VILLISCA

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A quick note before we dive into today's historic true
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crime story. The following episode details a high-profile cold case
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involving severe violence and harm to minors. Listener discretion is advised. Villisca,
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Iowa is a small, peaceful town of approximately 1,200 people today.
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But on the night of Sunday, June 9th, 1912, the
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town became associated with a nightmarish event that marred its
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peaceful reputation, and for many people, etched the town's name
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into true crime history forever. I'm John Lorden, and this
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is the Seriously Mysterious Case The Moore residence was home
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to Josiah, his wife Sarah, and their four children. The
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small country home was full of the laughter and shenanigans
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of the young children, Herman, Mary, Arthur, and Paul. Herman
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was the oldest at 11, and Paul was the youngest
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at 5. On that evening, the family had attended their
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church for a Children's Day event. and 10-year-old Mary Moore
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invited her two friends, Lena and Ina Stillinger, to the
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Moore home for a sleepover. The event went into the night,
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and the Moores, with their two guests in tow, arrived
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at the house around 10 p.m. It had been a
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long and enjoyable day, and everyone bedded down for the night.
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As it is often said of such small villages and
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times of supposed innocence, locking doors and windows at night
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was not a common practice. On Monday morning, an elderly neighbor,
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Mary Peckham, noticed that the Moore house was particularly quiet.
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She could hear none of the routine commotion, usually of
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the Moore children's voices. Curious, she decided to walk over
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to the house. The closer she got, the more surprising
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it was that she could still hear nothing, except for
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the sounds of anxious animals inside the chicken coop. Mary
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thought that it was odd that no one had tended
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to the livestock yet. She knocked on the door. There
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was no reply, no voices or stirrings from within. Mary
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tried opening the front door, but found it locked, which
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was out of the ordinary. She then let the Moore's
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chickens free to roam and feed, and she returned to
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her house. There she called Ross Moore, Josiah's brother. When
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he arrived at approximately 8 a.m., he noticed that the
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windows were covered with sheets, making it impossible to see inside.
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Ross used a key to open the front door, and
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he called out, The interior was eerily calm. He stepped
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inside and began searching. The sheets covering the windows blocked
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out a lot of the morning light. He noticed a
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plate of food sitting on the dining room table. Ross
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walked past mirrors that adorned the hallway, noting that clothing
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and other sheets were hung from the frames to block
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the mirror's reflections. Ross was no doubt becoming more concerned
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when he discovered a horrible scene. In the first-floor guest bedroom,
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he found the bloodied forms of Lena and Ina Stillinger,
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partially covered in the sheets. Ross immediately retreated from the
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house and called Marshal Henry Horton. When Horton arrived, he
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followed in Ross' footsteps, discovering the Stillinger girls and a
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bloody axe leaning against a wall. Marshal Horton went up
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the stairs and discovered the bodies of the Moore children
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in their shared bedrooms. Horton pushed on to the master bedroom,
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where he found Josiah and Sarah in their bed, also slain.
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It appeared that Josiah had taken the first blows to
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the head, however the killer had not been satisfied with that.
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Josiah's corpse had been repeatedly struck with the axe at
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least 30 times. Further, marks on the ceiling above the
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bed indicated that the murderer lifted the axe high on
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the upswing. It appeared that Sarah tried to block an
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incoming strike with her arm, but It was a hit
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with the flat side of the axe to her head
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that likely killed her. Likewise, the children in the house
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had also taken hits from the axe's flat end. That
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axe was Josiah's very own. He often used it to
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cut wood for the fireplace and the stove. How is
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it that no one awakened during this onslaught that moved
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through multiple rooms? Why didn't Lena and Ina awaken and escape?
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Further investigations conducted in the Mora home retraced the murderer's steps.
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It seemed like an unplanned attack. Josiah's axe had been
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left outside, and an oil lamp was picked up from
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its usual place near the front door, used to light
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the killer's way. The lamp was left behind and covered
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in bloody fingerprints. It seemed that the meal found on
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the dining room table had only been partially eaten, and
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probably by the killer. Some bacon had been taken out
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of the icebox, was wrapped in a towel, and dropped
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onto the floor of the guest bedroom where the Stillinger
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girls had been slain. The coroner and his men took
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away the eight bodies, and the empty Moore residence was
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left unguarded, allowing onlookers, the Moores, neighbors, and other residents
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to enter and take a look at the bloody remnants. This,
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of course, tainted the fingerprints taken by police detectives when
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they finally arrived sometime later, So overrun was the crime
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scene that local members of the National Guard were sent
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to stand guard and keep the constant flow of visitors
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out of the house. Bloodhounds were used to take the
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scent left on the axe handle and to try to
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trace the murderer's escape. They were only able to track
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the scent to the Nottoway River, and they couldn't pick
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it up on the other side. Josiah Moore was a
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successful proprietor of farming tools and implements. The Moore family
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as a whole was prominent in the area, and some
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of the men that had married Josiah's sisters became suspects.
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On June 11th, two suspicious characters were observed in New Market,
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Iowa by constables. They were suspected of carrying firearms, and
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they were followed to a train station where they were
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seen boarding and then leaving town. While investigators pored over
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the scene at the Moore residence time and time again,
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They hypothesized that some sort of anesthesia must have been
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administered as the killer made his way upstairs. However, the coroner, Dr. A.L. Lindquist,
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found no traces of any substance. It was noted that
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Lena Stillinger's body showed signs that she had awakened during
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the attack, as she was found strewn across the bed
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face down. One of her arms also displayed a defensive wound,
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and she had been partially disrobed, leading them to believe
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that she may have been sexually assaulted, but this had
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not been proven. Quite quickly, similarities between the Moore murder
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and a crime scene in Abilene, Kansas, which had occurred
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on March 9th of that same year, were noticed. as
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well as similarities to yet another multiple murder scene in
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Colorado Springs back in September of 1911. Nonetheless, the idea
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that the murderer was still in or near Villisca inspired
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authorities to round up groups of men to form a
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posse reminiscent of the days of the Old West and
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send them around to search for anyone suspicious-looking. Just as
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archaic as it sounds, it proved to turn up nothing
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of consequence to the actual investigation merely resulting in the
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hassling and release of numerous formerly convicted criminals. Oddly enough,
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one of the early suspects of the Moore family massacre
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was a business rival of Josiah Moore's, who happened to
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also be a state senator. Frank Jones was interviewed by
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detectives for his potential links to the Moore family. As
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it turned out, Josiah had worked for Jones as a
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top salesman of farm equipment before leaving Jones' company and
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starting his own business in direct competition to Jones' outfit.
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It's said that a bitter rivalry formed, to the point
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that Jones and Moore would put a wide berth between
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themselves if they ever encountered each other in public. The
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debate amongst the people of Villisca and the surrounding towns
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was split. Did Frank Jones bear enough hatred for his
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former employee that he would visit the man in the
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night and wipe out the entire Moore family plus guests?
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A surprising number of people supported that thought. However, Jones
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was 57 years old at the time, and many doubted
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that he would do it himself. A private investigator by
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the name of James Wilkerson was convinced that Jones had
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hired a hitman. He tracked down a suspected axe murderer,
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William Mansfield, who had been accused of murdering his entire
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family with an axe. Mansfield escaped conviction for those killings. However,
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Wilkerson's accusations took him all the way to another trial. There,
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the accusations were dismissed when Mansfield produced an alibi, including
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timesheets from his employer showing that he was hundreds of
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miles away at the time. In the coming weeks and months,
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several men were arrested on the suspicion of the murders.
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A black man living in Sioux City, Iowa, was taken
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into custody in early July. Approximately a week later, a
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telegraph linesman, Otto Machusik, was also accused. December of 1912,
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a farmer by the name of Lou Van Alstyne was
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arrested for the axe massacre. In all of these cases,
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there was no evidence uncovered and the men were all
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all eventually released. However, one likely suspect, at least from
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the perspective of the locals, was a stranger that had
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arrived in Villisca on the day of June 9th to
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participate in the Children's Day event that had been attended
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by the Moore family. This man was a traveling minister
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who or so he proclaimed. Lynn George Jacqueline Kelly was
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known for experiencing mental health issues as an adolescent. He
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had also been accused many times over the years of
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being a peeping Tom and for approaching young women, asking
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them to pose for nude photographs. He was also known
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throughout the state of Iowa for mailing illicit and suggestive
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letters to women. Kelly was actually married and traveled with
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his wife from town to town, usually by train, As
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the story goes, Reverend Lynn George Kelly boarded a train
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leaving Villisca at approximately 5.30 on the morning of the
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10th and spoke to an elderly couple already on the
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train of the terrible tragedy that had occurred in the town.
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It's important to restate that the bodies were not discovered
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until well past 8 a.m. on that day. While this
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conversation cannot be confirmed and may only be a creation
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of folklore, it is compelling. However, it's been said that
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a dry cleaner in Iowa received a bag of bloody
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clothes from Kelly some days after the murder. It seems
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unbelievable that the man would keep the ruined clothes after
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such a massacre. Even more incredible, in the weeks following
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the axe murders, detectives were visiting the scene of the crime,
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taking other visiting detectives on a tour of the house
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to give them all the facts of the ongoing case.
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One of these men is said to have passed himself
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off as an Inspector Kelly from Scotland Yard. Lynn George
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Jacqueline Kelly had indeed been born in England and was
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apparently able to pull off this charade for a time.
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He remained a person of interest until his arrest in
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1917 after he allegedly confessed to carrying out the murders.
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Kelly had also allegedly written many letters to the families
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of the deceased and to the police, indicating much knowledge
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of the murders in the years prior, which kept him
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on the top of that suspect list. Further, investigators had
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come to the conclusion that the Axeman had been left-handed,
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and so was Kelly. He was arraigned in Red Oak, Iowa,
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and held in the county jail for trial. However, Kelly
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then made it clear that he was going to plead
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not guilty to the crimes, and his attorney stated that
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his confession was false. The trial went on, but the
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elderly couple that had stated they spoke to Kelly on
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the train on the morning of the 10th recanted their story. This,
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among other confusion regarding the validity of his confession, led
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to a hung jury not once, but twice in 1917.
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But there's more, literally. Not related to Josiah Moore or
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his family, a known axe murderer by the name of
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Henry Lee Moore was focused upon by the Department of
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Justice's special agent, Matthew McClory. He tied Henry Lee to
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the murders of up to 25 people, including the Moore
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family and the Stillinger girls. McClory stated that Henry Lee
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was released from prison after serving a year for a
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forgery conviction. In December of 1912, Henry Lee murdered his
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grandmother and his mother in Columbia, Missouri, which led to
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his conviction and imprisonment. Henry always professed his innocence even
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after years in prison. Special Agent McClory's accusations are indeed compelling,
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where he stated publicly that Moore was responsible for the
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murders of the Ackerman family in Allentown, Florida, back in
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May of 1906. This almost unbelievable crime wiped out a
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married couple and their six children, the youngest of which
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was only three months old. Even though the bodies were
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found inside their own home, which had been burned to
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the ground, the evidence showed that each victim was bludgeoned
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prior to the fire. The murder weapon, an axe, was
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found in the ashes. McClory went on to accuse Moore
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of the Burnham-Wayne murders in Colorado Springs in September of 1911.
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In this bizarre case, Mary Alice Burnham and her two
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children were found dead in her home. Later, residing in
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the house directly behind the Burnham residence, the bodies of
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Henry Wayne, his wife Blanche, and their 18-year-old daughter were
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found murdered as well. The next month, McClory claimed that
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Moore traveled to Monmouth, Illinois to where he killed the
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three members of the Dawson family with an axe. A
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short time later, in Ellsworth, Kansas, Moore allegedly axed William Shoman,
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his wife, and three daughters to death. After a short
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break from his killing spree, McClory accused Moore of resuming
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with the axe killings of a Mr. and Mrs. Rowland
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in Paola, Kansas, just days before traveling to Villisca, Iowa,
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to murder the Josiah Moore family and guests. However, none
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of this could be proven. So Henry Lee Moore was
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convicted only of the murders of his mother and grandmother.
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He was sentenced to life, eventually paroled in 1949, and
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died at the age of 88 in September of 1963.
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As for Lynn George Kelly, who dodged the two attempts
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of the prosecution to convict him of the murders, he's
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still suspected by many to be the person responsible. Like
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Henry Lee Moore, Kelly and his wife traveled from one
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place to another, wandering the country by the use of
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the railway. It is quite conceivable that murderers carrying out
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their misdeeds could quickly leave town by hopping a train
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and disappearing. Mrs. Mary Peckham, the elderly woman that had
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alerted Ross Moore to the odd happenings at the Moore
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residence that fateful Monday morning, was so disturbed by the
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crime that she relocated to Bozeman, Montana, and she passed
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away in December of 1912, barely six months after the
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Villisca axe murders. It's said that the horrific crime scene
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drove her to an early grave. Writers Bill James and
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his daughter Rachel McCarthy James wrote a book titled The
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Man from the Train, which points to yet another suspect,
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Paul Mueller. He was a German immigrant that spoke little
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English and was a lumberjack by trade. It's said that
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he was in the employ of Francis and Sarah Newton
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on their farm in West Brookfield, Massachusetts in 1898. when
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he killed the Newtons and their 11-year-old daughter, Ellie, with
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an axe. He stole money from the Newton home and
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took the next train out of town. He was never caught.
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One source says that Mueller, also called Muller by some,
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had also gone under the name of James Dunham, a
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man wanted for the murder of six people in San Jose,
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California in 1896. So, who truly was the man from
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the train the Villisca axe murderer, or Billy the Axeman,
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as some newspapers named the fiend. Was there one or
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even a pair of traveling axe murderers from the late
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1800s through the early 1900s? Certainly there were many men
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traveling the country by train in that period, most of
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them salesmen who likely never committed a crime in their lives.
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Others were businessmen or unemployed people looking for work far
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from home. Was this monster amongst them? Traveling the railways,
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preying on the innocent in the dead of night, and
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soon departing the stunned community by railway, heading to the
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next town, hoping to find their next kill. With the
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case of the Villisca axe murders remaining officially unsolved, and
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the truth now buried in the decades that have passed,
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this is one mystery that will likely remain seriously mysterious.
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Do you have any comments or a case you'd like
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to suggest? You'll find a comment form and case submission
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00:18:04.569 --> 00:18:09.809
link at lordenarts.com. Thank you, The Courier, The Evening Nonpareil,
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The Rockford Register Star, The Daily Review, Rockford Daily Republic, St.
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Louis Post-Dispatch, The Casual Criminalist, Scott on Tape, and Bedtime
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Stories YouTube channels, smithsonianmag.com, factualamerica.com, notesfromthefrontier.com, and Wikipedia for information
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contributing to today's story. This episode was written by Frederick Crook,
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edited by John Lorden and produced by Lorden Arts. If
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you appreciated today's episode, please check out the novel Wraithworks,
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another collaboration between Frederick Crook and myself. It's available in
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00:18:41.339 --> 00:18:44.380
hard copy or audiobook format. You can find more information
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00:18:44.420 --> 00:18:48.640
about Wraithworks at lordenarts.com or by searching for it on Amazon.
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A big thank you to our seriously mysterious financial supporters.
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If you'd like to become one, please visit lordenarts.com where
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you can sign up for Patreon, PayPal, buy merchandise, or
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even just buy us a coffee. But most of all,
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thank you for sharing this time with me today. I'm
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John Lorden. Please join me again next week for another
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case I know you'll find seriously mysterious.