It was a very normal, very boring night when eight people, six of them kids, were brutally bludgeoned to death while they peacefully slept in their Iowa home. June 10, 1912 is a day that brutally changed Iowa history forever. The Villisca Axe Murder House is still a very popular tourist attraction and a hotspot for paranormal activity. 1912 was a very bad year for America. The main event on all of the front pages in the papers was the sinking of the Titanic, but this tragic event that happened in this little Iowa farm town took that off the front pages for a few weeks. (Ghost Adventures Episode) Villisca, like many other midwest towns, thrived on agriculture and animal products. With a population 1,252 in 1912, it is no New York. But a tragic …show more content…
event soiled the good reputation of this friendly town forever. (Villisca Ax Murders) The victims of these untimely and tragic murder were very well-liked people in there community and had few enemies.
The Moore family, who owned this residence, consisted of parents Josiah and Sarah and four children Herman (8), Paul (6), Boyd (4) and Catherine (7). Friends of Catherine, Lena and Ina Stillinger were staying over the night of the killings because Catherine invited them to earlier that night. (Villisca Ax Murder House) A few hours before the murders, the Moore family and the Stillenger girls were at an evening service at the church. The Moore’s were always active in the church. The kids would read sermons and the parents were serving deacons. That night a traveling preacher, George Kelly, was reported acting very strange around the Moore’s. After the Moore’s returned, they ate dinner and went to bed. The two Stillenger girls slept in the downstairs guest bedroom. Sometime between midnight and 3:00, the killer emerged from the guest bedroom closet with Josiah Moore’s axe and went straight up stairs. First, he hit Josiah twenty to thirty times with the blade of the axe. He was hit so many times that his eyes were missing. Then he murdered Sarah by hitting her just as many times with the blunt end of the
axe. He then went into the children's room were he murdered Herman, Catherine, Paul, and Boyd in that order hitting them all twenty to thirty times with the blunt of the axe. After killing the children he went back and delivered more blows to Josiah then went down the stairs to get rid of the Stillenger girls. He bludgeoned Ina to death, again hitting her twenty to thirty times with the blunt, and then moved on to Lena who was believed to be awake at the time due of several defense wounds on her knees and arms. (Villisca Axe Murders) Sometime near 9:00 a.m, the next door neighbor, Mary Peckham, became worried when the Moore’s didn’t come out to do their morning chores. She went over and knocked on the front door, found it locked, and moved on to the back door. The back door was also locked. She then telephoned Ross Moore, Josiah's brother, and he unlocked the back door with is copy of the house key. Ross went in while Mary waited on the porch. Once inside the house, Ross noticed that all of the mirrors and windows were covered and that there was a pan of bloody water on the kitchen table. He went to the guest bedroom door, opened it, and found the bodies of Lena and Ina. He immediately left the house and told Mary to telephone the local police chief, Hank Norton, telling Mary that, “Something terrible has happened.” (Villisca Axe Murders) Norton arrived shortly after and discovered the rest of the bodies. He also discovered a “bizarre” crime scene. First he noticed the pan of bloody water and a plate of uneaten food on the kitchen table. All of the mirrors and windows were covered with blankets and clothes belonged to the Moore’s. A slab of bacon and a lantern was found on the guest bedroom floor along with the murder weapon itself. The ceilings of the rooms had axe marks in them from the upswing of the axe. Many suspects were tried, but none were convicted. The most famous was a traveling preacher, George Kelly. It was said that he was mentally unstable and was apparently a “peeping tom”. He had acted strangely around the Moore’s that night at church. He even actually confessed to being the murderer saying God to him to “Suffer the children to come unto me.” But he was never arrested. Another suspect was Andrew Sawyer. According to some men, Andrew showed much interest in the murders when they came to the papers. He was reported sleeping with an axe and muttering things in his sleep like, “I will cut your heads off”, and making swinging motions. He told many coworkers he was in Villisca the night of the murder. Frank Jones was a resident of Villisca and served on the Iowa Senate. Josiah Moore had worked for him and supposedly had an affair with his daughter. Since Frank Jones was very wealthy, the rumor was that he hired somebody to do his dirty deeds. The name that arose was William Mansfield. He had murdered his wife and daughter in the passed year and was wanted for many other murders. Henry Lee Moore (no relation) was a murderer around the Villisca area. His weapon of choice was always an axe. Sam Moyer was Joeiah's brother-in-law and threatened to kill him multiple times. (Villisca Axe Murders) Now the house is open for tours and you and a few brave friends can spend the night there for only $200. The house is supposedly haunted and has been on many shows such as Ghost Adventures.
Growing up in a small town you would never expect for a family to get murdered. Many people have the perception that in a small-town things, never happen. Well I’m sure that’s what Herbert and Bonnie Clutter thought to until the night of their death. Herbert and Bonnie Clutter lived in Holcomb, Kansas with their two kids Nancy and Kenyon on their family farm. The Clutter family was very respected within the community and in Garden City. Herbert was also a very respected employer. The Clutter family lived a very disciplined but still enjoyable and well provided for.
The weapon that was used to kill Lizzie Borden’s parents was a axe. (Chrissy Teigen)Lizzie Borden was 32 when she killed her parents. Lizzie Borden didn’t have any kids of her own. Lizzie Borden was arrested in 1892. What the crime scene was like there was Lots of blood, her dad was found on a couch, and the step mom was in her bed upstairs. (More About Lizzie Borden)The Bordens were a wealthy family, Andrew Borden a highly successful businessman in real estate and manufacturing. The crime,spawned a trial that became a landmark in the annals of American crime and in the development of the American mass media. This was about the patterns in the victims of Lizzie Borden’s parents. (How The life of the Bordens Were Like)Borden's possible involvement in the murders was one of the first celebrated cases investigated with the help of modern forensic methods. Borden was acquitted of the crime, and debate over who killed Andrew J. Borden and Abby Durfee Gray Borden generated a vein of publishing activity that has proven enduringly profitable. The debate continues to this day. (more on the murder of Andrew and Abby Borden)Borden’s parents got killed on August 4, 1892. The weapon that was used to kill Lizzie Borden’s parents was a axe. (Chrissy Teigen)Lizzie Borden was 32 when she killed her parents. Lizzie Borden didn’t have any kids of her own. Lizzie Borden was arrested in 1892. What the crime scene was like there was Lots of blood,
On the morning of August 4th, Andrew and Abby Borden were brutally murdered in their home with an axe or a hatchet. During her inquest testimony, Lizzie claimed that she had left her father lying on the sofa and gone out to the barn to look for lead for a sinker to go fishing with(even though she also shared that she hadn't gone fishing for almost five years). Bridget, the maid, was outside washing windows at the time and was the only other person at the Borden residence. Emma had b...
On a hot morning on august 4, 1892, Mr. Andrew Borden and his wife, Abby Borden, were brutally murdered. A daughter of the victims, Lizzie Borden was arrested, tried and acquitted of the crime. “ She was a woman of spotless character and reputation, and more than that she was educated, refined and prominently connected with the work of the Christian church in the Fall River”(Gates 2).The town and the country were divided in their opinions of who could commit such horrifying murders. Many theories have been made to explain that day; the finger has been pointed in every direction- even a Chinese Sunday school student of Lizzies. To this day people are unsure as to weather or not Lizzie brutally murdered her parents.
The book Murder in the Bayou: Who Killed the Women Known as the Jeff Davis 8?, written by independent journalist and private investigator Ethan Brown, tells the horrific true story of the bayou town of Jennings, Louisiana located in the heart of the Jefferson Davis parish. During the four year duration between 2005 and 2009, the town of Jennings was on edge after the discovery of the bodies of eight murdered women were found in the filthy canals and swamps. The victims became known as the “Jeff Davis 8.” For years, local law enforcement suspected a serial killer, and solely investigated the murders based on that theory alone. The victims were murdered in varying manors, but when alive they all shared many commonalities and were connected to
Tragedy hit the docks of Everett, Washington, Sunday November 5, 1916 which would be known as “Bloody Sunday.” On November 5, 1916 the Everett Massacre was the culmination of labor trouble which had been brewing for months. It was one of the bloodiest single episodes of labor-related violence in the Pacific Northwest.
On a Sunday morning, Richard Allen and Absalom Jones attended church at St. George’s Church. Jones was asked by one of the trustees to not kneel during prayer, but Jones asked to wait until the prayer was over. But Jones was not given the chance to finish the prayer, and soon another man came to remove him from the church. Being denied the opportunity to worship, Jones, Allen, and other African American members of the church walked out before the prayer was finished. Allen and Jones had been ejected from the church.
The sentencing of underage criminals has remained a logistical and moral issue in the world for a very long time. The issue is brought to our perspective in the documentary Making a Murderer and the audio podcast Serial. When trying to overcome this issue, we ask ourselves, “When should juveniles receive life sentences?” or “Should young inmates be housed with adults?” or “Was the Supreme Court right to make it illegal to sentence a minor to death?”. There are multiple answers to these questions, and it’s necessary to either take a moral or logical approach to the problem.
A young couple, Joseph and Catherine Maggio, were the axeman’s first victims in nearly a decade, and this was the beginning of another killing spree. In the middle of the night on May 22, 1918, Jake and Andrew Maggio were sleeping in their rooms until Jake heard loud groaning echoing from his neighbor's house, also his brother, Joseph’s house (New Orleans). Then, the two brothers went to go check on their brother, and what caught their eye was a panel removed from the door, which wasn’t removed when they were there for dinner the night before. After they saw the panel removed, they walked cautiously into Joseph’s room and were astonished to find blood everywhere, with Catherine’s lifeless body draped over their brother, who was still hanging on to his dear life. Joseph died moments later from the gashes to his head from the axeman and his axe.
Construction of Holmes’s World’s Fair Hotel, or better known as “The Murder Castle” in modern times, began in 1890. The building consisted of over 60 rooms and 51 oddly cut doors. By Holmes’s request, new construction workers were brought in each week so no one would know the exact layout besides him, and he refused to pay for any of the labor or materials used. Holmes used his intelligence and carefully contemplated every action to make sure it would be virtually impossible for anyone to catch him. In the top two floors of the 162 by 50 foot three story hotel there were trap doors, asphyxiation chambers, and blowtorches in the walls to torture and kill the people working in and staying at the hotel and a dissection table, crematory, and
“Simon Beamon testifies, that about the time the witches were apprehended to be sent to Boston, Mr. Moxon's children were taken ill in their fits… and at the same time was Mary Parsons, the wife of Joseph Parsons, and others taken with the like fits, so that they were all carried out of the meeting it being Sabbath day, as Mr. Moxon's children acted so did Mary Parsons the wife of Joseph Parsons, just all one … and I could discern no difference in their fits[.] And once I carried Mary Parsons home to the Long M...
What drives a person past insanity? What drives an individual to feel no remorse, but rather a psychological relief in murderous acts? Consider all the different types of people on Earth as well as the lifestyles and situations these people are raised up in. As much as it’s desired to think the world is filled with people who carry no such thing as a bad bone in their bodies, that thought process is simple deception. The fact is that psychopaths and sociopaths hide among others in everyday environments - neighbors, teachers, family members, doctors, friends, or even the local mailman. Psychopaths are declared as people who suffer from a mental disorder causing aggression and abnormal behaviors such as their “lack of
Lee (her son), Ruth (his wife), Travis (their son), and Beneatha (Walters). younger sister). The younger family lived in poor conditions, and can't. afford to have better living standards. However, Lena is waiting to receive a $10,000 check from her late husband's insurance company.
Jack the Ripper, the Zodiac Killer, Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Son of Sam, the BTK Killer. The names and assumed names of these cold-blooded serial killers are forever branded into the cognizance of people everywhere. This is mainly due to the mass media coverage, including newspapers, movies, television specials and books. This media coverage brought to light that these killers were, on the surface, normal, successful, attractive, productive members of society – that is, until the time that their heinous crimes came to be discovered.
Michael Sanders, a Professor at Harvard University, gave a lecture titled “Justice: What’s The Right Thing To Do? The Moral Side of Murder” to nearly a thousand student’s in attendance. The lecture touched on two contrasting philosophies of morality. The first philosophy of morality discussed in the lecture is called Consequentialism. This is the view that "the consequences of one 's conduct are the ultimate basis for any judgment about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct.” (Consequentialism) This type of moral thinking became known as utilitarianism and was formulated by Jeremy Bentham who basically argues that the most moral thing to do is to bring the greatest amount of happiness to the greatest number of people possible.