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1 1 At I J i WIV i i\. 1 UVVi Uil J , VIA ^0 V* A J Ayhe was assigned to work as a substitute carrier on Route 3 in Pin Oak . Township.The Christoff family operated a fortv-acre truck farm in Pin OakmTownship. Christ and Mary Christoff had three children: Sophia, 12, George 15; and Stella, 17. Stella who was described as blonde, stalwart and bronze by the sun from performing farm chores, was in the habit of receiving car rides from a previous mail carrier for the trip home from the Kuhn Station grocery store. As the new substitute carrier on the route, Nelson Voss, became the chauffeur and twice granted Stella, who called him Boss, car rides between Kuhn Station and her mailbox, a distance of three miles.On the morning of July 3, 1933, Nelson Voss set out at a 8:45 a.m. to make deliveries. He was due back at noon.Stella Christoff woke up at 4:00 a m and helped prepare breakfast before working in the cabbage garden until 8:30a.m. Stella and Sophia told their mother they were goingtheir brother’s pocket knife, they set out on their hunt.About 10 a.m., Stella and Sophia were crossing a wagon bridge on land owned by William Holtgrave as Nelson Voss approached in his 1929 Ford Coupe They were near Sylvan Hall School and William Boehm’s farmhouse along Silver Creek bottomNelson's version of how the story unfolded that morning will never be known, but according to the Christoff sisters, Voss stopped when he saw them and got out of his car. Resting his foot on the sideboard, he asked the sisters what they were doing. After Stella explained that they were hunting squirrels, Voss replied, Honey, I'll show you how to hunt squirrel. Voss papproached Steha and put his arm around her, they exchanged words and then tried to k ss her She slapped him. He ordered Sophia to go home and led Stella into the woods. Stella told Sopia to stay. As Voss turned to tell Sophia to go home one last time, Stella shot him in the back with thekill him.” She pointed the gun at Nelson Voss' already lifeless body and, aiming at his head, shot him in the left shoulder She then removed the exploded long cartridge from the rifle with the pocket knife and dropped both on the ground.The girls took the undelivered packages from Voss's car and, passing through Helmich’s pasture, walked the mile to their home. Sophia later hid them in the trunk of a farm worker on the propertyLater that morning while inspecting his fence, farmer John Burk found the body of Voss in the creek. Burk called the sheriff's office from the farmhouse of Fred Engeling, who was making hay earlier in the day with two helpers. All three men heard the shots fired. A knife gearing a distinctive yellow and black handle was found at the scene near the body.Immediately following the report of Voss' death, speculations arose ranging from suicide to involvement with the recent kidnapping of August Luer, a wealthy Alton-area
Newspaper Details
Times-Tribune
Troy, Illinois, US
Thu, Jun 04, 2015
Page 20
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 05 Nov 2024
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