When it was built in 1903, the Claypool Hotel was designed to be the best and brightest of Indianapolis’ hotels. And, for forty years, it was. Then, starting in 1943, a serious of tragic events that included two murders and a fire led to the Claypool’s dramatic destruction in the 1960’s. But does something of […]
Episode 110: Fire, Murder, and Spirits: The Last Days of the Claypool Hotel Read More »
Bates House had to go. It was beautiful and famous, but it had faded. There were modern amenities that it couldn’t offer, not to mention the fact that it just wasn’t big enough to accommodate the growing number of people that were coming into the city. The owner, Edward Claypool, knew that. When he
Fire, Murder, and Spirits: The Last Days of the Claypool Hotel Read More »
In 1954, two maids found a horrible odor coming from a dresser in one of the rooms at the Claypool Hotel. When the dresser was searched, hotel staff found the badly decomposed body of a woman in the bottom drawer. Her name was Dorothy Poore, an 18-year-old trying to build a future in Indianapolis. What
Episode 109: The Murder of Dorothy Poore: The Girl in the Drawer Read More »
Lillian McNamara wondered how many times she had checked these rooms. It was part of her job as a housekeeper to make sure that the guest rooms were clean, presentable, and didn’t need any repairs. The Claypool Hotel was the go-to event venue in Indianapolis, and the people who stayed there expected a fresh
The Murder of Maoma Ridings Read More »
Maoma Ridings had joined the United States Army during World War II to aid the war effort. A professional nurse turned physiotherapist; she was a young woman who enjoyed a good time. On August 30, 1943, she was found murdered in an Indianapolis hotel room. Who had ended the life of the well-liked nurse from
Episode 108: The Murder of Maoma Ridings Read More »
In 1990, a highway patrolman in Arizona stopped to check on a semi pulled off to the side of the road. Inside he found a woman who was naked, handcuffed, and wearing a horse bridle. While the driver, Robert Ben Rhodes, said that everything was consensual. The patrolman suspected otherwise. The investigation would turn into
Episode 107: The Truck Stop Killer: Robert Ben Rhodes Read More »
The young teenager was ecstatic. Her and her boyfriend had decided to run away together. It was 1990, a brand-new decade to start a brand-new life in. The truck stop was teaming with people. Some had stopped to get gas, others to take a shower and grab a quick bite to eat. Mostly what
The Truck Stop Killer: Robert Ben Rhodes Read More »
No one had seen Percy Smith since he had gone to buy cattle from a man near Council Bluffs, Iowa. When police were called, their search led to Corliss Bruntlett, a man with a hidden past. They soon discovered that he was concealing an even darker secret that would shock their community. Sources Haws,
Episode 104: Percy Smith: A “…Cold, Calculated, Premediated Murder.” Read More »
Eulalia Smith had been worried about her husband since that Lundgreen man had called her. There was just something not right about that phone call. Looking out the window of their home in Council Bluffs, Iowa, an anxious look crossed Eulalia’s face. Lundgreen – whoever he was – had told her that Percy wanted
Percy Smith: A “…Cold, Calculated, Premediated Murder.” Read More »
Christine Leidel thought the fortune teller seemed nice enough, but you couldn’t be too careful in 1808 Bavaria. When he offered to look into her future, she decided to trust him. Christine Leidel had just made an appointment with one of the most infamous murderers in European history. Sources Germany from c. 1760 to
Episode 103: Andreas Bichel: A Fortune Told In Blood Read More »
