One weird oversight. The women's identities were later confirmed by two Osage township witnesses from a tintype photograph. Inicio; mellon mounds kansas murders; Sin categorizar; mellon mounds kansas murders Kate soon gained notoriety as a self proclaimed healer and spiritualist. Cherryvale Museum The breastbone had been driven in. Both knew of William's travel plans and, when he failed to return, an all-out search began for the missing doctor. When he pulls into the drive, he spots Calamitas empty car at the pump immediately. Another group claimed they had caught the Benders and lynched them before throwing their bodies into the Verdigris River. [7], They then probed the ground around the cabin with a metal rod, especially in the disturbed soil of the vegetable garden and orchard, where Dr. York's body was found later that evening, buried face down with his feet barely below the surface. The plaque was created for the show. At Chanute, JohnJr. and Kate left the train and caught the MK&T train south to the terminus in Red River County near Denison, Texas. The media speculated that some of the victims had attempted to fight back after being hit with the hammer. Other bodies found in the garden were those of Henry McKenzies mutilated remains, three men by the names of Ben Brown, W.F. 1619) December 1872: During the search, the bodies of four unidentified males were found in Drum Creek and the surrounds. [1][2][3] Despite York's strong suspicions regarding the Benders since his visit several weeks earlier, no one had watched them, and it was not noticed for several days that they had fled. Only a few days later, the homestead was found abandoned, and the search party began to discover the grisly remains of the bodies. Subreddit for the FX original TV series, Fargo. Rabbi has a tailor-made response for each situation, but the active reminder of reality for black Americans in 1950 definitely adds to the tension of the episode. As more and more travelers disappeared, suspicion began to center on the Benders. While the two women were certainly criminals and liars, as their own defense attorney admitted, the charges were weak and many people doubted their identification as the Benders. The filling station attendant tells Omie that this is the only place for gas for miles, and that if Calamita hasnt been through yet, he definitely will. Meanwhile, Ma and Pa Bender continued on the train north to Kansas City, where it was believed they transferred to a train headed to St. Louis. The Lawrence Kansas Subreddit. Once Kansas declared itself with the Union and the Civil War began, the bloody battles continued. Attempts to capture the bloodthirsty family were immediately made by both law officers and vigilantes alike. On deer antler shedding, pocket gopher mounds, eagle breeding and murders of crows (that's the name of a flock of crows) Like others, he was hit over the head as he sat at the table. Other corpses found in the area and the many mysterious disappearances of other lonely travelers led the locals to believe that the Benders killed more than 20 people. I wouldn't have imagined a crazier hotel story other than H H Holmes and The Murder Castle. In Rabbis absence, Satchel discovers a Jack Russel terrier hiding in the wardrobe in his room. As word of the grisly murders spread, more and more travelers came forward to tell their own stories of a narrow escape, including one gentleman named William Pickering. allah y hafdek traduction; markel annual meeting 2022; community action partnership appointment line; July 3, 2022 mellon mounds kansas murdersdcs vsn modsdcs vsn mods Yet another group claimed to have killed the Benders during a gunfight and buried their bodies on the prairie. After following a fresh trail of wagon tracks, a search party found that the Benders had gone to the town of nearby Thayer, some twelve miles to the north. While popular retelling of the story holds that John Jr. and Kate were siblings, contemporary newspapers reported . Along with an old episode of Death Valley Days. 6) December 1872: Henry McKenzie. The book "All the Blood We Share: A Novel of the Bloody Benders of Kansas", by Camilla Bruce, published in 2022. The Bender family, more well known as the Bloody Benders, were a family of serial killers who lived and operated in Labette County, Kansas, United States, from May 1871 to December 1872. There is a LOT to unpack in the latest episode of Fargo, some of which will likely be easier when we see what happens next. The parts did not belong to any of the other victims found and are believed to belong to at least three additional victims. Rabbi retreats to take cover behind his vehicle, and Calamita catches him with a bullet in the arm before hes in the clear, making it difficult to return fire. As the boy listened, the men continued to talk, relating the tale of how the judge had lost his ear. After the third hanging, they released him and he staggered home "as one who was drunken or deranged. They broker an arrangement wherein Omie and his captive paint the building in exchange for being allowed to lie in wait. In February 1872, the bodies of two men were found with the same injuries as Jones. Bit by bit, the story of the Benders was pieced together. When the visitors stopped for a meal, they were seated at a table with their backs to the large canvas separating the inn from the living quarters. All had been involved in disposing of the victims' stolen goods with Mit Cherry, a member of the vigilance committee, implicated for forging a letter from one of the victims, informing the man's wife that he had arrived safely at his destination in Illinois. It says this home used to be run by the infamous Mellon Family, who lured travelers in before killing them with a hammer. Judge Calvin dismissed Mary Gardei's affidavit as she was a "chip off the old block"; he found that other affidavits supporting Gardei's were sufficient proof that the women could never be convicted, however, and he discharged them both. Because some of the travelers were carrying nothing of value, it was widely speculated that the Benders killed simply for the bloody thrill of it. In the spring of 1873, Dr. York took it upon himself to look for the Lonchers, stopping at the homesteads along the trail to ask questions. Today, Smalley descendants continue to live in the Neodosha and Cherryvale area. And then, in so many words, Scalia said that nothing in the Eighth Amendment requires that jurors considering "mitigating evidence" that could . 5) December 1872: W.F. Touch for map. why i quit civil engineering; goo goo gaga family net worth; how to make homemade biscuits without baking powder; They buried their victims in a neighboring orchard, unbeknownst to the townspeople. [2], Testimony from people who had stayed at the Benders' inn and managed to escape before they could be killed appeared to support the presumed execution method of the Benders. Dismembered parts of several other victims were also discovered but could never be identified. In her lectures she publicly declared that murder might be a dictation for good; that in what the world might deem villainy, her soul might read bravery, nobility, and humanity. One of these families was the Benders, comprised of John Bender, Sr.; his wife, Almira; son, John, Jr.; and daughter, Kate. The Version table provides details related to the release that this issue/RFE will be addressed. Keeping mostly to themselves, the Benders appeared to simply be struggling homesteaders who worked hard to earn their living like the other area pioneers. The Bender family, more well known as the Bloody Benders, were a family of serial killers who lived and operated in Labette County, Kansas, United States, from May 1871 to December 1872. [5][18] All of the bizarre characters in the house sit around the table, except the hospital man and his companion, and the table (like the whole house) is split into two meals, two styles of dcor and two serving staffs in accordance with the sisters feud. 1315) December 1872: Various body parts. McCrotty, and John Geary, as well as an unidentified male and female. These hammers were given to the Bender Museum in 1967 by the son of LeRoy Dick, the Osage Township trustee who headed the search of the Bender property. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2022 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/washingtonhistor0014unse The CAashington Historical . As Active Shooter incidents have increased, employers are tasked with training employees on how to escape, hide, or fight. KANSAS HISTORICAL MARKER THE MELLON MOUNDS On this spot stood the Mellon Mounds, named for the infamous Mellon family, who lured unsuspecting travelers into their home, fed them and then dispatched them with a hammer. The Benders were not what they appeared. [citation needed], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}372056N 952910W / 37.349N 95.486W / 37.349; -95.486, According to one of the myths that has grown around the murders, after dinner, Colonel York was sitting in the front room when he noticed a gold, List of fugitives from justice who disappeared, List of serial killers in the United States, "The Bloody Benders Serial Killers of Kansas", "The Bloody Benders, Kansas, ca. Good info. It would make for a fun season of the show that's for sure. Later, Satchel awakens to find that hes fallen asleep and doesnt know where his friend has gone. what happened to johnny rodriguez country singervice president internal student council. The 162-acre tract of cropland known as the "Bender Farm" will be sold off to. Donald, his wife Karen and their three kids live a nice, comfortable life. ", "Kate proclaimed herself responsible to no one save herself.". Eventually, she married and went by the name of Sara Eliza Davis. And Donald Mellon is your typical doting daddy, a clean-cut family man his girls admire and adore. 10) December 1872: John Greary. Several days later, the Benders team and wagon were found a short distance away, and the horses nearly starved. The two were known to have had a relationship, and further tales abounded that when Kate became pregnant, they would simply bash in the babys head once it was born. Marker is in this post office area: Cherryvale KS 67335, United States of America. Another of Mrs. Monroe's daughters, Mary Gardei, later provided an affidavit claiming that her mother (then Almira Shearer), under the name of Almira Marks, was actually serving two years in the Detroit House of Corrections in 1872 for the manslaughter of her daughter-in-law, Emily Mark. Rabbi makes his way to the filling station in search of a cupcake or candy bar. In mid-October, Deputy Sheriff LeRoy Dick, the Osage Township trustee who had headed the search of the Bender property, arrived in Michigan and arrested the couple on October 30, following their release on the larceny charges. For years, sightings of Ma Bender and Kate were reported, and in 1889, two women were extradited from Michigan on the charge. It is conjectured[by whom?] The Bender artifacts were eventually given to the Cherryvale Museum, where they remain in a wall-mounted display case. Located on a main road, the Benders sold meals and supplies to travelers. Whenever he is asked a question about himself, Satchels response is that he is hungry. The family includes Andrew Mellon, one of the longest-serving U.S. Treasury Secretaries, along with prominent members in the judicial, banking, financial, business, and political professions, as well as a famous recluse, Cordelia Scaife May . We are, in fact, in Kansas. She and her brother John often attended Sunday School nearby Harmony Grove and were readily accepted in the community. Several weeks after the discovery of the bodies, Addison Roach and his son-in-law, William Buxton, were arrested as accessories. that when a guest stayed at the Benders' bed and breakfast inn, the hosts would give the guest a seat of honor at the table that was positioned over a trap door into the cellar. 2023 Geek Girl Authority. Inside the wooden cabin, the area was partitioned with a large canvas, creating living quarters in the back and a small inn and store in the front. Though her beauty and social skills gained popularity with the locals, her actions began to cause them to say she was satanic. It was to be this diminutive Bender family member that would take most of the blame for what was soon to be found out about this infamous family. In 1967, three of the Bender hammers were gifted to the museum by the Dick family. $2,000 (2023: $45,239) missing. The right knee had been wrenched from its socket, and the leg doubled up under the body. If not accosted by road agents, travelers also had to be concerned about Indian attacks. The old Bender property was haunted, and the rumors of the locals began to fly. She maintained carnal relations with her brother, and boldly proclaimed her right to do so in the following words found in her lecture manuscript: "Shall we confine ourselves to a single love, and deny our natures their proper sway?Even though it be a brother's passion for his own sister, I say it should not be smothered. Kate Bender, who was around 23, was cultivated and attractive and spoke English well, with little accent. Both knew of his travel plans, and when he failed to return home, an all-out search began for the missing doctor. He takes Satchel to a quirky (to say the least) boardinghouse, owned by feuding, deaf, elderly sisters. The front section also contained the kitchen and dining table, where travelers could stop for a meal or even spend the night. Nice, in all my research on serial killers, I can't name many examples of a full family of murderers, and two of them were female, another rarity. [9], More than a dozen bullet holes were found in the roof and sides of the cabin. Her tag says her name is Rabbit. In the first season, Deputy Molly Solverson (Allison Tolman), daughter of former state trooper, now diner owner, Lou Solverson (Carradine), must overcome the good-natured goofery of her department as she tracks the unparalleled malevolence of Loren Malvo (Billy Bob Thornton), who in serpent-like fashion enters the ear of persecuted loser Lester . 1. If the terrible story of the Bender murders was not legend enough, another tale began to circulate regarding the property upon which the Benders had once lived. The affidavits and other papers are missing from the file in LaBette County, so further examination is impossible. [18], According to a news report from contemporary media, an unnamed man from Kansas City, who had investigated the Bender Family's house and the rumors of their deaths numerous times, claimed that The Kelly Family were in fact the Benders. [5], Detectives following wagon tracks discovered the Benders' wagon, abandoned with a starving team of horses with one of the mares lame, just outside the city limits of Thayer, 12mi (19km) north of the inn. RELATED: Keep up with our Fargo Season Four recaps here! Buried in the apple orchard. Across the hall from them, on the east side of the building, is an Old Testament preacher and his mother (whom the resident gabby salesman- west- mistakes for the preachers wife). Though the tales of what happened to the Benders can only be speculated as to their accuracy, the fact that ten bodies were found on the property is not disputed. Fortunately, Rabbi returns in time to shut down the likely police shooting and receives a warning from the officer about keeping his colored boy out of sight in a town like that. Cherryvale, Kansas Museum [5], When York repeated the claim, Elvira became enraged, said the woman was a witch who had cursed her coffee, and ordered the men to leave her house, revealing for the first time that "her sense of the English language" was much better than was let on. Kate was the fifth child of Ma Bender and was born Eliza Griffith. A place to discuss Lawrence Kansas happenings and news. In its first three days of opening, it attracted more than 2,000 visitors. But if your not from Kansas it's a fairly obscure story. They purchased tickets on the northbound Leavenworth, Lawrence & Galveston Train to Humboldt. [7], A Kansas newspaper reported that the crowd was so incensed after finding the bodies that a friend of the Benders named Brockman, who was among the onlookers, was hanged from a beam in the inn until unconscious, revived, interrogated, then hanged again. "The Bender Family Some New Light on Their Mysterious Disappearance". Although stories abound, the ultimate fate of the murderous Bender family is uncertain. The group is believed to be one of the first serial killer families in America. 2014. Secretly, the four made a living through murder and robbery., Located on a main road, the Benders sold meals and supplies to travelers. A number of researchers question the ready acceptance of the affidavit's authenticity and suggest that the county was unwilling to accept the expense of boarding the two women for an extended period. Instead, we downshift hard into the side story ofSatchel (Rodney L Jones III) andRabbi (Ben Whishaw) on the lam, withConstant Calamita (Gaetano Bruno) on their tail. John and his raw-boned wife spoke with such guttural accents that few people could understand them. Secretly, the four made a living through murder and robbery. This is blatantly a reference to the Bender Family, a family of serial killers from late 1800s Kansas. sdsu basketball recruiting 2021vice president internal student council. According to the Pittsburgh Dispatch, the daughter of one of the Benders' victims, Mrs. Frances E. McCann, had reported the pair to authorities in early October after tracking them down. Their downfall was the murder of a father and daughter named Loncher, and Dr. William York, who had come looking for the missing pair. An American Indian legend claimed any twister approaching Topeka from the southwest would have its tail clipped off by Burnett's Mound, a sacred burial ground. Rock Chalk! However, some of those men, who frequently carried large sums of cash with the intention of settling, buying stock, or purchasing a claim, began to go missing. He steps out of his car, gun drawn, and discovers the filling station attendants body in a doorway. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Benders. Home TV & Streaming Recaps & Reviews FARGO Recap: (S04E09) East/West, Posted by Leona Laurie | Nov 16, 2020 | Recaps & Reviews, TV & Streaming | 0. Also one of the victims was the neighbor of the person who wrote Little House on the Prarie. Shortly after theyve settled, Rabbi leaves Satchel alone with his usual goodbye of, If I dont come back, Im dead or in jail. He drives into Liberal to see about the money he left behind, only to discover that the feed store was sold at auction and has been converted to an appliance store by a pair of brothers. In honor of the Kansas state-wide Centennial Celebration, an exact replica of the Bender cabin was built that housed antiques and household items. No one ever claimed the $3,000 reward ($67,858 as of 2023), however. Near here are the Bender Mounds, named for the infamous Bender family ~~ John, his wife, son, and daughter Kate ~~ who settled here in 1871. At her hearing, Mrs. Monroe denied any knowledge of Shearer or the manslaughter charge and remained incarcerated with her daughter. If you live in that town in Kansas today, oh yeah you know about it. She watches (and recaps) a lot of TV, sees every Marvel movie on opening night and reads voraciously. In The Wizard of Oz, things are in black and white in Kansas and turn color after the Cyclone drops Dorothy and Toto in Oz. In total, 12 men "of bad repute in general" would be arrested, including Brockman. mellon mounds kansas murdersduskull evolution arceus. Yes it was. Dr. York had two brothers, one living in Fort Scott and the other in Independence. When his father (my great grandfather), Frank Smalley, was a boy, he was hiding in the hayloft of the family barn when he overheard a group of men below talking and laughing. Ma Bender was born Almira Meik in the Adirondacks and married as a teenager to a man named George Griffith. rpp program apartments newport news. The real one reads as follows: Near here are the Bender Mounds, named for the infamous Bender family--John, his wife, son, and daughter Kate--who settled here in 1871. The sensational tales and rumors of the Benders continued well into the 20th century, but what happened to them remains one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the Old West. Copyright20062023,Somerightsreserved. By 1873, reports of missing people who had passed through the area had become so common that travelers began to avoid the trail. Born July 30, 1848," "John Gebhardt came to America on July 1 18? Whether the stuff of folklore or fact, many believe that the trapped souls of these century-old ghosts continue to lurk at the site today. It also brings to mind Lester Nygards murder weapon in season one. Next to their room is a hospital man, an obese white man with bandages all over him and some kind of skin condition that makes him look monstrous to the passing child. When the party arrived at the inn they found the cabin empty of food, clothing, and personal possessions. They were never caugnt. They killed as many as 26 people, I believe there is a museum that stills has a bloody knife they used. I'd need to check but my gut feeling is that its real. Shortly thereafter, the family disappeared. Near here are the Bender Mounds, named for the infamous Bender family--John, his wife, son, and daughter Kate--who settled here in 1871. the mellon mounds kansas murders Blakeslee, 75, became intrigued by Etzanoa after scholars at UC Berkeley retranslated in 2013 the often muddled Spanish accounts of their forays into what is now Kansas . Ten bodies were found in the Benders apple orchard, including Dr. York and the people he had been searching for Mr. Loncher and his daughter, just seven or eight years old. The next morning, another eight bodies were found in seven of the nine suspected graves, while one was found in the well, along with a number of body parts. Though most of us know of Dodge Citys wicked ways, the deadly gunfight of the Daltons in Coffeyville, and the many outlaws and gunfighters who spent time in the Sunflower State, few are aware of a family of mass murderers, living a supposed quiet life near the small town of Cherryvale. Yet another claimed to have killed the Benders during a gunfight and buried their bodies on the prairie. However, as more time passed, the disappearances became more frequent, and by the spring of 1873, the region had become strife with rumors, and travelers began to avoid the trail. In the winter of 1872, George Newton Longcor left Independence, Kansas with his infant daughter Mary Ann to resettle in Iowa; they were never seen again. In 1884, it was reported that John Flickinger had committed suicide in Lake Michigan. (AP) - A man already in prison . He does not deliver his usual parting words to Satchel. A crude sign was hung above the front door that advertised Groceries to the many travelers along the Osage Trail. The Benders remained silent when most of the attendees volunteered to have their premises searched. Sometime later, Billy Tole, a neighbor of the Benders, noticed that the Bender Inn was abandoned and their farm animals unfed. Although stories abound, the ultimate fate of the murderous Mellon family was never discovered. They disappeared in the spring of 1873, shortly before inquisitive neighbors discovered the victims' bodies. The victim was then dispatched from behind with a hammer, and the body was dropped into a basement pit, later to be buried in an orchard., As more and more travelers disappeared, suspicion began to center on the Benders. The Benders then stripped him of his clothes and went to bury him when the man suddenly awoke. [1][2] A knife with a four-inch tapered blade was reportedly found hidden in a mantel clock in the Bender house by Colonel York. As Calamita advances on him, Rabbi tries to grip his gun well enough to shoot. [1][3] On April 3, Colonel York returned to the inn with armed men after being informed that a woman had fled from the inn after Elvira Bender had threatened her with knives. Photo courtesy of the BCA. She alleged that her father, "Pa Ingalls," joined in a vigilante hunt for the killers, and when he spoke of later searches for them she recalled, "At such times Pa always said in a strange tone of finality, 'They will never be found.' 0 coins. When he wakes alone again in the morning, Satchel takes Rabbit for a walk down the lane to where a man has finished building a cryptic billboard featuring a white man in a suit and hat smiling expectantly in front of a ranch style house. Afterward, she reportedly remarried several times, killing those husbands and three of her older children so they could not testify against her. At a fork of the Fall and Verdigris Rivers, they found the Benders with their wagon backed up against a fallen tree with canvas over it for shelter. William Pickering said that when he had refused to sit near the wagon cloth because of the stains on it, Kate Bender had threatened him with a knife, whereupon he fled the premises. One of the women would cut the victim's throat to ensure death, and the body was then dropped through the trap door.

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