Episode 26 - The Villisca Axe Murder House

Campfire: Tales of the Strange and Unsettling

12/21/21 • 96 min

In the early morning hours of June 10, 1912, Josiah and Sarah Moore, along with their four children and two house guests were brutally murdered in their beds in the small mid-western town of Villisca, Iowa. During the weeks that followed, life in this small town saw a dramatic change. Residents of this sleepy hamlet reinforced locks, openly carried weapons and huddled together while sleeping. Newspaper reporters and private detectives flooded the streets. Accusations, rumors and suspicion ran rampant among friends and families. Bloodhounds were brought in. Law enforcement agencies from neighboring counties and states joined forces. Hundreds of interviews filled thousands of pages, but the murders remain unsolved to this day. The question we examine here is how atrocities like this echo through the years. Is this famously haunted homestead one of so many locations where the very fabric that binds us together as human beings has been torn asunder? Is this why visitors report so many instances of anxiety and despair?

Is there a way for any of us to ever truly know?

Campfire: Tales of the Strange and Unsettling is created for adult audiences only. The content and discussion in this show will necessarily engage with various accounts that include violence, anxiety, fear, and occasional body horror. Much of it will be emotionally and intellectually challenging to engage with. We will flag especially graphic or intense content so as to never put you in an uninformed or unprepared position. We will do our best to make this a space where we can engage bravely, empathetically, and thoughtfully with difficult content every week.

This week’s episode includes the following sensitive content:

Extreme Graphic Violence

Violence Against Children

Body Horror

Sexual Assault

Molestation

Pedophilia

Extreme Mental Illness Including:

Dissociative Disorder

Suicidal Ideation

Schizophrenia

Psychopathy