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Murder in the Fourth Corner: True Stories of Whatcom County's Earliest Homicides
A series of true crime stories occurring in Bellingham and Whatcom County during the early twentieth century. You may discover that you live near, or in, a murder house.
- GenresNonfictionMystery
308 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 17, 2016
When I came across this book browsing through my local bookstore I was instantly intrigued. I love history, particularly local history and when you throw murder into the mix? I can't resist. After getting this book and reading it cover to cover my opinion of it is simply....meh.
It certainly isn't terrible. I can tell that each case is well researched and photographs of the places the events happened were included if the author found any that existed. Which was immensely helpful with picturing the time in which these murders were committed and orienting me as to where they happened in reference to what Whatcom county looks like now.
Several of the cases were very interesting. My favorites included Tunnel 21 and the murdered butcher. But what I found was most tiring and tedious about this book...is simply how some of the cases were laid out.
Sometimes the language was choppy, and seemed to go around in circles as if the words weren't really sure what point they were trying to make. Information was often repeated multiple times in the space of a couple pages to the point where I would just skip over it. I was told once about what the "killer" confessed. I don't need to be told four more times about it.
In the instance of the Romandorf case and the Thurston murder, the bits about the trial could have easily been condensed and made more concise. It was difficult for me to push through the trial pieces at times, simply because every name of every juror was listed including the judge, sheriff, prosecutor etc. Which contributes to my earlier comment about how well researched this book is, but is very tedious to read. Perhaps an index in the back with a list of each case and who was involved would have been more beneficial.
Sometimes the lack of information in some cases versus the over abundance of information in others was frustrating. To go from a fifteen page long murder trial, to the discovery of a body that is only two pages was often disorienting. Collecting the shorter stories and placing them together in the beginning of the book and then leading into the more extensive stories I feel would have helped erase the disjointed feeling I had while reading this book.
Overall this isn't a bad book. Seems more like a collection of essays written by college students taking a journalism writing course of sorts. This is a good "fluff" read. Easy to pick up, easy to put down and so on. If you're looking for an easy read that gives you some insight into the darker side of Whatcom county that's written by a local author then I would say give this book a try.
Perhaps you'll be inspired to do some research of your own.
It certainly isn't terrible. I can tell that each case is well researched and photographs of the places the events happened were included if the author found any that existed. Which was immensely helpful with picturing the time in which these murders were committed and orienting me as to where they happened in reference to what Whatcom county looks like now.
Several of the cases were very interesting. My favorites included Tunnel 21 and the murdered butcher. But what I found was most tiring and tedious about this book...is simply how some of the cases were laid out.
Sometimes the language was choppy, and seemed to go around in circles as if the words weren't really sure what point they were trying to make. Information was often repeated multiple times in the space of a couple pages to the point where I would just skip over it. I was told once about what the "killer" confessed. I don't need to be told four more times about it.
In the instance of the Romandorf case and the Thurston murder, the bits about the trial could have easily been condensed and made more concise. It was difficult for me to push through the trial pieces at times, simply because every name of every juror was listed including the judge, sheriff, prosecutor etc. Which contributes to my earlier comment about how well researched this book is, but is very tedious to read. Perhaps an index in the back with a list of each case and who was involved would have been more beneficial.
Sometimes the lack of information in some cases versus the over abundance of information in others was frustrating. To go from a fifteen page long murder trial, to the discovery of a body that is only two pages was often disorienting. Collecting the shorter stories and placing them together in the beginning of the book and then leading into the more extensive stories I feel would have helped erase the disjointed feeling I had while reading this book.
Overall this isn't a bad book. Seems more like a collection of essays written by college students taking a journalism writing course of sorts. This is a good "fluff" read. Easy to pick up, easy to put down and so on. If you're looking for an easy read that gives you some insight into the darker side of Whatcom county that's written by a local author then I would say give this book a try.
Perhaps you'll be inspired to do some research of your own.
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February 6, 2016This is an unusual book because it's very specific: murders from the early 1900s in Whatcom County, WA, USA. I really enjoy reading about that era and location as well as mysteries, so it was right up my alley. I especially loved the newspaper excerpts, mugshots, old photos, maps, etc. (The drawings were, surprisingly, a little too graphic for me.) This is a readable book (despite quite a few typos and it being locally produced), with extremely fascinating stories. Although it's very well researched, many murders are unsolved and the author poses questions which made me wish it were possible to delve deeper and find the answers.
October 10, 2019
This was especially fun since I am living in Bellingham! I recognized places and surnames and was utterly scandalized ;). A little more editing would have made this a slightly more fluid book.
October 1, 2025
Fascinating and fun. I think you just feel that the stories are being drug out a little longer than needed at times. Nevertheless, super interesting to read about this part of whatcom county’s history.
January 30, 2026
I found that the premise of researching historical crime/murder brings out the detective in me. Sad, but also some insight that mankind has not changed much. So much of this area is still quite primitive and the author has done an incredible job of remembering the forgotten. Well done.
January 12, 2015
Let's get real here. I like crime stories, and I picked this up because it's crime about my hometown.
Let's get more real. Solving old cases is like reading about old medical procedures, where the things I read actively make me cringe because so little was known in terms of modern crime solving (which according to the National Academies is still full of unscientific procedures that aren't as effective as people have assumed). Reading about old cases, mostly based on research from state and local archives of court documents and newspapers, is a fun trivia experience about where I grew up, plus a reminder that people don't change. There's even an H.H. Holmes style serial killer who lived in Whatcom County at the turn of the 20th century.
This is also basically a self-published book, and Murder in the Fourth Corner could have really used it. The language at times is uneven, and the best chapter contained in this volume was originally published by someone other than T.A. Warger in another publication. It's not bad, it's just a little too much like reading a blog or one of the half hour crime shows on Investigation Discovery.
Let's get more real. Solving old cases is like reading about old medical procedures, where the things I read actively make me cringe because so little was known in terms of modern crime solving (which according to the National Academies is still full of unscientific procedures that aren't as effective as people have assumed). Reading about old cases, mostly based on research from state and local archives of court documents and newspapers, is a fun trivia experience about where I grew up, plus a reminder that people don't change. There's even an H.H. Holmes style serial killer who lived in Whatcom County at the turn of the 20th century.
This is also basically a self-published book, and Murder in the Fourth Corner could have really used it. The language at times is uneven, and the best chapter contained in this volume was originally published by someone other than T.A. Warger in another publication. It's not bad, it's just a little too much like reading a blog or one of the half hour crime shows on Investigation Discovery.
April 12, 2016
A small book that profiles some true crime shortly after the turn of the twentieth century.
April 24, 2016
Tourist gift shop book. Fun bit of small town history repurposed from newspaper articles and public records.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews