Murder Mayhem In Tucson

Tucson is a vibrant, growing city, but beneath the sunny surface lies a dark history. Eva Dugan was convicted of murder and hanged here, the first woman to be executed in the state of Arizona. Gangsters like Joe Bonanno and bank robber John Dillinger were drawn to this corner of the Southwest, and it was home to killers like Robert John Bardo and Charles Schmid, a serial killer nicknamed the "Pied Piper of Tucson." In 1892, William Elliott, stabbed by a notorious criminal, became the first Tucson police officer to lay down his life in pursuit of justice, but he wouldn't be the last. Join author Patrick Whitehurst as he delves into the chilling history of Tucson.

Tucson is a vibrant, growing city, but beneath the sunny surface lies a dark history. Eva Dugan was convicted of murder and hanged here, the first woman to be executed in the state of Arizona. Gangsters like Joe Bonanno and bank robber John Dillinger were drawn to this corner of the Southwest, and it was home to killers like Robert John Bardo and Charles Schmid, a serial killer nicknamed the "Pied Piper of Tucson." In 1892, William Elliott, stabbed by a notorious criminal, became the first Tucson police officer to lay down his life in pursuit of justice, but he wouldn't be the last. Join author Patrick Whitehurst as he delves into the chilling history of Tucson.

Are inscriptions on lead crosses found on the banks of the Santa Cruz River remnants of Freemasons or a hoax? How did famous evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson arrive in Douglas weeks after she went missing in Los Angeles and was presumed dead? Did the Lost Dutchman's treasure spell the end for Adolph Ruth, whose skull was found nearly a mile away from his body in the Superstition Mountains? Author Jane Eppinga details thirteen stories of disappearances, murders and unsolved cases from the annals of Arizona history.

The author of Haunted Illinois visits the criminal history of the Windy City neighborhood where mobsters and murderers plied their trades. In 1929, Chicago gangster Al Capone arranged a special St. Valentine’s Day delivery for his favorite arch enemies: a massacre. Seven North Side mobsters were left dead. Yet random killings and bizarre murders were not unfamiliar in Chicago. Tales of the city’s most violent and puzzling murders make this gripping work truly hair-raising: a deranged stalker kills his love object and then himself; a sausage maker uses the tools of his trade to rid himself of his wife; and a meticulous serial killer cleans his dead victim’s wounds before taping them closed. Through accounts dripping with mystery, gory details and suspense, Troy Taylor brilliantly tells the twisted history of Chicago’s North Side. Includes photos!

After World War II, Tucson experienced burgeoning growth. People were drawn here by the mild winters. By 1950, Tucson's population reached 120,000, and it doubled to 220,000 by 1960. In 1952, the world-famous Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum was founded. Four years later, the Tucson Air National Guard Base was activated. During the 1960s, the Old Tucson Studios theme park, El Con Mall, the Tucson International Airport, the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Reid Park Zoo, and Pima Community College were established. In the 1970s, the Tucson Community Center and the Pima Air & Space Museum were established. Around 1984, Channel 12 began broadcasting. In the 1990s, Biosphere II was built, and in 2005, the Jewish History Museum and the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum were dedicated. Tucson has stood the test of time, surviving the difficult periods and thriving during the good times.

The quiet routines of two couples are interrupted when someone in their circle of acquaintances is cruelly murdered; and then another murder follows as skeletons in many varietiesand even the Aztec Lord of the Underworld, Mictlantecuhtlirevel during the night of the Day of the Dead. What forces of evil have been unleashed in the community that is encroaching on the rugged Mountain Lion Canyon? Above the canyon hovers the scraggly large rock that was named La Roca, the new development in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. A mountain lion stalks the canyon and so do, it seems, human predators.

Southeastern Arizona has one of the most diverse mining localities in the state. Towns such as Bisbee, Clifton, Globe, Miami, Ray, Silverbell, and Superior have earned reputations as premier metal producers that are most notably known for their copper. Other mining towns that have made their marks in the region include Dos Cabezas, Gleeson, Harshaw District, Helvetia, Patagonia District, Pearce, Ruby, and Tombstone. Mining in southeastern Arizona has significantly influenced the development of mines in northern Sonora, Mexico. The foundation of Mexicos largest copper mine in Cananea was financed by American capital, specifically under the direction of miners and investors from southeastern Arizona. Overall, the process of mining has established the economy of southeastern Arizona, making it a viable source of copper-related minerals in the 21st centurys global market.

Washtenaw County has enjoyed low crime rates, but extraordinary criminal acts occasionally pierced its calm and quiet. A strange bank robbery at Dexter in 1894 and the 1897 murder of James Richards raised concerns. In 1937, the McHenry family suffered a terrible tragedy but found room in their hearts to forgive. After the murder of Eleanor Farver in 1970, detectives searching for suspect John Edward Burns probed his background, seeking clues to where he fled. They discovered John Edward Burns never existed. Attorney Peter Kensler was shockingly murdered in front of his home near Manchester with two shotgun blasts to the face. The case has never been solved. Local historian James Thomas Mann leads a tour into some of the darkest corners of Washtenaw County's past.