She professed to be a medium of spiritualism, and delivered lectures on that subject. Kate's popularity became a large attraction for the Benders' inn. The victim's throat was cut by one of the women to ensure death. Page 1. "The old man was a repulsive, hideous brute, without a redeeming trait, dirty, profane and ill-tempered." [2], Testimony from people who had stayed at the Benders' inn and had managed to escape before they could be killed appeared to support the presumed execution method of the Benders. Tole reported the fact to the township trustee, but because of inclement weather, several days lapsed before the abandonment could be investigated. ... One location that became a killing spot for him was Emigration Canyon, Utah. Kate Bender, who was around 23, was cultivated and attractive and spoke English well with very little accent. Senator Samuel C. Pomeroy's bribery of state legislators in his bid for re-election. America’s first serial killer family—committed as many as 21 murders on their Kansas property in the 1870s. While Bender mythology holds that John Jr. and Kate were siblings, contemporary newspapers reported that several of the Benders' neighbors had stated that they claimed to be married, possibly a common law marriage. [7], A bad odor was noticed and traced to a trap door underneath a bed, nailed shut. The Bloody Benders had a remote little inn not far from the Kansas homestead of Laura Ingalls Wilder.. Wilder mentions two brushes with the Benders, who are sometimes referred to as America’s first serial killers. The St. Joseph Weekly Gazette (St. Joseph, Missouri). Law enforcement officials in Maine have notifiedresidents that there have been reports of people receiving text messages indicating the recipient has been in contact with a person who has tested positive for coronavirus. 10) December 1872: John Greary. Then neighbors remembered finding additional bodies on the prairie the past winter that had been mutilated in much the same fashion. Their murders were carried out by use of a canvas curtain that divided the house into two rooms. [11] Whether John Flickinger was really John Bender is unknown. 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. She also conducted séances and gave lectures on spiritualism, for which she gained notoriety for advocating free love. On March 28, 1873, Colonel York arrived at the Benders' inn with a Mr. Johnson, explaining to them that his brother had gone missing and asking if they had seen him. But in the spring of 1873, on the frontier prairie where the field is now, the Benders lived in a little wood-sided house that doubled as a general store near the Osage Trail. Property Belonging to the 'Bloody Benders', America's First Family of Serial Killers, Up for Sale this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. ‎In this episode, we head to Kansas and explore the Wichita Troll, the Sallie House, and the Bloody Benders. John was prone to laughing aimlessly, which led many to consider him a "half-wit". CS1 maint: ref=harv ; Ibbetson, Paul A. At Chanute, John Jr. and Kate left the train and caught the MK&T train south to the terminus in Red River County near Denison, Texas. Dr. York reached Fort Scott, and on March 9 began the return journey to Independence but never arrived home. This is the story of the Bloody Benders, America’s first family of serial killers. In 1937 she gave a speech at a book fair, which […] Once Kansas declared itself with the Union and the Civil War began to rage, the bloody battles continued. Elvira was suspected[by whom?] After opening the trap, the empty room beneath, 6 feet (1.8 m) deep and 7 feet (2.1 m) square at the top by 3 feet (0.9 m) square at the bottom, was found to have clotted blood on the floor. 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. 12) December 1872: Abigail Roberts. The probing continued until midnight, with another nine suspected grave sites marked before the men were satisfied they had found them all and retired for the night. 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. Once in the cellar, the body would be stripped and later buried somewhere on the property, often in the orchard. Co D 123rd Ill Infantry. The Bloody Benders were a family of serial killers who owned an inn and small general store in Labette County of southeastern Kansas from 1871 to 1873. [1][11][12][13][14][15][16], By including the recovered body parts not matched to the bodies found, the finds are speculated to represent the remains of more than 20 victims. The owner of the Drum Creek claim was suspected, but no action was taken. It was in the nearby orchard field that the victims were found buried. Contemporary newspapers reported his name as either "George W. Longcor" or "George Loncher", while Mary Ann is similarly reported as being either eight years old or 18 months old. The "Bloody Benders" were made up of John Bender Sr., his wife and two children. On this episode, TJ and I research Americas first serial killer family from the 1870's. Often, two women traveling together were accused of being Kate Bender and her mother.[10]. Some say that they escaped, others that they were executed by a vengeful posse. Mrs. McCann's story came from dreams that she had about her father's murder, which she discussed with Sarah Eliza. Located at the rest area at the junction of US Hwy 169 and 400 in NE Labette County, Kansas. 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. "Young Bender, seen when excited, recalled the grave-robbing hyena at once to mind." The family consisted of John Bender, his wife Elvira Bender, son John, Jr., and daughter Kate. 16 Feb 1888. Last Meal: Based on the True Story of the Bloody Benders. The Benders in Kansas. There was a trap door that led to a stone cellar below. [7], They then began to probe 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 Benders used the smaller room at the rear for living quarters, while the front room was converted into a "general store" where a few dry goods were sold. Elvira allegedly could not understand English, while the younger Benders denied the claim. The media speculated that some of the victims had attempted to fight back after being hit with the hammer. You've just fallen victim to the Bloody Benders, America's first and, arguably, greatest family of serial killers.Think of their story like The Little House of 1000 Corpses on the Prairie.A lot of what we know about them is shrouded in mystery, but the stuff we do know for sure is, well, batshit freaking insane. The Bloody Benders were a German Immigrant family who lived in Southeast Kansas from 1869–1872. They were not pursued, as lawmen following outlaws into this region often never returned. All but one had had their heads bashed with a hammer and their throats cut, and it was reported in newspapers that all had been "indecently mutilated". Buried in the apple orchard. RouteYou » Places of interest » Bloody Benders » Overview of all cycle routes Positive Pest | Race cycle route | 2437 mi | EN. "Their story is unresolved and remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of the old West. Originally scheduled for February 1890, the trial was held over to May. The Bender artifacts were eventually given to the Cherryvale Museum, where they remain in a wall-mounted display case. In the winter of 1872, George Newton Longcor and his infant daughter, Mary Ann, left Independence, Kansas, to resettle in Iowa and were never seen again. Although the elder Benders kept to themselves, Kate and her brother regularly attended Sunday school in nearby Harmony Grove. 1870-1873", Sheriff Saves the Neck of a Man Who Murdered His Own Daughter, http://www.murderbygaslight.com/2010/11/bloody-benders.html, Scan of Chicago Daily Tribune, October 31, 1889, "The Bloody Benders: 140-year-old crime scene still fascinates today", "Selective Omissions, or, What Laura Ingalls Wilder left out of LITTLE HOUSE", "Little House on the Prairie, serial killers, and the nature of memoir", "They Bite: Anthony Boucher's Weirder Western", "Hitchcock's Birds, Hope Diamond, Phineas Gage", "One Red Dead Redemption 2 Side Quest Is Based On An Actual Serial Killer", 1873 map of Bender claim in Osage township of Labette County, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bloody_Benders&oldid=998805091, Wikipedia articles needing rewrite from April 2020, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from July 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. No documentation or definitive proof of their relationships to one another, or where they were born, has ever been found. In the 19th century, Kansas was a bloody place, especially before the Civil War as “Free-Soilers ” and slavery advocates “duked” it out for control of the new territory. By 1873, reports of missing people who had passed through the area had become so common that travelers began to avoid the trail. [3] Also in 1884, an elderly man matching Pa Bender's description was arrested in Montana for a murder committed near Salmon, Idaho, where the victim had been killed by a hammer blow to the head. Yet another claimed to have killed the Benders during a gunfight and buried their bodies on the prairie. (3 August 2016). [5][6], Around the same time, neighboring communities began to make accusations that the Osage community was responsible for the disappearances, and a meeting was arranged by the Osage township in the Harmony Grove schoolhouse. [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. "To my knowledge, there have been no efforts to excavate the property during the time my clients have owned the farm," Brent Wellings, auction manager for Schrader Real Estate and Auction Co., told CNN. The men with York were convinced the Benders and a neighboring family, the Roaches, were guilty and wanted to hang them all, but York insisted that evidence must be found. As a family of psychopaths, the Bloody Benders often killed their victims simply for the sheer thrill of it, but they also profited well from the property they got from guests. With the victim's back to the curtain Kate would distract the guest, while John Bender or his son would come from behind the curtain and strike the guest on the right side of the skull with a hammer. In May of 1871, the body of a man named Mr. Jones, who had his skull crushed and … On the high prairie by the nearby Mounds which bear the name, the Bender family ~ John, his wife , son, and daughter Kate ~ in 1871 built a small house. The stone slab floor was broken up with sledgehammers but no bodies were found, and it was determined that the smell was from blood that had soaked into the soil. The search of the cabin resulted in the recovery of three hammers: a shoe hammer, a claw hammer, and a sledgehammer that appeared to match indentations in some of the skulls. The serial killer’s former rooming house has since been destroyed, leaving only a scatter of bricks. Their attorney also produced a marriage certificate indicating that Mrs. Davis had been married in Michigan in 1872, the time when several of the murders were committed. Many innocent men under suspicion were also run out of the county by these committees.[5]. The women's identities were later confirmed by two Osage township witnesses from a tintype photograph. The family consisted of John Bender, Mrs. Bender, son John Jr. and daughter Kate. 1) May 1871: Mr. Jones. Relocating to Independence from, 7) December 1872: Johnny Boyle. In 1884, it was reported that John Flickinger had committed suicide in Lake Michigan. Records of the incarceration back up this affidavit. • 1) May 1871: Mr. Jones. The men then physically lifted the cabin and moved it to the side so they could dig under it, but no bodies were found. One of the searchers identified the body of his brother, with the back of his skull smashed in and his throat slit. Vol. The ghastly discovery of eight bodies, including the corpse of a little girl, plus the bloody, stench-filled cellar, told the grim tale. $38 (2021: $811) and a wagon with a team of horses missing. A historical marker erected near the site says, "Although stories abound, the ultimate fate of the murderous Bender family is uncertain. [5][18] Kate then became abusive toward them, and a short while later the two Bender men emerged from behind the cloth. Many stories say that one vigilante group actually caught the Benders and shot all of them but Kate, whom they burned alive. In the spring of 1873, Longcor's former neighbor, Dr. William Henry York, went looking for them and questioned homesteaders along the trail. When a traveler was seated at the … At her hearing, Mrs. Monroe denied any knowledge of Shearer or the manslaughter charge and remained incarcerated with her daughter. Bloody Benders Home Location Bad photo shooting into the sun, but this is the location of where the old bender house set in the 1870's, I will get a better one soon..... STOREY. The body was then dropped through the trap door. Try this feature for free with a MyRouteYou Plus trial subscription. They were released after being found not guilty, but were then immediately re-arrested for the Bender murders. The Bloody Benders Marker. The affidavits and other papers are missing from the file in LaBette County, so further examination is impossible. 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. They slayed at least 11 people and buried their bodies in the 1870s before going on … [5], Three days after the township meeting, Billy Tole was driving cattle past the Bender property when he noticed that the inn was abandoned and the farm animals were unfed. 13-15) December 1872: Various body parts. Several weeks after the discovery of the bodies, Addison Roach and his son-in-law, William Buxton, were arrested as accessories. The Bloody Benders. Kate soon gained notoriety as a self-proclaimed healer and spiritualist. The former property of the "Bloody Benders" is up for sale. In the front half of the house, the family ran an inn and store, while the back half was the family living area. There’s a storm gate in Wichita, Kansas that has no plaque or indication, only a troll sculpture that waits for the unaware – it is the Wichita Troll. CS1 maint: ref=harv ; Gibson, Dirk C. (19 November 2009). Digging resumed the following 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. After the Civil War the Osage Indians were moved from their home in Labette County to Oklahoma, in order to make the Kansas Territory available to European settlers. Mrs. Almira Griffith) and Mrs. Sarah Eliza Davis had been arrested in Niles, Michigan (often misreported as Detroit) several weeks earlier for larceny. While there is no definitive number, estimates report that the Benders killed at least a dozen travelers before their crimes were discovered and the family fled, with their fate uncertain. 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. Its floor was covered in pools of blood. It was speculated that she had been strangled or buried alive. [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. However, once the property was searched, the townspeople discovered a far grislier truth: The family had gruesomely murdered at least 11 people and buried their bodies throughout the land. 2-3) February 1872: Two unidentified men found on the prairie in February 1872 with crushed skulls and throats cut. 16-19) December 1872: During the search, the bodies of four unidentified males were found in Drum Creek and the surrounds. Elvira Bender, who also allegedly spoke very little English, was 55 years of age and was so unfriendly that her neighbors took to calling her a "she-devil". The front section also contained the kitchen and dining table, where travelers could stop for a meal or even spend the night. It is conjectured[by whom?] It is the first and only comprehensive story of the Bloody Benders; a terrible chapter in the annuals of crime on this lonely prairie Inn in the southeast Kansas. ISBN 978-1-5368-9341-0. It was suspected that the Benders sat travelers near the curtain and used some sort of hammer to hit them in the back of the head, before they dropped their victim through the trap door and into the cellar below. They were never found and later I formed my own conclusions why. Kate was believed[by whom?] of murdering several husbands, but none of these rumors were ever proven. The approximately 152 acres of land that was once the property of the "Bloody Benders," who may be the first serial killer family in America, is up for auction. John Bender, Sr. was from either Germany or the Netherlands and is thought by some[by whom?] In February 1872, the bodies of two men were found who had the same injuries as Jones. On October 31, 1889, it was reported that a Mrs. Almira Monroe (a.k.a. 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. From those who knew them and have written about them, we gather the following: Locals began scouring the area after reports of people who had gone missing in their community began to surface. From Howard County, Kansas. A message requesting positive identification was sent to Cherryvale, but the suspect severed his foot to escape his leg irons and bled to death. [7] Brockman would be arrested again 23 years later for the rape and murder of his own 18-year-old daughter.[8]. Bloody Benders : biography – Connection to Little House on the Prairie The Ingalls family made famous in the books and television series Little House on the Prairie lived near Independence, and Laura Ingalls Wilder mentioned the Bender family in her writing and speeches. After a cabin, a barn with a corral, and a well were built, in the fall of 1871, Elvira Bender and daughter Kate arrived, and the cabin was divided into two rooms by a canvas wagon-cover. The timber cabin where the murders were committed no longer exists, and there are no structures or buildings that remain on the property. "Prior to their ownership, which took place in the 1950s, there could have been an excavation that I'm not aware of.". 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 meeting was attended by 75 locals, including Colonel York and both John Bender Sr. and John Bender Jr. After discussing the disappearances, including that of William York, it was agreed that a search warrant would be obtained to search every homestead between Big Hill Creek and Drum Creek. Both knew of William's travel plans and, when he failed to return home, an all-out search began for the missing doctor. Coordinates: 37°20′56″N 95°29′10″W  /  37.349°N 95.486°W  / The Bloody Benders were an alleged family of serial killers who owned a small general store and inn in Osage township, Labette County, Kansas from 1871 to The inn was a simple one room house divided into living quarters and the kitchen and store area. 1) “The Bloody Benders” A gang of four so ferocious they have the catchy nickname to prove it, the Benders settled in isolated Labette County, Kansas, in the early 1870s. $2,000 (2021: $42,683) missing. Though the bodies were found in the spring of 1894, the Mellons were never caught. When the party arrived at the inn they found the cabin empty of food, clothing, and personal possessions. [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. There’s a storm gate in Wichita, Kansas that has no plaque or indication, only a troll sculpture that waits for the unaware – it is the Wichita Troll. XLIV, No. In total, 12 men "of bad repute in general" would be arrested, including Brockman. The Bender cabin was destroyed by souvenir hunters who took everything, including the bricks that lined the cellar and the stones lining the well.[1][2]. The body of a young girl was found with no injuries sufficient to cause death. One might have been Jack Bogart, whose horse was purchased from a friend of the Benders after he went missing in 1872. In October 1870, five families of spiritualists homesteaded in and around the township of Osage in northwestern Labette County, approximately 7 mi (11 km) northeast of where Cherryvale would be established seven months later. [1][2] Although some of the victims had been quite wealthy, others had been carrying little of value on them, and it was surmised that the Benders had killed them simply for the sheer thrill. John Bender Jr. was around 25 years old, handsome with auburn hair and a mustache, and spoke English fluently but with a German accent. [2], Two men who had traveled to the inn to experience Kate Bender's psychic powers stayed on for dinner but had refused to sit at the table next to the cloth, instead preferring to eat their meal at the main shop counter. The Bloody Benders were a family of serial killers who owned an inn and small general store in Labette County of southeastern Kansas from 1871 to 1873. After the third hanging, they released him and he staggered home "as one who was drunken or deranged". Much folklore and legend surrounds the Benders, making it difficult to separate fact from fiction. "Kate proclaimed herself responsible to no one save herself." Colonel York agreed that this was possible and remained for dinner. [9], More than a dozen bullet holes were found in the roof and sides of the cabin. Born July 30, 1848," "John Gebhardt came to America on July 1 18? "[19][20] Some have cast doubt on the story, saying that Laura would have been only 4 when her family moved away from the area, and that the Benders were exposed in 1873, two years after the Ingalls left. [1], One detective later claimed that he had traced the pair to the border, where he had found that John Jr. had died of apoplexy. Some of the Benders' neighbors claimed that John and Kate were not brother and sister, but actually husband and wife. to have been born John Flickinger. Located on a main road, the Benders sold meals and supplies to travelers. She mentioned stopping at the inn, as well as recounting the rumors of the murders spreading through their community. With the exception of McKenzie and York,[17] who were buried in Independence; the Longcors, who were buried in Montgomery County; and McCrotty, who was buried in Parsons, Kansas, none of the other bodies were claimed, and they were reburied at the base of a small hill 1 mile (1.6 km) southeast of the Benders' orchard, one of several at the location now known as "The Benders Mounds". [18], A historical marker describing the Benders’ crimes is located in the rest area at the junction of U.S. Route 400 and U.S. Route 169 north of Cherryvale. The group is believed to be one of the first serial killer families in America. With the Benders gone, neighbors searched their property. The Bloody Benders Historic Marker. that when a guest would stay at the Benders' bed and breakfast inn, the hosts would give the guest a seat of honor at the table which was positioned over a trap door that led into the cellar. The Bloody Benders—a.k.a. The Benders’ story begins, like many from this time period, thanks to the Homestead Act of 1862. "[7], Word of the murders spread quickly, and more than three thousand people, including reporters from as far away as New York City and Chicago, visited the site. 7. John Bender Sr., his wife Kate and their two children, named John and Kate, operated an inn and sold supplies to travelers -- or so people thought. McCrotty. Mrs. Monroe now admitted she had married a Mr. Shearer in 1872 and claimed she had previously denied it, as she did not want the court to know that her name was Shearer at that time and that she had a conviction for manslaughter. 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.' $10 (2021: $213), a, 8-9) December 1872: George Newton Longcor and his 18-month-old daughter, Mary Ann. 6 The Bloody Benders’ House. The family consisted of John Bender and his wife, Elvira, their son, John Jr., and daughter, Kate. It covers the on-going investigation into the Bloody Benders. She advocated "free love," and denounced all social regulations for the promotion of purity and the prevention of carnality, which she called "miserable requirements of self-constituted society." 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. John Bender, Sr. was around 60 years old and spoke very little English. The story of the Benders' escape spread, and the search continued on and off for the next 50 years. Marker Name: The Bloody Benders Marker Type: Rest Area Marker text: 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 Bloody Benders were a family of serial killers who lived and operated in Labette County, Kansas, from May 1871 to December 1872. Elvira and Kate Bender also planted a 2-acre (0.81 ha) vegetable garden and apple orchard north of the cabin.[1][2][3]. In 1937 she gave a speech at a book fair, which was later transcribed and printed in the September 1978 Saturday Evening Post and in the 1988 book A Little House Sampler. Dr. York had two brothers: Colonel Ed York living in Fort Scott, and Alexander M. 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