Thursday, July 30, 2009

Murder Most Foul

A few years ago, I posted a less-than-completely-serious essay about a vicious quintuple murder that took place in 1943 in Purcellville, near where I live. We Jingos decided one lazy afternoon to try to find the house from the description given in an early-1960s edition of True Detective. We thought we'd found the house, but it wasn't the right one. Then, we got a little silly.

But the murders did indeed happen, and now a serious professional journalist (as opposed to a frivolous, amateur asshat blogger) has begun publishing a series of articles about them in the Loudoun Independent, and they're pretty fascinating reading.

Part 1 sets the scene.

Part 2, just published, details the murder itself.

Parts 3 and 4, to be published Thursday week and Thursday fortnight, are about, respectively, the investigation and quick arrest, and the trial and execution.

5 comments:

Linkmeister said...

Interesting indeed, but I'm puzzled as to how the Sheriff was notified of the crime.

"Clatterbuck did not see Sheriff S. Paul Alexander–who at that moment was rushing from his home in Aldie to the murder scene"

Maybe Part III will inform me.

Dan S said...

Neddie,

Here's an account that puts the house near where you were looking (and answers Linkmeister's question:

"Worth Blevins, a salesman from Hamilton, on a route trip to get an order, discovered their bodies on a routine trip to the Love house, 'located about a half a mile from the main road between Purcellville and Wheatland.'"

This clearly puts the home northeast of Purcellville -- not southwest as the article claims.

(see right sidebar)

http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=80688&paper=67&cat=180

Dan S said...

Part III is up now

bobby lightfoot said...

Awesome and compelling.

th' real sport, of course, is to be found in th' comments section at th' bottom.

I have yet to formulate a comment that they will print.

But I haven't given up.

elode!

I can't formulate a definition that you will print! Let's just say it's th' latest thing in the "e" craze! Yes!

Unknown said...

Neddie - this is my family (the Love's) on my grandmother's side (Minnie Grace Love). The farm was on 287 on the way to Rt. 9 from Purcellville (Rt. 7). It was on the left side of the road, less than a mile from the 7 bypass. It is all sadly a housing development now, but was one called "Lovelace Farm".