Ah, the good old days, when you could pack up your family and lay claim to hundreds of acres of prairie and set about building a life for yourself through hard work and perseverance. Or, if you happened to pass through Kansas in around 1871 on the way to set up your homestead, you could alternately get your head bashed in and your throat slashed by a “family” of twisted serial killers. On this episode of 13 O’Clock, Tom and Jenny explore one of the darkest corridors of 19th century American history, focusing on the infamous Bloody Benders, a faux family of four murderers who are thought to have brutally killed at least twenty travelers, and also seem to have largely gotten away with it. Hop in your covered wagon for the journey into episode 66, and when you see the Benders’ inn on the side of the Osage Trail, best keep moseying on by.

Download the audio version here or watch the YouTube video here.

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Song at the end: “The Bloody Benders” by Macabre.