Farmer Admits He Shot 8 To Death

Family of Seven and Chore Boy His Victims.

Slayer Is Sentenced to Life Term in Prison -- Has Wife and Six Children.

WASHBURN, N. D., May 20 - Henry Layer, a farmer, has confessed to the killing of Jacob Wolf, his wife and five children and a chore boy, Jake Hofer, on the Wolf farm, three miles west of Turtle Lake, N. D., on April 22, it was announced here by J. E. Williams, State's attorney for McLean County.

Ill feelings of long standing, culminating in a quarrel over injuries administered to Layer's cattle by Wolf's dog, was responsible for the crime, according to Layer's confession.

Gets Life Sentence.

Layer, who is married and has six children, and who owns a farm one and a half miles from the Wolf place, was arrested at his home. He was arraigned before Judge W. L. Nuessele in District Court and sentenced to life imprisonment in the State penitentiary.

According to his confession, Layer said he went to the Wolf farm shortly before noon on Thursday, April 22. Layer said an argument followed. Wolf demanded that Layer leave.

Layer refused and Wolf went into the house and returned with a double barreled shotgun. Layer grasped the gun and attempted to wrest it from Wolf, he said, and the weapon was discharged twice.

One of the shots killed Mrs. Wolf and the other Hofer, 12-year-old chore boy, Layer said. By this time Layer had taken the gun away from Wolf, went into the sitting-room, obtained a handful of shells from a bureau drawer and hurried outside. Wolf was running toward the barn and Layer fired, the charge striking Wolf in the back. Layer then shot Wolf in the back as he lay on the ground.

Hides the Bodies.

Layer said he ran to a barn and shot two of the girls while they pleaded for mercy.

Attracted by the screams of three little girls in the house, Layer shot two of them and killed the third with a hatchet.

After the seven members of the family and Hofer had been killed Layer went to the barn, covered the two bodies with hay, and dragged Wolf's body into the shed and buried it under a pile of hay. He then went to the kitchen, opened the cellar door and threw in the bodies of Mrs. Wolf, three children and Hofer.

--The Saturday Blade, Chicago, May 22, 1920, page 3.

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FARMER CONFESSES TURTLE LAKE MURDERS

HENRY LAYER TELLS OFFICERS THAT QUARREL OVER COW CAUSED HIM TO SLAY EIGHT NEIGHBORS

Signed Confession Made by Murderer in Early Morning Hours; Describes Horrible Details of Crime

(By Staff Correspondent)
(Bulletin)

Sentenced to imprisonment at hard labor for life, Henry Layer, self-confessed slayer of eight persons at Turtle Lake, N. D., April 22, started serving his prison term at 4 o'clock this afternoon, less than 48 hours after he was arrested. Layer was brought from Washburn, where he pleaded guilty before Judge W. L. Nuessle in district court, to Bismarck by automobile and committed to the state penitentiary here.

At no time during the brief trial or the trip to Bismarck did the slayer express the slightest concern over the eight persons he murdered exactly three weeks ago. Given every opportunity to change his plea or repudiate his confession, and warned by Judge Nuessle of the seriousness of the charge to which he confessed and later plead guilty, Layer stoically refused the services of a lawyer and only asked that "let it be over with as fast as possible."

Washburn, N. D., May 13. – Henry Layer early this morning confessed to the killing of Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Wolf, their five small daughters and the chore boy, Jake Hofer, on the Wolf farm three miles from Turtle Lake, N. D., on April 22.

Ill feeling of long standing culminated in a quarrel over injuries administered one of Layer's cows by Wolf's dog.

Layer went to Wolf's farm home shortly before noon, and heated words, followed by Wolf's demand that Layer leave the place immediately, were the events leading up to the murder of the eight people, according to Layer's confession to the authorities.

Used Shot Gun
When Layer refused to leave the place Wolf went into the sitting room, got his double barreled shot gun and loaded two shells into the breech. Layer grasped the gun and attempted to wrest it away from Wolf. The struggle took place in the entrance to the kitchen during which the gun was discharged twice.

Two Deaths Accidental
Layer claims in his confession that one of these shots killed Mrs. Wolf and the other the thirteen-year-old chore boy.

By this time Layer had succeeded in wresting the gun away from Wolf, the murderer darted into the sitting room, got a handful of shells from the bureau and hurried back to the kitchen entrance.

Wolf was running towards the barn and Layer fired the shots striking Wolf in the back. Wolf fell to the ground and Layer ran up to him and placed the muzzle of the gun against the wounded man's side and fired again, tearing a huge hole in Wolf's body.

Frightened Girls Run
Two of the smaller daughters, frightened at the fighting and seeing their mother and the boy fall dead in the kitchen, ran into the adjoining bedroom and escaped from the house, running to the nearby cow shed. Arrested by the screams of two girls, Layer rushed into the barn, firing one shot which cut a furrow in one of the girls' head.

The shot splintered the wall. Layer jammed the muzzle of the shotgun against the head of the other girl, who also was screaming and pleading for mercy, and pressed the trigger. He then placed another shell into the gun, put the muzzle against the head of the first child shot, who was now dead, and fired again.

Deliberately Kills Three
The three little girls in the house were screaming. Layer returned to the kitchen and deliberately killed the children, two of them with the shotgun, placing the muzzle against the curly heads and the third with a smashing blow of a hatchet.

After seven members of the family and the chore boy had been killed, Layer went to the cowshed, covered up two bodies of the girls with hay, dragged Wolf's body into the cowshed and covered it with hay.

He then went to the kitchen, opened the trap door leading into the cellar and dumped the five bodies into the basement.

Taking the gun which he broke in order to better conceal it, he went to a nearby slough, threw part of the gun and some shells into the water and by a circular route returned to his home. He did not say anything to his wife and five young children. While at the slough he washed his hands and removed all traces of blood from his clothing.

Bismarck Chief Praised
The solution of the mystery, which had been baffling the authorities, handicapped as they were because no clue had been left by the murderer and two days had elapsed between the time the murders were committed and the bodies were found, was in a large measure due to Chris Martineson, chief of the Bismarck police department, who has been working on the case together with Sheriff Ole Stefford of McLean county constantly since the murders were discovered. Chief Martineson was the first to suspect the guilty man, who was finally arrested Tuesday and by more than eight hours of continuous examination last night, forced the confession from his lips.

Murderer Not Worried
Layer has failed to show any concern over his revolting deed. Within ten minutes after his confession had been obtained the murderer was sleeping soundly on his cot in the county jail at Washburn. His memory on many of the details connected with the eight murders is very vague and he told the authorities he did not remember killing the youngest child with an ax, but supposed he did it.

The murderer acknowledged that the only reason he did not kill eight months old Emma Wolf, the sole survivor of the dreadful tragedy, was because he did not know she was in the bedroom, where she was sleeping during the time the horrible deeds were committed.

Goes Back to Field
After returning home from the scene of the murder, Layer resumed his plowing, his farm being one half mile from Wolf's property. He plowed all day Friday and Saturday morning. When a neighbor told him Saturday that the Wolf family had been killed he went to the Wolf farm and was there all Saturday afternoon and most of the evening, volunteering information about self evident details concerning the killings.

A morbid curiosity overcame his better judgment on Sunday morning and he went to the Wolf farm at daybreak to see the bodies of Wolf and the two little girls in the cowshed.

Even though Wolf's face and part of his arm had been eaten by hogs, Layer failed to show any sign of a strain, although he had been warned by Chief Martinson's appearance.

Attended the Funeral
Layer, accompanied by his wife and one of his daughters attended the funeral of his eight victims the following Thursday.

The coffins were placed in a row in front of the Wolf farm house. Layer, watched by the authorities, insisted on lifting the lids off each of the coffins and gazed into the faces of the persons, five of whom were between three and thirteen years of age, whom he had horribly murdered. During the funeral services, Layer continued to maintain his calm demeanor.

The authorities watched his every move for a suspicious action. They were doomed to disappointment, however, for Layer failed to show as much feeling as the hundreds of other farmers present.

Kissed Children Farewell
Obtaining a number of depositions from people living in the neighborhood of the Wolf farm, the authorities tightened the yoke around the suspected man. Finally, sufficient circumstantial evidence had been obtained to indicate that Layer had committed the crime. On Tuesday afternoon the authorities went to Layer's home and told him he would have to go to Washburn with them. After hitching up a team of horses for his wife, who was afraid to spend the night on the Layer farm, he kissed his wife and each of the children farewell.

The murder was placed in jail at Washburn and continued to maintain that he was innocent of the Wolf murders.

Wednesday night Chief Martineson started a vigorous cross-examination. Layer was forced to gaze at pictures of the revolting murder scenes, together with that of baby Emma.

Strain is Too Great
The strain proved too great for the murderer and after several hours of this mental torture, Layer broke down and said he was the murderer. The confession, according to the police, was wormed out of him piece by piece until the entire story had been told. Layer is an American, farmer, 36 years of age and has lived near Turtle Lake for several years. He divorced his first wife. His eldest child, a girl, is about 12 years old, the authorities believe.

--The Bismarck Tribune, Bismarck, North Dakota, May 13, 1920, pages 1 and 3.

Comment: I corrected a few obvious typos and things, but left the spellings of Martineson or Martinson.

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HENRY LAYER, MURDERER OF EIGHT, DIES

Man Who Killed Members of Wolf Family Succumbs to Heart Attack

SENTENCED FOR LIFE

Slayer, Who Confesses Crime Was Model Prisoner, Authorities Say

Henry Layer, confessed slayer of Jacob Wolf, wife, five daughters and the Wolf family choreboy, Jacob Hofer, on the Wolf farm, three miles from Turtle Lake, on April 22, 1920, who was serving a life sentence for the murders, in the state penitentiary here, died in the prison hospital at 3:10 this morning.

Layer was operated on for appendicitis in the St. Alexius hospital about ten days ago. He was taken to the prison hospital Wednesday. Heart trouble developed and a blood clot formed. Heart trouble was given as the cause of death.

Although Layer confessed and pleaded guilty to the crime, he later repudiated the confession and said that he admitted the murders only after being given the third degree.

Chris Martineson, Bismarck chief of police, who is given credit for solving the crime, declared today that third degree methods were not used to get a confession from Layer. "The first lead came from Layer himself," Chief Martineson said. "It was at the Wolf farm after the murders. Layer was roasting Wolf, declaring Wolf's dog killed one of his sheep. His actions were suspicious the morning the bodies were found and at the funeral. We suspected him from the first and he was constantly under surveillance. We placed him under arrest after more than a week of work on the case and after questioning him for a few hours he broke down and confessed the crime."

Chief Martineson was called in on the case by state and county officers.

The murders were the most cold blooded and fiendish in the history of North Dakota. Ill feeling had long existed between Wolf and Layer over injuries administered to one Layer's cows by Wolf's dog.

The Wolf and Layer families were neighbors, and according to Layer's confession, he went to Wolf's farm about noon on the day of the murders, and heated words, followed by Wolf's demand that Layer leave the place immediately, were the events leading up to the killing of the eight people.

When Layer refused to leave the place Wolf went into the sitting room, got his double barreled shot gun and loaded two shells into the breech. Layer grasped the gun and attempted to wrest it away from Wolf. The struggle took place in the entrance to the kitchen during which the gun was discharged twice.

Layer claimed in his confession that one of these shots killed Mrs. Wolf and the other the 13 year old choreboy.

By this time Layer had succeeded in wresting the gun away from Wolf. The murderer darted into the sitting room, got a handful of shells from the bureau and hurried back to the kitchen entrance.

Wolf was running towards the barn and Layer fired, the shots striking Wolf in the back. Wolf fell to the ground and Layer ran up to him and placed the muzzle of the gun against the wounded man's side and fired again, tearing a big hole in Wolf's body.

Two of the smaller daughters frightened at the fighting and seeing their mother and the boy fall dead in the kitchen, ran into an adjoining room and escaped from the house, fleeing to a cowshed. Arrested by the screams of the girls, Layer rushed into the barn, firing one shot which cut a furrow in one of the girl's head. Layer jammed the gun against the head of the other girl, who was pleading and screaming for mercy, and pressed the trigger.

The three little girls in the house were screaming. Layer returned to the kitchen and deliberately killed the children, two of them with the shot gun and the other with a hatchet.

After seven members of the family and the choreboy had been killed, Layer went to the cowshed, covered the two bodies of the girls with hay, dragged Wolf's body into the cowshed and covered it with hay. He then went to the kitchen, opened the trap door leading into the cellar and dumped the five bodies into the basement.

The crime was not discovered until two days after the murders, when John Kraft, a neighbor, called at the Wolf farm and found the members of the family dead.

The only member of the Wolf family that escaped the murderer's fury was the youngest girl just passed her first birthday. Mr. Kraft found the little tot in her cradle. She was almost famished and in a weakened condition. The little girl is living with her aunt, a sister of her mother, near Turtle Lake.

The murderer acknowledged in his confession that the only reason he did not kill the baby was because he did not know she was in the bed room where she was sleeping during the time the horrible crime was committed.

Layer was sentenced to imprisonment at hard labor for life and arrived at the prison here on April 13, less than 48 hours after he was arrested. Layer was a model prisoner, prison authorities said today. He acted as head man in the laundry.

Layer's mother and brother were called here by his illness and visited him in the prison hospital last night.

Layer was 40 years of age and was a native of Russia. He was divorced from his first wife but his second wife and several children survive.

No funeral arrangements have been made, but it is expected his mother will take charge of the body. An autopsy will be held late this afternoon.

--The Bismarck Tribune, Bismarck, North Dakota, March 21, 1925, pages 1 and 3.