The Villisca Axe Murder House: 8 Bodies, ZERO Answers After 112 Years

Eight people were brutally murdered with an axe in their beds on June 10, 1912, in Villisca, Iowa—and the killer has never been identified. The Moore family and two young sleepover guests were found with their skulls crushed, their faces covered, and bizarre evidence left throughout the house: every mirror draped with clothing, a four-pound slab of bacon next to the murder weapon, and signs the killer had spent hours in the home after the murders. Despite multiple suspects—including a mentally ill traveling minister who confessed, a powerful state senator with a business grudge, and possible connections to a Midwest serial killer—no one was ever convicted. The contaminated crime scene and 1912-era forensics made solving the case impossible. This unsolved mass murder shocked America and led to the creation of Iowa's Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Today, the Villisca Axe Murder House stands restored to its 1912 condition, one of the most notorious crime scenes in American history. After 112 years, the question remains: who killed the Moore family? #truecrime #unsolvedmystery #villisca #axemurders #coldcase