This is Part 3 of 3. You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

In 1907, Superior sister Mary Janina vanished after going into the basement to retrieve some artificial flowers. It didn’t appear as if she left on her own since she had taken no belongings.

While Father Andrew visited Detroit for clues, local authorities in Isadore searched for Sister Mary. They searched local lakes and ponds for Sister Mary. Father Andrew returned from Detroit with no answers. He offered a $500 reward for anyone with information about Sister Mary.

Rumors spread throughout Isadore. One was she had stolen from the church and fled while another was that a drunk had murdered her. A local paper dismissed the rumor about her stealing church funds. The church acknowledged it wasn’t missing any funds.

A large group of volunteers searched the woods for Sister Mary. Antrim County Sheriff Bill Kettle brought in his bloodhound Tom, who experienced much success in past searches. Once Tom received the scent, he ran to the church basement. He was brought back to the starting point several times, but continued to enter the church basement. The sheriff discounted Tom’s findings because searchers had already searched the basement.

Sisters Angelina and Josephine moved away in fear of becoming victims of a maniac. In September, another large group scoured the forest for Sister Mary. Again, no one found anything. Authorities believed Sister Mary was deceased.

In the meantime, more rumors developed. One was that Sister Mary fled after she became pregnant by either Father Andrew or Doctor Fralick. Rumors about the missing nun sleeping with Father Andrew damaged his reputation. He transferred to another parish. Stella Lipczynska, the former church housekeeper also left in 1910 after her daughter Mary married a farmer. Stella joined her daughter and son-in-law and moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

In 1914, Father Andrew moved to St. Joseph’s Church in Manistee, Michigan. Stella left Milwaukee and became Father Andrew’s housekeeper again. Father Leo, who succeeded Father Andrew only lasted three years. He warned the incoming Father Edward about Sister Mary’s disappearance. Father Leo said he was told Sister Mary was buried underneath the church.

So how did this rumor begin?

It appears a priest had violated the ultimate trust between a parishioner and priest. Sister Mary’s killer confessed in the confession booth to a priest. The information spread through the grapevine and made it to the Milwaukee Mother Superior who later sent it to the Mother Superior in Detroit.

A nun in Isadore shared the information with Father Edward. He had been told by at least two different people about Sister Mary’s demise. After Father Edward and church officer Jacob Flees recovered the remains of Sister Mary and her unborn child, they reburied the remains in the church cemetery. Father Edward and Flees agreed to keep their findings a secret.

Sister Mary’s burial could have concluded with Father Edward and Flees, but it didn’t. The priest couldn’t keep a secret. He confided in Martha Miller, his housekeeper. Martha then told her father, who told Leelanau County Sheriff John Kinnucan. 

Sheriff Kinnucan and his deputies visited the cemetery with Jacob Flees and recovered Sister Mary’s remains. After receiving Sister Mary’s bones, Dr. Fralick ruled the death a homicide. He determined someone had fractured Sister Mary’s skull and buried her alive.

The investigation led authorities to the Catholic diocese who then led them to Father Andrew and his housekeeper Stella. The church asked the sheriff to keep Sister Mary’s pregnancy a secret. Although the sheriff agreed to keep the secret, it’s difficult to keep such a scandalous detail from the public.

Sheriff Kinnucan soon had arrest warrants for Father Andrew and Stella. He thought one of the two killed Sister Mary. The priest could have killed her to keep the nun’s pregnancy a secret. Witnesses told Sheriff Kinnucan Stella had killed the nun.

She was known to be cruel to Sister Mary and had previously assaulted her. It wasn’t a secret that Stella despised Sister Mary. First, the sheriff interviewed Father Andrew. He was forthcoming with information. Sheriff Kinnucan ruled him out as a suspect. He then focused on Stella who denied harming Sister Mary.

Although witnesses claimed Stella assaulted the dead nun, Stella claimed she would never strike a nun. The sheriff arrested her and placed her in a Traverse City jail cell. Father Andrew posted most of her bail and hired an attorney to represent Stella.

The sheriff interviewed Sisters Angelina and Josephine who were terrified of Stella. They confirmed Sister Mary also feared Stella. The two sisters said Stella despised Sister Mary for unknown reasons.

Stella’s freedom was short as the court revoked her bail. She waited in jail for the upcoming trial. While incarcerated, Mary Tylicka, a female detective went undercover and was placed with Stella to get a confession. According to Tylicka, Stella had gone to Father Nowak, a Milwaukee priest, and confessed to killing Sister Mary.

Stella followed Sister Mary into the basement and then beat her to death with a spade. She then buried the body afterward and placed boards over the burial site. The prosecutor told the jury how Stella confessed to Father Nowak, who was deceased when the trial started.

Courtroom testimony was dramatic. Doctor Fralick and another doctor opened the box that held Sister Mary’s remains and re-assembled her skeleton like a jigsaw puzzle. They even reassembled the remains of the fetus. They captured the jury’s attention.

One doctor even held the skull within a few feet of Stella’s face. She didn’t even wince at Sister Mary’s skull. The doctors testified that Sister Mary bled to death from blows to her skull. She died a slow and painful death.

The prosecutor then called detective Tylicka to the stand. She told the jury how Stella confessed to killing Sister Mary with a spade and then burying the body. She said Stella confessed to Father Nowak because she sought absolution for killing Sister Mary. Stella claimed Tylicka had beaten her into confessing. A claim Tylicka denied.

On October 25, 1919 a jury convicted Stella Lipczynska of killing Sister Mary Janina. A judge sentenced her to a life sentence at the Detroit House of Correction. Stella, however, only served seven years. Governor Alex Groesbeck pardoned her before leaving office. Stella died in 1961 at 92.

Today, people still discuss this case. For instance, true crime aficionados wonder who fathered Sister Mary’s baby or if the father participated in the homicide. It’s believed either Doctor Fralick or Father Andrew was the father. Ironically, Sister Mary’s remains disappeared. No one knows what happened to them. Also, why did Stella kill Sister Mary? And why did she harbor such hate for the beloved nun? Like Sister Mary’s remains, those questions will forever remain unknown.

Marc is a longtime resident of Clermont County and avid reader. He can be contacted through his website at www.themarcabe.com, through Facebook: www.facebook.com/themarcabe or his Twitter account @themarcabe. And be sure to listen to his podcast at www.spreaker.com/show/the-marcabe.