Helen Clevenger


Helen Clevenger was an American college student murdered in Asheville, North Carolina on July 16, 1936.

Early life and education

Clevenger graduated from Tottenville High School and continued her education at New York University, planning to follow her father as a chemist.

Death and aftermath

Helen Clevenger was in Asheville, North Carolina visiting her uncle, W.L. Clevenger, a professor at North Carolina State College. In the early morning hours of July 16, 1936, she was beaten and fatally shot in her room at the Battery Park Hotel.
The local police interviewed many witnesses and possible suspects in the killing before finally arresting hotel hallboy Martin Moore. Moore claimed that he was beaten by detectives into giving a written confession when he was really innocent. Moore was executed in the gas chamber in Raleigh, North Carolina on December 11, 1936.
It is said that Helen Clevenger haunts where she was killed, the Battery Park Hotel, now Battery Park Apartments.