true crime killing – Page 2 – Tuscarawas County Stories

The Poisoning of Mary Hoffman

AI generated image depicting John Jacob Hoffman sprinkling arsenic poison on meat in the Hoffman kitchen, 2025 (Source: ImageFX)

A Tuscarawas County immigrant couple’s quiet farm life was shattered with arsenic and suicide in 1855. 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 “The Poisoning of Mary Hoffman”

Frank Burns and a Christmas Eve Murder on Depot Street

AI generated image depicting the argument between Hunter Clakeley and Leonard Rudd in December 1943. (Source: ImageFX)

A quiet laborer in Dover, Ohio, Frank Burns became the unintended victim of a Christmas Eve shooting in 1943. Note: The Clakley surname is spelled a number of different ways in the various source material. I have chosen the spelling that appeared in the official criminal court records. Frank C. Burns was born in Milton,Continue reading “Frank Burns and a Christmas Eve Murder on Depot Street”

The Unsolved Murder of Salvatore Favazzo

AI generated composite image depicting the discovery of Salvatore Favazzo's body in October 1917.

Over a century later, the brutal murder of Salvatore Favazzo remains one of Tuscarawas County’s most haunting unsolved crimes. In the summer of 1917, Salvatore “Sam” Favazzo (c. 1887-1917) was a familiar face in the Italian neighborhoods of Dennison, Ohio. A man in his early forties, he lived in a local boarding house and ownedContinue reading “The Unsolved Murder of Salvatore Favazzo”

Jealous and Armed: The Murder of Ruth Moore

Early 20th century postcard image of Uhrichsville, Ohio. (Source: ebay.com)

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”

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”

Unindicted: The 1935 Death of Clarence Garabrandt

AI generated image depicting the scene at the Stanley home the night of November 9, 1935. (Source: Microsoft Designer)

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”

“Unknown Causes”: The Mysterious Death of Albert J. Bates

An AI generated image depicting Albert J Bates' body lying on the side of road in November 1929. (Source: ImageFX)

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”

A Killing in Dennison: The Story of Minnie Adkins

AI generated image depicting the confrontation between Jacob Broschardt and Minnie Adkins in 1908. (Source: Microsoft Designer)

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”

A Shot in the Dark: The 1924 Killing of Domenico Macri

AI generated image depicting the De Benedetta home in Dennison, Ohio in October 1924, 2025. (Source: Microsoft Designer)

An Italian immigrant and widowed father was gunned down in a Dennison home in 1924, exposing a hidden past. Domenico Macri (1880-1924), also recorded in some documents as Domineco Marci, was born in the Italian village of Mansoreto. He spent his early years there before he immigrated to the United States around the turn ofContinue reading “A Shot in the Dark: The 1924 Killing of Domenico Macri”

A Bullet and a Bet: The “William Tell” Killing of Dale Zeigler

AI generated image from prompt "An image from and evening in November 1947 of three off-duty coal miners sitting in a room, drinking whiskey. There is a revolver visible on a table in the scantily furnished room. A coal fired heat stove sits along one wall. " (Source: Google ImageFX)

A night of drinking, a reckless wager, and a single gunshot in the fall of 1947 turned a quiet Tuscarawas County farmhouse into the scene of a tragic death. Dale Zeigler (1923-1947) came from a large family that farmed in the Ruslin Hills area of Dover Township, a few miles north east of Dover itself.Continue reading “A Bullet and a Bet: The “William Tell” Killing of Dale Zeigler”