The Hartley case

Job 24:14 “The murderer rises before it is light, that he may kill the poor and needy, and in the night, as a thief.”

A couple of my eight readers of the Yarns of Yesteryear section of The Country Today, asked if I would expound more on that kidnapping case.

Evelyn Hartley, a 15-year-old La Crosse Central High School sophomore, was babysitting a 20-month-old baby, Janice, at the home of La Crosse State College professor Viggo Rasmusen on the evening of October 24, 1953.

The Rasmussen home was located in the 2400 block of Hoeschler Drive. The Rasmussen family, father Viggo, wife Madeline and older daughter, Rozalyn, were off to see the La Crosse State College Homecoming football game.

Evelyn was expected to call home at 8:30 p.m. to check in, but she never did. Her father, Richard, also a La Crosse State College professor, tried telephoning the Rasmusen home several times, but there was no answer.

He went to the Rasmusen house to check on his daughter. All the doors were locked, the lights and radio were on, and baby Janice was asleep in her bed. There was no sign of Evelyn.

The furniture was thrown around, her schoolbooks were scattered, her broken eyeglasses and one of her shoes were on the living room floor. Her other shoe was found in the basement. All the house windows were locked except a basement window on the back side of the house. A stepladder was positioned at that window in the basement. A screen for that window was leaning against the outside of the house. Pry marks were found on several windows, but not on the unlocked basement window.

Blood, later found to match Evelyn’s type A, was found inside the house near the basement window. Blood was discovered in several pools outside in the yard. Police indicated that the abductor(s) carried and dragged the young girl through the yard about two blocks to a waiting car on Coulee Drive. That is where police bloodhounds lost the trail.

The Scheckel Part

The Hartley kidnapping was big, big news for the whole state, nation, and even worldwide. There was no CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, or the 24-hour news cycle that we have today. WKBT-TV, Channel 8, was just starting to come on the air. Reporters from Chicago, New York, and Minneapolis descended upon La Crosse.

Thousands of people joined search parties. Boy Scout groups fanned out across hills and valleys looking for anything suspicious. Cars were searched and given a “clearance” sticker. All students were given lie detector tests. No parents objected.

Dad brought home a few newspapers that had stories about the Hartley abduction. I read those with interest. We heard Dad and Mom talking about the case. About how terrible the parents must feel, was the sentiment of my folks. The police asked the public to check under haystacks, around barns, wooded areas, and any newly dug up areas.

Dad, Phillip, Bob, and I, got in the pickup and drove down to the Lynxville area. We searched under the railroad bridges around Cold Springs. We walked up a good part of Kettle Creek, ending only when nightfall was coming on.

We boys thought it was something we had to do, something we should do. Acting in the public interest, doing important work, even felt like we were doing police work. As we walked along, we discussed what we would do if we encountered this bad man holding a young girl. We picked up sticks, as clubs. We were prepared, but found nothing.

Follow Up

Over the years, dozens of people confessed to the crime. There were many stories, theories, and sightings. She was an ordinary girl in an ordinary home and someone came in and snatched her. She was never seen again.

The baby was Janice Rasmusen. The parents sold their house on Hoeschler Drive as quickly as possible and moved to 21th Street. The mother, Madeline, died in 1990, father Viggo, was later in a nursing home and has since passed away.

Richard Hartley, biology teacher, retired from UW-La Crosse in 1971 and moved to Portland, Oregon, a few years later. Both parents, Richard and Ethel, have died. Evelyn was the youngest of 4 children. One older brother died of polio. There was a son Tom, and daughter Carolyn. One sibling lives in Oregon, the other in Australia.

The 2012 book, “Where’s Evelyn? The 1953 babysitter’s kidnapping that shook the nation,” by Susan T. Hessel, is an excellent read. Ms. Hessel was a reporter for The La Crosse Tribune newspaper. There are many details and numerous photos. It’s in libraries and can be purchased on Amazon.com.

Larry and Ann Scheckel are retired teachers and live in Tomah, Wisconsin. Larry is the author of Seneca Season: A Farm Boy Remembers and Country School Days: True Tales of a Wisconsin One-Room School and Murder in Wisconsin: The Clara Olson Case. Larry and Ann do speaking engagements concerning the above books. Contact: Larry Scheckel, 1113 Parkview Dr. Tomah, WI 54660 (608) 372-3362, lscheckel@charter.net.