The Viscilla Axe Murders

About 400 criminal cases in Iowa have gone cold over the years, but certain cases stand out further than others.

The primary cold case in Iowa is the Villisca axe murder, an eight-person murder in Villisca, Iowa. The killer or killers have still not been found. It occurred at night in 1912. Those killed were the parents, J.B. and Sarah, their four kids, Herman, Kathrine, Boyd and Paul Moore and two friends, Lena and Ina Stillinger. They were hit brutally on the head by the ax and were left with marks and slashes. The house is now a type of haunted house that visitors can go through and explore the scene. 

“I got to walk inside and see what the rooms and house looked like, including the blood stains that they staged to show the story,” stated Jenna Newgard, senior at Northwest High School. 

Newgard visited and walked through the house, seeing all the rooms and where the killings took place. There the beds, children’s toys and clothes can be viewed. The night before the murders, J.B. and Sarah were watching their children perform Children’s Day exercises at their local Presbyterian church. 

This case shows how a simple family doing normal everyday activities can have a dramatic turn of events and completely change their lives in one night. 

Investigative reporters Amber Hunt and Emily G Thompon’s book, Unsolved Murders, stated, “The crime scene had some odd elements that still perplex researchers today. One four-pound slab of bacon was left leaning against the wall next to the ax, while another piece of bacon was found on the piano in the parlor.”

Many things were left behind by the killer, or killers, including the murder weapon, after it was cleaned. The murderers were not in any type of rush because after killing eight people, they still had time to close the curtains, cover the glass doors with clothing and swath the mirrors. 

This murder is the main focus of cold cases in Iowa because it is such a drastic event happening in a small town of Iowa. Besides murders, there are also missing people and shootings that have occurred. Another example of this is Jodi Huisentruit’s disappearance on the morning of June 27, 1995, on her way to work. She worked at Mason City, at KGAN-TV, as a news reporter and TV show host. That morning, she did not show up to work, and there was no sign of her. She did not call, and people were confused and worried about where she could be. 

For 29 years, Jodi still to this day had not been in any contact with her or any type of kidnapper. Since then, many people have been affected by her disappearance: her co-workers, neighbors, family, friends and even people in the town of Mason City.