MEMORABILIA — On display at the Jefferson County Historical Association museum in Steubenville are items once belonging to former Jefferson County Sheriff William “Bee” A. Huscroft and donated by his grandson’s family. Among items is a knife used in a 1914 stabbing and murder in Steubenville. -- Christopher Dacanay

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — While preparing to sell their home and going through some old keepsakes, James and Jan Krueger ended up uncovering some interesting family history and a long-forgotten case of murder in the Ohio Valley.

From handcuffs to a foldable knife, the items once stored in the Kruegers’ attic tell the story of a close relative who held a position of authority in Jefferson County in the early 1900s, as well as another story of passionate revenge on New Year’s Day

The Kruegers donated the items this year to the Jefferson County Historical Association Museum, 426 Franklin Ave., Steubenville, where they’ll hopefully provide an insight into local law enforcement and crime from more than 100 years ago.

Family history

The Kruegers, as well as their daughter Jill Krueger, reside in Santa Cruz. James Krueger is the grandson of William “Bee” A. Huscroft, who served as Jefferson County’s sheriff from 1911 until 1916. Huscroft was a florist in Steubenville and eventually became the county’s sheriff while still a young man, James Krueger recalled.

After leaving office, Huscroft moved with his wife, Wilda Phrania Huscroft, and their five children to Orange, Calif. Among those children was James Krueger’s mother, Martha Eddington Huscroft, who was often teased about being “born in the jail” due to her father’s occupation. The other children were Wilda, Anne, William “Bill” and Chauncey.

James Krueger himself remembers how, in the 1950s his grandfather stayed with his family while his wife, a nurse, traveled back to Steubenville to care for her mother. The Huscrofts reunited when Wilda Huscroft’s mother died, and eventually the pair passed on themselves.

“He was a great guy, had a good sense of humor,” Krueger said of his late grandfather.

Krueger became the “curator” of his grandfather’s belongings as other relatives died and the possessions changed hands. There they remained in the Kruegers’ attic until Jill Krueger was helping them clear the house ahead of its sale.

Jill Krueger recalled finding an old file folder containing an assortment of items from when William Huscroft was sheriff. Among items were handcuffs without a key, various receipts, police batons, a campaign advertisement for Huscroft’s sheriff bid in the May 21, 1912, Republican primary and a list of 22 rules for the Jefferson County jail, containing such stipulations as “Visitors shall not spit upon the floors or corridors of the prison, nor shall any profane or indecent language be used by any officer, prisoner or visitor while within the prison walls.”

Most curious of the items was a dingy Marble’s safety knife, wrapped in a sheriff’s office envelope on which is written: “Knife which Asa Zacour used in killing of and stabbing of his wife on New Years night 1914.”

Upon seeing the weapon, Jill Krueger recalled, “I remembered vaguely dad talking about this knife when we were kids. Maybe a couple of times I’d heard him talk about it with my grandmother, so it kind of sparked that childhood memory, and I approached my dad with it and said, ‘Hey, look what I found, and do you know much about this knife or why great-grandpa would have kept it?'”

James Krueger said it seems logical Huscroft, being the sheriff, would have the knife for evidentiary purposes but added that he’d “never heard anything” about any murder associated with it.

Jill Krueger still ponders: “What was it about that knife or that particular situation that caused him to keep it?”

Regardless, the Kruegers reached out to the Jefferson County Historical Association in May to donate the items, figuring they’d be better suited where others could look at them rather than being stowed away. While on a road trip with her husband to visit his family, Jill Krueger dropped off the items in Steubenville and had “such a fun day, just to see the town of Steubenville where grandma was born and learn a bit more about the Huscroft side of the family.”

***Mystery uncovered***

The knife’s mystery led to some further research by the historical association, recalled Joan McGlone, secretary and treasurer of the association’s board of directors. Four newspaper articles were located, describing the fateful events surrounding the unassuming weapon.

According to the articles, 35-year-old Asa Zacour had been following his wife and 40-year-old Richard Daoub across three states for more than a year. Identified as a “Syrian peddler” and “well-to-do rug dealer,” Zacour and his wife lived in Amsterdam after immigrating to the U.S. While there they met Daoub, a fellow “Syrian peddler” who is said to have “persuaded Mrs. Zacour to elope with him.”

Zacour followed the two until Jan. 1, 1914, when they settled in Steubenville’s former female seminary building on South High Street, which had become tenement housing. He then allegedly stabbed Daoub with a “long knife,” and when the wife ran into the room to see the men fighting, Zacour screamed, “I am going to kill you too” and allegedly did so before neighbors arrived and he fled, presumably toward Wheeling.

Daoub died on the scene from the multiple stab wounds inflicted on his torso. Also stabbed, the wife was found unconscious at the scene, but her recovery was deemed “very doubtful.”

McGlone said research has not turned up any information as to a trial for Zacour.

***A new home***

Regarding handling the knife, McGlone said it was her first time holding a weapon used to kill someone. The knife and other items are now being displayed in the museum, along with other local law enforcement memorabilia, she said, with the paper items receiving new frames.

Those who wish to see the items can visit the museum Wednesday or Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., or they can schedule a group tour by calling (740) 283-1133.

The Kruegers said they believe Huscroft’s items are now in the right place, where they can be appreciated. The whole endeavor has even sparked new interest in genealogy for Jill Krueger, who has since looked through another file and found a multi-page family tree tracing the Huscroft family’s roots back to England, from which the family emigrated during the American Revolution.

Although Zacour’s fate may never see a proper ending, Sheriff Huscroft’s possessions do make for a great tale, thanks to the Kruegers who wanted to share his story and preserve that snippet of Jefferson County and Steubenville history.