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TRANSCRIPTS ARE COMING!
We've wanted to offer transcripts on the site for a while now, but due to some red tape, we can't just paste our scripts into a blog. BUT... we can use AI transcriptions. Plus, we're a small team, so this helps out a lot. Be forewarned, though, that sometimes AI gets things wrong. At the very least, we'll remove the AI hallucinations as they occur. Feel free to request edits. Thanks! - CMH
-'TURTLE LAKE'
TRANSCRIPT- C.M. HUMPHRIES: Less Taken contains content that may not be suitable for all audiences. Listeners' discretion is advised. Less Taken... Taken... Taken
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The laundry hangs outside for days. John Craft hasn't seen his neighbors, the Wolfe family, come outside to attend to the clothes for what feels like just as long. It's April.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: And the weather in the humid climate of Turtle Lake North Dakota is taking a turn for the better but the thickening humidity is not to be overlooked it's cool and damp along these flat rural terrains and the forgotten laundry succumbs to the soggy weather as John continues to stare at the laundry on the line he recalls just how orderly meticulous and potentially germaphobic the Wolfe family seem to be at least to him letting their shirts and pants rot and mould out in the ever-changing weather that's just not like them April twenty fourth nineteen twenty John and his wife decide that they should pay theWolfef family a visit the same clothes are on the line John wants to make a move.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: He heads over to the Wolfe residence to inquire about the laundry, and quite frankly, to perform a wellness check. The Wolfe Family occupies a 20th century North Dakota farmstead with a large barn and various outbuildings like sheds and granaries, as well as the farmhouse itself.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: As John draws near the center of the property, He hears what sounds like horses neighing, only there's something desperate and defeated to the breathy sounds.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: He wonders if the family might be outside with the animals, so John moves ahead.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Arriving at a trough, John notices a few of the horses are harnessed up but completely unattended.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Thinking back to the laundry, John worries that the horses may have gone without food or water for days.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: John has to know what's going on with his neighbors.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Leaving the horses behind for a moment, John makes his way for the farmhouse when he hears what sounds like pigs rooting around the barn.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: John should probably check to see if anyone's inside of the house first. But the new sound draws him in, over to the barn.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: There, just as he expected, are a few animals fussing around next to the lean-to.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: In fact, John might find the sight of the swine patrolling the lean-to a little bit curious. He goes to inspect.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Rounding the corner, he's immediately horror-stricken by the ghastly sight of his neighbor, Jacob Wolfe, and two of his daughters, Maria, 10, and Edna, 8, hearing out of the soil, partially covered in the mud and dirt, and, in haste, plunged over by the sight. John can't help but wonder, what's happened to the rest of the family?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: You're listening to Turtle Lake, the latest episode from Less Taken, Season 3. In this episode, we explore the mysterious circumstances surrounding the deaths of the entire Wolfe Family in Turtle Lake, North Dakota. Please let us know what you think of this episode when you're done by leaving us a fair rating and review wherever you're listening.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: You can also leave reviews at lesstakenpod.com. At our website, we have all of our episodes, sources, notes, additional media, merch, and so much more. Speaking of our merch, it's our holiday sale, and every single item in our shop has a special sale price from now until December 21st.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Ordered by December 12th to ensure holiday delivery. And be sure to follow us before we follow you on Facebook and Instagram under the handle @lesstakenpod. I'm C. M. Humphries, and this is Less Taken: real-life horror stories from the Midwest. Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoy Turtle Lake.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: When it all begins, no one expects to find the Wolfe family dead and sprawled out about the farmstead. At the start of it all, Turtle Lake has all the respect in the world for theWolfef family. In 1903, and like many others who end up part of the Turtle Lake community, Jacob flees southern Russia to escape the turbulent conditions constructed by Anti-German propaganda.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: There's a long history lesson to be had. Regarding the Russian-German climate. But suffice it to say, alienation and bitterness are common words used to describe the relationship between the two nations. By hook or by crook, Jacob arrives at Turtle Lake to prop up his farm. By 1905, he finds the love of his life in Beate Bosart, 35 years old, and they're soon married.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: All things considered, the Wolves are living the American dream. Together, they raise six daughters, Bertha, 13, Maria, 9, Edna, 8, Lydia, 5, Martha, 3, and Emma, 9 months. And their farmstead is rather successful. They even have a terrific healthy relationship with their farmhand, also named Jacob. I'll do my best to make that as unconfusing as possible.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The Wolves fit in well with their community. And they are held in high regard by their neighbors, especially their fellow immigrant peers. For many, the Wolves are inspiring, if nothing else. But no one can be loved by everyone, and there is one man who is quickly growing tired of the Wolfe family, especially the head of the household, Jacob.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: November 1919.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: It all happened so quickly. One moment, Jacob and his family are attending to chores around the farm, and in the next, one of his dogs breaks loose and dashes all the way down to another farm, Henry Lear's farm. Before anyone has a chance to catch up, the dog rushes toward Lear's cattle and attacks one of the calves.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Wolfe's a good man and he understands that, although an accident, he's obligated to compensate Henry somehow. But right now, that's what the two men can't agree on.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Jacob wants to compromise somehow, but the more the two men debate it, the higher Henry makes the price. At some point, Henry's going to ask Jacob for so much money that he could purchase another entire farm.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The men bicker and argue for hours upon hours, expending nearly all of their energy on the deliberations. No one's quite sure what, but the two men eventually work out their differences and agree on the damages and reimbursement. Allegedly, from then on, there are no subsequent incidents of the sort.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Jacob Wolfe is found dead on his farm six months later.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: April 24th, 1920. John Kraft drives through Turtle Lake, passing over the roads that surround the Wolfe residence. Recalling their hard-working and thorough reputations, John can't figure out why so many chores have been left unattended for at least a couple days now. The laundry really stands out. How could the family let all those clothes weather the rot out in the recent storms and otherwise dreary conditions?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: He goes home and tells his wife, although he soon wishes he didn't. They travel to the farm. John heads over to the horses, the pigs in the barn, and the lean-to. He can't burn the grotesque sight of Jacob and his daughters, Maria and Edna, massacred and haphazardly buried underneath the barn. The mud and straw.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Jacob has been shot multiple times, one at a distance and one up close. His torso is a wrangled mess. One bullet ripped through him, from front to back, viciously tearing three ribs from his spine. He doesn't care to speak of the daughter's conditions. However, it does get him thinking, there's Jacob, but where's Bietta and the other four daughters? Where's their nine-month-old, Emma?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Difficult as it may be, John and his wife move past the lean-to and toward the farmhouse. They fear they might find the rest of the Wolfe Family in the same horrific conditions.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: A foul odor wafts by as they step through the front door. Hardly any time passes before John and his wife find a trail of blood running from the center of the kitchen. To the cellar door. Cautious hesitation and urgency conflict with each other, as the couple opens the door and makes their way down into the dim, musky cellar.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Footsteps echoing, John leads the way, searching through the darkness for any sign of the Wolfe Family. He hopes no one answers their calls. He hopes he doesn't find them in his cellar. But he does.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Before them are the mother, Vieta, and their three daughters, sprawled out and lifeless on the cold, damp ground. The mother shot, impossibly lacerated. Daughters Bertha and Lydia both bear bullet holes in what appear to be hatchet wounds. There are no signs of gunfire on Martha's body, but instead, it's riddled with bruises. And bone fractures as though she's been beaten to death with the blunt side of the same hatchet.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Next to the Wolfe Family members is Jacob, the farmhand. He too was shot, but it was a nasty death for him. The bullet sailed across his neck and slit his jugular wide open. John and his wife might faint any time soon, but miraculously, they hold it together and continue to examine the evidence of a brutal mass killing, until Emma is found unharmed in one of the bedrooms. But she hasn't been fed or changed for days.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: John's wife coddles the surviving Wolfe child while he rushes over to the landline and dials 911. There's no tone. No way. He can hardly believe it. Someone must have disconnected their phone. How premeditated was this brutality?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The crafts don't know what else to do, so they gather up Emma and a few of her belongings and bring her back to their house to take care of the infant until the police can clear matters up.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Sheriff Shefford and the local authorities race over to the Rolfe residence soon after receiving the alarming call from the crafts.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Searching nearly every inch of the property, They discover Jacob and the two eldest daughters by the barn, and Bietta and the other three daughters in the cellar. What doesn't make a ton of sense to them is the trail of blood running to the cellar. There's only one pool of blood in the kitchen.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Meaning only one person died in that room the others must have died in the cellar Judging by the monstrous state of the farm hands body Please suspect he was killed elsewhere and dragged down into the basement The blood splatter is broad enough to suggest all of the women were shot downstairs The sheriff and his men also find that the phone is disconnected Although they're not 100% sure why What's also unusual is that the bodies downstairs are all wearing gloves.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Perhaps there's a simple explanation.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Perhaps Bietta and the younger daughters were attending to chores. The police uncover the hatchet and several bloody rags hidden in the kitchen. Evidence ultimately reveals the Wolfe Family massacre took place only 48 hours before the crafts inspected the property.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: From what they gather, Jacob Wolfe was most likely shot in his yard, along with the two older daughters, and then the bodies were moved over to the lean-to, possibly to keep them out of plain sight.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The police managed to trace Maria and Edna's route, following a blood trail that stops at one of the barn windows. The two girls must have fled from the killer and attempted to hide underneath a stack of hay bales, until they were ultimately discovered.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: It's not clear why the perpetrator left Emma alone. Maybe this person didn't notice her. Or maybe the killer just didn't possess the courage to kill her too.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The police continue to explore the Wolfe residence and collect all possible evidence, now alongside a local auctioneer. This turns out to be a wise move on their part, as he leads the officers to a nearby pond where they recover what may very well be the murder weapon. It's the shotgun that took seven lives in a single day.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: It's of a strange design, and none of the men can identify it with any certainty. No one in the local community recognizes the weapon either. It certainly didn't belong to the Wolfe family, did it? It's possible the gun started off in Jacob's hand as a form of pest control. Such a thing wouldn't be uncommon. In the midst of searching for answers, the police receive a few tips and a bit of gossip.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Dark rumors circulate throughout Turtle Lake. They concern recent spouts between Jacob and his neighbor Henry. They hear all about how a dog got loose and attacked Henry's cattle. They learn about all the disagreements over the compensation. And the police decide Henry Lear might require a little extra attention.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The feud between Jacob Wolfe and Henry Lear is investigated further. It turns out he is also a southern Russian immigrant farmer. But outside of the cattle incident, he doesn't have too many reasons to seek revenge on the Wolfe Family.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: In such an egregious violent way Henry is actually one of the first community members to step up and help mend the Wolfe residence shortly after the bodies are discovered for someone that wanted theWolfef family dead Henry is showing their farmstead a lot of respect and sacrificing quite a bit of his time time that should be probably spent on his own property despite all this Rumors of his involvement in the murders continue to populate around town, and new rumors continue to spawn.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Rumors like Jacob's intimate relationship with one of Henry's younger daughters. This rumor remains unconfirmed, though. Interesting is the rumor's timely arrival and sudden popularity. More interesting still is something Henry mentions to Sheriff Shefford. As he helps them around the Wolfe residence. He says it as an off-colored remark or even a throwaway line.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Henry suggests that the sheriff and his men search the chicken coop for some kind of clues. There, police uncover three 12-gauge shotgun shells buried underneath the hay. The likelihood of Henry's remarks in the discovered shells being a mere coincidence Seemed low to the sheriff. How the hell could Henry have known?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Sheriff Shefford can't stop wondering how Henry Wolfe knew about the shotgun shells in the chicken coop. The more he ponders, the more he starts to recollect bits and pieces, specifically a strange encounter soon after the Kraft family reported the murders.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: It's the morning after the bodies are discovered. Pieter Wolfe's brothers and the officers head out for some breakfast, while Sheriff Shefford stays behind. To continue surveying the Wolfe residence. Around 5.30, a man drifts down the road, his neck turned at a sharp angle as he clearly scopes out the farm. As the sheriff starts to recall details about the man, he realizes this is Henry Lear.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Within a blink, Henry ends up at the front of the house, peering through the windows. With one hand always in his pocket, Henry continues to roam around the farm as though searching for something.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: He doesn't stop until Sheriff Shefford cuts him off at the chicken coop.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: After a short line of questioning, the sheriff lets him go. Instead of pushing the argument, Henry walks back to his car, this time with both hands out of his pockets and dangling at his sides.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The sheriff thinks he has a good idea of just how those three 12-gauge shells wound up buried underneath the hay.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The Turtle Lake community puts up $10,000. Or the buying power of $189,000-some in 2024 monies, but even the reward fails to draw in the type of information needed to solve the case. What truly adds gas to the fire is a political battle between Governor Flynn Frazier and Attorney General Will Langer.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: As the investigation begins to become more arduous and eats up resources, Governor Frazier refuses to allocate any of the state's funding to the case. Langer exploits this fact, attempting to destroy the governor's reputation, and he even puts in $1,000 of his own money to help solve it.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: For the current governor, this is a bad look, and the pressure is mounting. Perhaps at this point, the governor doesn't even care who the perpetrator is. He just wants someone found and locked up, and he better do it before Langer figures out how to solve the case on his own accord.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The community outreach and support for the deceased Wolfe family members. And their surviving baby girl cannot go overstated. To illustrate the point, over 2,000 people gather at the funeral to give their final goodbyes to such highly respected neighbors. Or maybe some of them are just there out of a morbid curiosity.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: There's also a new rumor floating around about Henry Lear, who wouldn't miss the funeral for the world. This rumor portrays Henry insisting all of the Wolfe Family be displayed in open caskets. He wants to see each and every one of them just one more time before they depart forever. Many find this detail unnerving, but it's possible the open caskets are customary, given the Wolfe family's German descent.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: May 6th. The Wolfe farm is auctioned off at an alarmingly quick rate. It's been less than three weeks since the murders. If the police are hoping to continue finding evidence, well, it's all about to be gone.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Six days later, the police make an aggressive move towards solving the Wolfe family massacre.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: With only circumstantial evidence. The police arrest Henry Lear on May 12th, but it's not the lack of more substantial proof that makes this detainment unusual. On the way back to the police station, the police decide to make a quick pit stop to arrest another somewhat nondescript criminal. Two birds, one stone, right?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: But both men are stowed away in the same cell for the night. Henry most likely wants to endure the silence and mentally prepare to protect his innocence, while his cellmate won't stop talking. He goes on and on about the various crimes he's done or is thinking about doing, while Henry just sags his head. Come on, tell me, what did you do?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: This other criminal won't let up. Over and over, he slips in questions like that.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: By large, Henry holds his silence. When he speaks, it's only to restate his case. He wasn't at the farm the night of the murders. He doesn't know what it was like because he had nothing to do with it. And why the hell would a man murder an entire family just because a dog bit one of his cows?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Henry certainly isn't happy about the damages and the potential lost revenue. But he just wanted money, not bloodshed. It's beginning to feel like, at least to Henry, that the other criminal the police snatched up isn't much of a criminal at all.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Could he be there simply to coax a confession out of Henry coerce might be a better word here well if so he's not doing a very good job at the charade and it's failed Henry maintains his innocence all throughout the night no matter how hard he's pushed Exhausted by all the conspicuous questioning offered up by his senseless cellmate, Henry Lear is in no condition to combat a detective and several police officers throughout a lengthy interview, but it's what he must do to maintain his innocence and save his life.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The police hound Henry, almost demanding he confess to killing the entire family over a rather small dispute. He won't have it. Hell, the incident took place six months prior to the slayings.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The police spend hours painting a picture for Henry. There's a dispute over the dog and the cattle. Perhaps the other rumors involving his daughter and Jacob have some truth to them. He sees them every day. He surely knows their routines, their chores.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Traveling around those parts on a daily basis, all around the Wolfe residence, the police think Henry can discern the sections of the farm that are in plain view versus the ones that are hidden in the shadows or just slightly out of sight. Henry wanders onto the property while they're all preoccupied. He shoots them down one by one. He murders the mother and the youngest daughters in the cellar.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: But those are a little more personal, aren't they? The police have found the hatchet. They know it's his. Or at least, that he used it. And why not kill Emma too while he was in such a blind rage? They think he didn't know little nine-month-old Emma was even there. Or else... He would have killed her too.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: They don't think it's beneath him to do it.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Still, Henry says they're full of shit and are fabricating the entire scenario.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: And those poor women, out of this nation, believe you, and you take back everything.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Henry didn't do it, and he thinks any reasonable person will come to the same conclusion. And until he's convicted of something, They'll respect his innocence, surely. Amused, the police continue to retrace Henry's steps that night and paint him as a mass killer.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: They remind him there's no escape at any point. His best option is to confess and seek shelter in one of their cells. The guards can ensure that he lives, or at least, sees out his full sentence.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: This is always been a little bit of a pain in the butt. Why do you have to see?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Do I? This is clear. You really must. What? There's a lot of people bleeding out trying to get to the police station. Just bleeding.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: By morning, Henry Lear confesses to murdering all seven of the Wolfe Family members in just the same way that the police said, almost verbatim. Almost.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Details of Henry Lear's confession are a mismatch. There are several small erroneous details, but what stands out more are the continuity and time errors. According to Henry, he showed up around 11.30 that day, nearly 90 minutes after the initial gunshots are reported by neighbors, almost as though an afterthought.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: He details how he cut the landline so the Wolfe Family couldn't use their phone to alert the police. A few different times are provided by some reports, but what's most important is that he would have cut the phone line well after the slayings began, which hardly makes any sense. His version of the geography and his own navigation are completely off too.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: For instance, if he entered the property from the north side, he would have been spotted by the neighbors or anyone who happened to meander by. Since the police insist the dispute about the cattle started all of this bloody mess, the dog is also worth considering. How did Henry slip by the farm dog? The very same dog that tried to dismantle one of his cows.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: This dog didn't bite him or so much as give off an alarming bark? There's also a detail about how Henry found the shotgun and used it to kill the Wolfe Family. The Wolfe Family never owned such a gun, and if so, the 12-gauge wouldn't have had enough rounds to kill all seven family members.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: That means Henry would have needed to reload at some point if he was using the Wolfe's shotgun. Then Henry would have also needed to know where the family kept the extra ammo. Finally, Henry's wife tears apart his confession, stating that they were both home sick with the kids and never left the property the day surrounding the massacre.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Countless mysteries and mismatches surround this sudden confession. Yet, despite all of this, the police go along with their story and claim premeditated murder, a revenge act on the part of Henry Lear. Henry enters a guilty plea, but not because he believes he killed any of the family members. He says he fears the world outside.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: The police have convinced him. It's either fess up or die via ravenous mob. Later, details emerge about the very nature. Of the interview in which Henry confessed. At some point, Henry's chair was taken away from him, leaving him to endure hours of interrogation while standing. A doctor and prison barber also claim he has markings and bruises all over his body.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: In their minds, Henry must have been beaten as he professed his innocence. Speaking of beaten… Those on Henry's side claim a railroad detective would unleash a close fist after fist every time Henry refused to go along with the story. At one point, it's alleged that the detective held up a billy club and threatened to, quote, beat his brains in if he didn't comply.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Henry Lear burns up his appeals and remains shackled to life imprisonment with hard labor. Until he passes away in March 1925. As far as the official records go, police say Henry Lear murdered all seven members of the Wolfe Family that April day, although many questioned the legitimacy of his confession, as well as many of its details.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Some also want to know how such a heinous act could have been carried out by a single man. How did he leave the property relatively unscathed? He was clearly outnumbered. And if he used a shotgun, how were the other family members not alerted, considering they were separated for the chores?
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Maybe Henry Lear did it all alone. Maybe he didn't. Maybe he had help. Decades pass by, making it nearly impossible to unravel the remaining mysteries surrounding the Wolfe Family Murders.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Thank you so much for checking out Hurdle Lake. The latest episode from Less Taken Season 3. As we mentioned up top, if you liked this episode or any of our episodes, please leave us a fair rating and review wherever you're listening. You can also leave those reviews at less taken pod dot com.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: And there you'll find all of the episodes, sources, notes, additional media and more. Right now, through December 21st, check out the merch store to save on every single item. That's right, for the holiday sale this year, instead of doing a certain percentage or a buy one get one, we just took every single item and discounted it.
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C.M. HUMPHRIES: Over the next couple of weeks, we're going to do a few compilations of... The statistically best performing episodes of Less Taken Season 3. As well as our favorite episodes from this season. So be sure to check that out. I know the last couple of years those were hits. So we'll go ahead and do that again. Drop another episode.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: Or two and then call it a wrap for season three after that we'll be back in March that begin of season four but don't worry like i said we've got a couple of compilations coming up in a couple more episodes plenty of less taken to finish out the season follow us before we follow you on Facebook and Instagram under the handle at less taken pod for additional media updates and more and on Instagram We sometimes provide samples of our episodes and let you know what the stories are going to be early.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: So check it out. A quick note on our storytelling. While we do our best to stick to the facts when we tell our real-life horror stories, we sometimes take creative liberties to maintain narrative cohesiveness. In this episode, a lot of the dialogue was surmised or summarized for these reasons.
C.M. HUMPHRIES: I'm C. M. Humphries, and this is Less Taken: real-life horror stories from the Midwest. Once again, thanks for listening. I hope you enjoyed Turtle Lake, and that you'll join us for these upcoming compilation episodes and the end of Season 3.
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