"Gordon murder scene," Thorndike, ca. 1873
Maine Historic Preservation Commission
Suspect: John True Gordon
Accusation: Murder
Location: Thorndike, Maine
Date: June 17, 1873
Victims: Almon, Emma, and Millie Gordon
In the rural town of Thorndike, Maine, farmhand Eldon Ward awoke in his employer’s home to the sound of screams and the smell of smoke. He found three members of the Gordon family bludgeoned in a downstairs bedroom and the house in flames. Ward alerted neighbors, who helped extinguish the fire and examine the scene. Victims included Almon Gordon (1848-1873), his wife Emma (1850-1873), and their seventeen-month-old daughter Millie. Their son, five-year-old Ira, was injured, but alive. Almon’s niece Anna and his brother John True Gordon (1844-1875) escaped unharmed. Because he had blood on his clothes and tried to stop Ward from raising the alarm about the fire, John Gordon quickly drew suspicion.
An investigation revealed John resented Almon for inheriting the family farm. Prior to the murders, John’s fiancée reportedly received letters attempting to tarnish John’s character, and a clairvoyant in Bangor convinced John that his sister-in-law Emma Gordon wrote the letters. Several days before the murders, John vowed revenge, stating “I know one thing: Almon’s life or mine is damned short in this world.”
Arrested and tried first for the murder of Emma Gordon, John True Gordan testified on his own behalf, although he never directly denied his involvement. The jury returned a guilty verdict. Sentenced to death, the state opted not to try him for the murders of Almon and Millie Gordon.
After a failed appeal and suicide attempt, John True Gordon was hanged at the Maine State Prison in Thomaston on June 26, 1875.