Harry Powers

Harry F. Powers
1920 mugshot
Born	Harm (Herman) Drenth (1892-11-17)November 17, 1892 Beerta, Groningen, Netherlands
Died	March 18, 1932(1932-03-18) (aged 39) West Virginia State Penitentiary, Moundsville, West Virginia, U.S.
Cause of death	Execution by hanging
Other names	John Schroeder Joseph Gildow Cornelius Orvin Pierson A.R. Weaver
Criminal status	Executed
Spouse	Luella Strother
Parent(s)	Wilko Drenth Jantje Woltjer
Conviction(s)	First degree murder
Criminal penalty	Death
Details
Victims	5+2 not proven
Span of crimes	June – July 1931 (known)
Country	United States
State(s)	West Virginia, possibly others

Harry F. Powers (born Harm Drenth; November 17, 1892 – March 18, 1932) was a Dutch-born American serial killer who was hung in Moundsville, West Virginia.

Powers lured his victims through "lonely hearts" advertisements, claiming he was looking for love, but ultimately murdering them for their money. Davis Grubb's 1953 novel The Night of the Hunter and its 1955 film adaptation and 1991 TV adaptation were based on these crimes, with Preacher Harry Powell being the character inspired by Powers.^[1] Preacher was played by Robert Mitchum in the 1955 film and by Richard Chamberlain in the 1991 TV movie. Jayne Anne Phillips's novel Quiet Dell (2013) examined the Powers case anew.