Zeeland: The Untold Story of Wade and Ellen Zick

Dakota Spotlight | True Crime Podcast by James Wolner
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On July 11, 1976, Wade and Ellen Zick were murdered in their home in the small farming town of Zeeland, North Dakota. The crime stunned the quiet community and set off a search for answers that would ripple through the town for decades. In this season of Dakota Spotlight, host James Wolner revisits the Zeeland murders through interviews with family members, community residents, law enforcement, and even the perpetrators themselves. Through careful reporting and firsthand accounts, Zeeland explores how a violent crime can fracture a close knit rural community and how the truth behind a small town murder slowly emerges over time.

Season 1

  1. EPISODE 1

    A Deed Without a Name - The 1976 Zeeland Murders in North Dakota

    On July 11, 1976, Wade and Ellen Zick were murdered in their home in Zeeland, North Dakota, leaving the small town reeling. Episode 1, A Deed Without a Name, begins the investigation into this shocking crime. Chapters include Sunday Morning Sidewalks, Unmade Beds, and Search Party, recounting the first clues that emerged after the murders. Through eyewitness accounts, law enforcement records, and interviews with community members, Zeeland examines a true crime story that continues to haunt rural North Dakota. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    49 min

  2. EPISODE 2

    No Banker Tomorrow - A Small Town Searches for Answers

    As the investigation into the deaths of Wade and Ellen Zick unfolds, the small town of Zeeland, North Dakota struggles to understand how such violence could reach their close knit community. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, telephones ring across rural party lines as neighbors exchange information and investigators begin following the first real leads. Piece by piece, the town begins to realize the murders may be closer to home than anyone first imagined. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    47 min

  3. EPISODE 3

    Z is for Zick - Reconstructing the Night of the Murders

    Investigators and residents begin retracing the final hours surrounding the murders of Wade and Ellen Zick as the events of July 11, 1976 slowly come into focus in Zeeland, North Dakota. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, witness accounts and early investigative efforts reveal the confusion, fear, and shock that spread through the community as daylight exposed the brutal crime inside the Zick home. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    51 min

  4. EPISODE 4

    Pink Slip - Rumors and Suspicions in the Zeeland Murder Investigation

    The search for answers deepens as investigators pursue new leads in the murders of Wade and Ellen Zick in Zeeland, North Dakota. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, quiet conversations across the small town give way to rumors, shifting suspicions, and growing tension as residents try to understand how the crime happened and who might be responsible. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    43 min

  5. EPISODE 5

    Caramel Rolls - Silence and Secrets in a Small Town

    As the weeks pass, the people of Zeeland continue to wrestle with grief, uncertainty, and the unsettling possibility that someone in the community may know more than they are saying. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, everyday conversations begin revealing hidden tensions and unspoken truths as loyalties are quietly tested in the aftermath of the murders of Wade and Ellen Zick. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    49 min

  6. EPISODE 6

    Flip a Coin - Inside the Zeeland Murder Investigation

    The investigation into the Zeeland murders takes new turns as additional personalities and unexpected conversations begin shaping the direction of the case. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, interviews, jailhouse discussions, and surprising revelations reveal the complicated human dynamics behind the killings of Wade and Ellen Zick in Zeeland, North Dakota. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    47 min

  7. EPISODE 7

    Crossing the Street - Lives Changed by the Zeeland Murders

    Years after the murders of Wade and Ellen Zick, the people connected to the case continue to live with the consequences of that night in Zeeland, North Dakota. In this episode of Zeeland from the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, families confront grief, difficult memories, and the lasting impact the crime had on a small rural community. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    44 min

  8. EPISODE 8

    Sebastian Speaks Out - A Prison Interview About the Zeeland Murders

    In the final episode of Zeeland, a season of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, Sebastian Feist speaks by telephone from federal prison and reflects on the crime that shocked the town of Zeeland, North Dakota. After decades of silence, he discusses his time in the community, the events surrounding the murders of Wade and Ellen Zick, and his perspective on why the killings happened. Music by Peter Hicks - performed by Sleepy Driver: ⁠https://sleepydriver.bandcamp.com/⁠ “To God be the Glory” sung by the Sunday School kids at St Peter’s Church, Chaffee, North Dakota Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    39 min

  9. SEASON 1 TRAILER

    Trailer - The Zeeland Murders of Wade and Ellen Zick

    The murders of Wade and Ellen Zick in Zeeland, North Dakota shocked the small farming community in the summer of 1976. In this trailer for Zeeland, a season of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast, host James Wolner introduces the story behind one of North Dakota’s most haunting murder cases. Through interviews with community members, investigators, and even the perpetrators, the series explores what happened that night and how the crime continues to echo through the town decades later. Zeeland is part of the Dakota Spotlight true crime podcast series created by investigative journalist James Wolner. Support Dakota Spotlight Get episodes early and ad-free with Spotlight PLUS https://dakotaspotlight.com/spotlight-plus Explore more Dakota Spotlight investigations https://dakotaspotlight.com Contact: dakotaspotlight@gmail.com Dakota Spotlight is produced by Six Horse Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    3 min

Trailer

About

On July 11, 1976, Wade and Ellen Zick were murdered in their home in the small farming town of Zeeland, North Dakota. The crime stunned the quiet community and set off a search for answers that would ripple through the town for decades. In this season of Dakota Spotlight, host James Wolner revisits the Zeeland murders through interviews with family members, community residents, law enforcement, and even the perpetrators themselves. Through careful reporting and firsthand accounts, Zeeland explores how a violent crime can fracture a close knit rural community and how the truth behind a small town murder slowly emerges over time.

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