Summary
Name:
Elnora EpperlyNickname:
Ellie EpperlyYears Active:
1950Status:
DeceasedClass:
Mass MurdererVictims:
41Method:
ArsonNationality:
USASummary: Mass Murderer
Name:
Elnora EpperlyNickname:
Ellie EpperlyStatus:
DeceasedVictims:
41Method:
ArsonNationality:
USAYears Active:
1950Little is known about Elnora Epperly's early life. She was known as Elnora "Ellie" Epperly. Records show she was 23 years old in 1950.
She was a patient at St. Elizabeth's Hospital for the Mentally Ill in Davenport, Iowa. By that time she was married to a man named John. She also spent time in an Illinois hospital and later was returned to John's care.
On January 7, 1950, a fire destroyed St. Elizabeth's Hospital for the Mentally Ill in Davenport, Iowa. The fire killed 41 people and injured 24 others, most of them patients. Most sources say the fire was caused by Elnora "Ellie" Epperly, a 23-year-old patient. She reportedly believed her husband was in trouble and that she needed to escape, and she lit curtains with a cigarette lighter. Epperly was initially charged with murder but never faced trial after an inquest ruled she was mentally ill and could not be held responsible. After spending several months in an Illinois hospital, she was released into the custody of her husband, John. The site is now the Genesis Medical Center, West Central Park, and a small cemetery there honors those who died. Sixteen of the 41 victims are buried at that site.
