11/15/2025 Haunted Locations: The Villisca Axe Murder House in Villisca, Iowa

Danielle Yvonne
22 hours ago
3 min read

Happy Spooky Saturday! The haunted spot we're featuring today is well-known, but its story was simply too extraordinary not to tell. Buckle up. This one gets intense as we explore the Villisca Axe Murder House in Iowa, where an entire family was slaughtered.

Courtesy of the Villisca Axe Murder House

The Villisca Axe Murder House, located in Villisca, Iowa, is widely known for the brutal murder of eight people in 1912. In the 90s, it was restored to the state it was in the night the murders took place, right down to the electricity and plumbing. And yes, you can book a visit/tour… if you dare.

What we know:

The home was built in 1886 for a local resident named George Loomis. George would live a good life there.

In 1903 the house was purchased by Josiah and Sarah Moore. They and their four children lived there.

In 1912, after attending a night mass at their church, Josiah, Sarah, their four children, and two of their daughters’ friends were all hacked to death by an axe in an absolutely brutal mass murder.

The next day, it was their neighbor who noticed there was no movement at the house and went over to check things out. When the neighbor came upon the gruesome scene, he called the authorities immediately.

Forensic testing did not exist back then, so to this day, the murder remains unsolved.

Theories of who the killer could be:

According to usghostadventures.com, there are a few possibilities:

Nothing had been stolen, and none of the victims appeared to have suffered any type of abuse, aside from the hacking, of course. Pieces of evidence were found around the barn, suggesting the killer was waiting for them to return home from their evening activities. Several suspects were named, but no one was ever convicted of the disturbing crime.

Did Moore’s former boss, F.F. Jones, hire a hitman? It was known that Jones was angry that Moore had left his company and taken the lucrative John Deere contract with him.

Maybe it was the schizophrenic traveling minister? Reverend George Kelly is said to have confessed to the murders, claiming a demon made him do it. He was charged five years later, but two separate juries believed he’d been coerced by police, and Kelly was never convicted.

At one point, the FBI believed that the slayings were the work of a traveling serial killer, as similar murders had occurred in other states. In 2017, a journalist named Bill James theorized that the murders could’ve been the work of a German immigrant drifter and logger named Paul Mueller. Mueller was believed to have committed similar murders, targeted young girls and covered mirrors following the crime. However, a lack of evidence would prevent this theory from being tested. In the end, no one was charged with the Villisca Axe Murders.

Since reopening to the public, there have been a ton of reports of paranormal activity that takes place. Some of the reported phenomena are:

Feelings of dread.

Sounds of children's laughter and footsteps.

There are recordings with alleged spirits.

One investigation had a man who claimed he experienced an inexplicable self-inflicted knife wound.

So, tell me. Have you heard of this location before? Have you been there? Would you go? Let me know in the comments. And as always, if you do decide to visit here or any haunted location, respect the property, respect the owners, respect the residents... living or dead.

For more details about this story, how you can visit, and links to the shows, podcasts, documentaries, and resources used for this post can all be found below.

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