Tag Archives: Iowa Unsolved Murders

Mistaken Identity: Murder of Peter Ross 1909

Murder Victim Pete Ross Coal Miner ?-1909 Cause of Death: Slashed, Axed, Shot Motive: Unknown Murder Scene and Date Murdered in Des Moines, Iowa Polk County February 1909 Found in Des Moines River at Ottumwa, Iowa Wapello County March 6, … Continue reading

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Mangled Bodies: Murders of Jack Wilson and Con Matthews 1899

Murder Victim John E. “Jack” Wilson 30-year-old Brakeman Chicago Great Western Railway 1869-1899 Cornelius “Con” Matthews 32-year-old Brakeman Chicago Great Western Railway 1867-1899 Cause of Deaths: Gunshots Motive: Resisting Eviction from Train Murder Scene and Date Rail Lines Two Miles … Continue reading

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The Dead Bulgarian: Murder of Welio Tsnoff 1910

Murder Victim Welio Tsnoff 35-year-old Bulgarian National Section Hand Chicago and Northwestern Railroad 1875-1910 Cause of Death: Struck With a Hammer Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date Employee Boarding Car Rail Yard Marshalltown, Iowa Marshall County January 10, 1910 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ … Continue reading

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“A Miserly Life”: Suspicious Death of Gideon Hall 1884

Murder Victim Gideon Hall 76-Year-Old Farmer 1807-1884 Cause of Death: Undetermined Motive: Robbery Murder Scene and Date Hall Home Burlington and Iowa City Road Yellow Springs Township 3 Miles South of Mediapolis, Iowa Des Moines County January 24, 1884 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ … Continue reading

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The Wrong Man: Murder of Joseph Hair 1888

Murder Victim Joseph Hair 26-year-old Farmhand 1862-1888 Cause of Death: Bludgeoned Motive: Mistaken Identity Murder Scene and Date John Kelly Farm 12 Miles South of Avoca, Iowa Pottawattamie County December 18, 1888 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written June 2015 During … Continue reading

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Undercover: Murder of Louis H. Dayton 1929

Murder Victim Louis H. Dayton a.k.a. Clarence L. Plummer a.k.a. Bert Cook a.k.a. Bert Pettit 54-year-old Special Deputy Sheriff Cause of Death: Beaten with Brass Knuckles Motive: Revenge for Snitching Murder Scene and Date Attacked at Post Office Died at … Continue reading

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“Violent Excitement”: Murder of Robert Lee Clingan 1883

Murder Victim Robert Lee “R.L.” Clingan 52-Year-Old Merchant and Postmaster Civil War Veteran 1830-1883 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Unknown Murder Scene and Date Clingan Store/Post Office Polk City, Iowa Polk County July 10, 1883 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written … Continue reading

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Gun Battle in the Night: Murder of Virgil Untied 1931

Murder Victim Virgil P. Untied 33-year-old Night Marshal 1898-1931 Cause of Death: Gunshot Motive: Escaping Arrest Murder Scene and Date E.J. Shaw Grocery Minburn, Iowa Dallas County Shot: July 23, 1931 End of Watch: July 27, 1931 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy … Continue reading

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“Love and Absence of Love”: Suspicious Death Of William F. Lewis 1903

Murder Victim William F. Lewis 49-year-old Farmer 1854-1903 Cause of Death: Laudanum Overdose Motive: Love Triangle Murder Scene and Date Lewis Farm Benton Township Southwest of Sigourney, Iowa Keokuk County October 11, 1903 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ By Nancy Bowers Written April 2015 … Continue reading

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“Brutal Killer”: Murders of Beverly Brenneman and Ruby Ciler 1953

Murder Victims Beverly Brenneman 14-year-old Junior High Student 1939-1953 Cause of Death: Stabbed and Strangled Ruby Baker Ciler 51-year-old Homemaker 1901-1953 Cause of Death: Bludgeoned, Suffocated Motive: Sexual Psychopathy Murder Scene and Date Ciler Home and Farm Lower Muscatine Road … Continue reading

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