A Shadow of Doubt

Inspired by the 1843 Changewater NJ Murders and Trials

As the story is told, once upon a moonless night in May of 1843, the Castner-Parke family were brutally murdered by the hand of an unknown assailant. John B. Parke, a wealthy farmer, his sister, Marie Parke-Castner, her husband John Castner and their infant daughter Mattie, all perished that dark night. No evidence of the murderer or a murder weapon were ever discovered. There were no witnesses to the crime though a young hired hand and the two young Castner boys, asleep in the house, survived. In the aftermath, a community sought vengeance, fueled by the fiery words of their Minister and spiritual leader and became a witch hunt for justice at any cost.