Linn County in Iowa
Charles “Charlie” Rufus Gearhart
89 YOA
422 First Street SW
Cedar Rapids, IA
Linn County
May 13, 1970
At 6:35 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, 1970, 89-year-old Charles “Charlie” Rufus Gearhart was found dead in his apartment at 422 First Street SW in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He was lying in a hallway between the kitchen and bedroom.
The body was discovered by Charles Frondle and Willie Harvey, tenants who came to his door to complain about no water or heat due to a flooded basement that had extinguished the furnace pilot light. Gearhart was the landlord for the apartment building.
Gearhart was stabbed once in the chest and had been dead since the evening of May 13; he was seen earlier that afternoon.
The murderer broke the rear door to gain access to the apartment. No murder weapon was found.
Gearhart was known to carry and flash large sums of cash. No money was found in the apartment nor on his person, so robbery seemed the likely motive.
Charles Rufus Gearhart was born August 22, 1880 in Sand Springs, Iowa, to Susan R. Kaster and Tunis Franklin Gearhart, Jr. He had three brothers — John, Turner, and James — and two sisters, Lily F. Gearhart Bright and Ella F. Gearhart Elsworth. None of his siblings survived him.
Gearhart and his wife Bonnie had one daughter, Pauline. He retired from the Rock Island Railroad.
Courtesy photo Leo J. OffermanMemorial services were held in Cedar Rapids at the Turner Chapel East at noon on Monday, May 18, 1970 and he was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Monticello, Iowa.
Charles Gearhart was survived by his daughter Pauline Gearhart Barnard, two grandchildren, and two great-children.
Questions and information about the unsolved 1970 murder of Charles Gearhart should be directed to the Cedar Rapids Police Department at 319-286-5375 or to Iowa Cold Cases through the Contact form.
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