This is one of the most brutal killings I’ve ever heard about so get ready!

On September 16, 1922, the bodies of Edward Hall (born 1881) and Eleanor Mills (born 1888) were discovered in a field near a farm. Edward Hall was an Episcopal priest. Eleanor Mills was a member of his choir and they were having an affair.

Both of the bodies were lying on their backs with bullet holes through their heads from a .32 caliber pistol. The man was shot once, the bullet entered his head, over his right eye and exited out of the back of his neck. The woman was shot three times, under the right eye, over the right temple, and over the right ear. The woman’s throat had been severed, and maggots were already eating her flesh, meaning that the death occurred at least 24 hours prior. Both of the bodies were positioned side by side with their feet pointing toward a crab apple tree. The man’s face was covered by a hat, and his calling card was placed at his feet. There were also torn-up love letters placed in between the bodies.

Edward had his hand positioned on the woman’s neck after death. He was wearing a pair of glasses and had coins in his pocket. His watch was found missing and he had a small bruise on the tip of his ear along with abrasions on his left and right index finger. A wound was also found 5 inches below his knee cap, on the calf of his right leg.

Eleanor had her hand positioned on Edward’s thigh after death. She was wearing a blue dress with red polka dots, black silk stockings, and brown shoes. The blue velvet hat that she was wearing was on the ground near her body, and her brown silk scarf was wrapped around her throat. Her arm had been bruised and she had a tiny cut on her lip. An autopsy done 4 years later showed that her tongue had been cut out.

In any type of murder where a wife or husband is killed, the spouse is always a suspect. Not only was Edward Hall’s wife, Frances Noel Stevens Hall, a suspect but her 2 brothers, Henry Stevens and William Stevens, and her cousin Henry de la Bruyere Carpender were suspects as well. A woman, Jane Gibson had said she witnessed the murder. At around 9:00 pm on the night of the murder, she saw 4 people standing near a crab apple tree. She heard multiple gunshots and a woman scream “Don’t!” and “Henry.”

Because this case was during a time where there wasn’t such a thing as DNA testing, this case has gone cold. Each of the suspects gave credible testimonies. Ultimately at the end of the trial, no one was convicted.