Tag Archives: unsolved Polk County Iowa murders

The Defective Shotgun: Murders of Claud and Anna Miller 1949

Murder Victim Claud Francis Miller 64-year-old Farmer 1884-1949 Anna Henrietta Miller 61-year-old Farm Wife 1888-1949 Cause of Deaths: Gunshot Motive: Obtaining an Inheritance Murder Scene and Date 2 miles north of Camp Dodge Polk County April 4, 1949 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cab in the Snow-Filled Ditch: Murder of Leon Groves 1951

Murder Victim Leon E. Groves 40-year-old Optometrist Part-time Taxi Driver 1911-1951 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date SE 18th & Scott Des Moines, Iowa Polk County December 22, 1951 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written January 2012 … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nearly Home: Murder of Anna Marie Medici 1962

Murder Victim Anna Marie Medici 21-year-old Office Worker 1941-1962 Cause of Death: Automobile Hit and Run Murder Scene and Date US Highway 69 Carney, Iowa Crocker Township Polk County November 16, 1962 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written April 2011 In … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

“Cold-Blooded Sadistic Type”: Murder of Ramona Jean Cox 1962

Murder Victim Ramona Jean Cox 25-year-old Secretary, C.D. Wilcox Company Part-time Cashier, Ardan 1937-1962 Cause of Death: Slashed Motive: Sexual Psychopathy Murder Scene and Date 1526 Woodland Avenue Des Moines, Iowa Polk County April 29, 1962 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Christmas Eve Brawl: Murder of Charles Johnson 1901

Murder Victim Charles Johnson 35-year-old Saloon Owner 1866-1901 Cause of Death: Stabbed Motive: Drunken Mob Action Murder Scene and Date Johnson Saloon East Fifth and Court Avenue Des Moines, Iowa Polk County December 24, 1901 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Veteran Who Lived Alone: Murder of Henry Millard 1874

Murder Victim Henry J. Millard 30-year-old Farmer and Civil War Veteran 1844-1874 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date Camp Township Polk County October 1874 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written 2011 In early October of 1874, 30-year-old … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Taking the Waters: Murder of Frank Callahan 1905

Murder Victim Frank Callahan 34-year-old “Nervous Disorder” Patient 1870-1905 Cause of Death: Drowned Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date Last Seen September 19, 1905 Des Moines, Iowa Found in Des Moines River at Levey Polk County September 24, 1905 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Taking the Waters: Murder of Frank Callahan 1905

The One-Armed Man: Murder of William A. Hunt 1893

Murder Victim William Asbury Hunt Des Moines’s First Police Chief 63-year-old Civil War Veteran Cause of Death: Bludgeoned, Pushed From a Height Motive: Robbery 1830-1893 Murder Scene and Date Alley, 600 block of Locust Street Des Moines, Iowa Polk County … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Death Comes to the Mayor: Murder of Robert W. Stubbs 1882

Murder Victim Robert Wadsworth Stubbs 36-year-old Mill Owner Mayor of Polk City 1845-1892 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Home Invasion Murder Scene and Date Stubbs Family Home Polk City, Iowa Polk County April 15, 1882 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“All Around Crook”: Murder of Joplin Red 1900

Murder Victim John West a.k.a “Joplin Red” Safe Cracker, Burglar, Silk Thief Age Unknown Cause of Death: Poisoned Motive: Revenge for Snitching Murder Scene and Date Northwestern Hotel Des Moines, Iowa Polk County February 24, 1900 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers … Continue reading

Posted in Murders, Unsolved Iowa Murder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment