The Bloody Bender Murders have been a part of Southeast Kansas lore for 150 years.
Later this month an investigator with the Kansas Geological Survey and a professor with the University of Kansas will lead a contingent of KU students to continue excavating the site.
KRPS’s Fred Fletcher-Fierro has more.
After scratching the surface last summer in the reopened investigation into the 150-year-old Bloody Bender saga in Southeast Kansas, two University of Kansas professors and a team of student researchers are planning a return trip this spring to dig a little deeper.
Bob Miller, owner of the Labette County acreage where the infamous Bender family robbed, murdered, and buried multiple travelers in the 1870s, has been working with archeology experts from KU for the past two years in an attempt to solve some of the mystery still surrounding the story.
Historical accounts document the murderous spree of the Bender family who operated a small inn and supply store in their cabin along the Osage Trail between Parsons and Cherryvale, Kansas, from 1871 to 1873.
The family reportedly preyed upon travelers who stopped by their inn for a meal or a place to spend the night, robbing them of any valuables, murdering them in gruesome fashion with hammers, slitting their throats, and burying them on the property.
Following the site preparation, a new contingent of students will arrive for a field school to run May 20-28.
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