November 7, 1940 Tacoma Narrows straight, Washington The Tacoma Narrows Bride collapses due to structural failure following high gusts of winds The bridge, nicknamed Galloping Gertie due to its intense movement during windy conditions even before its collapse, was a suspension bridge nearly 6,000 feet (more than 1800 meters) in length making it the third… Continue reading The collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Tag: 1940s
Man wounds 4, kills 8 and self after argument over an unpaid gambling winning
November 6, 1948 Chester, Pennsylvania Melvin “Bad Boy” Collins (38) goes on a shooting spree, killing 8 and wounding 4 before killing himself The motive behind the attack has been contributed to an argument over numbers, an illegal lottery in which gamblers would place bets on which numbers would be featured in various daily activities… Continue reading Man wounds 4, kills 8 and self after argument over an unpaid gambling winning
Two women killed with axe by serial killer
October 30, 1947 Tacoma, Washington Serial killer Jake Bird kills Bertha Kludt and her 17-year-old daughter Beverly June with an axe Bird was apprehended on the night of October 30, shoeless and covered in blood, when officers Evan “Skip” Davies and Andres “Tiny” Sabutis responded to a call about a woman screaming. When Bird spotted… Continue reading Two women killed with axe by serial killer
German teen beheaded for distributing anti-Nazi publications
October 27, 1942 Berlin, Germany 17-year-old Helmuth Günther Guddat Hübener is executed for defying the Nazi regime Hübener, a devout member of the Church of Latter-Day Saints (also referred to as Mormons), was morally against the actions of the Nazis, including the limiting of civil rights of all citizens and in particular the treatment of… Continue reading German teen beheaded for distributing anti-Nazi publications
Man who had been hiding in attic for weeks kills friend, “haunts” house for 9 more months
October 17, 1941 Denver, Colorado Theodore Coneys, later called the “Denver Spider Man,” kills 73-year-old Philip Peters after being caught stealing from Peters’ ice box Coneys had fallen on hard times and was desperate for food. He and Peters had been friends and Coneys visited his home in hopes of being invited to dinner as… Continue reading Man who had been hiding in attic for weeks kills friend, “haunts” house for 9 more months
