Around 8 PM on May 7, 1941, Lester Bellah and his wife drove to a Devore Heights party, rural San Bernardino County, California. Lester thought he heard a muffled voice yelling for help, but his wife didn’t hear a thing. Lester was rattled, but the couple continued to the party. They left the party at 10 PM for their nearby home. As Lester walked toward their porch steps, he heard the voice again, “Help! Help! Help…” He couldn’t tell if the voice was male or female, only that it was weaker than before. …
Pasadena is a quaint city in Los Angeles, chocked for adorable turn-of-the last century Craftsman homes. Nestled in the San Fernando Valley, Pasadena is home to the Rose Parade, Rose Bowl, and one famous little old lady.
Spanish explorers to the area in the 18th century called the Tongva indigenous population Gabrielinos, and they called the land Rancho San Pasqual. When the city was incorporated on January 31, 1874, it took the name “Pasadena,” the Ojibwa word for “The Valley.”
Pasadena’s founders set out to build a community for folks who valued honesty, innovation, and sobriety. …
Lucky. That’s how James Sloan Jr of Redlands, California must have felt when the object of his affections agreed to go with him to a Palm Springs Rodeo as his date on February 7, 1948. Her name was Marjorie Lee Winn. Margie was a 17-year-old high school senior. She was stunning, with raven hair and piercing dark eyes. Margie was a notable contender for Redlands High School homecoming queen. James, a young veteran and budding photographer, thought he might use the opportunity to photograph the beautiful girl.
Like James, Margie came from a well-to-do San Bernardino County family. Her father…
Fortierville was a sparsely populated village in 1920, located just south of the St. Lawrence River, 60 miles from Quebec City. It was the type of place where everyone knew everybody. Though neighbors minded their own business, there were no secrets. The citizens were French-speaking Roman Catholics, and the Gagnon family was no exception.
Marie-Aurore-Lucienne Gagnon was the second child of farmer Télesphore Gagnon and his first wife, Marie-Anne Evelyn Caron. Those who knew the girl called her Aurore. Aurore was born May 31, 1909, in Sainte-Philomène-de-Fortierville, Quebec, Canada. Her sister, Marie-Jeanne, was just a year older. …
On April 9, 1947, an F5 tornado swept across the North American plains. The twister killed hundreds, injured hundreds more, and leveled the small town of Woodward, Oklahoma. 185 lives were lost in the storm. In the ensuing pandemonium, surviving members of the Croft family would be left to wonder what happened to their youngest member, 4-year-old Joan Gaye Croft.
The twister stretched nearly two miles across and touched down at 8:43 PM. Windspeeds inside the tornado fluctuated an incredible 220 to 440 miles per hour. …
If we are to understand the current events in the Jack the Ripper case, it is crucial to remember the events of Autumn, 1888, in London’s East End. At the time, Whitechapel was home to some of the UK’s poorest citizens. Because of the neighborhood’s proximity to the Thames, it became a refuge for Jewish immigrants fleeing persecution in Russia and Poland. Housing, jobs, and food were scarce and incredibly hard for women to procure. Many of these women turned to prostitution. At least five would become victims of a notorious serial killer.
These following are the canonical five victims…