What happened in July 1937
The documented timeline, from the night of July 22 through the coroner’s finding, with every claim traced to its source.
Coconino County, Arizona · July 1937
The case Flagstaff kept in the drawer
In July 1937, one of Flagstaff’s most prominent families was lost in a single night, at the mother’s hand. Susan Johnson’s book is the first full account of the Walkup case: reconstructed from the record, told with care, and honest about what can never be known.
The History Press · True Crime series, 2021Reconstructed from the record · newspapers, court documents, interviewsArizona Daily Sun · the author writes the weekly Flagstaff History column
About the Book
History, not spectacle
From the publisher: In the summer of 1937, the mountain town of Flagstaff emerged from the Great Depression with an eye toward the future. Few people were better positioned for success than JD Walkup, a handsome young mover and shaker who served as chairman of the board of supervisors and a happily married father of four. But JD’s life changed forever one cool summer evening when his wife, Marie, and their children were found dead. The murders shook the town to its core, along with the disturbing knowledge that Marie was the culprit.
Readers consistently note the same two things about this book: how much Flagstaff context it carries, and how carefully it refuses to guess where the record is silent. That is by design. The family at its center deserves nothing less.
| Title | Flagstaff’s Walkup Family Murders |
|---|---|
| Subtitle | A Shocking 1937 Tragedy |
| Author | Susan Johnson |
| Publisher | The History Press |
| Series | True Crime |
| Published | September 27, 2021 |
| Pages | 112 |
| Paperback ISBN | 978-1467147156 |
| Paperback price | $21.99 |
| Also available | Hardcover, Kindle, Google Play, library ebook |
On This Site
The record, in the open
Six names, remembered
Marie, JD, Daniel, Rose Marie, John, and Elizabeth. A memorial register, kept plainly.
Flagstaff in 1937
The lumber town coming out of the Depression, and why this case shook it the way it did.
Sources and archives
Where the 1937 record lives today, and how to read it yourself: newspapers, memorials, microfilm.
Get the Book
The full account
Hardcover
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About the Author
Susan Johnson is a Flagstaff, Arizona author, historian, and paranormal researcher: author of Haunted Flagstaff, Wicked Flagstaff, and Flagstaff’s Walkup Family Murders from The History Press, curator of the weekly Flagstaff History column in the Arizona Daily Sun, and co-founder of Freaky Foot Tours.
Visit susanjohnson.org