Montgomery County, Kansas Was One Of The Most Dangerous Places In The Nation In The 1870s
By Clarisa|Published October 08, 2019
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Clarisa
Author
Born and raised Kansan, Clarisa has lived in both tiny towns and cities during their time here in the Sunflower State. As a busy mother of one crazy kid, two cats, and two geckos, they write whenever there is spare time.
Early on in our state’s colonized history, Kansas was filled with traveling settlers, robbers, fighting between Natives and settlers, and plenty more nefarious characters. However, this county in particular was especially deadly to be in during the 1870s. Have you heard why?
Imagine it's the 1870s, and you're in need of a place to rest for the night. After all, you might freeze to death if you slept on the ground outside, not to mention have your things stolen. So you find an inn.
This inn sounds nice, and it's owned by a couple named John and Elvira Bender, and their two older children, John Jr. and Kate. They seemed like a normal family who owned an inn, and you're invited to dinner.
Unfortunately, if you stayed at the Benders' inn during the early 1870s, you probably weren't going to leave alive or even in one piece. Guests who came to dinner had their heads smashed in with a hammer or their throats slit, and buried them in their orchard. Bodies dumped off near a creek were written off as deaths from horse thieves or bandits.
Supposedly, there was a curtain hanging near the dining table behind the guests, which is where they would hide before attacking. Legend says that one guest even refused to sit there because of stains, and lived. Good gut instinct on that one!
Kate even started claiming she was a professor, spouting stories about being a psychic who could heal all, and even talk with the dead. Only 11 people had died to the Benders' hands before the locals finally noticed the connection.
In March of 1873, a man arrived to ask about his brother who had stayed there recently and disappeared, but the Benders said he may have met trouble with local Native Americans. The man stayed for dinner and lived, but he wasn't the ticket to solving the local murders. Soon after, a woman who fled the house chased by a knife-wielding Ma Bender made the man return with armed men, even though they found nothing.
They came back, and searched the whole area, finding a trap door, a rotten smell, and after moving the home, they eventually found bodies in their orchard and well. They all matched a death from behind, but it was too late, and the Benders had fled, never to be seen. Some rumors point to them being hunted down, but there's no proof that they survived or were found.
Today, you can see more about the Benders and their legend at the Cherryvale Museum. There’s a lot more to see here than the Bloody Benders story, though, so plan for a couple hours of reading and learning about the town’s history. If you’re a fan of spooky themes and Halloween, you should check out something like this spooky jack-o-lantern walk.
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