- In January 1911 in Rayne, Louisiana a mother and her four children were hacked to death by an unknown killer as they slept.
- In February in Crowley the Byers family was killed.
- A few weeks later, in nearby Lafayette, LA the five members of the Andrus family were killed,
- In April, five member of the Cassaway family were killed.
- On Nov. 26, 1911 the 5 membes of the Norbett Randall family were similarily killed as they slept.
- On Jan. 19, 1912, five members of the Warner family in Crowley were attacked and killed
- On Jan. 21, at Lake Charles the 5 members of the Felix Broussard family were killed
- The 6 members of the Wexford family were slaughtered.
- Feb. 91, 1912, Beaumont more death in the Dove home.
- March 27, more death in Glidden, Texas
- April 11, 1912 in San Antonio, the five members of the William Burton family were killed
- April 13, 1912 three were killed in a Hempstead, Texas home.
- Aug. 6, 1912 the final murders occur in San Antonio.
After that, no more deaths in the region. Michael Newton in his Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimes, notes the interesting fact that some 20 black women were killed in Atlanta, Georgia during this same time period. The killer there was labeled "Jack the Ripper." (pg. 263-264).
The New York Times in March 1912 indicated there was great fear in the black communities of the region, worried over the impact on grain crops (so compassionate), discussed the possibility of a "Sacrifice Cult" and then spent some time exploring the belief that a cult had not been the initial cause of the killings but was a factor now. ("Negro TerrorMay Shorten Rice Crops", New York Times, March 2, 1912, pg. 7). The ignorance of Voodoo, Hoodoo and alternate religious customs added to the problem. The crimes were not viewed as seriously as they might and were clearly only a danger to one segment of the population ("Religious Crank Killing Negroes," Oklahoman, Feb.20, 1912, pg. 1). In Februrary, in Beaumont, Texas Ethel Dove, her son Ernest, daughter Haitie, and daughter Jessie Quick were killed.
The killer next struck in San Antonio and for the last time in the region of Hempstead, Texas.
Some have attempted to make this part of a racial attack on Louisiana and Texas blacks. The truth may be it is simply part of a larger pattern of assaults on families through the country in the 1901 - 1930 time period. Numerous families, mothers, fathers, and young children, were brutally assaulted in Louisiana, Texas, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Colorado, W. Virginia, and California. It may be that once more investigation occurs other yet to be discoverd events in numerous areas may provide even more links between all of these early crimes.
In almost every case found the target appeared to be the mother figure and the assaults on the woman the most severe.
14 comments:
austin tx axe murderer 1885,never caught,the tx and la. axe muderer 1912 never caught,the new orleans 1918 axe murderer never caught,all happened within a 30 yr period all happened within a few hundred miles???
ran across this as I was looking for other information. There were a series similar murders from 1921 to 1923 in central Texas, including one in Waco. Someone was arrested, tried, convicted and executed for that crime. Cannot remember his name but he was the last state execution by hanging before the switch to electric chair in Texas in 1923.
I am told there will be a book on this coming out, probably in 2013. I look forward to it. The murders in Rayne, La. were of Edna Opelousas and her three daughters. The first murder in Crowley was Walter J. Bryers, his wife and child. In Layfayetted, Alexander Adnrus. In March in San Antonio, Louis Cassaway, his wife, a six month old baby, Louise, 3, and Josie, six years old. In Lafayette, Norbert Randall, his wife and four children, in Jan '12 in Crowley, Marie Warner and three children. In Lack Charles, Felix Broussard, Matilde his wife, Margaret, Lewis and Albertine, his children. In Beaumont, Hattie Dove, her son Ernest and daughters Ethel and Mrs. Jeff Burke, in Glidden, Ellen Monroe, her border Lyle Funacune and her four children. In April in San Antonio, William Burton, his wife Carried, Leona 3, Sonny 1, and Leon Evers, a brother in law. And in Philadelphia Miss, in November 1912, William Wamsley, his wife Sallie and a one year old child. There was substantial speculation at thet ime that the Hempstead Texas murders were unrelated. There was a suspect, too, in the Glidden murders. I have seen no mention of the Philadelphia murders elsewhere, but you can find newspaper accounts by Googling.
there were also murders similar to this in Virginia MN in 1917 the killer(s) were never caught. Same as the murders in Villisca Iowa, murder never caught.Wonder if it could all be connected.
My great grandpa lived in the old town of fal Louisiana on the Texas border in the early 1900s and they had a family killed by an axe Murderer and they never found out who it was
Ax murders abound in that period.It would be interesting to know the similarities.
In January 1911 in Rayne, Louisiana a mother and her four children were hacked to death by an unknown killer as they slept.
In February in Crowley the Byers family was killed.
A few weeks later, in nearby Lafayette, LA the five members of the Andrus family were killed,
In April, five member of the Cassaway family were killed.
October 15, 1911 the Showman family of Ellsworth, Kansas
On Nov. 26, 1911 the 5 membes of the Norbett Randall family were similarily killed as they slept.
On Jan. 19, 1912, five members of the Warner family in Crowley were attacked and killed
On Jan. 21, at Lake Charles the 5 members of the Felix Broussard family were killed
The 6 members of the Wexford family were slaughtered.
Feb. 91, 1912, Beaumont more death in the Dove home.
March 27, more death in Glidden, Texas
April 11, 1912 in San Antonio, the five members of the William Burton family were killed
April 13, 1912 three were killed in a Hempstead, Texas home.
June 5th 1912, the Hudson's, husband and wife of Paola, Kansas.
June 10, 1912 Villisca, Iowa The six Moores and two Stillinger children
Aug. 6, 1912 the final murders occur in San Antonio.
The murder for which have been mistakenly attributed to Clementine Barnabet in January of 1911 in Rayne, Louisiana, occurred in September 1909. The man arrested for the crime, Sosthens Guidry, was later released.
Rayne murder of Edna Opelousas occurred in September, 1909. On two separate occasions people were charged with that murder, one named Houston Goodwill and the other named Sosthene Guidry. Goodwill was arrested in 1909. There was also a tipster who claimed to know about the Rayne murder shortly before the arrest of Sosthene Guidry. Don't know if those two fact are connected.
What were the names of the family killed in Hempstead Texas on 4/13/1912?
Excellent question! In most of the news articles located there is no name given; they are identified as a "negress" and her son and other family member (the descriptions range widely on who they were to each other). This does raise several possibilities: a)Racial or class limitations made them 'un-named' ; b) they never existed and served as a means of stirring up trouble or as a witness to the threat perceived by the so-called voodoo church or by the presence of the persons in the proximity or area. Anyone have any better details?
My grandparents were James and Lula Dashiell. In August of 1912, along with their four children, they were attacked by the ax murderer in theirj home in the middle of the night. My father Joseph, the youngest child at 10 years old, said that a few days before the incident he was playing in the front yard with his dog. A white man passing by stopped at the front gate to ask if Joseph lived there. He also asked if the dog belonged to him. Hours later the dog was found dead by way of poison. The attempt to murder the Dashiell Family occurred a week later. This may have been a mere coincidence but my father always felt that there was a connection to the attack. The assailant was thankfully unsuccessful in his attempt to kill them. In a dark room, the attacker's blow to Lula's head struck her arm. She screamed, awakening James and his older sons (John - 21 & James - 19) who grabbed their shotguns and charged out of the house after the man. Shots rang out but as far as we know, the man got away. He may have been wounded. Records indicate that this ax murderer never struck again. One week after the attack, Joseph, Lula, and their family boarded a train for San Francisco. None of them ever returned to Texas.
My grandparents, James and Lula Dashiell, and their four children (John 21, James 19, Harriett 14, and Joseph 10) were the last family to be attacked by the ax murderer in August of 1912. After the failed assault, James and and his oldest two sons chased the man out of the house and into the night. They fired several shots his way but were not sure if he was hit. Records indicate that the ax man never struck mixed race families again in Texas or Louisiana. One week after the attack, my grandparents and their family were on a train to San Francisco never to return to Texas ever again.
What an incredible story Joseph! Thank God your family survived otherwise you wouldn't be here. It does sound like there was a connection between the white man and the attempted murders the following week.It sounds like he wanted to kill the dog so he wouldn't give away the man's presence when he arrived while everyone was asleep. I long suspected that it was a racist white man or men who didn't like black and mulatto families. Most of the families attacked lived near rail stations so it would be easy for the killer to travel around. It's just so horrible to think that someone like that never was arrested. Hopefully your uncles or granddad got in a good shot at the killer
Wow
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