Buried Bones: "Horrors on the Homestead" – Episode Summary

Podcast: Buried Bones
Hosts: Kate Winkler Dawson & Paul Holes
Episode Release: October 29, 2025
Case Discussed: The Bloody Benders, Kansas, 1870s

Episode Overview

In this chilling Halloween episode, Kate and Paul explore the infamous case of the Bloody Benders—a family of serial killers operating a homestead and general store on the Kansas frontier in the 1870s. Combining historical research and modern forensic insight, the hosts unpack the mysterious disappearance of the Bender family and their connection to a series of brutal murders discovered on their property.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Halloween Musings & Frontier Fears (03:20—12:00)

• Kate and Paul discuss Halloween traditions, the effect of graphic horror displays on children, and the cultural evolution of what scares us.
  • Kate questions, “Don't you have a right to put up whatever you want as long as it's not offensive?” (04:36)
  • Paul, drawing on his experience with explicit True Detective magazines and crime scenes, advocates balancing festive fun with consideration for young children:

    “...We don't want young children to have this type of imagery…but everybody has, you know, different experiences they want to have on Halloween.” (07:11)

• They segue into the case by contemplating the eeriness of the vast, isolated Kansas prairie, foreshadowing the unsettling events of the episode.
• Notable humorous detour: Kate’s Victorian chair woes and Paul’s “hemorrhoid pillow.”

2. The Disappearance on the Homestead (12:05—21:25)

• Kate introduces the case:
  • 1873, a remote family of four—John Sr., Elvira, their adult children Kate and John Jr.—vanishes from their cabin and general store along the Osage Trail.
  • The region is lawless and populated by drifters and fugitives.
  • Cabin is small (approx. 400 sqft), split into living quarters and a store for homesteaders passing through.
• Paul observes the remoteness:

  “If I were looking for a place to live, it wouldn’t be here, right?” (16:55)

• Neighbors are alarmed when the cabin is deserted, food and coffee left out, cattle starving, and the scene inside is chaotic.

3. Investigative Findings & Early Suspicion (21:25—31:15)

• A local search party, led by Sgt. Leroy Dick, splits to examine the property:
  • Discovery of a dozen bullet holes in the cabin, a bloodstained knife hidden in the mantle clock, and Dr. William York’s horse bridle behind the grocery counter.
• The secret cellar beneath the cabin emits the stench of decomposition, though no bodies are immediately found—only bloodstains and a passageway beneath the cabin to the orchard.
• Paul analyzes possibilities: a potential shootout, ransacking, and movement of a decomposing body from cellar to orchard.

“That body was in this little cellar room…somebody came back and moved that body…what they're smelling is the remnants, you know, the decomposing fluids that are still in the cellar room…” (35:47)

4. Connecting Past Disappearances & Victims (31:15—43:58)

• The community connects recent events to earlier disappearances on the Osage Trail:
  • Dr. William York’s body is found, face-down and bludgeoned, in the orchard.
  • Distinctive hammer wounds are matched to tools found on the property—a shoe hammer, claw hammer, and a sledgehammer.
  • Earlier bodies (William Jones and John Phipps), as well as several unidentified victims, had suffered similar brutalities.
• Discussion of forensic limitations of the era and the significance of local knowledge adding context.

5. The Gruesome Discovery: Mass Grave & Modus Operandi (51:48—59:12)

• Searchers uncover a mass grave in the Bender orchard—shallow graves containing the remains of up to 20 people, mostly men.
• Mutilations observed—many victims had their heads bashed, throats cut, and some had penises mutilated or removed. One victim, a little girl, was found without signs of mutilation but with dirt under her fingernails (possibly buried alive).
• Paul immediately notes:

  “Penis is being cut off…Now I start going into…a sexual predator…[but] it’s also possible the offender just needed clothing…” (56:32)

6. The Bloody Benders Exposed (59:12—66:40)

• Kate reveals: The missing family are the perpetrators—the notorious Bloody Benders, a German immigrant family infamous for luring, robbing, and murdering travelers in their frontier “inn.”
• Family Dynamics:
  • Mysterious relationships—John Jr. and Kate may have posed as siblings but acted more like a couple.
  • Kate Bender marketed herself as a clairvoyant and healer, drawing victims in.
  • Noted by Kate: “Kate is clearly the draw…She has ads in newspapers that say she can cure blindness, fits…”
  • The men would ambush victims from behind a curtain and the family would collectively dispose of bodies.
  • Murders marked in a prayer book: “Big slaughter day, January 8th.”
• Paul surmises:

  “There is a sexual aspect to these crimes, I'm absolutely convinced of that.” (64:05)

7. The Ultimate Vanishing Act & Enduring Mystery (66:41—75:55)

• The Benders vanish in April 1873, splitting up after leaving a hotel. Despite manhunts and sightings over decades, they are never found.
• The cabin’s tools and evidence are now in museums; the University of Kansas continues investigating and excavating the site.
• Paul laments:

  “It kind of galls me that they just disappeared and we know who they are…let's track them down.” (71:44)

• Discussion turns to modern forensic potential: Could DNA from handled weapons or artifacts shed light today?

8. Reflections, Profiling, and Lasting Questions

• Paul explores family dynamics—possible incest, sexual paraphilia, and the rare pathology of a family “murder team.”
• Kate summarizes the case’s enduring legacy and supernatural aura, especially as a uniquely “American Gothic” horror.

“It's maddening…to have a family like the Bloody Benders and not understand not just what their motives were, but also where the hell did they go?” (70:37)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Paul on Graphic Displays & Empathy:
  “There's reasons why we don't want young children to have this type of imagery…” (07:14)
• Kate on the setting:
  “Open spaces like that, there’s almost like—where are you going to run?” (21:10)
• Paul on forensic possibilities:
  “Can we get some good DNA…do genealogy and see if any offspring…pop up anywhere?” (71:19)
• Kate’s Reveal:
  “They are some of, in the 1800s, probably the most well known in America, serial killers because of what they did…They are called the Bloody Benders.” (59:38)
• Paul on the family’s pathology:
  “All four of them could be interacting sexually with each other. But…I’ve never heard of a foursome like this.” (62:51)
• Kate on unsolved mysteries:
  “This is like a Jack the Ripper—that’s the lore.” (69:54)

Timeline of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Topic | | -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- | | 03:20–12:00 | Halloween chat, case introduction, setting the tone | | 12:05–21:25 | Bender family background, the missing homestead | | 21:25–31:15 | Investigation, crime scene findings | | 31:15–43:58 | Historical victim connections, mass grave context | | 43:58–51:48 | Forensic analysis, hammer evidence | | 51:48–59:12 | Discovery of the orchard graves, mutilations profiled | | 59:12–66:41 | Major reveal: The Bloody Benders and their criminal operation | | 66:41–75:55 | The family’s disappearance, forensic hopes, legacy of the case | | 75:55–end | Credits, banter, post-case reflections |

Final Takeaways

• The Bloody Benders may be the U.S.’s most infamous family of serial killers, yet their ultimate fate remains an enduring, chilling mystery.
• Kate and Paul’s blend of historical context and modern forensic wisdom enhances understanding of both the known facts and lingering uncertainties.
• The episode probes the psychological motivators for familial murder teams and the limitations (and opportunities) of 19th- vs. 21st-century crime-solving.

For more on the Bloody Benders and this episode’s case photos, visit @buriedbonespod on Instagram.