USA > Iowa > Jackson County > The history of Jackson County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., biographical sketches of citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion history of the Northwest, history of Iowa miscellaneous matters, &c > Part 47
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Jackson made no attempt to escape arrest, but remained quietly in his own cabin until the officers came for him.
He was indicted by the grand jury. There had been two or three murders in the county unavenged, and the general feeling was that Jackson should be punished. The following men were on the jury: George F. Smith, George Scarborough, Jason Pangborn, William H. Vandeventer, Webster McDowell, M. P. Bennett, Alfred Carpenter, John Benson, Amasa Nims, Joseph Palmer and James Leonard.
The verdict of guilty of murder in the first degree was rendered, and June 16, 1842, the sentence of death was passed upon the prisoner. At that time, the county had no jail, and it was necessary to keep the prisoner under guard. By the carelessness of one of these guards, Jackson very nearly succeeded in making his escape, between the time of sentence and the day set for his execu- tion, and would have done so, had it not been for the timely appearance of Sheriff Warren.
The County Commissioners denied Sheriff Warren the expense necessary in erecting a gallows, and Jackson was hanged from the limb of a tree in the lit- tle valley just below Andrew, on the date above named. A temporary scaffold was placed in a wagon, on which the doomed man took his stand, when, by driving the wagon from under his feet, he was hanged by the neck until dead, in accordance with the sentence of the Court.
A very general sympathy was felt at the last by citizens for the unfortunate man, the belief being almost universal that the murder was not malicious. Yet it was murder in the eyes of the jury, and the guilty man must needs pay the penalty.
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
FATE OF ALEX GRIFFORD.
On the forenoon of March 27, 1857, John Ingle, a citizen of Farmer's Creek Township, mysteriously disappeared. Three days later, the citizens of the neighborhood turned out in search of him, which search resulted in finding the dead body of Ingle a few rods over the line in Brandon Township, on the land of Hiram Hendricks. He had been shot through the head with a rifle-ball.
On the morning of his disappearance, he was at the shop of E. Wilson, in Farmer's Creek, in company with David McDonald, Henry Jarrett and Alex Grifford. He left the shop in company with the latter, who was carrying a gun, while Ingle had an ax on his shoulder. Inside of an hour, Grifford returned alone. Ingle's ax was found lying near him, as though it had fallen when he fell.
Grifford was immediately arrested on suspicion, and the testimony before the Coroner's jury was sufficient to bind him over until the next term of court. He was lodged in the County Jail at Andrew.
About 2 P. M. on April 11, a large crowd of men marched into Andrew in double file and demanded the keys of the jail, which were refused. By means of a sledge in the hands of the determined mob. the doors were soon broken down and the prisoner called upon to come forth, which he did.
Much as mob law is to be deprecated in every age and place, the citizens of Jackson were not without some exasperating circumstances. It was claimed, at that time, that there had been fifteen murders in Jackson County, and only one man had suffered the penalty of the law. At that time, the county had three prisoners awaiting trial for murder, two of them being confined in Clinton County, and there appeared little prospect of the power of the law proving efficient.
The prisoner was taken to an old dak-tree, which is yet standing in the northern part of the town of Andrew. The rope was placed about the doomed man's neck, and he was given an opportunity to confess. The poor wretch, hoping to receive a reprieve by his testimony, confessed to the murder of Ingle, stating that he had been offered $150 by Jarrett and McDonald if he would put Ingle out of the way. Jarrett had been in the crowd a few minutes before, but when Grifford confessed, he was nowhere to be seen.
After his confession, a move was made by some to have him remanded to jail, but the cry came out, " Hang him ! if he is guilty ! Hang him !" And the captain of the mob called his men to the rope, whereupon the murderer was launched into eternity.
Jarrett was subsequently arrested and placed in the Scott County Jail. but, we believe, never met punishment for the crime, if he was guilty.
VIGILANCE COMMITTEE.
That there was an organized band of men at that day in the county, deter- mined that crime should not go unpunished, is evidenced by the following, which we quote from the Jackson Sentinel of May 21, 1857 : -
IRON HILL, lowa, May 9, 1857.
MR. SWIOART:
Sir-Will you be so kind as to give the inclosed declarations and resolves of the Vigilance Committee a corner of your paper in your next issue. They were handed me to take to you per- sonally, but as I am unable to do so at present, 1 send them by the hand of Mr. Brewster.
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
Perhaps you might wish to know how strong this Committee is. So far as I can learn, there are between three hundred and four hundred who belong to it in this county.
Yours, &c., J. K. LANDIS, P. M.
[After the declarations. ]
" We, therefore, The representatives of the people of Jackson County, in Committee assembled, appealing to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the wish of the good people of Jackson County, solemnly publish and proclaim the following resolutions :
" Resolved, That we, the Jackson County Vigilance Committee, are determined that the crim- inal law of this State shall he enforced in this county to the very letter.
" Resolved, That the present executive and judicial of this county had better resign their offices and leave their seats to more worthy occupants. If they do not, they must run the risk of the consequences.
" Resolved, That in every criminal case now and hereafter pending before the tribunals of this county, we, the Vigilance Committee of Jackson County, will thoroughly investigate and watch with a critical eye the proceedings of our officers.
" Resolved, That the wrong-honored offices, whose names we do not choose to mention here, shall never have another office at the gift of the people of this county ; but we will let them go a duck-hunting.
" Resolved, That whereas, it is the duty of certain county officers to investigate the circum- stances and the facts concerning the murder of John Ingle, and, ere this to have taken steps to secure, in the proper way, the person of David McDonald, until he could be tried according to law. we, the Vigilance Committee openly declare that they must take the proper steps; and. also, openly publish a reward, with a full and exact description, so as to secure that person. If not, we will look after him ourselves, and, if needs be, after them, too.
" Resolved, That we will, when we find that our proper officers neglect it, spare no pains. either of time. life or property, in the investigation of all counterfeiting of moneys, in all horse- thieving and in all murders committed in this county. We also will be governed by the penal code of this State as far as is convenient.
" Resolved, That we. the Vigilance Committee of Jackson County, State of Iowa, hereby inform all persons in office or out of it, that they must not commence process of any kind against any of those who helped to hang Alex Grifford, for we believe that he should have been hanged long before he did.
" Resolved, That we will avenge the unjust death of any one of this Committee, at the cost of life or property.
" Resolved, That we will punish with death any person or persons joining this Committee, whom we find has been or is concerned in any horse-stealing, counterfeiting, robbing or murder- ing, and it appears that he is in as a spy.
" Resolved, That these proceedings be published in the Maquoketa Sentinel.
The next act of this so-called Vigilance Committee may be learned from the story of the
BARGER MURDER AND LYNCHING.
In 1851, there were living in Jackson County, with a small family of chil- dren, a Mr. and Mrs. Barger. During this year, Barger himself went to Cali- fornia, leaving his wife and children at his old home, expecting to make his fortune out there and return. After an absence of nearly three years, he returned.
For some cause, after his return, he and his wife did not get along peace- ably. Barger was jealous of her, without cause it is believed, and mistreated her in various ways. In the District Court at the summer term, 1854. she procured a divorce from Barger, giving her the custody of her children.
At this time, she was staying at the house of Mr. Kirkpatrick, who, if we are correctly informed, was a minister, and who lived in Bellevue. Barger went under the cover of night, in September, 1854, to Bellevue, and entered a lot opposite Kirkpatrick's house, which was inclosed by a high close-board fence. Through this fence, with his jack-knife, he cut a hole large enough to put his rifle through, which he had with him. The first hole not being in the right position, he cut a second ; and waiting until his wife appeared at the door in the morning, deliberately shot her, killing her instantly. He dropped his gun
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HISTORY OF . JACKSON COUNTY.
and ran, but was seen by Mr. Kirkpatrick. Previous to this time, an informa- tion had been filed against him because he had threatened to kill his wife, and, after the murder, some of the county officials were pretty severely censured that they had not taken some measures to prevent such. a tragedy.
Barger had several trials in court. On the last one previous to his death, in which he was found guilty of murder, a juryman made affidavit that he had formed an opinion, in consequence of which a new trial was granted, and a change of venue was taken to Clinton County. Barger was confined in the Clinton County Jail, in De Witt. This was in May, 1857, or nearly three years after the crime had been committed. On the 28th of the last-named month, a body of armed men, composed of about fifty persons, in broad daylight, in wagons and on horseback, started for the De Witt Jail. They arrived there without warning of their coming, and, withont diffi- culty, secured from the jailer the keys which confined Barger, and one named Carrol, who was in prison on charge of murder, but had not yet been brought to trial. These were taken to Andrew.
The people of Jackson County had become exasperated at the technicality and artificiality of law which had kept a man at the expense of the county three years, and then with a fair prospect of a final escape. They determined once more to take the law into their own hands, or rather to ignore the existence of law.
Barger was brought to the same tree on which Grifford had been hanged, and was asked if he had anything to say why he should not suffer for the crime of which he was guilty. He produced a letter addressed to his attorney, W. E. Leffingwell, which was read to the audience. It contained no positive denial of his guilt, but was a torrent of abuse against most of those who had been witnesses for the prosecution, and a villification of his dead wife.
After the letter had been read, a handkerchief was tied over the prisoner's eyes, his hands pinioned, the rope adjusted and passed over the limb, when all who could find room to take hold assisted in drawing the guilty and unfortunate wretch into the air.
It was then pleaded by some of the more law-abiding citizens, in behalf of Carrol. that he had never been brought to trial. Whereupon, it was put to vote whether he should be hanged or handed over to the Andrew jailer, to await trial at the next term of the District Court. The latter received the almost unanimous vote of the mob, and he was lodged in jail, whence a youth confined some seven months for stealing a watch, was taken and counseled to leave the county immediately, which he lost no time in doing.
THE CRONK MURDER TRIAL.
No murder trial upon the court dockets of Jackson County occasioned a greater excitement than that of Samuel P. Watkins for the murder of Samuel S. Cronk.
The circumstances of the crime were such as to throw the detectives, for a time, entirely astray, and the numerous arrests and suspicions in regard to the supposed authors of the crime, before the real criminal was brought to trial, had enlisted in the affair such a general interest as to make the impaneling of a jury almost an impossibility, and most of three days were occupied in com- pleting the panel. The circumstances, as developed during this trial, were, in brief, as follows :
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
In the trial of a defaulting County Clerk, in January, 1867, it became nec- essary one afternoon to serve an immediate subpoena from Andrew, the county seat, upon a number of witnesses, in various parts of the county. Sheriff Bel- den was under the necessity of appointing a number of Special Deputies to serve warrants, and, among others, selected S. P. Cronk, a young farmer about twenty-two years of age, to serve some papers in the town of Lamotte, some eleven miles north of Andrew. Cronk set out upon his mission late in the afternoon of January 22, on horseback, and when he had reached the village of Cottonville, some seven miles from Andrew, on his route, he stopped awhile and had some conversation with a number of young acquaintances who were there, and was pressed by them to remain and attend a party to be held there that evening, or in that vicinity. He at first declined, pleading his errand to Lamotte. His friends, however, persuaded him to stay for the party, and pro- ceed to Lamotte after the affair was over. He consented, went to the dance and left Cottonville for Lamotte, served his warrant and remained all night in the latter village.
The next day, he stopped again in Cottonville, and called at different stores and shops. Here he met young Watkins again, whom he had met on the night previous and frequently before, with whom he had been in the army. Watkins invited him to go with him and spend the afternoon at the house of one Nelson, southeast of Cottonville, about two and one-half miles, where there were two young girls with whom both young men were acquainted. They were persuaded to stay for tea, and left Nelson's about 8.30 or 9 o'clock. Cronk had his horse with him, while Watkins was on foot. They left Nelson's walk- ing together and leading the horse, as both would go over the same road for perhaps one and one-half miles.
The next morning, Cronk's dead body was found at the corner where it was supposed they would separate. The body was a few rods from the road- side. The ground being covered with snow, there were tracks of two or three men near it. and the pants had been stripped from the body, which was left behind a rise of ground and partly covered by a couple of rails. The horse could not be discovered, nor was he heard of from any direction. Watkins was questioned. He said that he and Cronk had walked along together about half a mile, and then Cronk mounted his horse, while he (Watkins) had taken a short cut across the fields, which path was then in use, and had reached his home, at the house of one Bucklin, about 9.30 o'clock. However, by the tes- timony of other parties, he had been met on the highway, near Cottonville, about 11 o'clock that same night; and, on account of the discrepancy in the. matter of time, he was arrested, but was soon released, there being no testi- mony against him.
The absence of the horse of the murdered man gave credence to the opin- ion that the murder was committed by some highwayman, and that the horse had been ridden out of the country. Considerable time was spent by the authorities in an attempt to trace up such a criminal.
Nothing of much consequence was accomplished in ferreting out the guilty parties until the following April. On the 6th day of this month a neighbor found the carcass of Cronk's horse in a piece of timber within one-half mile of the scene of murder, and within a few hundred yards of Cottonville. The horse was tied to a sapling, both by hitching-strap and rein, and had actually starved to death. The tree was eaten almost to the core by the miserable beast. And here let us remark the heartlessness that would leave a dumb creature to such a wretched death, is surely capable of almost any crime on the catalogue of
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
possibilities. On the carcass of the horse was Sheriff Belden's saddle and bridle, and near by the hat of the murdered man. The announcement of the whereabouts of the horse excited quite visibly the man Watkins, and he was heard to remark, " I am sorry ! I am sorry !" He was immediately re-arrested. Then every effort was made to clear up the case. The tracks as they had been observed in the snow on the morning following the murder, were one link in the chain of evidence. A piece of an iron clevis was found near where the body had been left. A search in a pile of brush after a rabbit revealed the pants of the dead man, just across the road from where the horse was discovered. The pocket-book was picked up in another quarter. The examination of the wounds of the murdered man had been very superficial, and the wounds consisted chiefly in fractures of the skull of peculiar shape. The body was exhumed. Another examination was made. The piece of clevis, which had some hairs attached to it when found, fitted perfectly into the wounds in the skull of the victim. The examining physician stated there was not one chance in a million that the wounds could have been made except by that or a similar instrument. It was discovered that balls of snow had been noticed upon the heels of the corpse when found, and that Cronk's mittens were in his overcoat pocket as he always car- ried them while walking, while it was his invariable habit to ride with his hands covered in winter-time. It further occurred to the detectives that a man mur- dered with a piece of clevis must have been on foot, as he would not be attacked with so short a weapon on horseback. A detective found the other fragment of the clevis in a tool-box in the barn of John B. Bucklin, where Watkins lived. Bncklin and one Nelson were arrested on suspicion as accomplices. It was known at the time of the murder that Cronk had sold some land a short time previous, and was supposed to have considerable money. A small amount had been paid him in Cottonville on the day of the tragedy, to carry to Andrew. Watkins was known to have no money the day before Cronk was killed, and it was proved that, within a week after that time, he had three different $10 bills changed. When called upon to account for this, he contradicted himself, nor were his statements corroborated by the parties from whom he claimed to have obtained the money. A network of circumstances was woven about Watkins, to which there was but one explanation, viz .: That he and his confed- erates had laid a plan to murder Cronk ; that Watkins had taken him to Nel- son's to spend the afternoon and evening so as to suit their plans; that they had walked together until they came to a place of separation, when Cronk was knocked down and killed by Watson or his accomplices ; that they had secreted the horse, in the hopes that they might afterward take him away and dispose of him, which they feared subsequently to attempt.
The trial took place before Judge J. Scott Richman, in Andrew, beginning December 16, 1867, or eleven months after the tragedy. The counsel for the prisoner were Messrs. William Graham, D. A. Wynkoop and C. M. Dunbar. The Prosecuting Attorney, Lyman A. Ellis, was assisted by Judge J. S. Dar- ling. The case was conducted on both sides with much ability. The trial con- cluded December 24, 1867. The jury, after being out one night and one day, returned the following verdict :
" We, the jury, find the defendant guilty of murder of the first degree, and we find him guilty upon the first count of the indictment."
Watkins was sentenced to be hanged February 21, 1868.
An extension of time was granted until April 17, 1868. In the mean time. Bucklin and Nelson, who had been arrested as his accomplices, took a change of venue to Clinton County, and were acquitted. mainly because the county
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
management discouraged the Prosecuting Attorney in the expense of summon- ing so many witnesses. Watkins having been convicted upon the theory of a conspiracy, and that conspiracy failing to be proven in the case of his accom- plices, these facts were made the grounds for a motion for a new trial, which was granted.
Re-action from the intense excitement followed, as usual, and, on the part of the public, followed a supreme indifference as to the result. It was thought that if Watkins were tried again he would be cleared, and the county would be put to a great and useless expense. The prosecution was dropped.
After his release, Watkins went to Clinton for a time, and clerked in a hardware store. He afterward removed to Monona County, and went to farm- ing. He hired a young man to work for him with a team owned by the employe's mother. A short time after, the boy's body was found, in a man- gled condition, and Watkins had disappeared. He sold the team in Council Bluffs. After a long search, he was arrested, tried, convicted and sentenced to the State Penitentiary for life. He is now confined at Fort Madison, where he will probably spend his remaining days.
The caprice of what may be called public sentiment was never more forcibly illustrated than in the case of this trial, as may be shown by contrasting the ferocity of feeling manifested before the conviction and the supreme indifference perceptible after the release of the prisoners.
Not long after the three men were arrested and confined in the jail at Andrew, on one evening a mob of several hundred men assembled at the county seat with the avowed purpose of lynching the prisoners. The preparations were coolly made. Nine o'clock the following morning was set for the execu- tion. The jail was a miserable structure, and could not be defended by the Sheriff. The latter was shadowed by members of the mob. The town was picketed on every side, to prevent a messenger being sent away for assistance. In his conduct in this matter, Sheriff Belden displayed remarkable shrewdness and coolness. He managed, in the very early morning, to have a few moments' conversation with a bright young lad of the village, who was accustomed to go out after his mother's cow. He told him to go to the livery stable and get a certain horse ; to take him out bareback, mount, and ride leisurely out of town in search of his cow, until he passed the pickets, when he should ride on a ‹lead-run to Maquoketa, where the Deputy Sheriff was, and instruct the latter to proceed to Andrew with all the citizens who would come, and ordered the livery-men to furnish every possible conveyance. While most of the mob were at breakfast, Sheriff Belden, with several orderly citizens, removed the three fated prisoners to the second story of the Court House, which was reached only by a long and narrow stairway. This was barricaded at the top, and could easily be defended by a few. The mob was at bay. The leader finally asked for a conference. It was had. The pretense of the mob was that they feared the prisoners would be rescued, or allowed to escape before they were brought to trial. The Sheriff gave the crowd every assurance possible that they would be secure, and declared his intention to take them that same day to Dubuque, and place them there in the best jail in the State. By this time, the citizens of Maquoketa began to assemble. The mob sullenly submitted. The prisoners were taken to Dubuque that day.
Strange to say, these same men, in less than a year, favored the release of Watkins, to save the expenses of another trial, and the prisoners were after- ward at large without danger in this county.
Nathaniel Butterworth
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HISTORY OF JACKSON COUNTY.
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A LEAD EXPLORATION IN 1834.
The incident that we are about to give records, probably, the first explora- tion party which ever crossed Jackson County. We give it in the words of Capt. W. A. Warren, of Bellevue, who formed one of the party. Capt. Warren says :
"In February, 1834, an excitement was created in Dubuque upon the arrival of four Winnebago Indians, who showed specimens of minerals which they represented they had obtained from the other side of the Big Bear, on the Maquoketa River, a distance of some thirty miles southwest from Dubuque. This region no one at Dubuque had ever penetrated. Nothing was known of the lay of the country, and, so far as miners had ventured, leads had been dis- covered, and the supposition was that the whole country abounded in ricli lead- mines. Mr. Gy Morrison, who could speak the Winnebago language, soon bargained with the Indians to show us this region of country. A blanket for each, some tobacco, powder, a few trinkets, with some calico, was the price paid for the forthcoming information. It was soon arranged and settled who the lucky party should be, who should make the first advent into this new mining region.
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