AI Summary
5 min readIn December 1926, a Texas farmer named George Hassel dug a large trench in his yard, filled it in a short time later, and then sold off every piece of his family's belongings at auction. When neighbors asked where his wife and eight children had gone, he gave contradictory answers: they were visiting family in one town, then another, then Oklahoma. By the time authorities caught up with him, he had stabbed himself superficially in the chest and was lying in bed, claiming a mysterious assailant had done it. The sheriff didn't buy it. Within hours, the bodies of nine people—Susan Hassel and her eight children—were exhumed from that trench. George Hassel, known afterward as the "family axe man," had murdered them all.
A Life of Lies and Small Crimes
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What you'll learn
- 1 George Hassell: The Family Axeman — Timestamped Outline
- 2 (02:37) **Episode Introduction & Banter** - Hosts Ash and Alena discuss their messy studio, Mercury retrograde, and introduce George Hassell
- 3 (09:15) **George's Early Life & Unreliable Narrator Problem** - Born 1888 in Texas, youngest of seven, with conflicting accounts of his childhood
- 4 (11:00) **First Crime: Embezzlement at Age 19** - George stole $140 from his employer Sid Ross in 1906
- 5 (14:05) **Prison Experience & Military Claims** - George served time in a violent prison camp, then claimed to enlist in the Army
- 6 (15:45) **Return to Work & Marriage to 15-Year-Old Minnie** - After prison, George begged for his job back and married a teenager
- 7 (17:55) **Minnie and Baby Delbert Disappear** - George's wife and infant son left him, narrowly escaping a terrible fate
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
On the evening of December 24, 1926, a farmer in Farwell, Texas, called the sheriff to report that his neighbor, George Hassell, had been acting very strangely in recent days and he had been telling conflicting stories about the whereabouts of his family, who had been missing for several days. When the sheriff arrived at the Hassell farm, he began questioning George about where his family had gone, but mid conversation, Hassell removed a pocket knife from his pocket and stabbed himself three times in the chest.
Hassell was taken to the hospital, where he was not expected to survive, but against the odds, George pulled through. With no option for escape and having given law enforcement good reason to suspect him in the disappearance of his family, George began confessing to multiple murders. At first, it was assumed he had flown into a rage and murdered his family a week earlier, but the more Hassell talked, the clearer it became that George Hassell violent and murderous behavior went well beyond the walls of his home in Farwell.
References
Associated Press. 1927. "Hassell death edict to stand." Fort Worth Record-Telegram, February 15: 1.
—. 1928. "Hassell is fifth white man to chair." Fort Worth Record-Telegram, February 10: 1.
—. 1926. "Sheriff expects full statement from Hassell." San Antonio Express-News, December 26: 1.
—. 1928. "Slayer of 13 thanks judge for sentence." San Antonio Express-News, January 11: 1.
Church, Marlowe. 2019. "Hassell offered detailed confession." Eastern New Mexico News, September 3.
Morning Press . 1927. "Texas killer's name heard in Whittier case." Morning Press (Santa Barbara, CA), January 1: 1.
Roth, Michael. 2022. Man with the Killer Smile: The Life and Crimes of a Serial Mass Murderer. Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press.
San Antonio Express-News. 1927. "Hassell's California victims identified." San Antonio Express-News, February 12: 5.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)
Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)
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