MN MN - Richard John ‘Dickie’ Huerkamp, 15, Mapleton, 2 Oct 1965

[Brightchaser47]

Welcome,  hiwayman! It's nice to have insight from someone who actually knew Dickie. Was a car needed to get to where he wanted to hunt? Could that be why he asked the other boys, when you weren't able to join him, or was he just looking for fellow hunters? Thanks

 

[hiwayman]

Dickie and I never discussed a hunting place, so I think he was just looking for fellow hunters.

 

[beavt]

So this is where I am confused and think filing a FOIA will only reconcile. I grew up with the story that he went missing off of 7. There is a bridge just after the turn to Daly Park and I always thought that was the location. But apparently that is not the case. The area they searched was further south east from there. And actually just yards from Stan Healy family’s driveway. (The place he stated he might sleepover. And also it wasn’t to stay w Stan, it was to stay with Stan’s son, Chuck. They were friends)

Attached are photos of the location a family member took for me this morning 2/1/2024. Obviously keep in mind it was a gravel road back then but really not much has changed. There was a bridge marker added in ‘71. But other than that, I believe it really kind of looked the same. The old Stan Healy farm driveway you can see on the first photo. But it’s pretty desolate, even still today.

Golly gee, I just don’t get the feeling he left the house that morning. A kid the size of an average 10 year old, wearing (probably oversized) parachute boots, riding his sisters bicycle, carrying a rifle, ammunition, lunchbox, dressed in layers, and cycling along a *gravel* road before day break?! What a sad, unwieldy sight that conjures up. Was it also raining? Articles mention heavy swelling of the Maple River due to recent heavy rains. Are you able to map out the route from his house to the Healy driveway? How many miles? A prayer for Dickie Huerkamp, indeed.

 

[Richard]

I grew up in Mapleton, MN and Dickie was a friend of mine. On the evening of Oct. 1st of 1965, Dickie and I were sitting in the Mapleton cafe and Dickie asked me if I wanted to go goose hunting on Sat., but I had prior arrangements that I could not break. Evidently after I spoke to Dickie, he met up with McGregor and Fitzpatrick who were riding in McGregor's car up and down main street in Mapleton. I am assuming that Dickie went to the tavern to inform Mutzie and Winnie of his plans to go goose hunting.That was the last time I had seen Dickie.On Sunday.,Oct.3rd 1965 I was sitting in church when it was announced that Dickie was missing. After church my
brother in law and myself joined the search party south of Mapleton by the Maple river. We walked the corn
field next to the river which had been harvested. The bicycle and items were found in ditch near field approach
on same side.This never made sense to me that Dickie would leave food and shells in the ditch.Being around
Dickie I felt financial resources were limited.I always thought that the bicycle and lunch were planted there
to throw off the search.Why wasn't a phone call made on Saturday night to check on Dickie? I question Winnie driving south of Mapleton when she discovers the bicycle and then immediately has announcements made in churches that Dickie is missing!

From what you say, it seems that the goose hunt was Dickie's idea from the start. If that was the case, he probably had in mind the place he wanted to go. That would likely be the Healy farm, since he knew that family, had permission, and had hunted there previously.

Dickie had a bicycle of his own, which others have mentioned seeing him often ride around in Mapleton. For some reason, on 2 October 1965, his bicycle was not operable (since he reportedly borrowed his sister's bike). Perhaps his need for transportation to the Healy farm was the reason he asked Jerry McGregor (who had a car) to join him? If so, maybe he got in the car with them and had them drive out in daylight to see where the hunt would be.

Dickie arrived at his parents' tavern late that evening with the excuse that he was at the scene of an accident. Where did an accident occur? Was there a police report that listed witnesses? Was the McGregor car involved?

Dickie told his parents of his plans to goose hunt with TWO other boys, as reported in early news articles. The Jim Klobuchar article of 9 March 1966 stated that Dickie had made goose hunting plans with THREE boys and identified them as: Jerry McGregor, Carl Johnson, and Gary Fitzpatrick.

Dickie was to have been picked up at his home by McGregor and Johnson, and they would all then proceed to the Fitzpatrick home by 4:30 am.

Dickie's mother stated that he borrowed an alarm clock to ensure his being up to meet the boys when the arrived. And that he was upset and crying when he awakened late and had missed them. He borrowed his sister Ann's bicycle and headed out with his hunting supplies at about 5am - never to be seen again.

Dickie was highly motivated to go on his planned goose hunt. He wasn't running away from home, and he wasn't going out to commit suicide. He knew where he was going when he rode off on that bicycle, and it wasn't to pedal 15 miles north to Mankato.

The big question is: Where did the other three boys really go that morning? Their story of driving north to Hungry Hollow and then southeast to Minnesota Lake to hunt squirrels instead of geese is one that conveniently avoids the area where Dickie's borrowed bicycle and hunting supplies were found. And where all subsequent searches took place.

 

[Pressureandheat]

My question has always been how do we know Dickie ever made it home that night after getting in trouble at the tavern? His mom’s comment is quoted saying she “gave him a licking” for staying out too long the night before. And while I can see getting grounded, I just find it odd “licking” a sophomore in high school. That’s farm country. Most 15 yr olds were plowing fields and had major responsibilities for livestock, etc. I just don’t see licking a sophomore, I see grounding him from going hunting with his friends… so back to my question, how do we know Dickie ever made it home from the tavern? Also, I have heard from several friends and acquaintances of the family that the dad was the one with the heavy hand that often caused people to wonder about him and Dickie…

 

[Pressureandheat]

I grew up in Mapleton, MN and Dickie was a friend of mine. On the evening of Oct. 1st of 1965, Dickie and I were sitting in the Mapleton cafe and Dickie asked me if I wanted to go goose hunting on Sat., but I had prior arrangements that I could not break. Evidently after I spoke to Dickie, he met up with McGregor and Fitzpatrick who were riding in McGregor's car up and down main street in Mapleton. I am assuming that Dickie went to the tavern to inform Mutzie and Winnie of his plans to go goose hunting.That was the last time I had seen Dickie.On Sunday.,Oct.3rd 1965 I was sitting in church when it was announced that Dickie was missing. After church my
brother in law and myself joined the search party south of Mapleton by the Maple river. We walked the corn
field next to the river which had been harvested. The bicycle and items were found in ditch near field approach
on same side.This never made sense to me that Dickie would leave food and shells in the ditch.Being around
Dickie I felt financial resources were limited.I always thought that the bicycle and lunch were planted there
to throw off the search.Why wasn't a phone call made on Saturday night to check on Dickie? I question Winnie driving south of Mapleton when she discovers the bicycle and then immediately has announcements made in churches that Dickie is missing!

Hiwayman, is the tavern that the family owned/ran the old Windmill on 22 heading north towards Mankato? Is that where the Tavern was? Or was it downtown? I grew up south of Mapleton, going towards Lura Lake & where Dickie went missing. Growing up I always thought his bike was found at the field drive by the river there on 7, but apparently he was closer to the Healy’s farm. I have to say that’s a heck of a ride that early in the morning all the way to out there, don’t you think?

 

[Richard]

My question has always been how do we know Dickie ever made it home that night after getting in trouble at the tavern? His mom’s comment is quoted saying she “gave him a licking” for staying out too long the night before. And while I can see getting grounded, I just find it odd “licking” a sophomore in high school. That’s farm country. Most 15 yr olds were plowing fields and had major responsibilities for livestock, etc. I just don’t see licking a sophomore, I see grounding him from going hunting with his friends… so back to my question, how do we know Dickie ever made it home from the tavern? Also, I have heard from several friends and acquaintances of the family that the dad was the one with the heavy hand that often caused people to wonder about him and Dickie…

The case file should have statements which might resolve your question. If he was out riding with friends, they may have stated where they left him off and when. Dickie's sisters might know more specifics regarding the case.

Dickie was a "townie" rather than a farm kid, so he did not have the responsibilities associated with farming. Although, he may have worked on farms during certain times, such as hay bailing in the summer. He was familiar with farms and farmers in the area. He often hunted on one farm and he had borrowed the shotgun of another farmer.

If Dickie met with foul play at home, then a pretty elaborate cover-up would have followed. Ann's bike, rather than Dickie's own bike would have to be transported and planted where it was found. A lunch would have had to have been made by someone else to be placed with the bike and supplies, and the borrowed shotgun disposed of along with Dickie's body and his hunting clothes. All of this would have had to have been accomplished within hours of Dickie arriving at the tavern. Of course, the whole family would have had to tell the same story to police.

The story about the time Dickie intended to get up and go with his buddies had to mesh with the actual plans of the boys, since they would be interviewed as well. The missing shotgun is a problem - more so if, indeed, the empty case was found with the bike.

IF the whole roadside scene was staged by his parents, consider a couple of possible scenarios which the perpetrators might have wanted police to believe :

- Dickie is riding the borrowed bike (only he would have known his own bike was inoperative) at 5 am in the dark when a predator pulls him over, kidnaps him and his shotgun, and then exits the scene.

- Dickie, the well-organized hunter who plans things out carefully and knows the area, simply dumps the bike, his lunch, gun case, and his shotgun shells at the side of the road and goes off hunting in the dark, accidently falling in the river to drown.

Neither scenario is very likely. At least not as a false coverup story to a murder which might have taken place in the home. Since Dickie's body was never found, those two possible scenarios become even less likely.

It is, however, very likely that the bicycle and hunting supplies were staged in an effort to mislead investigators and misdirect searchers away from the actual scene of Dickie's disappearance or death - probably within a mile of where they were found, in my opinion.

 

[Pressureandheat]

The case file should have statements which might resolve your question. If he was out riding with friends, they may have stated where they left him off and when. Dickie's sisters might know more specifics regarding the case.

Dickie was a "townie" rather than a farm kid, so he did not have the responsibilities associated with farming. Although, he may have worked on farms during certain times, such as hay bailing in the summer. He was familiar with farms and farmers in the area. He often hunted on one farm and he had borrowed the shotgun of another farmer.

If Dickie met with foul play at home, then a pretty elaborate cover-up would have followed. Ann's bike, rather than Dickie's own bike would have to be transported and planted where it was found. A lunch would have had to have been made by someone else to be placed with the bike and supplies, and the borrowed shotgun disposed of along with Dickie's body and his hunting clothes. All of this would have had to have been accomplished within hours of Dickie arriving at the tavern. Of course, the whole family would have had to tell the same story to police.

The story about the time Dickie intended to get up and go with his buddies had to mesh with the actual plans of the boys, since they would be interviewed as well. The missing shotgun is a problem - more so if, indeed, the empty case was found with the bike.

IF the whole roadside scene was staged by his parents, consider a couple of possible scenarios which the perpetrators might have wanted police to believe :

- Dickie is riding the borrowed bike (only he would have known his own bike was inoperative) at 5 am in the dark when a predator pulls him over, kidnaps him and his shotgun, and then exits the scene.

- Dickie, the well-organized hunter who plans things out carefully and knows the area, simply dumps the bike, his lunch, gun case, and his shotgun shells at the side of the road and goes off hunting in the dark, accidently falling in the river to drown.

Neither scenario is very likely. At least not as a false coverup story to a murder which might have taken place in the home. Since Dickie's body was never found, those two possible scenarios become even less likely.

It is, however, very likely that the bicycle and hunting supplies were staged in an effort to mislead investigators and misdirect searchers away from the actual scene of Dickie's disappearance or death - probably within a mile of where they were found, in my opinion.

My comment on the farm country was just that I graduated from there in the 90’s. I had classmates that would leave school early each day to run home life responsibilities by sophomore year. A lot more was expected is what I’m saying. We were def not getting spankings when we screwed up. Grounded but not spankings.

Agree, the case file would def help, as like Hiwayman suggested the timing of the whole thing has always been off. My family was notified during the Church service that Sunday morning. So between 7:13am when the sun came up and 9am church, did his mom call Healy’s to confirm Dickie was there? And then when she learned he wasn’t, drove out there to find him, found the bike, food,
etc, then contacted the police, waited for them to arrive and then some how someone went and contacted both the Catholic and Lutheran congregations before services ended?

At some point a family mentioned Dickies dad was helping with some construction near town. I’ll ask again what the details were of that.

 

[Richard]

... We were def not getting spankings when we screwed up. Grounded but not spankings.

Agree, the case file would def help, as like Hiwayman suggested the timing of the whole thing has always been off. My family was notified during the Church service that Sunday morning. So between 7:13am when the sun came up and 9am church, did his mom call Healy’s to confirm Dickie was there? And then when she learned he wasn’t, drove out there to find him, found the bike, food...

Your point about Dickie's parents "giving him a licking" rather than grounding him for staying out later than expected is well taken.

If they were so concerned about his whereabouts on Friday night that they administered a beating, why would they allow him to go out hunting on Saturday morning? And NOT check up on him intil Sunday morning, after he failed to attend church?

The "timing" you mention (between Dickie's parents looking for him, finding the bike, reporting him missing, and the church congregations being notified, could be significant, but not necessarily so.

Word travels fast in a small community. Especially on a Sunday morning in 1965 when many folks attended church. Since, back then, nothing was open on Sunday except churches, passing the word and mustering a search party at churches was a logical thing to do.

Most of the story sounds pretty straight forward and normal, with a few inconsistencies and hanging questions which need resolution.

 

[mst]

Your point about Dickie's parents "giving him a licking" rather than grounding him for staying out later than expected is well taken.

If they were so concerned about his whereabouts on Friday night that they administered a beating, why would they allow him to go out hunting on Saturday morning? And NOT check up on him intil Sunday morning, after he failed to attend church?

The "timing" you mention (between Dickie's parents looking for him, finding the bike, reporting him missing, and the church congregations being notified, could be significant, but not necessarily so.

Word travels fast in a small community. Especially on a Sunday morning in 1965 when many folks attended church. Since, back then, nothing was open on Sunday except churches, passing the word and mustering a search party at churches was a logical thing to do.

Most of the story sounds pretty straight forward and normal, with a few inconsistencies and hanging questions which need resolution.

So he's late Friday night and gets in trouble for it but then Saturday night they don't even check if he's home?

 

[Richard]

So he's late Friday night and gets in trouble for it but then Saturday night they don't even check if he's home?

Dickie's mother explained that he often spent the night at the Healy home after hunting on their farm, and she assumed that was where he was Saturday night.

She told police that when he wasn't at church the next morning, she started looking for him, finding the bicycle and other items dumped at the side of the road.

I wonder if she expected Dickie to show up at church in his hunting clothes?

 

[hiwayman]

This is my response to pressure and heat, the location that I described of the search party that I was on took place south of Mapleton past Daly park turn off, across Maple river bridge, that's on cty rd 7 going south left hand side of the road.
The Tavern was located on Main street in Mapleton, between Cronen's furniture store and Finnegan's grocery store.

 

[Pressureandheat]

Hiwayman, is the tavern that the family owned/ran the old Windmill on 22 heading north towards Mankato? Is that where the Tavern was? Or was it downtown? I grew up south of Mapleton, going towards Lura Lake & where Dickie went missing. Growing up I always thought his bike was found at the field drive by the river there on 7, but apparently he was closer to the Healy’s farm. I have to say that’s a heck of a ride that early in the morning all the way to out there, don’t you think?

Hiwayman, that makes more sense re the tavern. I didn’t think the Windmill was there yet. Wondering if you heard the same rumors that the dad had major basement work done not long after? I know he worked for Krengl Brothers and had access to major construction equipment as they were digging some ditches nearby. Do you remember which house they lived in at the time?

 

[hiwayman]

Pressureandheat, Huerkamps lived at 207 Silver St S.E. which is the same as Highway 30 that runs thru Mapleton.
In 1967 Mapleton had alot of construction ditches due to the sewer system being installed. Maybe it was at this time
Mutzie worked for Krengels.

 

[Richard]

I grew up in Mapleton, MN and Dickie was a friend of mine. On the evening of Oct. 1st of 1965, Dickie and I were sitting in the Mapleton cafe and Dickie asked me if I wanted to go goose hunting on Sat., but I had prior arrangements that I could not break. Evidently after I spoke to Dickie, he met up with McGregor and Fitzpatrick who were riding in McGregor's car up and down main street in Mapleton. I am assuming that Dickie went to the tavern to inform Mutzie and Winnie of his plans to go goose hunting.That was the last time I had seen Dickie.On Sunday.,Oct.3rd 1965 I was sitting in church when it was announced that Dickie was missing. After church my
brother in law and myself joined the search party south of Mapleton by the Maple river. We walked the corn
field next to the river which had been harvested. The bicycle and items were found in ditch near field approach
on same side.This never made sense to me that Dickie would leave food and shells in the ditch.Being around
Dickie I felt financial resources were limited.I always thought that the bicycle and lunch were planted there
to throw off the search.Why wasn't a phone call made on Saturday night to check on Dickie? I question Winnie driving south of Mapleton when she discovers the bicycle and then immediately has announcements made in churches that Dickie is missing!

If the bicycle, lunch, shells, etc. were planted near the river to mis-direct search efforts, who would have taken the time and risk of placing them there, and why?

Were they planted by a family member and the whole story about Dickie going goose hunting a cover story? If so, it would have involved a lot of detailed planning and knowledge of his past hunting and plans for that specific day. And why wouldn't his own bicycle have been placed there - even if it might have a flat tire or other problem?

It was stated that the river was high due to recent rains. Geese don't usually go into fast moving small rivers. They live mainly on land where they eat grass and grains like corn. They prefer lakes ot ponds with still water to swim in.

It seems that Dickie was rather well organized and had a plan as to when, where, and how to hunt that day. He sought out others to hunt with, and transportation to get there.

If Dickie spoke with Fitzpatrick and McGregor in McGregor's car on Friday evening 1 October 1965 for the purpose of inviting them to goose hunt with him the next morning - and was then late getting to his parents' tavern - it is quite possible that the boys drove out to the intended hunt area to see it in daylight.

If this were the case, then McGregor would have known where to go the next morning, and he (with the other two) could have driven there without Dickie.

Dickie, upon realizing that he missed his ride with friends, did what he had to do to meet up with them and borrowed sister Ann's bicycle. It would be logical for him to pedal to his planned hunt area to goose hunt - with or without his friends.

 

[Richard]

Here are a few questions raised in past posts to this thread:

- What information is contained in the Sheriff's original file?

- What statements were made by Dickie's parents to investigators?

- Were Dickie's sisters questioned at any time regarding his disappearance, and what can they say today?

- Were his hunting buddies questioned in detail, and what statements did they make at the time? What do they have to say today?

- Were photos taken of the bicycle and other items in the position they were found?

- What specific information is available on the shotgun and the shells that Dickie transported to the hunting area?

- Where exactly was the bicycle found, and what specific area was searched?

- Was a detailed report made by, or on, the tracking dog teams' efforts?

- Has any DNA been provided by the family to aid in potential identification efforts?

I have mentioned several times in posts to this thread that the original investigation file probably contains information vital to this case.

The current Sheriff of Blue Earth County told me that he could not locate a record of investigation on Dickie's disappearance in his department files. He suggested that the case might have been transferred to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) at some time in the past.

I spoke with an investigator at the Minnesota BCA and provided him with information on this case. He said that BCA had not previously been tasked with the investigation, and that the Blue Earth County Sheriff's Office should still have jurisdiction - but that he would coordinate closely with them.

Beginning in October 1965, the Blue Earth Sheriff (Muerer), the Mapleton Chief of Police (Moore), and the Pastor (Rev. William Schimek) of St. Teresa Catholic church were each personally involved in the ongoing search for Dickie. A newspaper article written a year later, mentioned that they were still searching. Could it be that one of them had custody of the official file?

 

[Pressureandheat]

Very Interesting… has anyone requested records from the Mapleton police department?

 

[Pressureandheat]

Dickie's mother explained that he often spent the night at the Healy home after hunting on their farm, and she assumed that was where he was Saturday night.

She told police that when he wasn't at church the next morning, she started looking for him, finding the bicycle and other items dumped at the side of the road.

I wonder if she expected Dickie to show up at church in his hunting clothes?

Having just been back to Mapleton I forgot how dark it gets from Mapleton to the area where Dickie went missing… hardly any farms out that way along the route so that early in the morning would have been VERY dark. Also, I’m trying to find old maps to see if County Road 7 was gravel at that time or if it had already been paved….

 

[Richard]

Having just been back to Mapleton I forgot how dark it gets from Mapleton to the area where Dickie went missing… hardly any farms out that way along the route so that early in the morning would have been VERY dark. Also, I’m trying to find old maps to see if County Road 7 was gravel at that time or if it had already been paved….

County Road 7, like most other roads in and around Mapleton changes number and name often, depending where on the road you are. It is basically the same road as main street in Mapleton, and it extends due south to the county line where Blue Earth County ends and Fairibault County begins.

I don't know if it was a paved or gravel road in 1965.

The Stanley Healy farm is at the very end of that road, in Blue Earth County. Dickie's mother stated that the bicycle and items were found at the side of the road BEFORE she got to Healy's farm, but it is not stated in news articles exactly where that was.

Mrs. Huerkamp thought that Dickie MIGHT have spent the night at the Healy home, simply because he had done that on previous occasions (probably in fall of 1964) - NOT because he had specifically stated that he intended to hunt or stay there on 2 October 1965.

Note on the previously posted plat map that there are a few other farms on either side of County Road 7. One of them, which straddles the Maple River, is the McGregor farm - home of one of the three hunters Dickie planned to goose hunt with that morning.

 

[Richard]

Very Interesting… has anyone requested records from the Mapleton police department?

The Mapleton Police Department Chief stated to me that they knew of Dickie's disappearance, but never had jurisdiction in the case, and that it was officially handled by the Blue Earth County Sheriff Office.

However, news articles mention that Chief Moore in 1965 and 1966 was very interested and involved in the search efforts.