Charlie Nelson and The Henderson Murders
The Lost Henderson Farm
Among Madison’s prominent citizens were many African American families who began moving from the southern U.S. to Dane County and Madison as early as the 1850’s (Simms 2018). Newly-arrived African Americans were small-business people, cooks, cleaners, barbers, and farmers.
Notley Henderson was part of the northward migration after the Civil War. Henderson moved from Kentucky in the late 1860’s (Simms, 2018). Henderson worked as a farm hand and in the late 1880’s had earned enough money to marry Martha and buy a farmstead. Henderson’s land was located on the northern portion of what is now the current Grady Tract of the UW-Madison Arboretum but was at the time on the southern outskirts of the Arboretum. The Arboretum has installed an interpretive sign near the site of the Henderson farm.
Unfortunately, Notley Henderson’s son Allen and Allen’s son Walter were both shot and killed on March 5, 1927 by one Charles Nelson (according to both Simms (2018) and Arboretum research and interpretive materials.). Walter’s body was found in a section of woods along Nakoma Road; Allen Henderson was next and was shot at his farm.
Charles Nelson, “a former mental patient and son of a local real estate developer, shot himself when approached by officials.” (Simms, 2018)
The Henderson’s, unable to support themselves, lost their farm soon after the murders and moved into downtown Madison (Simms, 2018).
The Mystery of the Henderson Murders
The double-murder of the Hendersons is related to the springs only in so far as the body of Walter Henderson was tossed into the woods along Nakoma Road, at an unknown spot that was probably not too far from the Duck Pond Springs.
There are several unanswered questions about the Henderson murders. One, where exactly, was the Henderson body dumped? Two, why was the body hauled three to four miles up Seminole Highway and Nakoma Road to dump it in a wooded area along Nakoma Road?
I don’t know the answer to the second question but one possible answer to the first is somewhere near the springs and most likely the Duck Pond Springs.
This is just speculation but is a reasonable guess because Nakoma Road is not a long street; there are not many wooded lots along it; and an easily-accessibly spot with a wooded area, would have been the Duck Pond Springs—close to the road and all that.
References
Noland, W.E. 1950. The Hydrography, Fish, and Turtle Population of Lake Wingra. Wisconsin Academy of Arts, Sciences and Letters, Madison, WI.
Oakes, E.L., G.E. Hendrickson, and E.E.Zuehls, Hudrology of the Lake Wingra Basin, Dane County, WI., U.S. Geological Survey, Madison, WI.
Pennequin, D.F. and M.P. Anderson. 1981. The Groundwater Budget of Lake Wingra, Dane County, Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin Water Resources Center. Madison, WI
Sachse, Nancy. 1965. A Thousand Ages. Board of Regents of The University of Wisconsin.
Simms. Muriel. 2018. Settlin’, Stories of Madison’s Early African American Families. Wisconsin Historical Press. Madison, WI
WingraSprings 