Union County in Iowa

Afton in Union County

John L. Rogers

Homicide

John L. Rogers
31 YOA
Afton, IA
Union County
August 3, 1915

By Nancy Bowers

On Tuesday, August 3, 1915, 31-year-old John L. Rogers was found dead in the haymow of his family’s barn in Afton.

His throat had been cut. In the hay near the body lay Rogers’s own blood-stained knife.

Unconfirmed stories circulated about fingerprints being found on the ladder to the haymow and the outside door to the barn.

The Clearfield Enterprise wrote:

“[Rogers] had no enemies, was not robbed, and there [was] no evidence to connect anyone with the crime if it was not suicide.”

However, in mid-August a coroner’s jury returned an open verdict, saying they were unable to determine if the death was suicide or homicide.

The Life of John Rogers

John L. Rogers was born March 6, 1884 in Union County to Susan Ann Wiles and Civil War veteran Charles R. Rogers. He had four siblings: William, Amos, Fred A., and Minta M. Rogers.

He worked as a laborer doing odd jobs.

Courtesy photo “FLH,” findagrave.com

The tombstone of John L. Rogers in Greenlawn Cemetery.

John Rogers is buried in Afton’s Greenlawn Cemetery.

Information Needed

Questions and information about the 1915 death of John L. Rogers should be directed to Iowa Cold Cases through the Contact form.

Sources

• Clearfield Enterprise, August 19, 1915.
• “Iowa News,” Elgin Echo, August 26, 1915.
• “Iowa State News,” Postville Review, August 27, 1915.
• “Open Verdict Returned,” Oxford Mirror, August 19, 1915.