Ardenwald axe murders
Introduction


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The **Ardenwald axe murders** is an [unsolved](/wiki/Cold_case "Cold case") [mass murder](/wiki/Mass_murder "Mass murder") that occurred in the early morning of June 9, 1911, in [Ardenwald](/wiki/Ardenwald-Johnson_Creek%2C_Portland%2C_Oregon "Ardenwald-Johnson Creek, Portland, Oregon"), [Oregon](/wiki/Oregon "Oregon"), United States, then a neighboring community of [Portland](/wiki/Portland%2C_Oregon "Portland, Oregon"). The victims were the Hill family: William Hill, his wife Ruth, and Ruth's two children from a previous marriage, Philip and Dorothy. All four victims had been bludgeoned to death with an [axe](/wiki/Axe "Axe").

Because both of the female victims were [sexually assaulted](/wiki/Sexual_assault "Sexual assault"), it was believed by authorities that the murders were motivated by sex and possibly the work of a [sex maniac](/wiki/Hypersexuality "Hypersexuality"). Nathan Harvey, a landowner who lived adjacent to the Hills' home, was charged with their murders on December 20, 1911, but these charges were dropped one week later, and further investigation into Harvey's possible involvement was ceased in February 1912 following an [inquest](/wiki/Inquest "Inquest"). 

Several other suspects have been considered, including a [vagrant](/wiki/Vagrancy "Vagrancy") named Edward Ramsey. In 1917, a man named William Riggin confessed to having participated in the murders, but provided significantly varied accounts that were inconsistent with one another.


Why were the charges against Nathan Harvey dropped?