Villisca, Iowa

Villisca, Iowa
—  City  —
Location of Villisca, Iowa
Coordinates: 40°55′45″N 94°58′41″W
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Montgomery
Area
• Total	1.9 sq mi (4.9 km2)
• Land	1.9 sq mi (4.9 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	1,076 ft (328 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	1,344
• Density	703.9/sq mi (271.8/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	50864
Area code(s)	712
FIPS code	19-80985
GNIS feature ID	0462574

Villisca is a city in Montgomery County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,344 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Villisca is located at 40°55′45″N 94°58′41″W (40.929115, -94.978162).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.9 square miles (4.9 km²), all land.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,344 people, 576 households, and 347 families residing in the city. The population density was 703.9 people per square mile (271.7/km²). There were 636 housing units at an average density of 333.1 per square mile (128.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.81% White, 0.07% African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 0.37% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.37% of the population.

There were 576 households out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.6% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 24.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,694, and the median income for a family was $34,345. Males had a median income of $28,500 versus $20,292 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,067. About 9.3% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.8% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Villisca Axe Murders

Main article: Villisca Axe Murders

On June 10, 1912, six members of the Moore family and two young houseguests were killed with an axe by an unknown assailant.

Josiah B. Moore and Sara Montgomery were married on December 6, 1899. They had four children, Herman, Katherine, Boyd, and Paul. Joe was a prominent and well-liked businessman. By 1912 his Moore Implement Company (a John Deere Company franchise) was a solid competitor with other Villisca and area hardware stores, including the Jones Store owned by his former employer, F.F. Jones. Sara was active in the Presbyterian church and assisted with Children's Day exercises on the night of June 9, 1912. Joe (43) and Sara (39), their children, and two visiting children were found bludgeoned to death with the Moore's own axe the following morning. Their unsolved murders began a chain of events that split the borough of Villisca and forever changed the course of the town's history and the lives of its inhabitants.

The case has inspired two published books: Roy Marshall's Villisca and Stephen Bowman's fictionalized Morning Ran Red. Kelly and Tammy Rundle's documentary Villisca: Living with a Mystery also dealt with the incident. The case has also inspired a feature narrative project titled Haunting Villisca, co-authored by James Serpento and Kimberly Busbee, directed by Serpento and produced by Busbee for AriesWorks Entertainment. Haunting Villisca combines a fictionalized present-day scenario with scenes suggested by courtroom transcripts, folklore and current paranormal investigations of the house where the murders occurred. The picture premiered in Villisca in the spring of 2008. Note: In the attic, there are two windows which people have noticed looked exactly like the ones in The Amityville Horror House.

http://www.villiscaiowa.com/ is the official website of the city, which tells the story in its entirety.

External links

• Villisca city website
• Villisca Historical Society website
• Villisca Review
• Villisca: Living With a Mystery movie website
• Haunting Villisca fictional movie website
• The Olson Linn Museum aka The Villisca Axe Murder House