Article Archives: Bumps in the Night

Madge’s Bully Gets His Due, Part 3

October 8, 2015 | by Al Hunter

Jefferson, Wisconsin Sheriff Joseph T. Lange and Dist. Atty. Harold M. Dakin had a dead body on their hands and a roster of suspects to choose from. Seems like everyone wanted Earl Gentry dead. Gentry, a 6-foot-3-inch 230 pound bully had fled from Irvington after evading conviction for the murder … Read More

Madge’s Bully Gets His Due, Part 2

October 1, 2015 | by Al Hunter

Earl Gentry was a bully who thought he was above the law. The 6-foot-3-inch cigar-chomping ex-cop had wriggled off the hook for his involvement in the murder of Irvington resident Madge Oberholtzer in early spring of 1925. Afterwards. he fled to the small town of Jefferson, Wisconsin and began a … Read More

Madge’s Bully Gets His Due

September 24, 2015 | by Al Hunter

Sometimes far away events that normally draw little local attention can trace their genesis right back to Irvington. On the morning of July 1, 1934 a Jefferson, Wisconsin fisherman named Charles Bartel was heading down to the Rock River to wet a line. As he walked through a city park … Read More

The “Hidden Mother” Photo

September 17, 2015 | by Al Hunter

If you like haunting antique shops and shows like me, I’m about to give you a new hobby, or at the very least blow your mind a little. Next time you find yourself walking by a table with a shoebox full of old CDV’s, tintypes and cabinet photos (they seem … Read More

Lincoln Funeral Train Comes to Cambridge City

September 10, 2015 | by Al Hunter

Earlier this year, I wrote a series of articles detailing my travels to Washington, D.C. to participate in the official ceremonies surrounding the 150th anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. I spent 36 straight hours at Ford’s Theatre where I met General Colin Powell, took a backstage tour … Read More