Iowa News from across the Country
- 1923 -

New York Times
New York, New York
January 10, 1923

Conroy-Bunn. The marriage of Miss Helen Mabel Bunn, daughter of Mrs. James R.M. Bunn of this city, and Jim Wycoff Conroy, son of Mr. and Mrs. D.M. Conroy of Mason City, Iowa, took place yesterday afternoon in the studio of Professor James O. Boone at Carnegie Hall. The Rev. Dr. Jacob E. Price officiated. The bride was attended by Miss Edna F. Vreeland, and Elliott Bunn was best man. Little Louise Boone was flower girl. After spending their honeymoon at Miami, Fla. the couple will live in Mason City, where the father of the bridegroom is the owner of The Mason City Globe Gazette.

[transcribed by S.F., March 2010]

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NOBLE COUNTY LEADER
Caldwell, Noble co. Ohio
Wednesday, January 10, 1923

Sheldon PRINGLE, of Des Moines, Iowa, who is visiting his father and other relatives in Caldwell, was the guest of his uncle, Arthur WHARTON, recently.

[transcribed by J.F., Sept. 2003]

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Winona Daily Republican
Winona, Minnesota
March 9, 1923

Slayer of Houston County Girl Dies on Scaffold in Iowa, Calm and Unregretful -- Girl Rejected his Attentions
Fort Madison, Ia., March 9. (By The Associated Press) -- Calm and composed to the last, and without a word of regret on his lips for the crime he had committed, Earl Throst, young Allamakee county farmer, mounted the gallows in the prison yard here this morning with a steady stride and was hanged for the murder of Inga Magnusson, the country school teacher who "turned him down."

Sheriff Ben A. Davis of Allamakee county pulled the lever at exactly &:30 a.m.

Throst indirectly confessed to the murder shortly before he was hanged this morning, according to prison officials. "Take this shirt and tear it up," Throst told a deputy sheriff, as he was dressing to go to the gallows. "But why should I tear up the shirt?" asked the deputy. "Because it is the shirt I wore the day I killed her," replied the condemned man.

Love Affair Denied.
Waukon, Ia., March 9 -- Earl Throst, 26 years old, who died on the gallows at the state penitentiary at Fort madison today, confessed to the murder of Miss Inga Magnusson, 22 year old Allamakee county schoool teacher, on Dec 12, 1921. Execution of sentence was delayed for more than a year to permit due consideration of all angles of the case. His victim resided at Bee, in Houston county, Minnesota, just across the state line from the Iowa rural school where she taught.

Another shadow than that of the gallows hung over Throst since he entered the prison late in 1921. In confessing to the murder he declared Miss Magnusson was his former fiancee and he killed her in a quarrel. Hero worship flourishes in the penitentiary, and Fort Madison inmates, who derived thrills from association with Orrie Cross and other darling gunmen who were put to death in recent years, have snubbed the young north Iowa farmer who killed his sweetheart "because she turned him down flat."

No love affair existed between Miss Magnusson and Throst, however an engagement ring presented to her by Otto Deters of Eitzen, minn., was on her finger when she was murdered, and they had chosen a day in February 1922, for their marriage.

Murder Most Brutal.
Prison officials say Throst has been a model prisoner. The crime for which Throst paid the supreme penalty was most brutal. Miss Magnusson's parents becamse alarmed when she failed to come home for the evening meal on Dec 12, 1921. Her father went to the schoolhouse, which stands in a desolate ravine a mile from the Magnusson home. The door was locked and he found, by peering through a window, that the schoolroom was in order. Believing that the girl had returned home by another route, Mr. Magnusson went to the house only to find that she had not appeared. Telephone calls to neighbors failed to throw any light on the mystery.

Accompanied by his son and several other men, Mr. Magnusson returned to the schoolhouse. They broke open the basement door and the father entered first. His daughter's hat was on the floor near the furnace. Then he found the girl. She was lying face downward behind a stone pillar in a dark corner. Her skull had been crushed. A piece of firewood, 30 inches long and 3 inches in diameter, wrapped in a blue bandanna handkerchief, was lying a few feet away. It was covered with blood.

Hounds Trail Slayer.
Bloodhounds, summoned from Waterloo, arrived early the next morning. After getting the scent from the club, one of the dogs led the way to Throst's home. Earl's parents were in Caledonia, Minn., and the door was forced open. The dog followed the trail through the rooms on the lower floor, went up the stairway, entered young Throst's bedroom and laid down on the bed. Bloodstained overalls and underclothing were found under the bed.

The dog then led the posse to two other houses where it was learned a pony and a saddle had been stolen in the night. Here the dog lost the trail. At Eitzen, Minn., the man hunters were informed that Throst had purchased overalls and a sheeplined coat at 10 o'clock the night before.

In the meantime, the superintendent of the county poor farm telephoned to Waukon the description of a certain "Whalen" who ate breakfast at the institution, declaring he was a horse buyer traveling to Missouri from Montana. His description tallied with throst's.

The net then spread over three counties. Descriptions of Throst were sent over all rural telephone lines and officials in nearby towns were instructed to watch for him. He was arrested that afternoon as he rode into Postville, 30 miles southwest of Waukon. After four hours of questioning in the county jail here, during which he denied knowledge of the murder, Throst confessed.

Gov. Kendall recently denied the appeal of L.L. Duxbury of Caledonia, attorney for Throst. The execution was the tenth hanging under the Iowa law.

[transcribed by S.F., March 2006]

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Chronicle Telegram
Elyria, Ohio
March 9, 1923

Slayer Demands Noose Be Right Around Neck; Ends Murderer's Feast.

Fort Madison, Ia., Mar. 9 -- The feat of the "merry murderers" came to an end here today when the body of Earle Throst, slayer of a school teacher, slid through the gallows trap with a dull thump in the Iowa State prison here. He died with artificial bravado after playing host at a banquet in the death house to four other amiable killers soon to follow him through the trap door. Throst criticized the methods of the hanging just before dying. He protested that the warden, T.P. Hallowell, had placed the noose on his chin, not under it. The warden obligingly adjusted it to suit the murderer. Immediately his body fell thru the platform of the gibbet, three medical students from the Iowa state university pounced upon it with stethescopes to listen to the gradually suspending heart action "for scientific study." They reported nothing unusual. Twelve minutes later Throst was pronounced dead. To the last Throst remained the stoic he had become in the last few weeks. He refused to make any statement whatsoever. When Rev. Dr. Erskine, of Plymouth Bretherns church, Des Moines, appeared, Throst said curtly he did not care to accept the church. However, he prayed with the clergyman, commenting that he had complete faith in his salvation. Sixty persons witnessed the execution in the damp of a chill March rain. There was no demonstration. Everything was done with precision. The body was sent back to Allamakee county for burial. Throst slew Igna Magnusson, pretty county teacher. Her father visited Throst in prison Thursday and was met with indifference when he told his daughter's slayer he forgave him. The murderer had refused to discuss the case in any way for weeks. He attracted attention by his gaiety and lack of fear. He was the merriest at his banquet last night. His guests shook hands rather stiffly just before he was led to his death today. The reaction of one, William Olander, who is awaiting the date for his execution for murdering Bethold Talspap, in Fort Dodge, was that he asked after the hanging to be baptized.

[transcribed by S.F., Jan. 2004]

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Beatrice Daily Sun
Beatrice, Nebraska
March 22, 1923

-Mr. and Mrs. O.O. Oliver of Des Moines, Iowa are in the city, having been called here to attend business matters.
-Mr. and Mrs. T.W. Keenan and small son returned to Shenandoah, Iowa, yesterday after attending the funeral of Mrs. Keenan's father, G.A. Culver.
-Miss Lora Colver returned to Shenandoah, Iowa, yesterday afternoon. She was called here by the death of her father, G.A. Culver.
-George Monroe has returned to Clinton, Iowa, after a visit in this city with his family. He is operating a picture show in that city and formerly operated the Gilbert in Beatrice.
-F.O. Gotch of Fort Dodge, Iowa, was in the city yesterday attending to business.

[transcribed by S.F., February 2014]

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Winona Daily Republican
Winona, Minnesota
June 1, 1923

Probe Reveals Train Looting on Huge Scale.
Iowa Jury Indicts 3 for Receiving Goods Stolen From Freight Cars on Upper River -- 4 of Alleged Band Now in Prison. Bulk of $20,000 Loot Not Found.
McGregor, Iowa, June 1 -- A story of train looting almost unparalleled in the upper Mississippi valley is being revealed here with the returning of indictments by the Allamakee county grand jury as the result of investigations conducted by railroad detectives for the last six months. More than $20,000 worth of loot, it is
estimated, has been taken from freight trains on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy railroad between St. Paul and Savannah, Ill., and on the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul road between St. Paul and Dubuque.

Four members of an alleged band of robbers now are in prison on their pleas of guilty to stealing merchandise from trains. They are Alexander Pendak, arrested at La Crosse, sentenced to three years at
Waukon; Mike Ryan of Garvia, Iowa, and Henry Clay and John Jones of McGregor, sentenced to six months each.

Three Indicted.
The grand jury has returned indictments against Mr. and Mrs. Henry Homes and C.H. Adams, of McGregor, on charges of receiving, buying and concealing stolen goods and additional indictments are expected. The loot of the car robbers consisted chiefly of caps, shoes, shirts and furlined coats. Some of the goods was found to have been stolen from the Wabasha Mercantile company at Wabasha, Minn.

The bulk of the loot has not yet been found. Most of it, detectives believe, is hidden in a warehouse in the hills of northeastern Iowa. The loot generally was obtained from freight cars on sidings, including cars in the yards below La Crescent, Minn.

[transcribed by S.F., May 2006]

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The Sioux Falls Argus Leader
Sioux Falls, Minnehaha Co., SD
June 21, 1923

Wedding - Unique Old Fashioned Wedding is Feature of June Day at Granite, Miss Phoe (Phoebe) Swanson, of Larchwood, Married to Joseph E. Johnson, of Tea, With Country Ceremony and Group of Girls from Sioux Falls

What the bounty and hospitality of the old fashioned wedding used to mean to a whole countryside was recalled last evening in the unique ceremony held at Granite, Iowa, when Miss Phoebe C. Swanson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. T. Swanson of Larchwood, Iowa, and Joseph Edward Johnson of Tea were united in marriage. (June 20, 1923)

Tent Reception
The crowds of friends and relatives from Iowa and South Dakota who were present were almost unlimited because of the size of the great tent where the wedding reception and program were held.

As soon as the ceremony was finished in the Mission Church of Granite, the automobile loads of guests including many who could not get into the church arrived at the farmhouse, sixteen miles southeast of Sioux Falls. There, for days preparations had been made for the feast. Great pots of coffee were boiling on the stove and an abundance of meats, sandwiches, cakes and ice cream in many varieties were waiting to be served.

Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Johnson received their relatives and friends as they entered the tent, and soon the long tables were filled with guests. Following the blessing asked by Rev. R. A. Larson of Granite, Iowa, who had performed the ceremony, congratulatory speeches were made to the bride and groom, and those present expressed the hope that their table might always be filled with good things and that they might find happiness in their future home.

“I Love You Truly,” was sung by Miss Mabel Swanson, sister of the bride, and Miss Edna Hegland (Haglund) of Menominee, Michigan, played two piano solos. Rev. Larson and Rev. E. Begland (Bergland) living north of Brandon made short addresses. Mrs. Larson sang “Perfect Day”.

Friends from Sioux Falls
The flow of refreshments was not stopped by the program, however. Over twenty girls who had motored from Sioux Falls for the purpose served the crowds. Assisting were Elloa McLellan, Maude McLellan, Frances Howlin, Esther Thompson, Gladys Brandt, Alpha Hoyne, Athetha Meyers, Eleanor Martin, Thelma Carlberg, Martha Bradly, Rowena Bliss, Lois Allen, Florence McGilvray, Hazel Lundquist, Lucille Helfert, Helen Helfert, Hilda Carlson, Effie Straight, Vera Hodgins, Ruth Krumm, Mrs. L.A. Johnson, Alma Johnson.

Many went to the room filled with wedding presents for the young people. A piano was included among the gifts. Electric lights and candles illuminated the scene. The tables were arranged around the bridal table as a center and were decorated with peonies, roses of brilliant hues and pink candy baskets.

With little thought of the long distance many of those present would have to drive before they would have to reach their homes, the guests feasted and celebrated for hours. The little flower girls Josephine Larson and Myrtle Carlson and the small ring bearer Robert Larson were gay and sleepy at the same time as the evening advanced.

Church Ceremony
In the church ceremony the bride walked slowly down the isle on the arm of her father as the wedding march from ‘Lohengrin’ was played. She was gowned in white satin, softly draped and trimmed with pearl medallions. Her long veil of tulle was held in place with a band of orange blossoms. She carried a bouquet of lillys of the valley and pink roses. Miss Mabel Swanson, the brides sister, was maid of honor. She wore a gown of pale yellow canton crepe and carried a bouquet of roses. Bridesmaids were Miss Betty Long of Larchwood and Miss Hegland (Haglund).

After an extended trip through the east and south for their honeymoon, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson will make their home on the bridegrooms farm four miles northeast of Tea.

[note: Larchwood & Granite are in Lyon co. IA]
[transcribed by D.J., December 2004]

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Winona Daily Republican
Winona, Minnesota
July 12, 1923

Veteran Who Shot 2 Women Escapes From Hospital for Insane
Waukon, Iowa, July 12. -- Sheriff Davis of Allamakee county has been informed that John Kjerland, deranged ex-service man, escaped last week from the insane hospital at Independence, where he had been committed after he had shot and badly wounded Mrs. Bertha Erickson and her 19-year-old daughter, his neighbors, at their home near Quandahl last March. Kjerland's conduct had been satisfactory since he had entered the hospital according to the sheriff's information, and he had been allowed to go outside to pick strawberries when he eluded his attendant and escaped. No trace of him has been found. Kjerland had been wounded several times while serving overseas in the World war and it was believed that his mind had been affected,
causing him to shoot the two women from outside a window of their home. Both Mrs. Erickson and her daughter completely recovered from their wounds.

[transcribed by S.F., May 2006]

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Thomson Review
Thomson, Caroll co. Illinois
September 20, 1923

Word was received here Tuesday that Fred Heustis had died at his home in Lowden, Iowa. "Uncle Fred" as he was known by the people in Thomson and York township, was for a great many years a resident of York, in fact, he spent the greater part of his life here. Funeral services will be held at the Baptist church Thursday afternoon with burial in the Dunshee cemetery.

[transcribed by S.F., August 2006]

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New York Times
New York, New York
December 9, 1923

Moss-Von Kokeritz. The marriage of Miss Marie Hildegarde von Kokeritz, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R.G. von Kokeritz, and Ensign Arnold E. Moss, U.S.N., son of Mr. and Mrs. William E. Moss of Charles City, Iowa, took place last evening at Arrochar, the home of the bride's parents on Staten Island. The Rev. William H. Potts performed the ceremony, which was followed by a reception.

[transcribed by S.F., March 2010]

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Richford Gazette
Richford, Vermont
Friday, December 14, 1923

Stories From Here and There
Work of Iowa Circuit Rider in 1856
Marion, IA - A circuit rider in "the Delaware district" of Iowa when there were fewer people in the state than there are now in the city of Des Moines, and when Delaware county, for which his ccircuit was named, had but one church, a little frame shack at "Yankee Settlement," Rev. F.X. Miller of Cedar Falls, Methodist minister in Iowa since 1856, claims to have served more years in the ministry in this state than any other clergyman. Rev. Mr. Miller, at the age of eighty-seven attended his sixty-seventh consecutive session of the upper Iowa conference of the Methodist Episcopal church recently in session here, and the conference is this year in its sixty-eighth session.

The upper Iowa conerence was organized in 1856 and held its first annual session in that year. In 1855 Mr. Miller had come West as a boy of nineteen, fresh from a seminary at Newcastle, Pa., to "read medicine" with his uncle at West Union, Ia.

But he decided to enter the ministry instead and in 1856 he obtained a license to preach for the Methodist Episcopal church. He was assigned to a circuit, which included four towns of Delaware county - Manchester, Greeley, Earlville and Yankee Settlement - the latter since renamed Edgewood.

The young minister had other difficulties. He had to preach at all four towns every Sunday, and his schedule was rigorous. He preached a sermon early Sunday morning at whichever of the four towns he chose as his starting point. Then he mounted his saddle horse and rode five or six miles to the next settlement, preached his third [sic] sermon - sometimes, he admits, the same sermon for the third time - at the next crossroads in the afternoon, and in the evening he was due at the last of the four towns. During the week he held religious services in the four communities as often as he could reach them.

For this year-around ministry, through thunderstorm and blizzard, Mr. Miller got $100 a year from the central organization of the Methodist church. The rest of his subsistence came from the people he served in the form of "board and keep."

[transcriber note: Yankee Settlement, now known as Edgewood straddles the county line of Clayton and Delaware counties. Transcribed by S.F., May 2018]



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