Villisca Axe Murders House

 

Location: 508 E. 2nd Str., Villisca, Iowa  Map

Official site

 

History of Villisca Axe Murders House

Villisca Axe Murders House in Villisca, Iowa is a famous site of a gruesome murder of the whole family that occurred here on June 10, 1912. It is one of most famous cold cases of mass murder in an American history. Despite lengthy investigation and many suspects the killer (or killers) of a Moore family and two Stillinger girls was not discovered. The house was constructed in 1868 and in 1903 Josiah and Sarah Moore moved here to expand their family.

 

The story of Villisca Axe Murders started on June 9th. Moore was a good and well- liked family in their community. Those who remember them say that their parents loved each other and took good care about their kids. A day before that faithful day parents of the family, Josiah or Joe (aged 43) and Sarah (aged 39) took their four children to Presbyterian church where they participated in the Children's Day Program. They celebrated end of the school year. Sarah Moore coordinated the program. This included Herman (aged 11), Katherine (10), Boyd (7) and Paul (5). It ended around 9:30 and families started to leave. Katherine Moore invited her two friends over their house. This included Lena (aged 12) and Ina (aged 8) Stillinger.

 

       

                                 Herman                   Katherine                    Boyd                            Paul

We don't know what happened during night of June 9th and 10th, but at 7am the next morning Moore's neighbor Mary Peckham started to worry when she didn't see kids or any of the family members outside. She went over and knocked on a door. It was locked. Mary called Ross Moore, brother of Josiah Moore over to their house. He opened the door and went on investigation, while Mary stood outside. In the guest bedroom he discovered bludgeoned bodies of Stillinger sisters. Moore told Peckham to get peace officer, Henry "Hank" Horton. The murder weapon, an ax, was discovered near bodies of the Lena and Ina Stillinger. It turned out it belonged to a Moore family. Next to it Horton discovered a four pound piece of slab bacon leaning against the wall.
 
Medical autopsy concluded that the killing in Villisca Axe Murders House started somewhere after midnight when the whole family went to sleep. The killer or possibly killers started with a master bedroom of parents. Both Josiah and Sarah were killed while they slept. Josiah Moore got most of the blows. His face was completely mauled and his eyes were completely missing. Some suggested it might have been either due to extreme personal hate of a man or simply done by a scared person, who felt that the man of the house was the major threat. Whatever might be the case the murderer was swinging his axe wildly. He managed to hit the ceiling above the bed as he was dealing terrible blows on his victims.
 
From that point murders of the kids were systematic and horrific. They all were killed with 20 to 30 blows to the head. The killer also left some deep gauge marks on the walls and ceiling above beds of children as he tried to get maximum momentum for his blows. It seems that none of them woke up or realized what happened. The last people to be killed in the Moore household were Stillinger sisters. Lena it seems woke up to the noise of the outsiders in her room. She probably even tried to fight whoever came in to her room. Her body was found lying crosswise across the bed with her arms covered by wounds, which allowed detectives to suggest that she tried to defend herself with her arms as a killer was hitting her with an ax. Additionally her nightgown was pushed up to her waist and undergarments were missing. This lead to believe that the killer tried to rape little girl before killing her, but failed to do so. A part of the chain was also discovered nearby. It is believed to belong to a murderer who left it accidentally during struggle.

The case took everyone by surprise. No one ever heard of such violence toward the whole family. Bodies were disfigured, their faces gone. The whole scene appeared surreal to anyone who entered this house. Additionally, there were several oddities that were discovered around the house. In the kitchen a half eaten meal was discovered. A pan with bloody water stood next to it. A front room had its bed done for someone who was supposed to sleep here but didn't. A burning lamp with the chimney off was left at the master bedroom and in the guest room. Additionally, all the curtains on the windows were drawn. Two windows that didn't have curtains were simply covered by clothes of the family. All the mirrors were also covered with linens found in the closet. We still can't figure out whether it was a signature of a killer or was it simply an act of superstition. Many culture believe that all mirrors should be covered in a house of a recently deceased person. Faces of the victims were also draped by clothes. And to make thing particularly confusing for the police, all doors in the house were closed. We have no idea how the killer left the house after he committed these terrible crimes.

 

Testimonies

After the murder, many witnesses contacted the police, saying they saw strange things happening around noon and in the evening of the murder.

Mary Peckham
Neighbor Mary Peckham was the first to be questioned by police. She stated that she last saw the Moores on the evening of June 9 on their way to church. That night Mary went to bed at 8:00 p.m. When asked if she had heard any unusual noises during the night, she said she had neither heard nor seen anyone. The next morning, when she was done doing her laundry, she knocked on the Moores' front door. Receiving no reply, she fed the Moores' chickens. Mary thought Josiah was at his own store so she called there. Ed Selly, an associate of Josiah, stated that Josiah was not in the store. So Mary called Ross Moore, who came a little later, the first to enter the house and discover the bodies.

Ed Selly
Ed Selly was working in Josiah Moore's store on the day of discovery. He testified that he got two calls from Mary that morning. First she called to inquire about Josiah. On the second call, she told them about the murder and that Ed should call the police. During his interrogation, Ed also reported a man named Sam Moyer. Sam Moyer was Josiah Moore's brother-in-law. Josiah and Sam didn't have a good relationship, and Josiah told him he felt threatened by Moyer.

Edward Landers
Edward Landers came to Villisca with his wife and children in the summer to visit his mother. His mother lived only a few houses away from the Moores. At around 10:15 am on June 9, he saw two unidentified men on the street, who disappeared after a while. The first was of strong build, the second man was shorter and had a moustache. When Edward Landers went for a walk with his wife, they are said to have seen the son of businessman and Senator Frank Fernando Jones, who was one of the suspects during the investigation, at around 8:00 p.m. That night, Landers went to sleep around 9:00 p.m. At 11:00 p.m., he woke up again from hearing noises for a long time. But he couldn't tell where the noise was coming from. It wasn't until he heard about the murders the next morning that he thought the noises sounded like those of a woman screaming.

Alice Willard
Alice Willard was divorced and living with her father, who lived not far from the Moores. She testified that on June 9, she saw two strange men at the Moores'. In the evening of the same day she went for a walk with Ed McCrae and again saw the two strange men, but this time accompanied by two other men. One of them is said to have been Frank Fernando Jones. She heard one of the men say to go after Josiah first and then the rest is easy. Investigators could not find a person named Ed McCrae to testify.

 

Burial of the Victims

Suspects

There were several suspects in the case of these horrific murders. Below are just few names that were under suspicion.

 

Reverend George Kelly

Kelly, an English vicar who was traveling through the Midwest, was in Villisca on the night of the crime. Kelly suffered a nervous breakdown in his youth, was described by outsiders as a "peculiar character" and had been accused of voyeurism on several occasions. The Presbyterian Church held a Children's Day every second Sunday in June. In Villisca, on June 9, 1912, Kelly officiated at Children's Day, which the Moore family also attended. Kelly left Villisca at approximately 5:00 the next morning. After the murders, he showed a keen interest in the investigation and wrote several letters to the police. A private investigator found this behavior odd and asked Kelly to tell him more details about the murder. Kelly then replied that he was walking the night of the murder and heard noises, maybe even witnessed the murder. Because Kelly's mental illness was known to authorities, he was not initially suspected. In 1914, Kelly was arrested for sexual molestation and then committed to St. Elizabeth's Hospital, a psychiatric hospital. Police arrested and interrogated Kelly in 1917 on charges of murder. During interrogation he confessed to the murder. He said he slept very badly that night and wanted to stretch his legs. When he arrived at the church, a "voice" told him to leave the church and follow a shadow. Kelly followed the shadow that is said to have led him to the Moores. The "Voice" ordered him to murder the Moores. He took an ax from the Moores' shed and went in through the back door. First he murdered the four children upstairs, but the voice commanded there was more to do. He therefore murdered Josiah and Sarah Moore. Afterwards he was so tired that he went down the stairs and wanted to sleep. In the guest room he then found Lena and Ina Stillinger, whom he also murdered because the "voice" ordered it. Finally, he covered all the bodies and left the city at dawn. He later retracted the confession. The first trial ended in a hung jury. The second trial eventually ended in Kelly's acquittal.

 

Senator Frank F. Jones

Frank Jones a resident of Villisca and also served as an Iowa State Senator. Josiah Moore had worker for Frank Jones for several years. Eventually he quit and started his own business. It was said at the time that new business of Josiah Moore basically forced Frank Jones out of business. Another rumour tied the head of the Moore family to Jones' daughter- in- law, Dona. However these allegations were dismissed for the lack of any clear evidence. Even thought Frank Jones had means and a motif to kill Josiah it is somewhat strange that senator would go as far as kill the rest of the family including innocent children.

 

William “Blackie” Mansfield

Mansfield (also known by the aliases George Worley and Jack Turnbaugh) was a criminal accused of murdering his wife and child, father, and mother-in-law with an ax in Blue Island, Illinois two years after the Villisca murder. However, there was insufficient evidence to convict him. Mansfield is said to have been hired by Frank Fernando Jones and his son to kill the Moores because they were competition for Jones. Since Mansfield's fingerprints were taken at the Fort Leavenworth Military Penitentiary, investigators assumed he was wearing gloves when he killed. In 1916, Mansfield was arrested for the Villisca murder, but was able to provide an alibi for the night of the crime. During interrogation, restaurant owner R.H. Thorpe had claimed that Mansfield was in Villisca. He remembers that he is said to have said to him that he had just come from this town.

 

Andrew Sawyer

According to Thomas Dyler, a construction worker, Sawyer arrived in Creston on June 10, the day of discovery. He was wearing a brown suit, his shoes were covered in mud and his pants were wet to the knees. In Creston, Sawyer asked for a job and Dyler hired him. Dyler stated that Sawyer took a keen interest in the murder. Sawyer would have researched the murder meticulously and developed dozens of theories as to who the killer might be. In those days he always went to bed in his clothes and was nervous, almost worried. Dyler's son also stated that Sawyer was acting strangely. As he and Sawyer drove through Villisca together, Sawyer was keen to show him how the killer got out of town. Sawyer said the perpetrator crossed the tracks, in fact, footprints were found there at the time. Sawyer was later arrested by a sheriff. The reason for the arrest was that Sawyer allegedly admitted to Thomas Dyler that he was in Villisca the night of the crime. Fearing suspicion, he fled to Creston. Dyler stated that shortly before the arrest, Sawyer was talking to himself, saying, among other things, "I will cut your god damn heads off" while mimicking ax blows. Ultimately, during interrogation, Sawyer stated that he was in Osceola, Iowa, on the night of the crime. The Osceola sheriff was able to confirm this because he arrested Sawyer for vagrancy.

 

Sam Moyer

Moyer was Josiah Moore's brother-in-law and is said to have repeatedly threatened him. During the course of the investigation, Moyer was able to provide an alibi and was therefore no longer considered a suspect.

 

More suspects

A witness came forward and said she was being questioned about the Moores' home by a stranger. Joe Ricks, a train passenger with bloodstains on his shoes, was pulled over by police after the murder and taken away. However, the woman was able to confirm that Ricks was not the man who had questioned her.

An Oklahoma City minister claimed in 1913 that a man on his deathbed admitted to the murder.

Leroy Robinson (aka George Meyers) confessed to the 1931 Villisca murder while in Detroit prison. He stated that a Kansas City man offered him $5,000 for the murder. The man, whose name he did not know, bore no resemblance to either George Kelly or Frank Fernando Jones. When Robinson accepted the offer, he was driven all the way to Villisca. Once there, the driver showed him the house. Around midnight he got out of the car, got an ax from the man and murdered the Moores. However, Robinson insisted that he only murdered the Moore family and not the Stillinger children. Ultimately, he was not charged.

 

Similar acts

Before the Villisca murder, there were a number of similar murders in the American Midwest. On September 17, 1911, there was a murder in Colorado Springs that bore close parallels to the Villisca murder. Four people were murdered with an ax and the windows were covered with clothing and linens. The ax was found thoroughly cleaned at the crime scene. Two weeks later, William Dawson, his wife and their daughter were murdered and covered with sheets in Illinois. On October 15, in Ellsworth, Kansas, Will Showman, his wife, and three children were murdered with an ax while they were sleeping. The murder weapon was washed and the bodies were covered. Four days before the Villisca murder, there was another similar murder in Paola, Kansas. Rolland and Anna Hudson were found murdered in their bed, the weapon used was an axe.

 

Haunting in Villisca Axe Murders House

The house changed hands several times after the murder. In 1994 Darwin and Martha Linn purchased this location and removed all modern additions including plumbing and electricity. Furniture, personal items and other possessions from the time period were brought in to keep an atmosphere of an American house in the early 20th century. Many people who visited this house claim to experience paranormal activity. They hear footsteps, shadow figures, strange gusts of cold wind and other signs of presence of supernatural forces. In some rear cases people reported attacks by an unseen force that left marks on people's skin without damage to the clothes themselves. Many people reported strange feeling in the attic of the house. This gave room to speculation that the murderer came to the house on June 9th before the family returned from their church at 10pm. Here he waited till the family will fall asleep until he began killing them.