On March 30, 1953, the quiet town of Spring Valley, Minnesota became the final stop in a deadly cross-country rampage. Two women—Harriet Horsman, a waitress, and Agnes Beaston, the café owner’s wife—were murdered during a holdup at the Four Winds Café. The killer? An 18-year-old Marine named Fred McManus, traveling with his 16-year-old girlfriend, Diane Weggland.

In this episode, Lenora and Preston trace the path of a spree that spanned five states and claimed five lives in just four days. From the café’s final shift to the couple’s arrest near Dubuque, Iowa, we explore the chilling contrast between McManus’s privileged upbringing and the violence he left in his wake. What drives a “nice boy” to commit such horror—and how did Spring Valley become part of a national nightmare?

📚 Sources Referenced

• The Minneapolis Star, March 31, 1953

• The Winona Republican, March 30 & April 1, 1953

• Post Bulletin, March 31, 1953

• Brainerd Dispatch, March 31, 1953

• The Winona Daily News, March 30, April 1 & April 2, 1953

• The Star Tribune, March 31, 1953

• Murderpedia – Fred McManus profile

• WikiTree – Harriet Emily (Combs) Horsman

• True Crime Archives – Fred Eugene McManus: 5-State Killing Spree

When the first settlers arrived in Rushford, Minnesota, they found more than untamed land—they found a grave. Near the future site of the Catholic church stood a simple wooden headboard, weathered and nameless. Its presence suggested a burial made with care, yet no one knew who lay beneath the sod or how they had come to rest there.

In this episode, Lenora and Preston explore the mystery of Rushford’s earliest known death—a story that lingered in silence until a chance encounter in Wisconsin decades later revealed a tale of illness, isolation, and quiet grief. Who was the man buried before the town began? And what does his story tell us about life on the edge of settlement?

Source: History of Fillmore County, Minnesota (1882) by Charles S. Bryant

Long before the Mayo Clinic became a global medical powerhouse, its future was quietly taking shape in the tiny village of Hamilton, Minnesota. In this episode, Lenora and Preston trace the remarkable journey of Dr. Henry S. Plummer—from his childhood in Fillmore County to his groundbreaking work in Rochester. Born to Dr. Albert Plummer, a Civil War veteran and early settler of Sumner Township, Henry’s story is one of innovation, compassion, and quiet brilliance.

Discover how a chance encounter with Dr. William J. Mayo led to a partnership that revolutionized modern medicine. From pneumatic tubes to integrated care teams, Dr. Plummer’s fingerprints are still found in hospitals today—but his roots remain firmly planted in Fillmore County.

📚 Sources Referenced

• Find A Grave – Biographical and burial information for Dr. Henry S. Plummer

• Wikipedia – Henry Stanley Plummer

• Mayo Clinic History Project – “Diversified Genius”

• Post Bulletin – “Henry Plummer: An Innovator at Mayo Clinic” by Thomas Weber, January 27, 2024

• Post Bulletin – “Back and Forth: The Early Home of Dr. Henry Plummer” by Harley Flathers, April 17, 2014

• Fillmore County Journal – “Meet the Stars of Hamilton”

• The Spring Valley Mercury – September 19, 1889; October 31, 1889; March 24, 1899; June 5, 1896; July 13, 1893

In the dead of night, a small-town bank explodes—literally. The culprits vanish with a modest sum, but the mystery they left behind still echoes through Wykoff’s history. Lenora and Preston revisit the crime and the clues that kept the legend alive.

📰 Sources:

• Fillmore County Historical Society — Richard J. Bottorff article, January 4, 2021

• Rochester Daily Post and Record, Monday, October 27, 1924

• Levang’s Weekly, Thursday, October 2, 1924

• Caledonia Argus, Friday, October 3, 1924

• Preston Times, Thursday, October 2, 1924

In November 1974, 69-year-old Mabel Torgerud was found murdered in her quiet farmhouse near Peterson, Minnesota. Her home had been ransacked. She’d been shot four times. And nearly fifty years later, no one has been held accountable.

In this episode, Lenora and Preston retrace the final days of Mabel’s life, explore the crime scene details, and examine the limitations of rural law enforcement in the 1970s. They reflect on what it meant to be a woman living alone in a remote corner of Fillmore County—and how her story still echoes through the community.

Was it a robbery gone wrong? A personal vendetta? Or something more elusive?

📜 Sources Referenced

• Minnesota BCA Case File — Official summary of the investigation

• Winona Daily News Obituary — Details from the original reporting

• Find a Grave Memorial — Burial information and community remembrance

• AncientFaces Profile — Genealogical context and public memory

• KROC-AM News — Commentary from Fillmore County Sheriff Tom Kaase on the county’s only remaining unsolved murder

In the summer of 1892, the village of Canton, Minnesota became a place of pilgrimage and mystery. It began with a young girl who claimed to see the Virgin Mary holding the infant Jesus in the steeple window of the Church of the Assumption. Soon, hundreds of visitors—some traveling over 400 miles by wagon or horseback—flocked to Canton, seeking divine encounters and healing. Reported cures followed. The faithful prayed. The curious watched. The town swelled.

And just as quickly, the clergy intervened. Windows were removed. Boards were painted. The miracle was, officially, ended.

In this episode, Lenora and Preston trace the phenomenon from its spiritual spark to its scientific unraveling. Was it molecular polarization? Mass formation psychosis? Or something deeper—something that reveals our need for belief, connection, and hope?

📜 Sources Referenced

• The New York Times, October 14, 1892

• Winona Weekly Republican, August 31, 1892

• Lanesboro Journal / La Crosse Chronicle, August 26, 1892

• Winona Daily Herald, September 29, 1892 & December 16, 1892

• Minneapolis Tribune, December 22, 1892 — Scientific analysis discrediting supernatural claims

• Duluth Evening Herald, December 12, 1892

• Mazeppa Tribune / Austin Herald, November 9, 1892

  Fillmore County Journal, August 10, 2020

In the late 1870s and early 1880s, Fillmore County became the unexpected center of a flurry of archaeological discoveries—giant skeletons, copper tools, ancient mounds, and a mysterious clay image that left even university scientists stunned. Local newspapers buzzed with theories, from lost civilizations to tribal wars buried in legend. But after 1880, the stories faded from public memory.

In this debut episode of Roots & Riddles, hosts Leona & Preston explore strange headlines, ancient artifacts, and a mysterious clay image found buried in the mounds of the Root River Valley. These relics once drew the attention of archaeologists—but were soon forgotten.

Who were the people behind these mounds? And why did their story disappear?

Join us as we dig into the archives to uncover one of Fillmore County’s oldest and strangest mysteries.

Sources:

• Popular Science Monthly, Volume 19, September 1881 – “Ancient Copper-Mines of Isle Royale”

• History of Fillmore County Minnesota, compiled by Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge, 1912

• Blog post: “INDIAN MOUNDS,” by billsobservations, May 22, 2012

• The Lanesboro Journal – March 27, 1880; May 1, 1880; September 25, 1880