El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-05-06
MURDER WAS THE
TRADE Of THIS
FAMILY
Last Heard of the Benders,
They Were in Texas.
Their Story.

Rio Vista, Cal. May 6.-The officials
are working on the information given
yesterday by Jack Collins, thai tie
woman who died here at the age Of
&c years was Kate Bender, of the no
tOrious Bender family of murderers, at
Cherryvale, Kansas.
The last heard of the family they
were in Texas. Traced 10 Denison.
they were there lost Many suspects
have been arrested since that time, but
none have proved to be the right peo-
pie.
Story OF the Bender Crimes.
The criminal annals of this country
present no more blood ourdling and
fearful record of crime than that of
the unprovoked and mercilessly brutal
murders committed by tho Bender fam
lily in Kansas. Old man Bender, his
wife, son John and daughter Kate lived
in little one story frame house, 1924.
A partition OF muslin divided the in
terror into two rooms, the back part
OF which was used for kitchen and in
tho front part of which was kept a
small stock of provisions and small
counter or bar, which was used for the
purpose of Turing any chance traveller
or passerby into their clutches, when
they were brutally murdered by being
struck in the back Of the head with an
ak or Ratchet, plundered of whatever
effects they CHANGED to have and their
bodies buried in the little lot in the rear
of the house until 1t became veritable
Golgotha.
In Early Seventies.
1t was during the years 1872 and 1873
that the crimes were committed for
which the Benders have since been
sought necessarily by the Kansas au-
thorities. Thirty-seven murders have
been accredited to them. II was the
murder of DR.. William H. York, a prac-
ticing physician at Independence, Kan,
which led to the discovery Of their
awful crimes. AS nearly as could be
ascertained, DR.. York met his death
March II, 1873. He was travelling over
land from Fort Scott to Independence.
when he stopped at the Bender home for
dinner and was lured to the death trap
OF their dining room. His brother, Col.
A NJ. YORK, who for a number of years
resided in Denver, led the searching
party that started out to trace the
whereabouts of DR. York, few days
after his disappearance The party
found a trace within two miles OF the
Bender homestead. and also the place
where he had stayed all night the
night Of March II. Twice the Bender
1arllIy was visited, ana the FOUR men,
bers, the parents and the two children,
Kate and John, seemed perfectly at
ease, and did not display any interest
or fear
Family Frightened Away.
About the first of May neighbors
missed the Benders and discovered the
house had been vacated. 1t was discov-
cred that pigs and calves left in pens
had literally starved TO death, and. as
near as could be learned, the family
had left shortly after the visit of the
searching party in March. An organ
lied investigation followed. Back of
the house was a small patch of cultf-
waited land, in which now appeared de-
pressions about the sizes OF graves
Spades were procured and the first one
opened disclosed the body of Dr. York.
Seven other bodies were exhumed in
the same way. and friends of persons
who had mysteriously disappeared in
tina: section wers telegraphed to come !
and identify their dead.
One case was tna- OF a young mar |
ried man who had brought his bride - !
Cherryvale and started out TO look at !
some land. He was never heard OF I'M |
til his body was discovered. Another |
man who had lost his wife and had q !