1920's Unsolved Murder of Mayor Harry Higel on Siesta Key by Newsman Rube Allyn Reads Like Script for an Action/Drama Block Buster Movie.

Sarasota mayor Harry Lee Higel was murdered by newsman Rube Allyn during a pistol whipping on Friday morn Jan 7th, 1921 at the north end of Siesta Key Fl. UPDATE: No Cold Case Begins With the Wrong Date of the Murder. Sunday June 27, 2021, Former Sarasota mayor Harry Higel was murdered on Friday Jan 7th, 1921 (by newsman Rube Allyn) according to every newspaper from the Tampa Daily Times that put out an EXTRA edition, to the Ocala Evening Times, to the Miami Times to the Boston Globe, even the AP Wire in New York City noted the Higel murder by Rube Allyn on Friday Jan 7th, 1921. 1920's Unsolved Murder of Mayor Harry Higel on Siesta Key by Newsman Rube Allyn Reads Like Script for an Action/Drama Block Buster Movie.

FLORIDA NEWSPAPER DELIVERY SYSTEM IN 1920's WAS HANDS ON: In the US the heyday of print newspapers was during the early 20th century, (1920's). The 'paperboy' was often a young person's first job, perhaps undertaken before and/or after school. Most large newspapers like the Tampa Tribune and St Pete Times had an early AM delivery and an evening PM delivery directly to your house. There was also the newsboy or newspaper hawker who would sell newspapers to passersby on the street in urban areas, like in Tampa or St Pete in 1921, with very vocal promotion. 'Newsboys' were common when multiple daily papers in every city and as many as 50 in New York City alone competed in the 1920's. The number of 'Daily Newspapers' in Florida was 33 in 1921. The St Pete Times was/is the largest daily newspaper in Florida it began publication as a twice daily in 1920. In 2012, the St. Petersburg Times changed its name to the Tampa Bay Times to more accurately reflect the geographical area it served. Then, in 2016, the Tampa Bay Times bought its long-time rival, the Tampa Tribune, which then ceased publication. The Sarasota Times newspaper in 1921 was a weekly published on Thursdays and then mailed by USPS to your house with subscriptions of $2.00 per year, not very timely news reporting.

Sarasota Times first edition on June 1, 1899, Rose Wilson was the publisher of the Times from 1910 until 1923 when the paper folded. The Sarasota Times newspaper was a weekly paper that came out every Thursday with ads for local merchants, which is the day BEFORE Mr Higel was murdered. Mr Higel was murdered on Friday Jan 7th 1921 and he was buried on Saturday Jan 8th 1921 in Sarasota according to his obituary penned by what appears to be his brother Frank Higel. News reporters in spring of 1921 influenced the outcome of the Manatee County Grand Jury by repeatedly reporting that Rube Allyn was just a "good ole boy and could have never murdered Higel".

In the story line of the Sarasota Times front page article about the murder of Harry Higel on Jan 7th 1921, editor Rose Wilson reports that Rube Allyn did not drive himself back to Siesta Key from St Pete where he was working on his fishing magazine on Thursday night Jan 6th. It appears that Rube Allyn was having some sort of psychotic episode that caused him great depression. Rose Wilson writes Rube Allyn was so depressed he could not drive, she writes that parties carried Rube Allyn out to the Siesta Bridge late on Thursday night in an auto and Rube Allyn was going to give up working for a few days and stay home on the Key. In her story, editor Rose Wilson points out that Harry Higel had multiple wounds on his head when he was found in the road on Siesta Key, one over his right eye that split open the skull, one on the left side of his head and several on the back of his head, most likely what would be the result of a pistol whipping.

Rose Allyn (wife) later declared on Friday Jan 7th 1921 that Rube had been out of his head for days and was not in his right mind, she later retracted this statement. Rube Allyn had exhibited all the traits of a person with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) for years. It appears that the Sarasota Times, which was published weekly on Thursdays, had already had it's masthead dated Thursday January 6th, 1921 but had not yet gone out for delivery in the early morning hours of Friday January 7th, 1921 when Harry Higel was murdered on Siesta Key. It appears that Rose Wilson, the one woman editor and publisher of the tiny Sarasota Times, had done a rewrite of the front page and inserted the breaking news on Friday morn Jan 7th of the murder of Harry Higel. Rose Wilson alludes to the murder having taken place on Friday Jan 7th in the copy of the story and states "just as we go to press information has come in that Mr Higel has died on the way to the hospital in Tampa". Rose Wilson then states in the copy, "about two o'clock this (Friday) afternoon Rube Allyn, former editor of the Sarasota Sun was arrested by Chief Deputy Sheriff Brown in connection with the tragedy". Rose Wilson delayed printing and delivery of the Sarasota Times newspaper until later Friday afternoon January 7th, 1921.

"Gun Buried on Siesta Key": 1920's Era Colt Revolver Found Buried on Siesta Key Verified by Sarasota County Sheriff Cold Case Detective as Possible Link to Murder of Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel. Get real here, nobody buries a perfectly fine, loaded gun with a broken grip on Siesta Key unless it was used in the bludgeoning murder of former Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel on Friday January 7tth, 1921. The Colt revolver went into the muck and mud of salt water wetland on Siesta Key in 1921 looking real shiny and pretty as seen in the top photo and came out of the ground 100 years later a rusty mess. But 6 live bullets remained in the cylinder of the Colt revolver, I have it on my desk.

Harry Higel murder suspect Rube Allyn's best pal and drinking buddy was St Pete mayor Noel A. Mitchell who also owned and operated the Noel A. Mitchell National Detective Agency in St Pete. Mr Mitchell was a Florida licensed private investigator with a concealed weapon permit from the Pinellas County Sheriff. Private eye Noel Mitchell carried a Colt revolver. The Noel A. Mitchell National Detective Agency in St Pete advertised that one of their agents was Joe Neil the best shot in Florida with a revolver, a crack shot that can hit a silver dollar at 30 paces. The Noel A. Mitchell National Detective Agency in St Pete also advertised that citizens with a burglar in the house should call Neil at 1228 and he would send men armed with shot guns loaded with buck shot to your house. Don't call the police, call The Noel A. Mitchell National Detective Agency in St Pete at 1228.

Sarasota's Rube Allyn Sr appears to have been the poster boy for someone with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED). Rube Allyn Sr was a hot tempered, erratic, hard drinking Irishman whose eccentrics were condemned in Sarasota. Rube was known for fierce outbursts of temper. Rube was venomously bitter when confronted or disagreed with and frequently drunk in Sarasota. Rube had been in bitter disagreements with Harry Higel for years. Rube's testimony before a US Senate Committee in Feb. 1918 reveled a racist, bigoted man who hated Jews and German speaking people. Rube acted violently and impulsively and was arrested for Attempted Murder during the commission of a Hate Crime in Philadelphia in 1918, he also shot a neighbor boy Brooks Brewer, 19, in Ruskin with a shotgun in 1929 for no apparent reason. Someone with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) could destroy property, react way out of proportion to things that happen and could attack or kill another person. Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) involves repeated, sudden episodes of impulsive, aggressive, violent behavior or angry verbal outbursts in which the affected person reacts grossly out of proportion to the situation (Rube Allyn Sr.) and then going into a deep depression. Rage, domestic abuse, throwing or breaking objects, or other temper tantrums may be signs of Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED). Intermittent Explosive Disorder is a chronic disorder that can continue for years, although the severity of outbursts may decrease with age. Problems with alcohol often occur along with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (Rube Allyn Sr often drunk). The explosive verbal and behavioral outbursts are out of proportion to the situation (Rube Allyn Sr), with no thought to consequences, and can include: Tirades, Heated Arguments, Shouting, Slapping, Shoving or Pushing, Physical Fights, Property Damage, Threatening or Assaulting People (Rube Allyn Sr). They're often perceived by others as always being angry. They may have frequent verbal fights (Rube Allyn Sr) or there can be physical abuse.

Rose Wilson alludes to the murder having taken place on Friday Jan 7th in the copy of the story and states "just as we go to press information has come in that Mr Higel has died on the way to the hospital in Tampa". Rose Wilson then states in the copy, "about two o'clock this (Friday) afternoon Rube Allyn, former editor of the Sarasota Sun was arrested by Chief Deputy Sheriff Brown in connection with the tragedy". Rose Wilson delayed delivery of the Sarasota Times newspaper until later on Friday January 7th, 1921.

On Thursday March 10th, 1921 the Sarasota Times published their newspaper with a story about how respected newsman Rube Allyn was freed on March 9th from jail in the investigation of Harry Higel's murder that took place on Friday, January 7th, 1921. Rose Wilson editor of the Sarasota Times gleefully reported on how fellow newsman Rube Allyn was let go as the Manatee County Grand Jury failed to return a True Bill to indict Rube Allyn for Mr. Higel's murder on Siesta Key. Harry Higel was murdered on Friday, January 7th, 1921 at about 8:25 a.m. there is no doubt. The misinformation of Harry Higel's murder taking place on Thursday Jan 6th 1921 has been reprinted in numerous books, magazines and newspaper publications for decades, sorry to rewrite history but the facts are the facts! Unsolved murder cases have to present hard and true facts, the date and time of the unsolved murder is number one!

The Real Story of Unsolved Murder of Harry Higel (by Rube Allyn) and the arson of the Higelhurst Hotel (by Rube Allyn) all on Siesta Key reads like a script for an action/drama movie. During the process of doing my research on Mr Higel's murder and all the characters linked to him and putting it all together, I felt like the story read like a screenplay for a movie. For every dirty deal linked to newsman Rube Allyn his pal private eye pal Noel Mitchell was always right there. The Higel story/movie would be a period piece, set from 1913 to 1921 in Sarasota, Siesta Key, Bradenton and St Pete Fl. Sarasota mayor Harry Higel and newsman Rube Allyn were neighbors and biter rivals on the north end of Siesta Key. Sarasota County Centennial 100 Years is July 2021, mishandling of unsolved murder of Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel by Manatee County Grand Jury caused split form Bradentown Politicians.

The story pivots around WWI and America's induction in April 1917 to fight the Germans in France and it's effect in Florida. Rube Allyn hated Harry Higel who was of German heritage. In the years leading up to and during World War I, the US experienced a wave of anti-German sentiment, fueled by super-patriotism (Rube Allyn) and xenophobia, that resulted in open hostility toward all things German. Rube Allyn's friend, idol and mentor Elbert Hubbard and his wife were on the RMS Lusitania passenger ship that was torpedoed by a German U-Boat killing 1,195 including 128 Americans on May 7, 1915. The disaster set off a chain of events that led to the U.S. entering World War I in 1917. Rube Allyn was devastated by his friend Elbert Hubbard's murder by the Germans. 

Americans of German descent and German culture in the United States was very much under attack. Throughout the U.S., individuals, groups, and politicians took actions, larger and small, that were aimed at ridding itself of German culture and German influence in the country. The climate became so hostile that by 1918, South Dakota prohibited the use of German over the telephone, and in public assemblies of three or more persons. Numerous attacks were made on German-Americans in this time and such harassment sadly became commonplace. According to Katja Wüstenbecker, “citizens of German descent were dragged out of their homes at night and forced to kiss the flag or sing the national anthem. The most notorious case of mob action was the lynching of Robert Prager in Illinois in April 1918. This lynching caused outrage among many prominent Americans; nevertheless, court proceedings found the members of the mob not guilty.”
Back story on Higelhurst Hotel arson was Harry Higel's link to Germany and even the Hotel name 'Hurst' links to a region in Germany. Higelhurst Hotel was torched on March 30th, 1917 (by Rube Allyn), three days later On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson went before a joint session of Congress to request a declaration of war against Germany which was granted, Rube Allyn was ecstatic. Rube Allyn was a war hawk and hated Germans. Rube wanted to join the Army when he was in his 50's to go and kill Germans in 1917. The story also gets involved with Prohibition that began on January 17, 1920 when the Volstead Act went into effect. Rube Allyn's best pal and drinking buddy was private eye Noel Mitchell also the Mayor of St Pete, for only 1 1/2 years. Noel Mitchell was kicked out of office in Nov 1921 for drunken office party during Prohibition at City Hall raided by St Pete cops, Rube Allyn was there. Noel Mitchell was a private investigator who owned the Mitchell Private Detective Agency in St Pete that employed rough and tumble guys with guns. Noel Mitchell carried a Colt revolver and had a concealed carry permit from the Pinellas County Sheriff. Allyn and Mitchell both ignored Prohibition and both were arrested and jailed for public drunkenness on multiple occasions between 1913 and 1921. Both Allyn and Mitchell were connected to unsolved violent murders.

Plenty of friction between Harry Higel and Rube Allyn from 1913 to 1921, both ran for Mayor of Sarasota 3 times, Harry Higel won all three times. Harry Higel was of direct German heritage, murdered on January 7th 1921, case remains unsolved 100 years later. In July 1921 City of Sarasota breaks away from Manatee County and becomes Sarasota County mostly due to ineffective investigation of Higel's murder and possible tainted Manatee County Grand Jury that freed the oh so guilty Rube Allyn. Manatee County Grand Jury was a "Kangaroo Court" at least two members of the Grand Jury were personal friends, drinking buddies, and/or newspaper associates of Rube Allyn. On top of all this you have the supposed murder weapon, a Colt revolver with a broken grip, that appears to have been used to pistol whip Harry Higel on Jan 7th, 1921, found buried on Siesta Key with 6 live bullets, 100 years after the murder in November 2019.

The 1915 era Colt revolver grips found buried on Siesta Key (photo on L) show extensive abuse to the bottom or butt part of the grips when compared to the 1919 era Colt revolver grips and firearm (photo on R) that I purchased last year, the 1915 era Colt grips were stained from being in the ground for 100 years. The original color of all Colt revolver hard rubber grips is BLACK. The 1915 era Colt revolver rubber grips were well worn, it appears the Colt revolver was manufactured in about 1915 and most likely went into the ground in Jan 1921. Harry Higel's head had been battered and the skull fractured in multiple areas as well as his face bludgeoned beyond recognition by a "blunt weapon" as per Dr. Halton's medical report on Jan 7th, 1921 in Sarasota Fl. 

The marks, scratches, gouges on the bottom of the hard rubber grips on the 1915's era colt revolver found buried on Siesta Key possibly caused by fracturing the skull and breaking the teeth of Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel on Jan 7th, 1921 during a pistol whipping. The mark of the weapon was clearly shown with a hole in the skull made by the pointed end of the weapon, said Dr Halton in Sarasota. The human skull can withstand 6.5 GPa of pressure while oak holds up under 11 GPa. Frontal bone: this bone comprises the forehead and the upper orbit of the eye. It joins the parietal bones at the coronal suture. Two temporal bones: These bones are located at the sides and base of the skull, and they are the hardest bones in the body. The fourteen bones at the front of your skull hold your eyes in place and form your facial features. Your mandible, or jawbone, is the largest, strongest bone in your face. 

MANATEE COUNTY GRAND JURY TANKS ON RUBE ALLYN MURDER CASE: Rube Allyn was arrested for murder of Harry Higel after Coroners Jury examines the evidence and Mr Higel's body on Jan 7th, 1921. At least 4 witnesses corroborated on the fact that Rube Allyn was near the murder scene on foot before 8:00 am. Rube Allyn was sent to County jail in Bradenton and spent 61 days there awaiting the Manatee County Grand Jury to Convene on Wednesday March 9, no bail was allowed. Grand juries have more of an advisory role to the prosecutor. They help to determine if there is enough probable cause in a case for an indictment for criminal charges. Grand juries do not determine guilt. They only ascertain if there enough evidence for a trial and a conviction. If you’ve ever sat on a grand jury, this may not be a surprise. The grand jury’s job according to prosecutors is simply to decide whether there is reason enough to bring an indictment, this includes any circumstantial evidence and witness statements. Jurors generally agree there is enough to indict. As the saying goes, "most grand juries will indict a ham sandwich". Yet in the case of Rube Allyn the Grand Jury deliberated for only 10 minutes after 6 1/2 hours of evidence put before them including witness statements and failed to indict with NO TRUE BILL.

If a Movie was ever cast for the Unsolved Murder of Harry Higel on Siesta Key Fl, Leonardo DiCaprio would be a shoe in for the tall, erratic, hard drinking Irish newsman Rube Allyn character. Rube Allyn's alibi was that he was back at home the morning of the Higel murder by 8:00 am on Friday Jan 7 as confirmed by his wife Rose and could not have done it as Higel was killed sometime between 8:10 am and 8:30 am. Interestingly Rose Allyn did not show up Wednesday morn March 9th to be questioned by the Grand Jury, she sent a statement instead. Appears Rose Allyn was too busy getting Rube's 'Florida Fisherman Magazine' ready for press over in Tampa, what the hell? In 1921 a felony conviction for Murder in Florida meant the death penalty and the execution method was hanging. In 1923 a bill was passed in Florida and placed all executions under State control instead of County and changed the method from hanging to electrocution. It appears to me that this Manatee County Grand Jury was nothing more than a "Kangaroo Court", a court held by a legitimate judicial authority which intentionally disregards the court's legal or ethical obligations and evidence. According to the Tampa Tribune on March 9th, 1921 the Manatee County Grand Jury was made up of 19 men; M. C. Davis, George N. Brown, J. A. Howse, J. A. Henry, T. B. Gallup, C. A. Rowlett, C. F. Edwards, Carl Hendrix, Guy Jones, C. L. Davis, W. O. Edwards, H. T. Glazier, Iron Ross, E. P. Lloyd, H. D. Horney, E. J. Bright, James G. Foster and Frank Kennedy. J. A. Howse was chosen Foreman. The murder case of Harry Higel by supposed suspect Rube Allyn was not carried forth to trial due to a tainted Manatee County Grand Jury as claimed by (Harry Higel's brother) George Higel who said: "One of the members of the Manatee Grand Jury investigating the murder of Harry Higel and the suspect Rube Allyn was a fellow newspaper man and personal friend of Rube Allyn".

For a fictional quasi historical book telling the story about the murder of Harry Higel based on a 100 year old .32 caliber Colt Police Positive Pocket revolver just like the one I described in all my articles and actually found on Siesta Key, see Tony Dunbar's The Story of the Sarasota Celery Fields & Other Mysteries, Blind Pass Publications" https://blindpasspublications.com/Books/index#celery The FBI or “Bureau of Investigation” should have been contacted by the remaining Higel brothers in Sarasota to investigate the very obvious rigged Manatee County Grand Jury that allowed newsman Rube Allyn to get away with murder on Siesta Key Fl in Jan 1921.

Leonardo Dicaprio and Martin Scorsese block buster new movie 'Killers of the Flower Moon' takes place in the same time period as the unsolved murder of Sarasota mayor Harry Higel, the 1920's. Martin Scorsese's attempts an epic Western and ends up with a violent, riveting crime story. “Killers of the Flower Moon,” starring Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, tells the real story of the brazen murders of Indigenous people of Osage County, Okla in the 1920s to rave reviews. In the 1920s, members of the Osage Native American tribe of Osage County, Oklahoma, are murdered after oil is found on their land, and the FBI decides to investigate. Killers of the Flower Moon is a New kind of Scorsese masterpiece. The Osage Indians lack political and social power—or more accurately, the freedom to exercise that power, since many holders of underground mineral rights, including Mollie and her family, require white “guardians” to access their own money. Partly as a result of this legal setup, marriages between Osage women and white men in the territory are not uncommon. Two of Mollie’s sisters already have white husbands, so it’s no family scandal when Mollie marries her hired driver, Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio), newly arrived in town, 1917, after military service in World War I. Late in the film, an officer from the United States’ newly formed “Bureau of Investigation” (FBI) shows up at the Burkharts’ door to ask questions about the unsolved murders in Osage country, and what has for two-plus hours been a love story embedded in a portrait of organized crime suddenly morphs into a heart-pounding courtroom drama, as the weak-willed Ernest flails between his fear of his powerful uncle and his real, if twisted, loyalty to his broken, bereaved, but still trusting wife.

NEW BOOK IN PROCESS: "MURDER ON THE KEY HARRY HIGEL MYSTERY" RUBE DID IT: The unsolved saga and murder of 3 time Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel is a sweeping drama of murder and mayhem based on actual historical facts and the discovery of the murder weapon. Background and extensive research for my new book and screenplay implicates newsman Rube Allyn in pistol whipping murder of Sarasota Mayor Harry Higel on Friday morn Jan 7th, 1921, Rube did it! Pistol whipping Harry Higel with a Colt .32 caliber Police Positive Pocket Revolver with a broken grip that I just happened to have found buried on Siesta Key in November 2019.

The Herald Tribune Newspaper in Sarasota did an article about the Higel murder, "100 years later, the murder of popular Sarasota mayor Harry Higel remains unsolved", by Billy Cox, Jan 7th, 2021. The Herald Tribune pointed out that "on March 9, 1921, Rube Allyn was released after a grand jury deliberated for 10 minutes. Sarasota private investigator Bill Warner claims on his website the jury was filled with Allyn’s “newspaper pals and drinking buddies.” Bill Warner says Higel’s injuries are consistent with a pistol-whipping; in fact, he says rusted fragments of a .32 caliber pocket Colt revolver – manufactured between 1907 and 1922 – were recovered near a Givens Street canal in November 2019. He says the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the make and the approximate time range of its manufacture. “You’d never throw away a revolver like that with six live bullets in it unless you’d committed a crime,” Bill Warner says. Like I said this Higel story looks like a script for a block buster movie. see https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/sarasota/2021/01/07/sarasota-mayor-harry-higels-murder-remains-unsolved-100-years-later/6564394002/

Bill Warner Private Investigator Sarasota 941-926-1926 - Cheaters and Child Custody Cases at http://www.wbipi.com/