. He spent a great deal of time walking around city streets at night. He caused no documented trouble.
Read more about this topic: John Flammang Schrank
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