Deputy Clerk Dexter Goad admitted firing the second shot at Floyd, striking him in the pelvis. Published in the SW VA Enterprise, Wytheville, Virginia Tuesday, July 4, 1939. Mr. Allen stood and declared, "Gentlemen, I ain't a goin'." Others were captured. I just can't bear to see anyone drug around."[13]. He borrowed a .38 automatic from another cousin, Church Alderman. There are even questions as to what happened here. Another younger brother, Sidna, was a successful businessman who had prospected for gold in Alaska, operated a store, owned a considerable amount of land and built a lovely Queen Anne-style home in Fancy Gap, and yet he was accused of being a counterfeiter who barely avoided jail time even though one of his associates was sent up the river. I like how youre reading books about where you live. The announcement of that sentence set off a gun battle that became one of the worst incidences of violence ever to occur in an American courtroom. Another of those events that have passed into history. Late in the day March 13, the jury had not reached a verdict, so Judge Massie sent them to the nearby Thornton Hotel for the night. Mt. The police of 1912 were not exactly professional. A fight ensued and Floyd beat Samuels with his own pistol. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court (2011) Plot Showing all 1 items Jump to: Summaries (1) Summaries On the cold Spring morning of March 14th, 1912 shots rang out inside the tiny mountain courtroom. Other members of the family received long sentences. Such an interesting, but tragic, history, Jeff! He proved to be right. But the documents do bring humanity to a story often told through tintype pictures, brittle newspaper clippings, hazy memories and fables passed down through generations. B. Earle, 1866-1867. Eventually, Carroll County deputies Thomas Pink Samuels and Peter Easter nabbed the brothers in North Carolina, shackled them and loaded them on a wagon for the long ride up the mountain, passing by Sidna Allens home and store in Fancy Gap where they were met by none other than a hot-tempered Floyd Allen, who was angered that his kinfolk were hog-tied in a wagon like livestock being carted to market. [22], The prosecution attempted to show that Floyd and Claud Allen prompted the gun battle by standing and pulling their pistols and opening fire. As the late Roanoke writer and broadcaster Seth Williamson wrote in The Roanoker magazine in 1982, the Allen men were not a race of mild country squires.. As the smoke cleared the sheriff, judge, and the common wealth attorney all lay dead. Floyd Allens case had been continued a couple of times before he finally appeared in court for a two-day trial that started on March 12, 1912. On the cold spring morning of March 14, 1912, shots rang out in the tiny, rural, mountain town of Hillsville, Virginia. "[1] Not long afterward, Allen shot and wounded Combs, and was indicted and tried on charges of assault. The house back in 1911 was worth 13,000.00 and was said to be the most beautiful house in South-West Virginia. [26] Though wounded by four bullets himself, Goad recovered. View Map and Driving Directions Phone: (276) 728-2594 The end result was three people deadthe judge, the Commonwealth Attorney and the sheriff. The men were gunned down during one of the most notorious events in Southwest Virginia history. Photo courtesy Carroll County Historical Society and Museum Howard Gilmer was a young attorney and protege of Judge Thornton Massie, who cradled the dying judge during his last moments in the courtroom. Carroll County Clerk of Circuit Court Gerald Goad opened the formal transfer of the papers from Wythe County in the very room where the shootout occurred - a circle completed some 100 years, nine months and six days since traveling to Wythe County. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court - Actors and actresses. The last two bullets were fired by Floyd and went through two of the steps of one of the courthouse's stairways, where they can still be viewed today. actually, theres a lot to read and learn even in a rural place. In the confusion there was a lot of shooting. Later, the Thomas boy and others scrapped with the Edwards boys outside a church service, with the Edwards brothers getting the best of their rivals. Accounts differ as to who actually fired the first shot. Airy). And forensic science was almost non-existent, at least in rural areas. "Saw Claude Allen Fire First At Judge Massie". Allen also had political run-ins with Foster, who switched parties from Democrat to Republican in order to defeat an Allen relative for the prosecutors post. When it was over the judge and the sheriff laid dead. [8], In 1910, Sidna Allen was tried in the United States court at Greensboro, North Carolina for making twenty-dollar counterfeit coins. The Allens could be a rough bunch, who fought with and shot at enemies which they had no shortage of, apparently and even each other. One local historian interviewed by Williamson for The Roanoker magazine in 1982 stated unequivocally that Claude Allen, Floyds son, fired first. [5] Floyd's body bore the scars of thirteen bullet wounds, five of them inflicted in quarrels with his own family. Horney told Sadler he decided to take one more look in the basement for the lost documents, moving more than 700 boxes. Those documents include indictments, judges instructions, grand jury indictments, trial transcripts, letters and other courtroom exhibits all words left by ghosts. [34] He also said he went to Blankenship's Livery Stable after the incident, where he met other family members and left Hillsville with Claud Allen, Wesley Edwards, and Sidna Edwards. In April 1926, Governor Harry Flood Byrd pardoned Sidna Allen and Wesley Edwards. He worked for the Edison Lighting Company. Judge Massie, Sheriff Webb, Commonwealth's Attorney Foster, and the jury foreman (Augustus C. Fowler), were all hit and died of their wounds sustained in the crossfire. Such tampering hindered the ability to link bullets to the guns fire or the direction from which they came. Terribly tragic. Contents 1 Early life and activities 2 Arrest of the Edwards brothers 3 Indictment 4 Trial and shooting 5 Manhunt Floyd, with a concealed pistol, began to shoot, but only after the mayhem began. A second shot entered the back about four inches lower, while a third shot cut the sheriff across the chin. Most likely, someone had intentionally hidden the drawer to keep people from pawing through and perhaps removing the papers. Who fired their pistol first? Hillsville Courthouse. Massie, Foster, Webb and juror Augustus Fowler died in the courtroom. Some later turned themselves in. Seems like everybody from Carroll County has some connection to this story. There is still question as to what happened and who shot first. Floyd even paid their bail. He only picked up Victors gun when he left it in the hotel room on the morning of March 14th. The was never a barber shop in this Mayberry, however. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. He pointed toward what appeared to Sadler to be a metal file. The sheriff in Hillsville had the boys arrested there and handed over to his deputies at the state line. [24], Yet another lawyer who witnessed the shooting, W. A. Daugherty of Pikeville, stated that several young men were standing on court benches at the back of the room firing their pistols "like Custer's cavalrymen at the Little Big Horn". The home is owned by Bert and Marlene Widener, who offer tours by appointment. No autopsies were performed. "[4], Judge Jackson recalled a trial in 1904 in which Allen was convicted of assaulting a neighbor, Noah Combs. S. E. Gardner, a Hillsville undertaker who prepared the body of Sheriff Webb for burial, testified that the Sheriff was shot no less than five times. Floyd Allen jury member, John W. Farris, remarked that they wouldnt be back until they were brought back. Theres Fosters handwriting and then you realize that within five or six minutes, he was dead. Floyd Allen was well represented by a two-attorney team. "[26], County Treasurer J. A stolen kiss. Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [2] The federal court in Greensboro found him not guilty, while Sidna's alleged accomplice, Preston Dickens, was found guilty and sentenced to serve five years in federal prison. Upon conviction of interfering with an officer of the law, Judge Thornton Massie oversaw the jurys imposed sentence of one year imprisonment. [36], For their roles in the shooting, Floyd and Claud were sentenced to death by electrocution. [2] Samuels again pulled his gun on Floyd. - In 1912, the Carroll County courtroom was some 20 feet shorter than it is today. The last and fifth shot went into the calf of the leg and when his trousers were removed, a .32 caliber bullet was discovered. An Allen or a member of the court? Features three historians (two that have written books about the incident)and their interpretations of the events that led up to the shooting and the consequences. WALTERBORO, S.C. ( WCSC /Gray News) - Attorneys in the Alex Murdaugh murder trial are expected to deliver their closing arguments beginning Wednesday after jurors visited the scene of the killings . - Claude Allen did not take a gun when he went to Hillsville To Floyds trial. [citation needed]. Sidna was released from prison, but he never set foot in his fine house again. Sadler looked at Fosters cursive handwriting of Floyd Allens conviction and understood the documents gravity. [26] He also testified that he saw the crowd come out of the court house, and recognized Floyd and Sidna Allen as the last to leave, both of them following and firing as they backed out, apparently in response to fire coming from within the courthouse. Gerald Goad, Carroll County Clerk of the Circuit Court, engineered the transfer of the documents from Wytheville to Hillsville. The play was still occasionally performed before the pandemic. To this day, 110 years later, nobody who has studied this notorious event can say with any assurance who fired that catastrophic first shot. Explore the latest videos from hashtags: #truckspottinginthe717 . [29] Marshall then related that Sidna Allen's bullet buried itself in the window about six inches above his head. I bet there are lots of tales about Rochester, NY and the surrounding area that would make good reads as well. Howard, I believe thats what youve been looking for, Horney said. 11218 The Roanoker - Hillsville Massacre Industrial Survey - Carroll County (NOTE a 1929 publication) Media The Carroll News The definitive history, Mr. Ron Halls Carroll County Courthouse Tragedy is still published and is available at the Museum bookstore. At least two of the participants, Judge Massie and Sheriff Webb, had told friends that they expected trouble. For example, Betty Ayers, who was killed in the courthouse tragedy, was a 4th cousin to Dexter Goad (clerk of court), 4th cousin, twice removed, from Woodson Quesenberry (deputy clerk), 2nd cousin, twice removed, from Floyd Allens wife and a 3rd cousin to the Edwards brothers, Wesley and Sidna. Allen and several members of his family immediately fled the courtroom but were later captured and convicted of murder. [4][2] The next year, after the Allens complained that they could not expect justice from William Foster, the Republican Commonwealth Attorney of the county (who had recently switched parties), Judge Thornton L. Massie appointed both Floyd and H.C. as police officers for the New River section of the county. You can also see some of Sidna Allens furniture craftsmanship and Claude Allens banjo on exhibit in the museum. Most beautiful house in South-West Virginia to be the most notorious events Southwest. 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