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What drew me most towards this case is that the murderer was never found or convicted. I find cases like this very interesting because it’s like a puzzle and it leaves you questioning who could have committed this crime? I also find this case interesting because the way the house was left after the murders makes me want to figure out what had happened during the murders. I chose this case because I want to find out more details of this very interesting case.

I know that this case was in Villisca, Iowa on June 10, 1912. A family was killed in their own home. A total of 8 people were killed, 6 of which were kids. Two of the kids were friends of one of the daughters that were over for a sleepover. The bodies were all found lying in their beds and all were killed by an ax to the head. The killer oddly had cloth covering all of their faces, mirrors covered with sheets, dinner tables all set with food, and bacon scattered all over the floors. They caught the supposed murderer, a man that was mentally ill. He went to trial twice but was later acquitted.

Cite used:

Castleman, Lora. “5NEWS: Villisca Axe Murders from over 111 Years | 5newsonline.Com.” 5 News Where You Live, 2023, www.5newsonline.com/article/news/crime/true-crime/5news-villisca-axe-murders-111-years-later/527-a904613f-f933-4450-a3e6-2bc284feb970.

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The article claims on June 10, 1912 eight people were killed while sleeping in the Moore’s house. Two of which were the parents Joe and Sarah Moore and their four children, also 2 friends that were over for a sleepover were all murdered. The Murder took place in each of the bedrooms, first starting with Joe and Sarah then moving onto the kids. The next morning neighbors noticed how quiet the house was and decided to check on the Moore family. They then found the bodies of all 8 people and some other disturbing scenes. All of the people who were murdered had their faces covered in cloth as well as all the mirrors in the house too. They found a pound of bacon scattered in the living room and the dining room table set up for a meal. The two main suspects were Frank Jones and Lyn George Jacklin Kelly. Frank Jones was a suspect because he was a rival to the Moore farm equipment business. It was also said that Joe may have been having an affair with Jones' daughter. The second suspect Kelly actually confessed to the murders, he had mental problems as well. Most people didn't believe it was him due to his small physique. He later recanted and the Jury didn’t indict him. Now the Moore house is an attraction  for people to walk through the house.

This source is a reliable source. I know this because the author is a credible author that has also published more articles on other topics. This source is credible because it was published in 2022 and has been updated since. It was probably upgraded when the Moore house became a sightseeing attraction. Lastly, all the information I read in this article lines up to the other articles that I have read about this topic. This one just had more information regarding the suspects.

This article allowed me to better understand the suspects. It focused on the two main suspects of the crime and why neither of them were sentenced for the crime. I learned more about Frank Jones and the history he has with Joe Moore. I also learned more about Kelly and how he only did not get indicted because of his small physique that they didn’t think he was capable of the murder. Although, many signs lead to it being him like the bloody clothes, the left handed, and his mental health issues.

Serena, Katie. “The Gruesome Story of the Unsolved Villisca Axe Murders.” All That’s Interesting, All That’s Interesting, 29 Sept. 2022, allthatsinteresting.com/villisca-axe-murders.

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This article digs deeper into what happened on June 10, 1912, in the Moore family house. They gave more details about the murderer and how he started with the killing in the parent's room and used the backside of the ax only hitting them once in the head. As he made his way around the house he continued to use the back of the ax with only one hit to all of the kids -Herman, Katherine, Boyd, Paul, and their two friends Lena and Ina. After he killed everyone in the home he then went back and continued to strike their head multiple times with the ax. He then covered each head with a cloth and all mirrors in the house. The next morning when the bodies were found, most of the evidence was lost. Due to many curious neighbors going inside the home spreading their fingerprints around the house and even taking a piece of Joe Moore’s skull. Jones was one of the main suspects in the crime due to Jones and Moores's equal hatred for each other. He was brought to court but won because there wasn’t enough physical evidence to indict him. They thought he may have hired someone but the person in question had a solid alibi for the night of the murders. The second suspect was Kelly, a man who said he was in the town while the murders had happened. Many thought he was the murderer because he had a background of mental health issues as well as sex deviance. They did find one of the girls with their underwear pulled off and their nightgown above their waist but no trace of sexual assault. Others thought that it was a serial killer that had many of the same rituals for killing. However, they couldn’t gain enough evidence of any of these suspects to send them to prison.

This is a reliable source because the author of this is credible and has written other similar murder cases like this one. It was published in 2012 by a reliable history magazine. The article did not change the story I have already read about through other articles but only built more detailed information upon the story. All of the information from this source related to the story of the ax murderer and didn't go off-topic. This article hasn’t ever been updated although I think that is normal due to the case of Villisca Ax murder was over 100 years ago and not much new evidence has come to light.

I learned a lot more small details about this case that weren't included in the other articles. This article was much more lengthy and dived deeper into the small details of the case. Some of the things that I learned from this article was that many people came into the house before it was completely investigated and all the evidence was found and taken. This made it more difficult for the murderer to be found. I also learned more about the suspect Kelly and how he may have been watching the Moore family through their barn and that one of the girls' gowns was moved up past their waist and their underwear had been removed.

Magazine, Smithsonian. “The AX Murderer Who Got Away.” Smithsonian.Com, Smithsonian Institution, 8 June 2012, www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-ax-murderer-who-got-away-117037374/.

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This article explained that the murder took place around midnight on June 10, 1912.  The Moore family consisted of 2 parents and 4 kids living in the residence, they also had guests that stayed over which were friends of the daughter. They were killed with an ax that was owned by Josiah Moore, the father, all slashed by the ax beyond recognition. After they were murdered the killer then rummaged through drawers to find clothing to cover the heads of each of the victims. He also covered all the mirrors in the home with cloth. There was also a slab of  bacon left on the floor and food left at the dinner table. The next morning the house seemed very quiet so their neighbor called a relative Ross Moore to go unlock the door and make sure everything was okay. He walked through the house and found dead bodies lying in every room. They then called the Marshal to investigate the scene.

This source is reliable because it was produced by a news article that was written by a published author. The article has also been revised and updated since the publish date.

This article helped me better understand how the bodies were found and that the door was unusually locked when the neighbors came to check on the Moore family. Due to it being such a small town most families and homeowners do not lock their door because they never have any big city crime. I learned that the ax used for the murders was owned by Joe Moore. This will all help me better understand the crime and how it was committed.

Barreda, Virginia. “What to Know on the Anniversary of the 1912 Villisca Ax Murders.” The Des Moines Register, Des Moines Register, 10 June 2022, www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2022/06/09/1912-villisca-ax-murders-what-to-know-iowa-cold-case/7567590001/.

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I found this website that dived deeper into the suspects of the Villisca ax murder. The 4 suspects were Frank Jones, George Kelly, Henry Moore, and Andrew Sawyer. The first was Frank Jones, he was the state senator and was questioned for the murder because of Frank and Joe’s mutual hate for each other. Frank once worked for Joe and then started his own business creating a rivalry between the two men. The second suspect was Reverend George Kelly, who was mentally unbalanced and was teaching at the church’s children's day service that the Moore family was at before their murder. He was also known to be a pedophile. Another suspect was Henry Moore (not related to the Moore family) he killed his mother and grandmother a couple of months after the murder in Viscilla with the weapon ax. The last suspect, Andrew Sawyer, was supposedly mentioned by the ghost in the house after the murders.

This source is reliable because it is a website that you can go to to sign up to see the house. The last suspect listed isn’t reliable because it was not based on facts, just suspicions but, the other suspects line up with the other suspects that I have previously read about.

I learned more about the suspect Henry Moore. I didn’t know he was a possible suspect because it wasn’t mentioned in the previous articles I have read.

“Who Were the Suspects?” The Villisca Axe Murder Of 1912, thevilliscaaxemurder.weebly.com/who-were-the-suspects.html. Accessed 23 Feb. 2024.

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This article states that Josiah owned a farmer equipment store and Sarah Moore, his wife, was a homemaker and was involved in the church. The police were not prepared for a crime like this and most of the evidence was destroyed by curious locals. None of the fingerprints were traceable due to the people who entered the house before the crime scene was analyzed. Frank Jones, William Mansfield, Reverend George Kelly, and Henry Moore were all known suspects in this crime. The house still stands now as a museum for the public to come and learn more about the Villisca Ax murders.

This source is a reliable article because it was published by a credible author and has been recently updated. It also lines up with information that I have read in the other articles I’ve read about the Villisca Ax murders.

I learned that William Mansfield was also a suspect in the crime because he was known to be a murderer using the same weapon that was used to kill the Moore family. I also learned more information about Sarah Moore and how she didn’t have a job but was involved in their church.

Lease, Lawrence. “Revisiting the Villisca Axe Murders Over a Century Later.” HubPages, discover.hubpages.com/. Accessed 24 Feb. 2024.

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This crime occurred on June 10, 1912. The Villisca Ax murder was in Villisca and was known to happen around midnight. The victims were Sarah, Josiah, Herman, Katherine, Boyd, and Paul Moore and their two guests Lena and Ina Stingler. There wasn't a big investigation done because the evidence was mostly ruined due to neighbors coming into the house before they could collect the needed evidence. This includes fingerprints that may have been found in the house by the murderer. The town was very small and only consisted of 2,000 citizens so it was a very small sheriff's office that had never dealt with a crime this big. They didn’t know what to do and were not prepared to collect evidence from this scene.

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The Villisca ax murders were committed on June 10, 1912 in the small town of Villisca, Iowa. Eight people were murdered that night; Josiah(43), Sarah(39), Herman(11), Katherine(10), Boyd(7), Paul Moore(5) and two sisters, Ina and Lena Stingler, who were staying over for a sleepover. The Moore’s house where the crime was committed is a small two story house consisting of three bedrooms, kitchen, and living room. The kitchen is the first room you see when you walk through the front door. Located to the right of the front door is the dining room table that was set for dinner. The stairs leading upstairs were to the right of the table. There was also a lantern found on the floor by the front door which was left behind by the killer. The next room over to the right was the living room. The only thing out of the ordinary found in the living room was a pound of bacon scattered across the floor. There was one bedroom on the bottom floor, which was the guest room. This is where Lena and Ina Stingler were staying for the night. They were found laying in the bed on their backs with cloth covering their heads. The first room after walking up the stairs is the bedroom of the Moore parents. They both lied on their back with cloth covering their heads. Next to them was their vanity which had cloth covering their mirror. Josiahl Moore was sleeping on the left side of the bed and there was a gouge in the wall from swinging the ax back while killing Josiah. The next room over was the bedroom of the Moore kids. Herman and Boyd shared a bed on the farthest left side of the room, they were both found on their backs with cloth covering their faces. Right next to their bed was their younger brother Paul’s crib. He as well was killed and then his head was covered in cloth. On the right side of the wall was where Katherine was killed in her bed and then covered in cloth. On the right side of Katherine’s bed was a vanity with a mirror that was also covered in cloth.

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Left side view of kitchen

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Right-side view of the Moore family kitchen.

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Scaled image of kitchen.

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Top view of bacon scattered in the living room.

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Right side view of living room with bacon the floor.

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Left side view of bacon in the living room.

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Scaled image of bacon in the living room.

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The bodies of Lena and Ina Stingler in the guest room.

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Depth-scaled image of the guest bedroom.

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Width-scaled image of the guest bedroom.

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Close-up right side view of the parents bedroom.

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Right-side view of the Josiah and Sarah Moore's bedroom.

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Close-up of gouge in the wall in the parent's bedroom from the ax.

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Length from bed to wall in the parent's bedroom.

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Right-side view of kid's bedroom.

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The whole top view of the Moore kid's bedroom.

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Depth-scaled image of the kid's bedroom.

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After reading many articles and doing research I couldn’t find any evidence that was analyzed or put away. A couple things like the dinner table being set, bacon on the floor and the ax hole in the wall never gave any evidence to support who the killer was. Some articles argued that the ax being used was found in the house by a lantern, others don’t mention the ax being found on the scene. I also read that many neighbors came into the house before the evidence was analyzed which ruined the fingerprints that may have been discovered. I know that now if this same crime was to take place a lot of things would be changed to help them find the murderer. One thing I know would be done differently is not allowing any outsiders to come to the crime scene before evidence was analyzed. They lost fingerprints that could have led them to find the criminal, the evidence was also tampered with which made it not useful. Another thing that would be done is a proper analysis of the evidence. Due to it being such a small town they didn’t have a lot of resources to conduct a proper crime scene analysis, now they would be able to possibly call for extra help or their police force could have evolved since then. This would have allowed them to properly collect and analyze evidence that could be linked to the killer.