Category Archives: General

Ancient Vendetta: Murder of Joseph Busemi 1915

Murder Victim Joseph Busemi 27-year-old Laborer Waterloo Fuel Company 1888-1915 Cause of Death: Stabbed Motive: Black Hand Vendetta Murder Scene and Date Near Old Paper Mill Cedar River Waterloo, Iowa Black Hawk County October 4, 1915 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers … Continue reading

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Leave Town or Die: Murder of Richard Huggins 1914

Murder Victim Richard William Huggins 49-year-old Florist Sherwood Greenhouse 1865-1914 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Romantic Entanglement Murder Scene and Date 600 blk Conger Street Waterloo, Iowa Black Hawk County October 3, 1914 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written March 2012 … Continue reading

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Strangled With His Own Necktie: Murder of David Faulkner 1920

Murder Victim David A. Faulkner 30-year-old Receiving Clerk Iowa Packing Company 1860-1920 Cause of Death: Strangled Motive: Grudge Murder Scene and Date 2416 E. Lyon Street Des Moines, Iowa Polk County May 1, 1920 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written September … Continue reading

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Deadly Taxi Party: Murder of Thaddeus Mitchell 1922

Murder Victim Thaddeus William “Thad” Mitchell 44-year-old Taxi Driver President, Consolidated Taxi Company 1878-1922 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date St. Joseph Avenue near 20th Street Near City Detention Hospital a.k.a. “Pest House” Des Moines, Iowa … Continue reading

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All Souls’ Day: Murders of Sister Mary Virginis and Sister Mary Rosalita 1921

Murder Victims Sister Mary Virginis née Mary Agnes Austin 37-year-old Vocal Music Teacher St. Joseph’s Academy 1884-1921 Sister Mary Rosalita née Agnes McLaughlin 41-year-old Piano Teacher St. Joseph’s Academy 1880-1921 Cause of Deaths: Automobile Hit and Run Murder Scene and … Continue reading

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Family Annihilation: Murders of James, Earl, and Mary Hardy 1910

Murder Victims James Hardy 63-year-old Farmer 1846-1910 Earl Hardy 29-year-old Farmhand 1880-1910 Mary Emery Hardy 57-year-old Farm Wife 1852-1910 Murder Scene and Date Hardy Farm Van Cleve, Iowa Marshall County June 5, 1910 Cause of Deaths: Bludgeoned Motive: Obtaining an … Continue reading

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After the Merry-Go-Round: Murder of Alta Marie Braun 1917

Murder Victim Alta Marie Braun 12-year-old Schoolgirl Cause of Death: Strangled Motive: Sexual Psychopathy 1905-1917 Murder Scene and Date Alley off Cedar Street Le Mars, Iowa Plymouth County August 20, 1917 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written June 2011 As Tuesday, … Continue reading

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Dead From a “Wallop”: Murder of John Schnellbacker 1913

Murder Victim John Schnellbacker (John Schnellbächer) 55-year-old Handyman East Des Moines Hotel 1858 -1913 Cause of Death: Bludgeoned Motive: Argument Murder Scene and Date E. Third and E. Walnut streets Des Moines, Iowa Polk County March 10, 1913 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By … Continue reading

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“Fear of the Dread Black Hand”: Murder of Domenico Barretto 1921

Murder Victim Domenico Barretto 25-year-old Laborer 1895-1921 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Black Hand Vendetta Murder Scene and Date 1519 Jackson Avenue Des Moines, Iowa Polk County March 27, 1921 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written January 2011 On the night … Continue reading

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Black Hand at the Bridge: Murder of Francis “Frank” Oliverio 1917

Murder Victim Francis “Frank” Oliverio 40-year-old Factory Worker Schuermann Bros. Mills 1877-1917 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Black Hand Vendetta Murder Scene and Date SW Fifth Street Bridge, Raccoon River Des Moines, Iowa Polk County August 6, 1917 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By … Continue reading

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