Marshall and Patterson, Lexington Herald-Leader, January 16, 1911

Body of One Mob Victim Missing in Shelbyville

Jim West is Not Thought to Have Escaped– Best Citizens of the Town Insist That Courts Investigate the Lynching of Sunday in Which Three Met Death at Hands of Twenty Armed and Masked Men– All Were Negroes And Had Attacked Women– Unknown Gang Overpowers Jailer and Drag the Helpless Prisoners to Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Bridge Where They Are Strung Up– Rope Breaks as Two Swing From Its Ends

Shelbyville, Ky., Jan. 16– A two day’s search for Jim West, the two days’ search for Jim West, the third Negro taken from jail by a mob Sunday morning when a triple lynching occurred here, has failed to reveal any trace of his body.

Bloody trails were found in the creek bottom. Some were made by Wade Patterson, while is believed the others were made by West.

It is not believed that West made his escape, and the searchers expect to find his dead body at some spot not far from the scene of the lynching.

So far no action has been taken by the courts to investigate the lynching, though the best citizens insist that something must be done. They say the mob was made up of hoodlums.

Associated Press Story

Shelbyville, Ky., Jan. 16– All is quiet here today following the lynching yesterday or negroes Eugene Marshall, Wade Patterson and Jim West. It is believed that in the excitement the mob mistook Marshall, accused of murdering a negro woman, for another negro. That they wanted Patterson and West, charged with crimes against white women, is well known.

The grand jury, which will meet next Monday and which was to have taken up the cases of two of the beveled who were lynched, will instead investigate the lynching. West and Patterson were being held pending a probably indictment. Marshall had already been tried and sentenced to death.

Story of Lynching

Shelbyville, Ky., Jan. 16– A mob of masked men, variously estimated from forty to sixty, forced their way into the jail here shortly after 2 o’clock Sunday morning and carried out three Negroes, shooting one to death, hanging another and completely spiriting the third away to burn him at the stake, some reports have it.

One body, that of Eugene Marshall, was found dangling at the end of a twelve-foot rope, suspended from the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad bridge at 7 o’clock Sunday morning, while the other, that of Wade Patterson, was dragged from Clay creek, near the same bridge. A bullet wound in his head and numerous contusions and bruises indicated the rough handling to which the Negro had been subjected before he met his death.

That Patterson had attempted to escape from the mob is indicated by several facts discovered during the day by Coroner Bullock. The third man, James West, and the man said to be the main one wanted by the mob, has not been seen or heard of since he was led away from the jail, securely bound, while half a dozen men surrounded him.

Clay creek, the stream into which the body of Patterson was either thrown or dropped by the breaking of the hangman’s rope, was searched all during yesterday in the hole of also dragging up West’s corpse. At midnight, when the weary searchers gave up the job, the body had not been discovered.

The masked mob did its work quietly, but apparently after making careful arrangements. The first known of it was at 2:10 o’clock, when Ernest Hornback, a deputy jailer, who had not retired, heard the tramp of many feet near the jail. A friend, William Tracy, was with him.

A moment later there was a knock on the door of the jailer’s residence. It was answered by Mr. Hornback. He had scarcely opened the door when he found himself looking into the muzzles of a half score of revolvers.

“We want the keys to this dump,” said a gruff voice.

Mr. Hornback says he slammed the door and called loudly to the jailer, Edward Thompson, who was sleeping in another room. Mr. Thompson took the cue, and seizing the keys, gave hurried instructions to his deputy, and ran to another room, hiding himself in a closet, this course being taken to save the keys from the mob.

“Jailer Thompson has the keys and he has gone,” Deputy Hornback told them.

“All right, boys,” said the spokesman, “we will not waste time– get busy.”

Instantly, according to Deputy Hornback, a score of men, armed with picks and heavy sledge hammers, pushed their way to the inner door of the jail and assaulted the great locks. The resounding blows, said the deputy, were almost deafening. In a jiffy seventeen prisoners held in the jail were awakened. Some of them possibly realizing what was about to happen, began to shout loudly for help. Their entreaties, however, were drowned by the din of blows on the iron bars and locks.

The attack on the jail stronghold began at 2:10 and it was 3:45 o’clock this morning before all four locks protecting the poor wretches gave way.

“I looked at my watch just after the guard placed over me released me and trailed after the crowd having the Negroes in charge. It was a long and nervous-racking strain for me,” continued Mr. Hornback. “While the men offered no violence to me, they several times told me I must be good or I would follow with the Negroes. Of course I told them I would be good as I saw no sense in resistance further than I had already shown.

“After the mob broke through all the locks, secured their men and came down, I saw the three boys I had been keeping guard over led past me by the masked crowd. The boys were making no resistance whatever, but they were trembling in abject terror.

“After the three were marched out of the jail and were well on their way down Washington street,” continued Mr. Hornback, “the men who had been holding me said:

“‘’Now, old man, we will leave the jail to you— watch out that the other boys we left don’t get out, because I expect the locks up there are in bad shape.’

“With that,” said Mr. Hornback, “the men filed out and followed the crowd. It was then that I looked over at my watch. I then went over the house in search of Jailer Thompson. He heard me call to him and he came out of a closet in the front room. He had the two bunches of jail keys.”

The first shot and those some believe meant the death-knell of Jim West, were heard two or three minutes after the mob left the jail. It is the theory of some that these shots were fired at West after he had made an attempt to escape as the aggregation was crossing the Eminence pike bridge, three hundred yards from the jail.

Ten minutes later the night stillness was broken by a fusillade of shots, followed a second later by desultory cracks of revolvers apparently some distance from the bridge to which Eugene Marshall’s body was found dangling this morning.

The body of Wade Patterson was found in the section from which the noise of the fusillade came, and it is thought that he, too, escaped from his captors and made a dash for liberty. The rumor, though not vouched for, about Shelbyville today is to the effect that Patterson came near making good his escape: that he begged piteously for a time, as he looked upon the execution of Marshall, and that when he realized that all hope was gone, he fought for his life and broke away.

This theory is borne out by the statement of J.A. Wright, who lived near the bridge. He was awakened by the firing of the first volley. Mr. Wright said that while he could see nothing he could hear the low murmur of many voices.

“While listening and wondering what was going on,” said Mr. Wright. “I heard the voice of apparently half a dozen men simultaneously, shouting:

“‘Catch him! Catch him!’ Then I saw the vivid flash of shots. I could hear the men running and could see the flashes of the guns.

“At last stillness came again, save now and then a voice. Finally the noises died away altogether and all was as quiet as a graveyard.”

(Continued From Page One)

This story bears out the theory that Wade Patterson was shot by the men as he fled. A track, as if a body had been dragged across a vacant lot to the bridge on Seventh street, and a pool of blood found on that bridge, which is over the same creek which is spanned by the C & O bridge, also bears out the story of Mr. Wright and the general rumor.

Some believe that even after being shot to death Patterson was hanged to the girders of the bridge, but that the rope, a piece of which was found today hanging from a girder; was too small to hold the body, and that Patterson’s corpse, his head shot through and badly beaten, fell into the water, where it was left by the blood thirsty mob. Patterson’s body was found in about five feet of water, a few yards down stream from the bridge.

The rope with which Marshall was hanged was what is known as a three-quarter inch rope. The Negro was dropped at least twelve feet. His back was broken and his head almost torn from his body. 

Coroner Bullock was notified of the grewsome find at an early hour, and he lost no time in having the negro’s body cut down. The Coroner, knowing that two others had been taken from the jail, at once set about locating the other bodies. Men with drags began work, but it was last 8 am before the corrode of Patterson was dragged to the shore.

Marshall murdered his negro mistress, Mary Waking, in 1905, almost severing her head. Her body was found several hours after the crime. The case went to the Court of Appeals on a motion for a new trial. This motion is still pending.

West was charged with detaining Bunna Coley, fourteen-year-old daughter of B.F. Coley, a gardener, near Shelbyville. This crime was committed the later part of last year. He was held to the grand jury by the Examining Court, and was taken to Louisville for safekeeping, but was returned to Shelbyville a week ago.

Wade Patterson is alleged to have assaulted Mrs. N. Rubin and her daughter, Miss Bessie, in December last as they were returning to their home from a school entertainment. He is said to have thrown his arms about Miss Rubin, and that when her mother screamed he struck her a stinging blow in the face and escaped. He had been held to the grand jury and had been brought to Louisville. He was recaptured here several days ago.

Two other lynching cases in this county were those of William Lighter, who was mobbed about 50 years ago, near Clay Village, and Jimbo Fields and Clarence Fields, sons of Omer Fields, colored, who were mobbed on Wednesday morning, October 2, 1901, for the murder of a printer, William C. Hart, of Cincinnati.

The sudden darkness over the town was planned by the mob. Engineer John Suter, at the power house, declared he was forced at the point of a pistol to stop his engines as engines as well as switch off the current supplying the electric street lights.

No attempt to call help could be made from the jail while the mob was busy at the execution of the prisoners, all telephone wires leading from that institution as well as from the home of Jailer Thompson adjoining were cut while the Deputy looked on helpless.

While no demonstration toward any of the negro residents of the town occurred today, excitement was high in the colored colony. Trains and cars leaving during the day carried a large number, anxious to escape even the possibility of a race riot.

Sunday’s occurrence adds to an already formidable array of lynchings here during the last 10 years. In six previous affairs none has ever been convicted of participation in the work of mobs.

Only two policemen were in the night watch. They were Patrolmen B.F. Bennett and Harry Gaines, while Constable Buck Fawkes was with them at police headquarters. These men, according to their statements, heard nothing of the approach of the mob, but first had their attention called to the fact that something was wrong when they heard heavy blows on the doors of the jail.

“We drew our revolvers,” said Patrolman Bennett, “and started toward the jail. We did not get far, however, for as we were passing the Courthouse several men hailed us. They pointed pistols at us and told us we had no business down there at the jail. We at once realized what was up. There were a lot of them and we knew it was useless to resist. They ordered us to return to headquarters, and then followed close at our heels to make sure that we did so.

“About the time we got back to headquarters the lights went out all over the city. The men did not leave us after ordering us to the station, but stood guard to see that we gave no alarm.

“All the while we could hear the pounding of hammers down at the jail. It was a long time before we were permitted to go upstairs, and that was after three or four shots had been fired.

“I am of the opinion,” continued Patrolman Bennett, “that the shots were signals for them to release us, as they left immediately after.”

What Gov. Willson Says

Frankfort, Ky., Jan. 16– “There’s no use for a physician to prescribe for a patient after he’s dead,” said Governor Willson Sunday night, when asked what course he would take relative to the lynching of the three Negroes at Shelbyville this morning. “If the matter comes up officially then I’ll take notice of it; otherwise I don’t know what I’ll do. There’s no use to cross a bridge until you reach it.”