The Axeman of New Orleans
A serial killer terrorized New Orleans, attacking victims with their own axes. He promised to spare anyone playing jazz music. On that night, the city played. The killer was never caught.
For eighteen months in 1918 and 1919, a serial killer terrorized New Orleans, breaking into homes at night and attacking residents with their own axes. The Axeman, as he came to be called, killed at least six people and wounded many more before vanishing as mysteriously as he had appeared. But what elevates this case from merely gruesome to truly bizarre is a letter the killer sent to newspapers, promising to spare any household playing jazz music on a specific night. On that night, March 19, 1919, the city of New Orleans filled with music as never before, and the Axeman kept his word.
The Reign of Terror
According to documented records, the attacks began in May 1918 and continued through October 1919. The Axeman’s method was disturbingly consistent. He would approach a home in the dead of night, remove a panel from the back door with a chisel, and enter silently. Once inside, he would find an axe belonging to the household and use it to attack the sleeping residents.
The victims initially shared a common profile: Italian-American grocers and their families. Joseph Maggio and his wife were among the first to die, their heads split open as they slept. Louis Besumer was attacked alongside his companion Harriet Lowe; both survived but were severely injured. Anna Schneider, pregnant at the time, somehow survived a vicious assault. Joseph Romano was killed. Charles and Rosie Cortimiglia were attacked, surviving with terrible wounds while their two-year-old daughter Mary died.
As the attacks continued, the pattern expanded beyond Italian grocers. The Axeman seemed to strike without clear logic, choosing targets across the city. At least twelve people were attacked in total, with six confirmed deaths.
The Letter
On March 13, 1919, the Times-Picayune newspaper received a letter purportedly from the Axeman himself. The letter, written in a theatrical style that suggested education or affectation, made an extraordinary claim. The Axeman identified himself as a fell demon from the hottest hell, a spirit beyond mortal law. He claimed to love jazz music above all things, and he made a promise.
On the next Tuesday night, March 19, he would pass through New Orleans. He would spare every home in which jazz music was being played. But any residence where no music played would meet the fate the city now knew so well. The letter was published in full, and New Orleans read it with a mixture of terror and fascination.
The Night of Jazz
St. Joseph’s Night, March 19, 1919, became one of the most remarkable evenings in New Orleans history. The city made its choice: it would play jazz. Every dance hall was packed to capacity. Restaurants and bars hired bands. Private homes held parties where music filled the rooms. Those who could not afford musicians played records or simply banged on pots and pans, anything to fill the night with sound.
A local musician named Joseph John Davilla composed a song called The Mysterious Axeman’s Jazz specifically for the occasion. It was performed throughout the city, its sheet music selling by the thousands. New Orleans, city of music and defiance, answered the Axeman’s threat with its own kind of power.
True to the promise in his letter, no attack occurred that night. Whether this represented the killer honoring his word, coincidence, or simply practical consideration that the entire city was awake and vigilant, the Axeman remained silent while New Orleans played jazz until dawn.
The Pattern
Investigators studying the attacks identified consistent elements. The entry was always through door panels, cut cleanly as if by someone skilled with tools. The weapons were always axes or hatchets found at the scene, never brought by the attacker. Victims were typically attacked while sleeping, struck before they could wake and defend themselves.
Strangely, the attacks did not appear to be motivated by robbery. Money and valuables were often left untouched. Some victims survived because they awakened during the attack and the Axeman fled rather than continuing the assault. This suggested someone who operated through stealth and surprise rather than overwhelming force, someone who would retreat when confronted.
Suspects and Theories
No one was ever arrested for the Axeman murders. Various theories have attempted to identify the killer. Some believed the attacks represented organized crime activity, with the targeting of Italian grocers suggesting enforcement of protection rackets or vendetta killings. Others proposed a deranged individual acting on incomprehensible impulses.
One name emerged with more substance than others: Joseph Mumfre. In 1921, a woman named Esther Albano shot and killed Mumfre on a Los Angeles street. Albano’s husband had been an Axeman victim, and she claimed to have recognized Mumfre as the man who attacked her family. She was convicted of manslaughter and served three years in prison, maintaining until her death that she had killed the Axeman.
Whether Mumfre was truly the Axeman has never been confirmed. The attacks stopped after October 1919, and no definitive identification has ever been made.
Historical Context
The Axeman operated during a period of tremendous upheaval in American society. World War I had just ended, leaving the nation both exhausted and anxious. Italian immigrants faced prejudice and suspicion, making them vulnerable targets. Jazz itself was still emerging as an art form, associated with Black musicians and viewed by some as morally corrupting.
The Axeman’s love of jazz, if genuine, represented an unexpected cultural statement from a serial killer. That he demanded tribute in the form of music rather than valuables sets him apart from virtually every other criminal in American history.
Enduring Mystery
The Axeman of New Orleans was never caught, never definitively identified, never brought to justice. The attacks simply stopped, and the city gradually returned to normal life. But the story has never been forgotten. It has inspired novels, films, and a memorable plotline in the television series American Horror Story.
Something about the combination of brutal violence and artistic eccentricity makes the Axeman case impossible to categorize. He was a killer who demanded jazz. He was a demon who kept his promises. He was never found.
In New Orleans, where music flows from every corner and the spirits of the dead are said to walk freely, the Axeman has become part of the city’s mythology. Perhaps he is gone. Perhaps he still listens, somewhere in the jazz-soaked night, satisfied that the city learned his lesson well.
Sources
- Wikipedia search: “The Axeman of New Orleans”
- Chronicling America — Historic US newspapers (1690–1963)