American aviation and military officer Charles Lindbergh made history on May 20, 1927, when he departed for his first solo flight as a pilot across the Atlantic.
Less than five years later, on March 1, 1932, tragedy struck his family when his 20-month-old baby, Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr. was abducted from his New Jersey home with a $50,000 ransom note left behind.
The kidnapping and impending trial garnered substantial media attention.
At the time the search for the 20-month-old baby ensued, there were many ransom notes received, up until the accidental finding of Lindbergh, Jr.’s remains.
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., son of historic aviator Charles Lindbergh, was kidnapped on March 1, 1932. (Getty Images I NY Daily News via Getty Images)
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- When was Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr. kidnapped?
- Did they ever find Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr.?
- What happened at the trial for the Lindbergh kidnapping?
1. When was Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr. kidnapped?
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr. was kidnapped on March 1, 1932, when he was just 20 months old.
The Lindbergh baby was abducted from his nursery on the second floor of the family’s home near Hopewell, New Jersey, around 9:00 p.m., according to FBI.gov.
About an hour after he went missing, the baby’s nurse, Betty Grow, alerted his parents, the famous aviator Lindbergh and his wife Anne Morrow, that the 20-month-old was missing.
There was very little evidence in the room where the baby was abducted from, apart from a ransom note on the window sill that demanded $50,000.
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The New Jersey State Police began investigating the high-profile case, which went on for many months. Numerous ransom notes followed on the heels of the first.
A search of the crime scene did not reveal any incriminating evidence. Indistinguishable muddy footprints and two sections of a ladder used to reach the second floor window that were broken were found at the scene.
When the baby was abducted from the Lindbergh home, he was 20 months old. (BIPS/Getty Images)
No fingerprints were uncovered, according to FBI.gov.
On March 6, 1932, a second ransom note was received, postmarked from Brooklyn, New York, according to the Library of Congress. This ransom note increased the demanded amount to $70,000.
Soon after the retrieval of a third ransom note, Lindbergh appointed Dr. John F. Condon, a retired Bronx school teacher, to act as an intermediary between himself and the kidnapper.
Around March 10, 1932, Condon possessed the $70,000 in ransom money and began negotiations for payment through newspaper columns under the code name “Jafsie,” according to FBI.gov.
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Condon followed detailed directions to meet with the alleged kidnapper who went by the name “John.”
On March 16, along with the seventh ransom note received, Condon was delivered a sleeping suit belonging to Lindbergh, Jr., according to FBI.gov.
On April 2, 1932, Condon received two more ransom notes, the 11th and 12th, leading him to meet with “John” for the final time. During this meeting, $50,000 was paid in exchange for the safe return of Lindbergh, Jr.
Condon was given a 13th note that detailed the location of the kidnapped child, who was allegedly being held on a boat named “Nellie” near Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, according to FBI.gov.
A search for the baby began around Martha’s Vineyard, but the boat was not found.
2. Did they ever find Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr.?
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr. was found, but not because the ransom note led investigators to his location.
On May 12, 1932, the badly decomposed body of Lindbergh, Jr. was accidentally stumbled upon by a truck driver about four and a half miles away from the family’s home, according to FBI.gov.
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A blow to the head was determined the cause of death after the coroner’s examination, according to FBI.gov, with the 20-month-old baby having been dead for around two months by the time he was found.
The body of the Lindbergh baby was found badly decomposed on May 12, 1932. (Getty Images)
3. What happened at the trial for the Lindbergh kidnapping?
After finding the body, the New Jersey police issued a $25,000 reward for those who had valuable information regarding the case, according to the Library of Congress.
In 1933, the FBI gained jurisdiction over the case, per the source, and nearly a year passed before any discoveries connected to the murder were made.
An executive order passed which required all gold and gold certificates to be returned to the treasury. This proved helpful to the case, as much of the ransom money paid was in gold certificates.
Additionally, the New York City Bureau Office provided copies of a revised pamphlet that comprised serial numbers of ransom bills to employees handling currency in places including banks, grocery stores and gas stations, according to FBI.gov.
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The reporting of gold certificates eventually led to the arrest of a German-born carpenter named Bruno Richard Hauptmann.
A gas station attendant was suspicious of a $10 gold certificate used as payment and wrote down the license plate number belonging to the man who used it, according to FBI.gov.
After that, Hauptmann’s house went under surveillance by the authorities, according to FBI.gov, and on the night of Sept. 18, 1934, a man was spotted who fit the description of “John,” as provided by Condon and the description of the man who purchased the gasoline with the $10 gold certificate.
Bruno Richard Hauptmann was found guilty of Charles Lindbergh, Jr.’s murder and sentenced to death. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
When Hauptmann was arrested, he admitted to having made several purchases with ransom certificates and his residence was searched. There were ransom certificates valuing over $13,000 found in his garage, according to FBI.gov. During his defense, Hauptmann claimed the money was being held for a friend who had died, according to Britannica.
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Hauptmann was indicted on charges of extortion on Sept. 29, 1934, in Brox County, New York, and on Oct. 8, 1934, for murder in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, according to FBI.gov.
The trial, which has been called “The Trial of the Century,” began on January 2, 1935, in Flemington, New Jersey.
The wood of the ladder used in the kidnapping matched wood in Hauptmann’s attic flooring, the phone number of Condon found in a closet door frame in his residence and handwriting samples were used as evidence against Hauptmann.
The trial came to a close on Feb. 13, 1935, with the jury finding Hauptmann guilty of murder in the first degree following 11 hours of deliberation.
Hauptmann was sentenced to death and, after unsuccessful appeals, was electrocuted on April 3, 1936.
This case led to the passage of the Federal Kidnapping Act in 1932, also known as Lindbergh Law, which made kidnapping a federal offense and allowed FBI involvement in kidnappings where victims were taken across state lines.
