03748cam a2200409 i 45000010011000000030008000110050017000190080041000360100015000770200018000920200015001100200018001250200018001430350117001610400008002780420008002860430012002941000028003062450122003342640050004563000078005063360026005843370028006103380027006385040068006655050220007335202015009536000018029686500068029866500038030546510034030926550014031266550029031406550031031696550024032007760114032241259511448MeVbMML20230413112527.0210702s2022    nyuab  e b    001 0deng    a2021024138  a9781984879837  a1984879839  a9781984879851  z9781984879844  a(OCoLC)1259511448z(OCoLC)1290198661z(OCoLC)1290491724z(OCoLC)1295234257z(OCoLC)1295638097z(OCoLC)1296760840  cAJM  apcc  an-us-ks1 aJonusas, Susan,eauthor10aHell's half-acre :bthe untold story of the Benders, a serial killer family on the American frontier /cSusan Jonusas 1a[New York, New York] :bPenguin Booksc[2022]  axxii, 283 pages :billustrations, maps ;c21.5 cmenotes and bibliography  atextbtxt2rdacontent  aunmediatedbn2rdamedia  avolumebnc2rdacarrier  aIncludes bibliographical references (pages [327]-332) and index0 aIntroduction -- Labette County, Kansas -- The theater of a nation's struggle -- A nursery of moral monstrosities -- A revolting spectacle of crime made public -- In pursuit of murderers -- Bender or bust -- Epilogue  a"In 1873 the people of Labette County in Kansas made a grisly discovery. Buried on a homestead seven miles south of the town of Cherryvale, in a bloodied cellar and under frost-covered soil, were countless bodies in varying states of decay. The discovery sent the local community and national newspapers into a frenzy that continued for over two decades, and the land on which the crimes took place became known as 'Hells Half-Acre.' When it emerged that a family of four known as the Benders had been accused of the slayings, the case was catapulted to infamy. The idea that a family of seemingly respectable homesteaders--one among thousands who were relocating further west looking for land and opportunity after the Civil War--were capable of operating 'a human slaughter pen' appalled and fascinated the nation. But who the Benders really were, why they committed such a vicious killing spree, and what became of them when they fled from the law is a mystery that remains unsolved to this day--not that there aren't some convincing theories. Part gothic western, part literary whodunnit, and part immersive study of postbellum America, Hell's Half-Acre sheds new light on one of the most notorious cases in our nation's history while holding a torch to a society under the strain of rapid change and moral disarray. Susan Jonasus draws on extensive original archival material, and introduces us to a fascinating cast of characters, including the despairing families of the victims as well as the fugitives that helped the murderers escape. Hell's Half-Acre is not simply a book about a mass murder. It is a journey into the turbulent heart of nineteenth century America, a place where modernity stalks across the landscape, violently displacing existing populations and wearily building new ones. It is a world where folklore can quickly become fact, and an entire family of criminals can slip right through a community's fingers, only to reappear at the most unexpected of times"--cProvided by publisher30aBender family 0aSerial murdererszKansaszLabette CountyxHistoryy19th century 0aFrontier and pioneer lifezKansas 0aKansasxHistoryy19th century 0aBiography 2aBiography0(DNLM)D019215 7aTrue crime stories.2lcgft 7aBiographies.2lcgft08iOnline version:aJonusas, Susan.tHell's half-acredNew York : Viking, 2022z9781984879844w(DLC)  2021024139