July 9, 2007, The Andover Connecticut Times
by David Harmon, Editor and Publisher

They called him the old man of Wilton Street, though Allan Stewart really wasn't very old. They said it respectfully for the semi-recluse who dressed in Nineteenth Century costume gave wise counsel to the many townspeople who dared venture into the gas lit study decorated in dark brown with books by scholars through the ages. Mr. Stewart was particularly fond of Maimonides and Thoreau.

Nora Stewart, his wife left the house and moved next door with their three children: Ian, Emma and Ronald, 25 years ago. Still, she had dinner with him five nights a week.

Mrs. Stewart refused to give his age out. No record of his birth could be found, nor could a Social Security number, tax returns or any identifying information. Mrs. Stewart is better known as Nola Damon, the prolific and immensely popular romance novelist. Mr. Stewart is not listed on Mrs. Stewart's tax returns.

They arrived in Andover, as a young couple, around 35 years ago when they bought the old Parsonage on Wilton Street. Mr. Stewart was rarely seen, but Mrs. Stewart was quickly known for her thoughtfulness, stories for every occasion, community spirit, colorful make up and dress.

She let it be known that Mr. Stewart was an intellectual of international renown, and at a very young age had decided to devote his life to study and writing papers. It has long been long assumed that Mr. Stewart was really Geoffrey Rankin, the never seen Pulitzer Prize winning author of biographies of the Transcendentalists.

Mr. Rankin's publisher will neither confirm nor deny that. Mrs. Stewart's eyes seem to light up as she half smiles and says: "think what you wish"

Ian, 38 and Ronald 35, live in LA where they co-write and produce "Trevor," the HBO mega hit about a man from the nineteenth century who time travels into the 21st Century to solve crimes using the guidance of ancient scholars. They have always acknowledged that the character was based on their father. They issued a statement through their production company stating how honored they were to be the sons of such a marvelous enigma.

The statement read that they were unwilling to discuss their father further as they have been too deeply affected by their gentle father's heinous murder.

Emma Stewart, 36, the actress is in seclusion with her husband Len Denton, the actor and their three children: Isabella, 13, Noah,10 and Katie, 3. Mr. Denton asked that their privacy be respected.

The Mayor of Wilton, Frank Skye said that no words can express the sadness he feels at the tragic death of his old friend by Dr. George Gray. Mayor Skye's police statement reads: We were having our weekly argument on "What is truth," when Dr. Gray snorted: "I can't take this farce anymore, took an old pistol out of his pants pocket and shot Mr. Stewart once through the head. Dr. Gray then shot himself.

Dr. Gray remains in a coma and his wife Betsy Gray refuses to speak to anybody until her husband regains consciousness.

The Coroner issued a statement saying it was known that Dr. Gray suffered a series of small strokes some months ago, and was probably in the gripe of another when the murder occurred. The District Attorney issued a statement saying that Dr. Gray's statement was probably meaningless, though it will be looked into.

The last murder in Andover occurred in 1830.

We are saddened by this murder. Though Mr. Stewart rarely ventured out, he was very much a part of Andover. W

ith just a few questions, and some statements he could solve complex problems. As his neighbor, Lacey Harmon, 42, said: "When I moved to Wilton Street, I stopped going to my therapist. I no longer looked for answers through religion, or any of the usual methods. Mr. Stewart enabled both my husband and myself to live fuller richer lives."

A Memorial Service was held this afternoon at Town Hall. Mrs. Stewart was unable to come and left no statement.

Allan Stewart's influence will be known forever in Andover. Mr. Stewart's monthly column in The Andover Times, Reflections, can be found on the Internet. While normally it gets hundreds of thousands of hits a month, our server broke down under the weight of many million the last three days.

While we would like to unravel the mystery of his early years, and understand what work he really did, we take great pleasure in having known such a marvelous enigma.

Strangely every picture of Mr. Stewart appears to have been taken in the nineteenth century. Most people in Andover find this reassuring.

Perhaps Becky Harmon, 18, summed it best when she said: "every great town needs a great thinker from another era."