Wabasha caves in St. Paul: Glass, Mushrooms, Mafia & Wedding venue, and a guest appearance in my next book. The extensive cave system had been carved into the hillside through silica sand mining adventures back in the 1800’s. Silica is used to make glass. A French immigrant Albert Mouchnotte began growing mushrooms in the caves and it was so successful the area eventually became known as “Mushroom Valley.” During Prohibition, the caves were converted to a Speak Easy visited by gangsters such as John Dillinger, “Baby Face” Nelson, Ma Barker Alvin “Creepy” Karips. St. Paul Police Chief John O’Connor made St. Paul a safe haven for gangsters, with the agreement they wouldn’t kill people here. It was referred to as the O’Connor system. Of course, you can’t have gangsters congregate for long before things go bad. In 1934 a waitress in the kitchen heard the popping of a Tommy-gun and when she returned to the dining area saw three bullet ridden bodies with their gambling chips still sitting on the table. She ran outside and called the police. The police arrived and after a couple hours on the scene she was verbally reprimanded for making a false report. The bodies were gone, and the scene had been cleaned. However, the bullet holes in the fireplace are still visible to this day. It was a time when the St. Paul police were known to carry an extra cop uniform to scenes in case a gangster needed to be snuck out. The bodies are believed to buried in the back caves. The Minneapolis Tribune listed the caves as “the most haunted place in Minnesota.” People claim you can hear footsteps walking behind you at times only to discover no one is there. Of course there will be a scene in my book, The Sun, in the caves. After you leave the caves, you can head down the street to discuss the adventure at Wabasha Brewing! I do need to return to Wabasha brewing again and have a taste of their Altbier Amber. I apologize to readers for being derelict in my blogs recently. I’m working with a new editor who has been very helpful, and we are trying to get Scandal of Vandals, right. I have listened to my readers who have suggested my previous books weren’t edited as cleanly as they should have been. This is obviously my fault, as I get too excited about getting a book out there, and do not allow ample time for editing. I’m not making that mistake this again. The good news is Scandal of Vandals will be followed with a mystery called The Sun. While the editor is working on Scandal, I’ve been writing The Sun, so it shouldn’t be too long before it is available also. Here is what I need: I need to get the cover shot of The Sun. I need a location. I am looking for a house, or building with high windows, shining on a floor at sunrise or sunset. (see below) It can be in a smaller space than these pics. If someone can find me a setting that leads to being used on the cover, I will give her/him/they a guest appearance in the book. Thanks for listening, Frank Below is an audio link for my interview on WJON 'It matters' with Kelly Cordes
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AuthorFrank F. Weber is a forensic psychologist specializing in homicide and sexual and physical assault cases. He uses his unique understanding of how predator’s think, knowledge of victim trauma, actual court cases, and passion for writing true crime thrillers. His Award Winning books include "Murder Book" (2017) "The I-94 Murders" (2018) "Last Call" (2019) and "Lying Close" (September 2020). Archives
April 2024
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