Ruth Moore’s life ended in violence after suspicion and jealousy turned her husband into a murderer. Content warning: This post contains references to suicide. If you or someone you know has a mental illness, is struggling emotionally, or has concerns about their mental health, there are ways to get help. Click here for resources to find helpContinue reading “Jealous and Armed: The Murder of Ruth Moore”
Tag Archives: ohio history
Innocence Buried: The Feutz Tragedy of 1935
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”
Unindicted: The 1935 Death of Clarence Garabrandt
A Dennison man’s life ends in mystery after a fatal punch. Was it murder or a tragic twist of fate? Clarence Garabrandt (1902-1935) was born in the village of Barnhill, nestled in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. The son of Ezra Garabrandt (1868-1923) and Lydia Smitely (1871-1951), Clarence grew up in a family familiar with hard labor.Continue reading “Unindicted: The 1935 Death of Clarence Garabrandt”
January 12, 1913: The Night Dover Held Its Breath
Four well-liked young men, a flooded bridge, and a night that nearly claimed their futures forever. It was cold and rainy Sunday afternoon, January 12, 1913 when four friends decided to travel from Dover to visit Mineral City’s newspaper office. It was a trip the group – made up of Perry Floyd Bixler (1895-1972), linotypeContinue reading “January 12, 1913: The Night Dover Held Its Breath”
“Unknown Causes”: The Mysterious Death of Albert J. Bates
A mysterious night, missing belongings, and a crushed skull. What really happened to Albert Bates in 1929? Albert “Alva” Jerome Bates (1868-1929) was born in Ashland County, Ohio, to farmer Elias Bates (1831-1891) and his wife Harriet Charlton (1824-1900). His early life was marked by hardship when, at the age of two, he suffered aContinue reading ““Unknown Causes”: The Mysterious Death of Albert J. Bates”
Jealousy on the Farm: The 1940 Murder of Nellie Kail
A devoted farm wife, a jealous husband, and a fatal morning confrontation – unraveling the tragic, forgotten story of Nellie Vansickle Kail. Content warning: If you or someone you know has a mental illness, is struggling emotionally, or has concerns about their mental health, there are ways to get help. Click here for resources to findContinue reading “Jealousy on the Farm: The 1940 Murder of Nellie Kail”
Lights Over Oldtown Valley: The 1964 UFO Sightings
Mysterious lights over Oldtown Valley Road reignited 1960s flying saucer stories. The national obsession with “flying saucers” had quieted down somewhat by 1964. The frenzy of sightings and speculation that began in the late 1940s was replaced with Cold War concerns and cultural shifts. But in the quiet hills north of Port Washington, Ohio, theContinue reading “Lights Over Oldtown Valley: The 1964 UFO Sightings”
From the Bizarre Crime to the Heroic Death of Norman J. Hollis
A Dover man, torn by rejection, planned a horrible crime only to have it lead to his heroic death. Born in 1924, Norman James Hollis (1924-1944) was the second child of Floyd James Hollis (1900-1983) and Bessie Lovett (1906-1970), who married four years earlier in Wayne County, Tennessee. Around the time of Norman’s birth, theContinue reading “From the Bizarre Crime to the Heroic Death of Norman J. Hollis”
A Dover Man’s Story: The 1917 Shooting of Frank Pogue
When a Dover man stood up to defend his landlady’s honor in 1917, the violent aftermath set in motion a life shaped by injury, heartbreak, and ultimately, a tragic end. Content warning: This post contains references to suicide. If you or someone you know has a mental illness, is struggling emotionally, or has concerns about theirContinue reading “A Dover Man’s Story: The 1917 Shooting of Frank Pogue”
A Killing in Dennison: The Story of Minnie Adkins
Minnie Adkins—a young Black mother and domestic worker—sparked a rare wave of public sympathy after she shot and killed a white man who threatened her. Minnie Williamson (1884-aft. 1950) was born in 1884 in North Carolina to Bedford Williamson and Della Willis. One of nine siblings, Minnie came of age in the post-Reconstruction South asContinue reading “A Killing in Dennison: The Story of Minnie Adkins”
Tuscarawas County Stories 