UNSOLVED ND - Niagara, Six nude bodies buried in crawlspace, c. 1906

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I found him on the 1895 North Dakota Census. I don't know how to post an image, but it doesn't give much info - just that he was a 35yo farmer in Grand Forks county and from New York.

Too bad census takers don't enumerate bodies in the foundation of each address.

Sorry for the gallows humor....mainly I'm just making fun of myself hunting for the identities of these long-long people.
 
Inthedetails said:
I found him on the 1895 North Dakota Census. I don't know how to post an image, but it doesn't give much info - just that he was a 35yo farmer in Grand Forks county and from New York.

Too bad census takers don't enumerate bodies in the foundation of each address.

Sorry for the gallows humor....mainly I'm just making fun of myself hunting for the identities of these long-long people.
Click to expand...

Wait. He was 35 in 1895 census but 52 in 1900 U.S. census, right? Findagrave has him born 1849 but the 1900 U.S census has him borm Dec 1848. So many errors on all the old records...argghhh

And so many conflicting stories in 1915 lol
Guess it goes back to needing the bones to do any forensic/DNA research. I hope some of the families still have the bones that were taken as souvenirs. Creepy.
 
And Inthedetails, please monopolize! You find great info!
 
I really wish we knew if the "first five" included children or not. One article clearly states a child of about 2yo with 9 teeth, but none of the other articles do. That is strange.
 
From The Duluth Herald, July 6, 1915

“Eugene Butler, the Niagara recluse, who is believed to have murdered six persons whose skeletons were found under his home at Niagara 15 or 20 year after the commission of the crime, made no mention of his career of murder while an inmate of the state asylum for the insane from 1904 to 1911, when he died….

“Butler used to have delusions of grandure and visions of exalted character. Once he fell in love with one of the women nurses.”
 
This is not MSM, but I'm hoping we have a little leeway with sources since the case is over 100 years old. But I understand if this is not allowed.

This site shows the town - and it's easy to imagine how it must have looked during Eugene Butlers life: http://minnemom.com/2011/06/15/niagara-north-dakota/

(Yes, I'm still monopolizing....who says Monday has to be laundry day?)
 
Wow, I missed a lot suddenly. Great finds, folks, even though we're back to square one.

Were either Sgt Hillebrand or the news investigator made aware of Websleuths and/or this discussion?
 
creepedout both Sgt Hillebrand and Matt Henson are aware of everything going on. They are both very thankful for the efforts being made and look forward to any findings that we come up with.
 
52bruno said:
creepedout both Sgt Hillebrand and Matt Henson are aware of everything going on. They are both very thankful for the efforts being made and look forward to any findings that we come up with.
Click to expand...

Can you ask him if one of the skeletons was indeed a child of about age 2? That really is a big clue.
 
Inthedetails. I asked both of them if they had any info that they could share with us, they don't have as much info as has been found here. With the case being so old they are hoping to get as much support as possible.
 
52bruno said:
Inthedetails. I asked both of them if they had any info that they could share with us, they don't have as much info as has been found here. With the case being so old they are hoping to get as much support as possible.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I'm going to give the 1900 census another look.
 
Here's an old map of landownership that shows Eugene Butler's plot. Follow the line directly under the "G" of Grand Forks under the Niagara section. The map is here.

The title of the document is Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1893.
 
52bruno said:
If we could find a copy of the Grand Forks Daily Hearld dated closer to the date of discovery of the bodies there might be more accurate info. Every newspaper article shows a little different info. This article dated 28 June 1915 shows, man, woman, and kids. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn89074405/1915-06-28/ed-1/seq-1.pdf a local paper should have more accurate info you would think.
Click to expand...

I looked through the 1900 census for Niagara, North Dakota, searching for any boarders who were farm laborers or housekeepers. Then I searched for those same people in the 1910 census. The females are trickier because they might have married between 1900 and 1910 and thus be "lost."

There is a family on the 1900 census that stands out as a possible clue. If a fresh set of eyes wants to look, here's the info

Page 1 of the 1900 U.S. Census for Niagara, Grand Forks, North Dakota:
James Yates, age 38, born April 1862 in Missouri, farm laborer
Martha E. Yates, age 47, born March 1853 in Indiana, servant
Ethel Yates, age 15, born Dec 1884 in Missouri, in school
Eugene Lyons, age 29, born May 1861 in New York, farm laborer

These four people were boarders at the home of John and Viola Black in 1900. John and Viola had an adopted daughter named Bessie, age 6, also living in the home. John Black was a farmer in Niagara, ND. Sometime between 1900 and1905, the three people in the Black family - John, Viola, and Bessie - had moved to Minnesota. I don't know what became of their boarders.

It looks like the Yates and the Blacks are in-laws - perhaps Martha Yates and Viola Black are sisters. ? Eugene Lyons looks like an unrelated boarder. The census indicates their occupations, but not the name of their employer so I obviously don't know that they worked for Eugene Butler. However, John Black was from New York like Eugene Butler and they were near in age. (Niagara ND is named after Niagara NY where many residents moved from). Niagara ND was a small place to begin with, and being from the same state, I'm sure Eugene Butler and John Black knew each other - and it's possible Butler hired the inlaws/boarders of his hometown acquaintance. I'm just guessing, of course!

So, FWIW, I cannot find these four boarders on the 1910 census, though that doesn't necessarily mean anything other than I can't find them. If anyone out there wants to look for them, please do so!

Is this a lead or dead end?!

ETA: Dead end.
 
Moot point now, thanks to sleuthers. Deleting to avoid confusion.
 
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