John Allen

John Allen, an employee of the Demoine House hotel described by contemporary newspapers as “peaceable,” was shot in the head and killed instantly on a Des Moines sidewalk in front of Ensign's Livery Stable on July 8, 1864. Private John McRoberts, a 26-year-old Union soldier on furlough from the 10th Iowa Volunteer Infantry, had been drunk and looking for a fight; witnesses in broad daylight saw him hail Allen, who stopped, then moved on — at which point McRoberts drew his pistol and shot him without provocation. McRoberts was arrested and indicted by a grand jury for murder, but according to an 1898 county history, he “was never placed on trial” and was instead quietly released and sent back to his regiment, which shipped out for Georgia less than a month later. McRoberts survived the Civil War, married, and lived the rest of his life free, dying in Idaho in 1908.

Des Moines, IA · Polk County

• 1864: Case opens — victim reported missing or found.
• Documented milestones (renewed investigation, media coverage, family advocacy) to be added as sourced.
• Present: case remains unresolved. No named suspect has been convicted.

• Victim identity, occupation, and the July 8, 1864 date and circumstances, per contemporary newspaper accounts and an 1898 county history.
• The identity of the shooter, John McRoberts, who was arrested and indicted but never tried, per the same sources.

• Little else is known about John Allen's life, including his birth year or burial place.
• The exact circumstances of McRoberts's release from custody were not fully documented in surviving records.

• Iowa Unsolved Murders: Historic Cases — case summary by Nancy Bowers
• Project Cold Case
• Murder Accountability Project
• NamUs