The Hall–Mills murders
New Brunswick, Somerset County, New Jersey · September 16, 1922
An Episcopal priest and a married choir singer were found shot dead side by side beneath a crab apple tree, their torn-up love letters scattered between them.
Overview
On September 16, 1922, the bodies of Episcopal priest Edward Wheeler Hall and choir singer Eleanor Mills were discovered on a lovers' lane near New Brunswick, in Somerset County, New Jersey, laid side by side beneath a crab apple tree. Both had been shot in the head with a .32-caliber pistol, and torn love letters were placed between them. Hall's widow, Frances Stevens Hall, and her brothers Henry and William Stevens were eventually tried for the killings in 1926, with the testimony of a local hog farmer known as 'the Pig Woman' central to the prosecution. All of the defendants were acquitted, and the case has never been solved.
Where it stands
The case remains officially unsolved. After intense newspaper coverage and a renewed investigation ordered by the state, Frances Stevens Hall and her brothers Henry and William Stevens were brought to trial at the Somerset County Courthouse in Somerville beginning November 3, 1926. According to Encyclopedia.com, the jury deliberated for about five hours and found the defendants not guilty. The New Brunswick Free Public Library summarizes the outcome plainly: 'In the end, they were acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence. No one else was suspected or charged.' All those once accused are long deceased, and no one has ever been convicted of the murders.
Persons of interest
The theories below are reported strictly as attributed to the cited sources. Naming a person here is not an accusation. Individuals are named only where they are deceased, were formally charged, were officially named by authorities, or have been publicly cleared.
- Frances Stevens Hall, widow of Edward HallTried & acquitted
Prosecutors alleged that Hall's wife, motivated by the affair between her husband and Eleanor Mills, was involved in the killings; she was tried in 1926 and, as Encyclopedia.com reports, the jury found the defendants not guilty. She was acquitted and is long deceased.[3]
- Henry Hewgill Stevens, brother of Frances HallTried & acquitted
Named by authorities as a suspect alongside his sister and brother and tried in 1926; according to Wikipedia, all three defendants were acquitted on December 3, 1926. He is long deceased.[1]
- William 'Willie' Stevens, brother of Frances HallTried & acquitted
Named by authorities as a suspect with his sister and brother and tried in 1926; per Wikipedia, all three defendants were acquitted on December 3, 1926. He is long deceased.[1]
- Jane Gibson, 'the Pig Woman' (prosecution witness)Deceased
A local hog farmer described by Encyclopedia.com as a widow who raised hogs near the murder site and who claimed she saw the crime while riding her mule and heard screams and shots. Her contested testimony was central to the prosecution, but the defendants were acquitted; she is long deceased.[3]
Sources
- Hall–Mills murder case
“Both bodies were on their backs, both shot in the head with a .32-caliber pistol, the man once and the woman three times.”
- Hall-Mills Murders: The Preacher, the Choir Singer and 'The Pig Woman'
“Jane Gibson, a pig farmer living at the end of De Russey's Lane near the crime scene, claimed to have witnessed the murders while riding her mule.”
- Frances Hall, Henry Stevens, and William Stevens Trial: 1926
“On Saturday morning, September 16, 1922, a young couple strolling on a lovers' lane on the outskirts of New Brunswick, New Jersey, discovered two bodies.”
- Hall-Mills Murder Case Collection
“In the end, they were acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence. No one else was suspected or charged.”