Axeman of New Orleans
Encyclopedia
The Axeman of New Orleans was a serial killer
active in New Orleans, Louisiana
(and surrounding communities, including Gretna, Louisiana
), from May 1918 to October 1919. Press reports during the height of public panic about the killings mentioned similar murders as early as 1911, but recent researchers have called these reports into question.
implies, the victims were attacked with an axe
. In some of the crimes, the doors to the victim's homes were first bashed open with the same tool. "The Axeman" was not caught or identified at the time, although his crime spree stopped as mysteriously as it started. The murderer's identity remains unknown to this day, although various possible identifications of varying plausibility have been proposed.
Not all of the Axeman's victims died, but the savagery and utter randomness of his attacks terrorized much of the populace. Some early victims were Italian American
, in particular the son of Pietro Pepitone who had killed Black Hand
extortionist Paul Di Cristina (Paolo Marchese) several years before, leading the newspapers to assume the killings were somehow Mafia
related (similar to Chicago's Black Hand assassin "Shotgun Man
"). However, later crimes clearly did not fit this profile, and the apprehension of the general public grew. His victims included a pregnant woman and even a baby killed in the arms of its mother. The Axeman also seemed to draw direct inspiration from Jack the Ripper
: he (or someone claiming to be the Axeman) wrote taunting letters to city newspapers hinting at his future crimes and claiming to be a supernatural
demon
from Hell
.
Most notoriously, on March 13, 1919, a letter purporting to be from the Axeman was published in the newspapers saying that he would kill again at 15 minutes past midnight on the night of March 19, but would spare the occupants of any place where a jazz
band was playing. That night all of New Orleans's dance halls were filled to capacity, and professional and amateur bands played jazz at parties at hundreds of houses around town. There were no murders that night.
Not everyone was intimidated by the Axeman. Some well armed
citizens sent the newspaper invitations for the Axeman to visit their houses that night and see who got killed first. One invitation promised to leave a window open for the Axeman, politely asking that he not damage the front door.
speculates the Axeman could have been "Joseph Momfre, a man shot to death in Los Angeles in December, 1920 by the widow of Mike Pepitone, the Axeman's last known victim". Wilson's theory has been widely repeated in other true crime books and web sites. However, true crime writer Michael Newton searched New Orleans and Los Angeles public, police and court records as well as newspaper archives, and failed to find any evidence of a man with the name "Joseph Momfre" (or any reasonable facsimile) having been assaulted or killed in Los Angeles. Newton also was not able to find any information that Mrs Pepitone (identified in some sources as Esther Albano, and in others simply as a "woman who claimed to be Pepitone's widow") was arrested, tried or convicted for such a crime, or indeed had been in California
. Newton notes that "Momfre" and variants was not an unusual surname in New Orleans at the time of the crimes. It appears that there actually may have been an individual named Joseph Momfre or Mumfre in New Orleans who had a criminal history and may have been connected with organized crime; however, local records for the period are not extensive enough to allow confirmation of this, or to positively identify the individual. Wilson's explanation is an urban legend, and there is no more evidence now on the identity of the killer than there was at the time of the crimes.
Two of the alleged "early" victims of the Axeman, an Italian couple named Schiambra, were shot by an intruder in their Lower Ninth Ward
home in the early morning hours of May 16, 1912. The male Schiambra survived while his wife died. In newspaper accounts, the prime suspect is referred to by the name of "Momfre" more than once. While radically different than the Axeman's usual modus operandi
, if Joseph Momfre was indeed the Axeman, the Schiambras may well have been an early victim of the future serial killer.
The 1945 book Gumbo Ya-Ya, A Collection of Louisiana Folk Tales includes a chapter on the Axeman entitled "Axeman's Jazz", which helped spark renewed interest in the murders. The book also reproduced the cover of the 1919 sheet music.
Writer Julie Smith used a fictionalized version of the Axeman events in her 1991 novel
The Axeman's Jazz.
The Axeman killings are also referred to in the short story "Mussolini and the Axeman's Jazz" by Poppy Z. Brite
, published in 1997.
The Australian rock band Beasts of Bourbon
released an album in 1984 called "The Axeman's Jazz"
In Chuck Palahniuk
's 2005 novel Haunted, the Axeman is mentioned in Sister Vigilante's short story.
The 2007 song "Deathjazz" by Las Vegas progressive rock band One Ton Project parallels the story of the Axeman.
A sentence from the Axeman's letter to The Times-Picayune is spoken at the beginning of Fila Brazillia
's song "Tunstall and Californian Haddock."
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
active in New Orleans, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
(and surrounding communities, including Gretna, Louisiana
Gretna, Louisiana
The city of Gretna is the parish seat of Jefferson Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. Gretna is on the west bank of the Mississippi River, just east and across the river from uptown New Orleans. It is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area...
), from May 1918 to October 1919. Press reports during the height of public panic about the killings mentioned similar murders as early as 1911, but recent researchers have called these reports into question.
Background
As the killer's pseudonymPseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
implies, the victims were attacked with an axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
. In some of the crimes, the doors to the victim's homes were first bashed open with the same tool. "The Axeman" was not caught or identified at the time, although his crime spree stopped as mysteriously as it started. The murderer's identity remains unknown to this day, although various possible identifications of varying plausibility have been proposed.
Not all of the Axeman's victims died, but the savagery and utter randomness of his attacks terrorized much of the populace. Some early victims were Italian American
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
, in particular the son of Pietro Pepitone who had killed Black Hand
Black Hand (blackmail)
Black Hand was a type of extortion racket. It was a method of extortion, not a criminal organization as such, though gangsters of Camorra and the Mafia practiced it.-Origins:...
extortionist Paul Di Cristina (Paolo Marchese) several years before, leading the newspapers to assume the killings were somehow Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
related (similar to Chicago's Black Hand assassin "Shotgun Man
Shotgun Man
Shotgun Man was an assassin and mass murderer in Chicago, Illinois in the 1910s, to whom murders of Black Hand extortionists were attributed. Most notably, Shotgun Man killed 15 Italian immigrants between January 1-March 26, 1911 between Oak Street and Milton Street of Chicago's Little Italy...
"). However, later crimes clearly did not fit this profile, and the apprehension of the general public grew. His victims included a pregnant woman and even a baby killed in the arms of its mother. The Axeman also seemed to draw direct inspiration from Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
: he (or someone claiming to be the Axeman) wrote taunting letters to city newspapers hinting at his future crimes and claiming to be a supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
from Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
.
Most notoriously, on March 13, 1919, a letter purporting to be from the Axeman was published in the newspapers saying that he would kill again at 15 minutes past midnight on the night of March 19, but would spare the occupants of any place where a jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
band was playing. That night all of New Orleans's dance halls were filled to capacity, and professional and amateur bands played jazz at parties at hundreds of houses around town. There were no murders that night.
Not everyone was intimidated by the Axeman. Some well armed
Firearm
A firearm is a weapon that launches one, or many, projectile at high velocity through confined burning of a propellant. This subsonic burning process is technically known as deflagration, as opposed to supersonic combustion known as a detonation. In older firearms, the propellant was typically...
citizens sent the newspaper invitations for the Axeman to visit their houses that night and see who got killed first. One invitation promised to leave a window open for the Axeman, politely asking that he not damage the front door.
Suspects
Crime writer Colin WilsonColin Wilson
Colin Henry Wilson is a prolific English writer who first came to prominence as a philosopher and novelist. Wilson has since written widely on true crime, mysticism and other topics. He prefers calling his philosophy new existentialism or phenomenological existentialism.- Early biography:Born and...
speculates the Axeman could have been "Joseph Momfre, a man shot to death in Los Angeles in December, 1920 by the widow of Mike Pepitone, the Axeman's last known victim". Wilson's theory has been widely repeated in other true crime books and web sites. However, true crime writer Michael Newton searched New Orleans and Los Angeles public, police and court records as well as newspaper archives, and failed to find any evidence of a man with the name "Joseph Momfre" (or any reasonable facsimile) having been assaulted or killed in Los Angeles. Newton also was not able to find any information that Mrs Pepitone (identified in some sources as Esther Albano, and in others simply as a "woman who claimed to be Pepitone's widow") was arrested, tried or convicted for such a crime, or indeed had been in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Newton notes that "Momfre" and variants was not an unusual surname in New Orleans at the time of the crimes. It appears that there actually may have been an individual named Joseph Momfre or Mumfre in New Orleans who had a criminal history and may have been connected with organized crime; however, local records for the period are not extensive enough to allow confirmation of this, or to positively identify the individual. Wilson's explanation is an urban legend, and there is no more evidence now on the identity of the killer than there was at the time of the crimes.
Two of the alleged "early" victims of the Axeman, an Italian couple named Schiambra, were shot by an intruder in their Lower Ninth Ward
Lower Ninth Ward
Lower Ninth Ward is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. As the name implies, it is part of the Ninth Ward of New Orleans. The Lower Ninth Ward is often thought of as the entire area within New Orleans downriver of the Industrial Canal; however, the City Planning Commission divides this...
home in the early morning hours of May 16, 1912. The male Schiambra survived while his wife died. In newspaper accounts, the prime suspect is referred to by the name of "Momfre" more than once. While radically different than the Axeman's usual modus operandi
Modus operandi
Modus operandi is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "mode of operation". The term is used to describe someone's habits or manner of working, their method of operating or functioning...
, if Joseph Momfre was indeed the Axeman, the Schiambras may well have been an early victim of the future serial killer.
Victims
- Joseph Maggio was an Italian grocerGrocerA grocer is a bulk seller of food. Beginning as early as the 14th century, a grocer was a dealer in comestible dry goods such as spices, pepper, sugar, and cocoa, tea and coffee...
who was attacked while sleeping alongside his wife, Catherine, at their home on the corner of Upperline and Magnolia Streets on the night of May 22, 1918. He survived the initial attack, but died minutes after being discovered by his brothers Jake and Andrew, who lived in the other side of the double, and had come to investigate after hearing his calls. - Catherine Maggio was the wife of Joseph Maggio. She was attacked during the night along with her husband on the night of May 22, 1918. Numerous blows were inflicted to her head with an axe and her throat had been cut so deep that her head was nearly severed.
- Louis Besumer, also a grocer, was attacked in the early morning hours of June 6, 1918, alongside his mistress Anna Lowe. He was critically wounded in the attack but managed to survive.
- Anna Lowe was attacked while in bed with Louis Besumer. She had been badly wounded and died a few hours later at Charity HospitalCharity HospitalCharity Hospital was one of two teaching hospitals which were part of the Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans . Three weeks after the events of Hurricane Katrina, then Governor Kathleen Blanco said that Charity Hospital would not reopen, even though the military had scrubbed the building to...
. - Mrs. Schneider was attacked in the early evening hours of August 5, 1918. The 8 months pregnant Schneider awoke to find a dark figure standing over her and she was bashed in the face repeatedly with an axe. She was discovered later when her husband returned from work. She was treated for her wounds at Charity Hospital and delivered a healthy baby girl 3 weeks after the attack.
- Joseph Romano was an elderly man living with his two nieces, Pauline and Mary Bruno. On August 10, 1918, Pauline awoke to find a man standing over her. She screamed and the man leaped off into the night. She entered her uncle's room to find him critically injured. With his dying breath, Romano instructed his niece to call the hospital.
- Charles Cortimiglia was an immigrant who lived with his wife and baby on the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Second Street in Gretna, LouisianaGretna, LouisianaThe city of Gretna is the parish seat of Jefferson Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. Gretna is on the west bank of the Mississippi River, just east and across the river from uptown New Orleans. It is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, a New Orleans suburb. On the night of March 10, 1919, screams were heard coming from the Cortimiglia Residence. Neighbors rushed in to find Rosie Cortimiglia kneeling on the floor in a pool of blood next to her husband, who had a gaping hole in his torso. - Rosie Cortimiglia was the wife of immigrant laborer Charles Cortimiglia. She was attacked alongside her husband on March 10, 1919 while sleeping with her baby in her arms. She was badly wounded by the axeman, but survived the incident.
- Mary Cortimiglia was the two-year-old daughter of Charles and Rosie Cortimiglia. She was killed while sleeping in her mother's arms with a single blow to the back of the neck when she and her parents were attacked on March 10, 1919.
- Steve Boca was a grocer who was attacked in his bedroom as he slept by an axe-wielding intruder on August 10, 1919. Boca survived his wounds. It was duly noted that the assailant chiseled his way through the back door, similar to other Axeman attacks.
- Sarah Laumann was attacked on the night of September 3, 1919. The 19-year-old suffered numerous head wounds and died at the hospital.
- Mike Pepitone was attacked on the night of October 27, 1919. His wife was awakened by a noise and arrived at the door of his bedroom just as a large axe-wielding man was rushing out of it (some accounts say she saw two men fleeing her husband's room.) Pepitone was transported to Charity Hospital where he died early the next morning.
The Axeman in popular culture
In 1919 local tune writer Joseph John Davilla wrote the song "The Mysterious Axman's Jazz (Don't Scare Me Papa)". Published by New Orleans based World's Music Publishing Company, the cover depicted a family playing music with frightened looks on their faces.The 1945 book Gumbo Ya-Ya, A Collection of Louisiana Folk Tales includes a chapter on the Axeman entitled "Axeman's Jazz", which helped spark renewed interest in the murders. The book also reproduced the cover of the 1919 sheet music.
Writer Julie Smith used a fictionalized version of the Axeman events in her 1991 novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
The Axeman's Jazz.
The Axeman killings are also referred to in the short story "Mussolini and the Axeman's Jazz" by Poppy Z. Brite
Poppy Z. Brite
Poppy Z. Brite is an American author. Brite initially achieved notoriety in the gothic horror genre of literature in the early 1990s after publishing a string of successful novels and short story collections...
, published in 1997.
The Australian rock band Beasts of Bourbon
Beasts of Bourbon
Beasts of Bourbon was an Australian alternative rock band formed in 1983, with a line-up that has changed as the band splintered and reformed several times - Beginnings :...
released an album in 1984 called "The Axeman's Jazz"
In Chuck Palahniuk
Chuck Palahniuk
Charles Michael "Chuck" Palahniuk is an American transgressional fiction novelist and freelance journalist. He is best known for the award-winning novel Fight Club, which was later made into a film directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, and Helena Bonham Carter...
's 2005 novel Haunted, the Axeman is mentioned in Sister Vigilante's short story.
The 2007 song "Deathjazz" by Las Vegas progressive rock band One Ton Project parallels the story of the Axeman.
A sentence from the Axeman's letter to The Times-Picayune is spoken at the beginning of Fila Brazillia
Fila Brazillia
Fila Brazillia was an electronica collaboration from Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire in North-East England. Formed in 1990 by Steve Cobby and David McSherry...
's song "Tunstall and Californian Haddock."
External links
- Axeman on CrimeLibrary.com Multi-page discussion
- 1919: A serial killer had New Orleans on edge Times-Picayune
- The Axman Came from Hell ISBN 1589808983 http://www.amazon.com/dp/1589808983