A Plain Account of the Ohio Marsh Man Part 5

As we now know, Prince Tovar went missing in August of 2016. It appears as though he discarded nearly all of his possessions. Though we do not know the exact sequence of events, it would seem that he made his way down the Detroit River on foot. He began to camp along the banks and at some point began consuming various herbs and fish (as per the coroner’s report of his stomach contents) in an attempt to survive. We do not know how Tovar, who did not enter into his journey with any specific knowledge of bush craft or edible wild plants, was able to survive, yet survive he did. He made his way down to the mouth of the Maumee River and sometime in September made a home of sorts in the Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge.

From examining the remains of his camp it seems he stayed there for the better part of two months camping at the base of a fallen tree on an embankment near the open marsh. Interestingly, a spare set of clothes was found in a waterproof luggage-style bag. Apparently, as the weather cooled, Tovar made frequent trips into Toledo to scavenge food and other supplies to help him survive the winter. Though he kept the clothes for visits into the city, he seldom wore them in the marshes for the reports (disreputable as they are) almost invariable say that he wore shorts of some type without a shirt. Perhaps this was some deliberate act of de-humanization or perhaps it was simply a practicality since he was frequently submerged in his trips. Looking back through the gaze of history we can be tempted to draw any number of conclusions to his particular inclusion and preservation of the clothing, seeing it as some last vestige of the sophistication and culture that defined him as a young man at the height of his profession. Such conjecture, as interesting as it may be, is just that, conjecture.

Tovar improbably survived the winter in spite of his inexperience in wilderness survival and the bone-chilling wind and that come in off Lake Erie. His tiny alcove, more or less a pit in the upturned roots of a fallen tree, shielded him from the icy spray and afforded him some level of comfort. Few ventured out into the marsh during the dead of winter and his camp, being below ground level was hidden both from observers on the marsh-side and anyone who might approach from Erie. Even his fires, kept small, largely went unseen from shore. It seemed Tovar had been unnaturally blessed with good fortune in choosing such a location. Luck, it seemed, guided much of his existence over the course of the winter.