"The Wineville Chicken Coop Murders" - Location: 6330 Wineville Ave., Jurupa Valley, CA 91752
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Wikipedia EXCERPT: The Wineville Chicken Coop murders, also known as the Wineville Chicken murders, were a series of abductions and murders of young boys that occurred in California, specifically in the city of Los Angeles and in Riverside County, between 1926 and 1928. The murders were carried out by Gordon Stewart Northcott, a 19-year-old farmer who had moved to California from Canada two years prior, as well as his mother, Sarah Louise Northcott, and his nephew, Sanford Clark.
Northcott was arrested while visiting his sister in Canada in November 1928. The case received national attention due to one of the assumed victims being Walter Collins, the nine-year-old son of Christine Collins, who had gone missing in March of that year. While authorities initially considered the possibility that the total number of boys killed on the farm might have been as high as twenty, this theory was eliminated as the investigation began to unfold. Northcott was found guilty of three of the murders in February 1929, and was executed at San Quentin State Prison in October 1930.
~ Murders ~
Gordon Stewart Northcott was born in Bladworth, Saskatchewan, Canada, and raised in British Columbia. He moved to Los Angeles, California, with his parents in 1924. Two years later, at the age of 19, Northcott asked his father to purchase a plot of land in the community of Wineville, located in Riverside County, where he built a chicken ranch and a house with the help of both his father and his nephew, eleven-year-old Sanford Clark. It was this pretext that Northcott used to bring Clark from Bladworth to the U.S. Upon the boy's arrival at the Wineville ranch, Northcott began to physically and sexually abuse Clark.
In August 1928, out of concern for his welfare, Clark's 19-year-old older sister Jessie visited him at the Wineville ranch. At that time, Clark told her that he feared for his life. One night, while Northcott was asleep, Jessie learned from Clark that Northcott had murdered four boys at his ranch. Once she returned to Canada one week later, Jessie informed an American consul there of Northcott's crimes. The consul then wrote a letter to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) detailing Jessie's sworn complaint. Because there was initially some concern over an immigration issue, the LAPD contacted the United States Immigration Service to determine facts relative to the complaint.
On August 31, 1928, two Immigration Service inspectors, Judson F. Shaw and George W. Scallorn, visited the ranch and took Clark into custody. Northcott had seen the agents driving up the long road to his ranch and, before fleeing into the tree-line which lined the edge of his property, told Clark to stall them or threatened to shoot him from the tree-line with a rifle. During the next two hours, while Clark stalled, Northcott kept running. Finally, when Clark felt that the agents could protect him, he told them that Northcott had fled.
Northcott and his mother, Sarah Louise, fled to Canada but were arrested near Vernon, British Columbia, on September 19, 1928. Clark testified at Sarah Louise's sentencing that Northcott had kidnapped, molested, beaten, and killed three young boys with the help of his mother and Clark himself. Clark also testified about the murder of a fourth young man, a Mexican citizen, after which Northcott had forced Clark to help dispose of the victim's head by burning it in a fire pit and then crushing the skull. Northcott stated that he "left the headless body by the side of the road near Puente because he had no other place to put it.” He stated that quicklime was used to dispose of the remains and that the bodies were buried on the ranch.
~ Body parts found ~
Authorities found three shallow graves at the ranch exactly where Clark had stated they were. It was found, however, that these graves did not contain complete bodies, but only parts of bodies. During testimony from both Clark and his sister Jessie, it was learned that the bodies had been dug up by Northcott and his mother on the evening of August 4, 1928, a few weeks before Clark was taken into protective custody. They had taken the bodies out to a deserted area, where they were most likely burned in the night. The complete bodies were never recovered.
The evidence found in the graves consisted of "51 parts of human anatomy... those silent bits of evidence, of human bones and blood, have spoken and corroborated the testimony of living witnesses". This evidence enabled the authorities to conclude that Walter Collins, two brothers named Lewis and Nelson Winslow (aged 12 and 10, respectively), and the unidentified fourth victim had all been murdered. The body parts that were found, coupled with the testimony of Clark, resulted in a death sentence for Gordon Northcott and life imprisonment for Sarah Louise Northcott, who was paroled in 1940. She died in 1944.
~ Aftermath ~
Wineville changed its name to Mira Loma on November 1, 1930, in large part because of the negative publicity surrounding the murders. The new cities of Eastvale and Jurupa Valley took different parts of the area of Mira Loma in 2010 and 2011. Wineville Avenue, Wineville Road, Wineville Park, and other geographic references provide reminders of the community's former name.
Clark returned to Saskatoon, where city records indicate that he died on June 20, 1991. He was buried in the Saskatoon Woodlawn Cemetery on August 26, 1993.
~ Imprisonment and execution ~
Canadian police arrested Northcott and his mother on September 19, 1928. Due to errors in the extradition paperwork, they were not returned to Los Angeles until November 30, 1928.
While Sarah and her son were being held in British Columbia awaiting extradition to California, she confessed to the murders, including the murder of nine-year-old Walter Collins. But before being extradited to California, she retracted her confession, as did Northcott, who had confessed to killing more than five boys.
After Sarah and her son had been extradited from British Columbia to California, she once again confessed and pleaded guilty to killing Walter Collins. She was not put on trial; upon her plea of guilty, Superior Court Judge Morton sentenced her to life imprisonment on December 31, 1928, sparing her the death penalty because she was a woman. During her sentencing hearing, she claimed that her son was innocent and made a variety of claims about his parentage, including that he was an illegitimate son of an English nobleman, that she was Gordon's grandmother, and that he was the result of incest between her husband, Cyrus George Northcott, and their daughter. She also stated that as a child, Gordon was sexually abused by the entire family. She served her sentence at Tehachapi State Prison and was paroled after less than twelve years. She died in 1944.
Gordon Northcott was implicated in the murder of Walter Collins, but because his mother had already confessed and been sentenced for it, the state chose to not prosecute Gordon in that murder.
It was speculated that Gordon may have killed as many as 20 boys, but the State of California could not produce evidence to support that speculation. Ultimately, the state only brought an indictment against Gordon for the murders of an unidentified underage Mexican national (known as the "Headless Mexican") and the brothers Lewis and Nelson Winslow (aged 12 and 10, respectively). The brothers had been reported missing from Pomona on May 16, 1928.
In early 1929, Gordon Northcott's trial was held before Judge George R. Freeman in Riverside County, California. The jury heard that he kidnapped, molested, tortured, and murdered the Winslow brothers and the "Headless Mexican" in 1928. On February 8, 1929, the 27-day trial ended with Gordon being convicted of those murders.
On February 13, 1929, Freeman sentenced him to death and he was hanged on October 2, 1930 at San Quentin State Prison. He was 23 years old.
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CHRONOLOGY
Mar. 10, 1928 -- Walter Collins (9), abducted when he went to the movies.
May 16, 1928 -- Lewis Winslow (12), Nelson Winslow (10), abducted on from Pomona, California.
Aug. 4, 1928 -- bodies dug up by Gordon Stewart Northcott and his mother; evening.
Aug. 31, 1928 -- Immigration Service inspectors, Judson F. Shaw and George W. Scallorn, take Sanford Clark into custody.
Sep. 19, 1928 -- G. Northcott and mother, Sarah Louise Northcott, flee to Canada; arrested near Vernon, British Columbia.
Nov. 1928 -- Northcotts arrested while visiting his sister in Canada. While Sarah and her son were being held in British Columbia awaiting extradition to California, she confessed to the murders, including the murder of nine-year-old Walter Collins. But before being extradited to California, she retracted her confession, as did Northcott, who had confessed to killing more than five boys.
Nov/Dec? 1928 -- After Sarah and her son had been extradited from British Columbia to California, she once again confessed and pleaded guilty to killing Walter Collins (9).
Dec. 31, 1928 -- Upon Sarah Northcott’s plea of guilty, Superior Court Judge Morton sentenced her to life imprisonment, sparing her the death penalty because she was a woman.
Feb. 8, 1929 -- 27-day trial; G. Northcott found guilty of three of the murders; trial was held before Judge George R. Freeman in Riverside County, California. The jury heard that he kidnapped, molested, tortured, and murdered the Winslow brothers and the "Headless Mexican" in 1928.
Oct. 1930 -- G. Northcott executed at San Quentin State Prison.
1940 -- Sarah Louise Northcott paroled.
1944 -- Sarah Louise Northcott dies.
Jun. 20, 1991 -- S. Clark returned to Saskatoon, where city records indicate that he died.
Aug. 26, 1993 -- He was buried in the Saskatoon Woodlawn Cemetery.
VICTIMS
Sanford Clark (b. Mar. 1, 1913), (survived).
“Headless Mexican” (as referred to in court case); possibly Alvin Gothea.
Walter Collins (9).
Lewis Winslow (12).
Nelson Winslow (10).
Unnamed survivor (kidnapped, but escaped).
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