Murder of Eliza Mary Bowen

 In 1898 or 1899 Richard Wigley, a butcher, would meet Eliza Mary Bowen. In June of 1900, Eliza had gone to live in a man's home and while there became really close with Richard Wiggle. Eventually, he would procure lodgings for her in Shrewsbury, England. At the time the reason he gave was in order for Eliza to be able to have a place to mend her clothes and get her things together until she moved on to another place. By then 54/53-year-old Richard had been separated from his wife and would frequently visit 27/28-year-old Eliza. 

However, the 28-year-old  had left that home and moved back to the Red Lion Inn in Westbury. She was trying to break off things with Richard. It was said that they were still on friendly terms.

On November 30, 1901, Richard got up early and walked 10 miles from his home in Shrewsbury to The Lion Inn where Mary was. Eliza was a barmaid for the Inn and when Richard arrived he drank. She would serve him several glasses. 

He would eventually be seen with his arms around and Eliza cried out, "Man, what do you mean?" She would then ask a servant to fetch a policeman, but she successfully released herself from him so no one went to get an officer. 

She would then go and retrieve some wine. Richard would follow her and she would call for the servant to take the alcohol. Richard would place his left arm around her neck and with his right, he pulled out a knife he had hidden in his pocket to her neck. 

The other servant girl witnessed this and ran to get help. When she and a blacksmith got back to the hotel Eliza was on the doorstep with her throat bloodied. Richard would come out and say "I've done it, lads, for love." He may have left a note for Eliza's sister in the kitchen stating the same that he did it for love.

When the police came he stated the same thing that he had done it for love. When asked for his plead he stated " I don't know what I was doing that morning." To which the judge took as a plea of not guilty. During the trial, he was found guilty and was set for execution.

On March 18, 1902, 54-year-old Richard Wigley was executed. He showed penitence for the murder even stating he had no idea how he could have done it. He had eaten a good breakfast and walked steadily to the scaffold. 

SOURCES:

British Executions

Murder Research

Liver Pool Daily Post December 2, 1901

Western Gazette December 11, 1901

The Uttoxeter New Era, and General Advertiser December 11, 1901

Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser February 18, 1902

The Wells Journal March 06, 1902

The Nottingham Evening Post March 18,1902

Murder of Harry Ecklind Blochman

 

Harry Ecklind was born on May 12, 1888, to Swedish parents in Santa Maria, California. His father, a musician, would die as when he infant and a few years later his mother would join him. Knowing her son would become an orphan, before her death, his mother would come in contact with the Blochmans. The childless couple would take in the boy and treat him as if their own.

Lazar and Ida Bolchman were known as charitable people. They would take homless and less unfortanate people in. Lazar was both a businessman and columnist for the Santa Maria Times where he would write about economic and sociological issues.Ida was the vice president of the Santa Maria Union high School, and a member of the Board of Education of Santa Barbra County. She also was a a high regarded Botonist in Santa Barbra County.  

Harry's name would be changed to Harry Ecklind Blochman was known as a happy, handsome and smart child. He seemed to inherit some of his father's artistic abilities and the Bolchmans wanted to nurture those talents. 

On the night of July 3, 1901 Harry stayed out late that night. At 8:30 he was seen heading home, and at 9 he was seen talking to two men a block away from home. The two men seemed to have been threshers and one of them seemed to be drunk and this was the last time anyone saw Harry alive. 

While the town celebrated the 4th the Bolchmans worried about their young son. The same night he went missing the Strong boys reported that their horse and buggy had been stolen from in front of Haslam's store around 9:30 pm. It was found in Guadalupe the next day with the horse exhausted. 

Police suspected that Harry may have been abducted. The police kept asked about the trains leaving the Guadalupe area. Police found out that a man had been on a train about 11:30 he pretended to be asleep and his his face. When the conductor asked for a ticket he didn't have a ticket, but did pay to go San Luis Obsipo. This led nowhere though.

On July 6th around 7 p.m. two children were playing in their back yard. They noticed something a bean field not far from the Bolchman's home. They would stumble upon Harry's body about 1/8 of a miled from the road. The children's father notified the Blochman's before the police.

He was greatly decomposed and there was a struggle in the bean field. There were 9 knife wounds 4 of which could have caused his death. Two in the brain and two in the heart. It appeared that he tried to crawl towards his home before he died.

A man named William Kelso was believed to be the one who was seen speaking to Harry the night he died. Police would bring in a man named Kinkaid and arrested him as an accomplice. He allegedly knew that Kelso was the one that stole the horse and buggy that night, but he was released. 

William would be found in Templton under the name Jackson working on a ranch. Sheriff Ivans would come up and arrest him. He would take him by train back to Santa Maria, but because there was rumors of a lynching he had William hide behind several large trunks in the baggage compartment. There was no lynch mob waiting for them. 

William would be charged and would go to trial for the murder. On October 9, 1901 William would be found not guilty of the murder. It only took the jury less than 45 minutes which was unexpected as many believed that it would take longer.

 There were no other suspects in the case. It's unknown if William Kelso had done the crime and if not the real culprit will remain unknown. 

SOURCES:

Find a Grave

SMV Historical Society Museum

The Fresno Morning Republic July 7, 1901

San Fransisco Chronicle July 8, 1901

Santa Maria Times July 13, 1901

San Fransisco Chronicle October 10, 1901

Hanford Kings County Sentinel October 17, 1901

Santa Maria Times November 21, 2010

Santa Maria Times November 9, 2014

INFANTICIDE: March 18, 1901 Bartonville, Illinois Baby Jane Doe

On March 18, 1901, the body of an infant girl was found in a coal mine in Bartonville, Illinois. There is little information in this case. 

SOURCES: 

Find a Grave

UNIDENTIFIED: Jan. 3, 1901 Welsh, Louisiana John Doe

 At 2 p.m. on Jan. 3, 1901, four miles out of Welsh, Louisiana the crew of a freight train saw bloodied clothes hanging from the cards. Upon inspection, the body of a mangled teenage boy was found. It's believed that the boy was a stowaway on the train and lost his hold causing him to fall beneath and be mangled by the train. He had broken both legs, and crushed his skull, one arm was severed and the other only held on by skin.

 A trainman came forward stating he believed he saw the boy in Houston, Texas. The boy told him he had returned from the Philippines and was heading to New Orleans to see his brothers. He stated one brother worked at a slaughterhouse and the other worked at a mill.

John Doe was a white male was between 14 and 16-years-old. He seemed to be wearing a new suit with overalls over it to help protect it. He had no identifying papers on him when he was found. He did have a tattoo of an anchor with the initials G.T.

SOURCES:

Find a Grave

Unidentified Wiki

UNIDENTIFIED: October 9, 1901 Somerville, Indiana John Doe

On October 8, 1901, a young unknown man would be seen in Somerville, Indiana. On the 9th he would be seen walking up and down the streets stopping to rest once in a while in front of stores. He spoke very little, but people could tell he was of more than ordinary intelligence. He had gone to the train station several times to ask when the train was going to arrive. 

He would start walking down the track about 30 minutes before the train would arrive. When the train got close to him he ignored it. The engineer in the cab blew the whistle and it alerted the man. He looked up at the train and walked to the edge of the track as if he was going to walk off the track, but stopped just before doing so with one foot on the rail. Instead of walking off he turned and walked towards the train.

The Train tried to stop but was not able to. The man was struck but was still alive and unconscious. The train crew would bring him aboard and physicians aboard tried to help him. It seemed that he broke his arm, his back was injured and he had internal injuries. He died a few minutes after his arrival. 

The man seemed to have taken precautions before his death. There did not seem to have been any way of identifying him. It may have been his plan to kill himself in this town where no one knew him.

John Doe was around 21 years old. He was well dressed and may have been middle class. 

SOURCES:

Find a Grave

Evansville Courier and Press October 10, 1901

Evansville Courier and Press October 11, 1901

INFANTICIDE: July 31, 1901 Phoenix, Arizona Baby Doe

On July 31, 1901, a baby was found in Pheonix, Arizona. The baby was Hispanic. There's little information in this case.  

SOURCES:

Find A Grave

Unidentified Wiki

INFANTICIDE: October 25, 1901 London, England Baby Doe

 On October 25, 1901, the body of a baby was found in the Kensington Gardens in London, England. The infant had a hat pin inserted into their head which caused them to die due to an effusion of blood.

SOURCES:

Unsolved Murders UK