infanticide – Tuscarawas County Stories

The Cistern Secret: The 1919 Clara Shroyer Case

AI generated image depicting the Bates gardener and a New Philadelphia, Ohio policeman discovering a crying infant at the bottom of a cistern, 2025. (Source: Google ImageFX)

A shocking discovery in a city cistern would unravel the dark, hidden chapter of young woman’s short life. Clara Madge Shroyer (1897–1930) was born in Mineral City, Tuscarawas County, Ohio, the daughter of Henry Shroyer (1872–1930), a local farm laborer, and his wife, Selena Emma Fisher Shroyer (1876–1937). She grew up in a rural farmingContinue reading “The Cistern Secret: The 1919 Clara Shroyer Case”

Innocence Buried: The Feutz Tragedy of 1935

AI generated image depicting Mary Feutz digging a hallow grave in her backyard, 2025. (Source: ImageFX)

The lives of a Dover family unraveled in 1935 with a secret birth and a tragic crime. Content warning: The post contains discussion of infanticide. Mary Warther (1887-1969) was born in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, the daughter of Swiss immigrants Jacob Godfrey Warther (1844-1888) and Elizabeth Anna Haney (1855-1938). Her early years were marked by theContinue reading “Innocence Buried: The Feutz Tragedy of 1935”