150 years later, archaeologists are still working to discover what happened to a supposedly violent family: the 'Bloody Benders'

LABETTE COUNTY, Kan. (KWCH/Gray News) – On a windy day in Kansas, tools were sharpened, instruments primed and notebooks and pens were in hand, in an effort to add more to the story of an age-old mystery 150 years old. .

“It’s a dream come true. That’s why I bought the land,” said landowner Bob Miller.

For more than a week in May, an archaeological dig in rural Labette County focused on one field to uncover new clues to the mystery of the “Bloody Benders.”

“Endless interest in this story. I think it's not just about what they did, but how they did it, and also the mystery of what happened to them, because you can write your own ending,” said Miller.

The Benders were a family of four who lived in the 1870s off the Osage Trail near Cherryvale, Kansas. They gained notoriety for their alleged propensity to kill and rob travelers who stopped at their home while on the Osage Trail.

The family is accused of killing the travelers and dumping their bodies in a cellar for later burial.

It was the disappearance of Dr. William York, believed to be one of their victims, that brought suspicion to the Benders. The family disappeared before a private detective and a group could get close to them. Their house was searched for souvenirs and evacuated.

At least 11 people are believed to have been killed by the Bloody Benders.

Much remains unknown about the Bloody Benders, and since Miller purchased the land, he has wanted to add to the story.

“When I bought this property about four years ago, it was my dream: to somehow find out where all this happened,” Miller said. “We know what happened, but we don’t know where it happened and we are discovering what the ground has been hiding for 150 years.”

Miller worked with the KU anthropology department and the Kansas Geological Survey to find the Benders' property.

“It’s an important site, especially because some good people lost their lives here, so it was a makeshift cemetery for a while,” said Kansas archaeologist Chris Hord. “Doing this work here is a way of honoring, I think, these people. People who lost their lives here, and there were more people who lost their lives here, I'm sure, than ended up being buried here.

Archaeological digs are closely examining the ground to see what new elements of Benders history can be found.

“It’s a really cool site because of the history but also because we’ve generated a lot of interest. So we have a lot of people working on genealogy, history, connections between their own families,” said Lauren Norman, Ph.D., assistant professor in the KU department of anthropology. “We’re really adding that practical, physical aspect to it.”

Norman runs a field school with six students and volunteers working toward this goal.

“Last year, some of the same students were here and they learned how to do geophysical surveys. How to find out what’s underground and then make hypotheses based on that,” she said.

In addition to this work last summer, an in-depth study of historical archives was also carried out.

“I have read the two most recent books on the history of the Benders. Then I dove deep during the winter months. I spent over 100 hours researching what happened,” Hord said.

Artefacts have been discovered on these lands for years and Miller has now amassed his own collection.

“It's exciting because when you find like a rivet or a square nail, is that part of the cabin, what is that a bridal horse that belonged to one of the victims? Did it belong to the Benders themselves? We just don’t know,” Miller said.

Its objective is to try to locate specific structures: house, stable, corn crib, well or latrine.

“Things have spread out over 150 years of farming, so it's spread over a period of several acres, but we're trying to narrow things down and pinpoint the location on a computer, which indicates it need to take a closer look,” he said.

The field school is more intensive academic research. Working in small squares on areas identified as promising, the soil is carefully stripped. The objects found are carefully documented.

“A lot of archeology is about artifacts, but at least half of what we know comes from where we find the artifacts. Recording their contexts, keeping good records is part of it,” Norman said.

His team works even slower since it is made up of students still learning the ins and outs of archaeological field work.

“Archaeology is generally a very slow process and it's even slower to have people learning during that process. We’re going to be here for 10 days, but I don’t expect us to go too far just because they’re all learning and we want to do it right,” Norman said.

Although part of the purpose of the field school is to learn more about the Benders mystery, it is also used as a learning opportunity for students.

“We teach a lot in the classroom and we haven't done a lot of field work,” Norman said. “Archaeology is really learned in the field. This allows our students, for the first time in several years, to really get their hands dirty and put what they have learned into practice.

One of those students is Dylan Allen. He was here last summer during the field surveys and is now participating in the next phase.

“I haven't had a chance to dig very deep, so being able to put everything I learned in school to the test is very satisfying,” Allen said.

Originally from Kansas, Allen grew up hearing the story of the Bloody Benders and is excited to help uncover more of its history.

“It really ties you to the community of the area and allows you to really understand how important history is to a community and to its identity,” Allen said. “Being a part of that almost makes it real.”

In the coming months, the objects found here will be returned to the laboratory, cleaned and studied. Norman said she hopes to have some initial findings to report by this fall, but it will take a few more years of work.

The main point of this work is to use what was found and where it was found to add context to the already known story.

“And lo and behold, what we found is that the artifacts that are in the earth here, in the ground, represent the largest percentage of this period, in terms of glass, ceramics and nails, nails squares. “, Hord said. “To most people, this is just junk. To us, this is really important data.

Further work is planned on the ground this summer. Field surveys will continue, which could lead to another excavation.

“The story is not over. The story is over, but it is not over. It’s not over,” Allen said. “It’s really cemented in this project because there’s no house here, but look at how many people are gathered just to dig an empty field.”

A Facebook page helps document this effort.

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