Mississippi Axe Murders: Tragedy in Water Valley

By Mark Neaves

A notorious double-murder revisited

On May 5, 1931, Callie Wiggins rose from her bed, dressed, and as she had done many times before, headed to 323 Wagner Street in Water Valley to the home of her employers, W.B. and Mamie Wagner. She was planning to cook them a hearty breakfast, but when she entered the house, she found the usually pristine interior in shambles. The smell of blood hung heavy in the air. Then she saw the hardwood floors streaked with gore. When police arrived, they ventured into the carnage to find bloody footprints, signs of an attempted cleanup and in the dining room--an axe covered in blood, hair and bone. Author Mark Neaves revisits the notorious and grisly murders of the richest and most influential couple in a small Mississippi town.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1467170933
• ISBN13: 9781467170932
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: History Press
• Length: 130 Pages