Historical Crime By Chris Bunton I have been traveling sections of The Great River Road for many years now. It is a road that goes along the Mississippi River on both sides, and is full of beautiful sites of history and culture. I recently went to Alton, Illinois which is on the Great River Road,Continue reading “True Crime: The First Prison in Illinois”
Category Archives: Historical Crime
True Crime: The Liberty Bank Robbery
Historical Crime By Chris Bunton On February 13th 1866. The Clay County Savings Association in Liberty, Missouri was robbed. It was the first bank robbery committed in the daytime during peace years, in the United States. It is not sure if Jesse or his brother Frank were involved. But, they are given credit for it.Continue reading “True Crime: The Liberty Bank Robbery”
In Our Blood:
The Mafia Families of Corleone By Justin Cascio This is an excerpt from Justin’s book. How Families Create Social Value for the Mafia The Mafia began in the latifundia of inland, central-western Sicily, in the decades after the Bourbon king replaced feudalism with private land ownership (Blok, 1974; Hess, 1973/1998; Mack Smith, 1988; Lupo 1993/2009).Continue reading “In Our Blood:”
Spit for Luck
Western Fiction By Matthew Senn “If it’s so goddamn cold in here, how come I’m sweatin’ my ass off?” The three other men who stood with Rhys ‘Luck’ Cain in the small abandoned homestead, all gave him their fair share of looks as they watched him stand next to the small wood stove wearing aContinue reading “Spit for Luck”
Shots Ring Out
By Matthew Senn My daddy was a paranoid man. Had every right to be too, ‘course. He’d always figgered someone would come lookin’ for ‘im one day. Never went into much more detail than that. One mornin’, he hears some shots ring out. He was a corn farmer then, our patch a land went fromContinue reading “Shots Ring Out”
True Crime: Murder in Oak Park
True Crime by Chris Bunton On April 13, 2020, Thomas Johnson, 69, and his wife Leslie Jones, 67, were discovered dead in their home in Oak Park, Illinois. Thomas was stabbed 17 times and found lying in an up stairs bed. While Leslie was stabbed 34 times and found on the stairs. Family members hadContinue reading “True Crime: Murder in Oak Park”
Bugsy Siegel’s Last Pal
True Crime By Steven G. Farrell The citizens of Las Vegas, Nevada were all afraid of Bugsy Siegel, the notorious gangster from New York. Afraid and respectful. “Ben”, the name he used in his inner circle, was a long-time partner of such Manhattan big shots as Meyer Lansky, Lucky Luciano, and Frank Costello. He evenContinue reading “Bugsy Siegel’s Last Pal”
Serial Killer: Dale Anderson
True Crime By Chris Bunton I traveled to Belleville Illinois, recently to research the serial killer Dale Anderson. My research took me to Belleville High School East, where the body of Audrey Cardenas was found in June of 1988. She was an intern for the Belleville News Democrat at the time. The area where sheContinue reading “Serial Killer: Dale Anderson”
True Crime: Two Lynched in Chattanooga
True Crime by Chris Bunton I traveled recently to Chattanooga, Tennessee for my honeymoon. While there, we spent some time checking out the sights, seeing Lookout Mountain, and all the history of the place. While I was there I also worked on a piece about the Serial Killer, Joseph Paul Franklin who had blown upContinue reading “True Crime: Two Lynched in Chattanooga”
True Crime: James Earl Ray
True Crime by Chris Bunton I traveled to Quincy, Illinois. This is a great place to view architecture if you enjoy different styles of housing. But, the town also holds the distinction of being the home of the serial killer Michael Swango and the assassin James Earl Ray. It seems odd that a man whoContinue reading “True Crime: James Earl Ray”