West Virginia is a beautiful place, but like any other place, it has its dark side where bad things have happened. Here are five place where murderers lived or were born in West Virginia.
- Wheeling
Joanne C Sullivan Wheeling was the home of Mark Storm, who in 1997 checked himself out of a mental health facility and went home and killed his wife, two daughters, brother and mother before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide.
- McMechen
Brett Ciccotelli/Flickr Charles Manson, leader of the Manson Family, which killed several people at Manson’s command, lived for a time as a child in McMechen, W.Va. He lived there with an aunt and uncle after his mom and brother were convicted of robbing a service station in Charleston.
- Kenova
Cori Martin/Flickr Bobby Joe Long, a convicted serial killer and rapist, was born in Kenova and is on death row in Florida now. He abducted, raped and murdered at least 10 women in the Tampa Bay area over 8 months in 1984. He released his last victim after sexually assaulting her for 26 hours. She gave information to the police that helped them track him down. Before becoming a murderer, he committed at least 50 rapes and was known as the “Classified Ad Rapist." He would answer classified ads for small appliances and if he found women alone he would rape them.
- Clarksburg
Onasill/Flickr Clarksburg (technically the nearby community of Quiet Dell) was the home of Harry Powers, a man originally from the Netherlands who in the 1930s was convicted of killing 2 women and three children. He drew the women with lonely heart ads and ultimately killed them in four rooms under a garage at his home in Quiet Dell. Police found bloody clothing, hair, and a child’s bloody footprint at the crime scene. The bodies of the women and children were found in a freshly-filled ditch on the man’s property. Powers was ultimately executed at the state penitentiary in Moundsville.
- Ripley
J. Stephen Conn/Flickr Ripley was where John Morgan murdered Chloe Green and two of her three children with a hatchet in 1897. Morgan, a handyman and friend of the Green family, hid before dawn and waited for his victims. He attacked and killed Chloe, Jimmy Green and Matilda Pfost. Another daughter, Alice, was attacked but lived and ran to neighbors for help. Morgan was arrested and he was the last man to be publicly hanged in West Virginia.
Were you familiar with these stories? What other cities in West Virginia do you know that are home to murderers?
Joanne C Sullivan
Wheeling was the home of Mark Storm, who in 1997 checked himself out of a mental health facility and went home and killed his wife, two daughters, brother and mother before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide.
Brett Ciccotelli/Flickr
Charles Manson, leader of the Manson Family, which killed several people at Manson’s command, lived for a time as a child in McMechen, W.Va. He lived there with an aunt and uncle after his mom and brother were convicted of robbing a service station in Charleston.
Cori Martin/Flickr
Bobby Joe Long, a convicted serial killer and rapist, was born in Kenova and is on death row in Florida now. He abducted, raped and murdered at least 10 women in the Tampa Bay area over 8 months in 1984. He released his last victim after sexually assaulting her for 26 hours. She gave information to the police that helped them track him down. Before becoming a murderer, he committed at least 50 rapes and was known as the “Classified Ad Rapist." He would answer classified ads for small appliances and if he found women alone he would rape them.
Onasill/Flickr
Clarksburg (technically the nearby community of Quiet Dell) was the home of Harry Powers, a man originally from the Netherlands who in the 1930s was convicted of killing 2 women and three children. He drew the women with lonely heart ads and ultimately killed them in four rooms under a garage at his home in Quiet Dell. Police found bloody clothing, hair, and a child’s bloody footprint at the crime scene. The bodies of the women and children were found in a freshly-filled ditch on the man’s property. Powers was ultimately executed at the state penitentiary in Moundsville.
J. Stephen Conn/Flickr
Ripley was where John Morgan murdered Chloe Green and two of her three children with a hatchet in 1897. Morgan, a handyman and friend of the Green family, hid before dawn and waited for his victims. He attacked and killed Chloe, Jimmy Green and Matilda Pfost. Another daughter, Alice, was attacked but lived and ran to neighbors for help. Morgan was arrested and he was the last man to be publicly hanged in West Virginia.
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