Note: There does not appear to be consistency in the name Ostram. This is the spelling in all news accounts, as well as prison and parole records. However, some other records use Ostran (with an N) and this is the spelling used on headstones – very much a permanent record. I have decided to use […]
Baby-Slayer Blanche Ostram Read More »
The germ of these notes come from “The Maid and the Socialite,” an article in the Winter/Spring 2024 Voyageur magazine. The article, written by Lynda Drews, is a very condensed version of her book of the same title, released in 2023. I encourage people to pick up a copy. (Because the article is a summary,
The Minahan Scandal Read More »
Dr William Edward Minahan was born in Chilton, Calumet, Wisconsin on 20 April 1867. He was the son of Irish immigrant parents William Burke Minahan (1833-1906), a county school superintendent, and Mary Shaughnessy (1839-1902), both Limerick natives. He had ten known siblings: Robert (1858-1935) Ellen (1860-1915, later Jaeger), John Robert (1862-1941), Grace (b. 1865), Hugh
Dr. William Edward Minahan Read More »
This is a well-known case, but was new to me. I read about it in Wisconsin Game Warden magazine. Yes, I read Wisconsin Game Warden magazine! The story also appeared on the Beyond Contempt podcast, though I’ve not listened to that podcast and was not aware of it until I started researching this case. (I
Game Warden Neil LaFave Read More »
David Frank Spanbauer was born in January 1941. His parents, Frank J Spanbauer and Evelyn Marie Bachtler, had both been born in Oshkosh and lived there all their lives. Frank worked as a machinist for Wisconsin Axle Division. Frank Spanbauer died March 27, 1956 in Oshkosh, at only 44 years old. Exactly what he died
David Spanbauer, Part One: Sex Terrorist Read More »
Peter A VanVeghel (1862-1934) was twice the sheriff of Brown County. With wife Antoinette Herman (1862-1941), had several children, including John Peter “Jack” VanVeghel, born on October 22, 1893 in the town of Scott, Brown County. 1916: Jack VanVeghel lost his wife and child to influenza. He was 22. Jack helped his younger brother Walter
The Golden Pheasant Mutilations Read More »
