[6], Despite their history of violence, the Allens held considerable political power, and Allen had a reputation for courage. Many accounts claim that Allen initiated the confrontation by pulling a gun in court. The courtroom buzzed. Mob violence, the court. Otherwise, he would not have been armed. The museum has extensive archive and reference materials in its resource section, as well as exhibits and artifacts that reflect the heritage of Carroll County. Both, Walter Scott Tipton and David Winton Bolen, were retired Carroll County judges. There it was, the script of a doomed man, written in the final minutes of his life. Baldwin-Felts detectives traveled to Des Moines, arrested the suspects, and returned them to Carroll County to stand trial. The Stories podcast uses the following music as its opening and closing themes: I Have Often Told You Stories (guitar instrumental) by Ivan Chew (c) copyright 2013 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Then he found the original Floyd Allen indictment that bore William Fosters final written words. He asked her if she was hurt or mashed and her sister-in-law responded that she was just scared. According to local legend, a headstone placed atop their graves read: Sacred to the memory of Claude S. Allen and his father, who was judicially murdered in the Va. Penitentiary March 28 1913 by order of the Governor of the State over the protest of 100,000 citizens of the state of Va.. Past month; Great transaction. Much of the information was gleaned from Halls book, The Carroll County Courthouse Tragedy, and other sources. Floyd, wounded too badly in the hip, thigh and knee to leave town, instead spent the night in the Elliott Hotel accompanied by his eldest son, Victor, who was later acquitted of involvement in the shootout. He pointed toward what appeared to Sadler to be a metal file. All men were pardoned by Gov. Floyd Allen was born in 1856 and spent much of his life living in Cana, Virginia, located below Fancy Gap Mountain in Carroll County. After several months' chase, Baldwin-Felts detectives located them in Iowa after an informant's tip. The sheriff in Hillsville had the boys arrested there and handed over to his deputies at the state line. [citation needed], A Carroll County deputy sheriff, Thomas Samuels, and his driver, Peter Easter, traveled in Easter's four-seater buggy to the state line and received the brothers from Sheriff Haynes and Deputy Oscar Monday, who had arrested the brothers at work. The judge hopes that since the normal court opening time is 9 a.m. the Allen case can be dispensed with rapidly and the normal caseload handled in due time. Governor Mann, who had received death threats in the same handwriting as the threats previously delivered to the trial judge, had to cut short a trip to Pennsylvania after learning his Lieutenant Governor, James Taylor Ellyson (18471919), had attempted to commute the Allens' sentences in his absence, instigating a brief constitutional power struggle between the two men. 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. More than fifty bullets were later recovered from the shooting scene. Most of the Allens and their cohorts escaped initially, but an emergency call to Virginia Gov. Charges eventually were dropped against Sidna and Barnett before the trial.). In March 1912, there was a shooting at the Carroll County, Courthouse in Hillsville, Virginia. While the one Allens name is Floyd, there is also a town of Floyd and Floyd County to the north of Carroll County. While there, Wesley kissed a girl who was romantically linked to a local youth, Will Thomas, which led to an altercation between the two young men. 2023 TheTVDB.com, A Whip Media Company. After years of being privately owned, Sidna Allens house was given to the Carroll County Historical Society in 2014 by siblings Stanley Widener and Bonnie Wood, whose mother, Marlene, often opened the house to the public for tours. One local historian interviewed by Williamson for The Roanoker magazine in 1982 stated unequivocally that Claude Allen, Floyds son, fired first. And the storys controversies, conspiracies, debates over justice and moral lessons have long outlived the verdicts and punishments that sought to settle matters more than a century ago. Burden "Byrd" Marion, a cousin and neighbor, had all charges against him dropped. On March 14, 1912, Floyd stood in the Hillsville, Va. courthouse, convicted of interfering with police business and assaulting a deputy sheriff. He was called Pink because of a birthmark on his cheek. The home is owned by Bert and Marlene Widener, who offer tours by appointment. He wept freely as the verdict was read. [1], In his testimony at his murder trial, Floyd Allen admitted he had fired at Deputy Clerk Quesinberry and again twice more at other unknown persons once he had left the courthouse.[28]. As the smoke cleared the sheriff, judge, and the common wealth attorney all lay dead. Friel Allen gave himself up to detectives in the company of his father, Jack Allen, who worried his son might be killed while being apprehended. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court 7,494 views Jan 8, 2011 42 Dislike Share Save Bill Perrine 320 subscribers A brief trailer for the upcoming documentary about the 1912 Hillsville. Sidna Edwards pleaded guilty in August 1912 to second-degree murder, and was sentenced to 15 years in the penitentiary. He worked for the Edison Lighting Company. No autopsies were performed. [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. The Allens were unreconstructed Democrats, the county fathers were mildly progressive, albeit still conservative, Republicans. [6] Governor Mann refused a request to commute the death sentences to life imprisonment, and Floyd Allen was electrocuted on March 28, 1913, at 1:20PM. The presentation will be held Sunday, March 12 at 2 p.m. at the Historic Carroll County Courthouse and will be led by Blacksburg . But the storys roots go further back and involve politics, rivalries, clannishness, thuggery, vengeance and even a little geography. I enjoyed the book even though it took me a while to get into it. In several instances he escaped indictment, I am satisfied, because the witnesses were afraid to testify to the facts before the grand jury. 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. Brothers Wesley and Sidna Edwards (not to be confused with their uncle, Sidna Allen, Floyds brother), attended a corn-shucking party, a country frolic where folks played music, drank liquor on the side and, yes, shucked corn. Contact us: By Mail PO Box 937 - Hillsville, VA 24343 | By Phone (276) 728 4113 | By Email carrollmuseum@yahoo.com | On Facebook https://facebook.com/CarrollMuseum | Or come visit us in the Historic Courthouse at: 515 North Main Street - Hillsville, VA 24343. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. The jury set his sentence at one year. The battle of tradition against modernity seemed to be the heart of the rivalries: Would Carroll County be a 20th century civilized bastion of law, order and rules, or would the hidebound rugged frontier individualism of taking law into ones own hands and the bucking of authority prevail? Recognizing the need for immediate action, assistant clerk S. Floyd Landreth sent a telegram to Democratic Governor William Hodges Mann which read: Send troops to the County of Carroll at once. 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. Airy, North Carolina. Site of the Bloody Massacre Photo by Author, Thelma Raker Coffone. COOPERSTOWN NEW YORK POSTCARD~Orphanage Building/House~Cart 1911 (#185750574261) l***n (1544) - Feedback left by buyer l***n (1544). Some later turned themselves in. The answer would soon become obvious. Maybe he didnt want anybody else rifling through those things, Hall said. The execution of father and soon occurred in 1913. Carroll County Clerk of the Circuit Court Gerald Goad sits behind the drawer that holds long-lost documents from the murder trials that followed the infamous "Courthouse Massacre" in 1912. Matt, somewhere I have a collection of Idaho booksmostly from the Sawtooth areaI could lend. [4] Sidna was retried and found guilty of perjury in his trial testimony, and was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. Nearly impassable muddy roads and a raw wind that carried snow flurries did not stop nearly 100 people from jamming the 1873 courthouse to see the spectacle of Floyd Allen possibly being led away in handcuffs. [38], Victor Allen and Barnett Allen were acquitted. - To illustrate the volatility of turn-of-the-century mountaineers, when Jeremiah Allen died in 1898, Floyd and Jack Allen got into a ruckus over a barrel of brandy when the estate was being divided. [4][2] Sidna promptly appealed and won a new trial on the perjury charge. Foster was a political enemy of the Allens, who had supported Jack Allen's son, Walter, as Democratic candidate for Commonwealth's Attorney against Foster in the last election. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court watch movie for free Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court full movie *Watch Movie Online or Watch Best Free HD 1080p Videos on Desktop, Laptop, Notebook, Tablet, iPhone, iPad, Mac Pro and more. However, Goad denied firing the first shot in the fusillade. A stolen kiss. Later, Foster changed to the Republican party, and by 1912 was a prominent leader in the GOP in Carroll County, being elected the last time on the Republican ticket. Judge Thornton L. Massie called Constable Jack Allen (and Floyd Allen, who had been deputized by Massie about six months earlier) to the bar and proceeded to question them about the alleged intimidation. - J. Sidna Allen, in addition to being a well-traveled and successful businessman, had been a newspaper editor and a schoolteacher. You can subscribe to the Stories podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, IHeart Radio or on your favorite podcast app. [18], Seven others were wounded, including Deputy Clerk Goad and Floyd Allen. The defense attempted to show that Deputy Clerk Goad shot Elizabeth Ayers in his exchange of fire with the Allens, a charge Goad denied. - Sidna Edwards presence at Floyd Allens trial was requested by Floyds lawyers. Thousands of people wrote letters to Gov. Ive already read four books and have another four lined up to read!. The jury fixed the penalty at fifteen years in the penitentiary. Such stories as you mention, deserve being told. A recent documentary film "Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court" won an independent film award last year and will be shown this week in Hillsville. There are many questions as to what led up to this event, but it seems to have begun with Wesley Edwards getting a red ear of corn at a corn shucking. Sadler looked at Fosters cursive handwriting of Floyd Allens conviction and understood the documents gravity. Allen and Goad had butted heads before. Neither died, but Jack had a silver plate in his head until he died. 23 school districts remove challenged books from library shelves; more . 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. The goals of the program include a greater shared knowledge about the nation's past, strengthened regional identities and local pride, increased local participation in preserving the country's cultural and natural heritage assets, and support for the economic vitality of our communities. [34] Sidna Allen claimed that when he left the courthouse, Goad followed behind him, shooting him through the left arm, the bullet lodging in his left side. Bolen, asked for bail and for Allen to be freed as they appealed the case. Ronald W. Hall,The Carroll County Courthouse Tragedy(2013 printing, Hillsville VA: Carroll County Historical Society,1998). Floyd Allen (July 5, 1856 March 28, 1913) was an American landowner and patriarch of the Allen clan of Carroll County, Virginia. 272 pages including sources and a few b&w photos. For a while, Hillsville was at the top of the nation's newspaper. The discovered papers do little to shed new light in the darkended corners of the tragedy. This sort of isolation probably meant that Floyd and his siblings grew up independent, resourceful and perhaps overly prideful and defiant. On May 18, 1912, the jury found Floyd Allen guilty. Howard Sadlers grandfather, Howard Gilmer, who died before Sadler was born, carried the enormity of the tragedy with him throughout his short life. Supposedly, Andy Griffins father would take him up there when he was a boy (it was about 25 miles from Mt. Friel Allen sat in the back of the room, and the Edwards boys stood on benches next to the north wall. Blacksburg-based autonomous vehicle firm Torc to acquire Canadian company; more . Was it Floyds son Claude? Allen and several members of his family immediately fled the courtroom but were later captured and convicted of murder. In the space of 90 seconds, 57 bullets were fired into the Hillsville courthouse, killing five men and wounding three more. Preserve America is a federal initiative that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve and enjoy our priceless cultural and natural heritage. The Carroll County Historical Society, INC. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. While the state legislature still appointed circuit judges, the new system reduced the ability of individual delegates to ensure that their preferred judge was selected for their particular county; furthermore, judges could no longer practice law for private clients while on the bench, and as regional judges their susceptibility to local influence and public opinion was reduced. Gerald Goad, Carroll County Clerk of the Circuit Court, engineered the transfer of the documents from Wytheville to Hillsville. You can also see some of Sidna Allens furniture craftsmanship and Claude Allens banjo on exhibit in the museum. Most significantly, Sadler knew that he was reading a document that had been missing for more than 100 years. [36], For their roles in the shooting, Floyd and Claud were sentenced to death by electrocution. Those involved on the Allen side ran away. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court On the cold Spring morning of March 14th, 1912 shots rang out inside the tiny mountain courtroom. There were also five others wounded, including Floyd Allen. The handwritten note, scribbled hastily in pencil on a folded piece of paper, read: We the jury find the defendant Floyd Allen guilty as charged in the within indictment and fix his punishment at confinement in the penitentiary of this state for one year., Sadler knew that William Foster, the chief prosecutor in Carroll County, had written those words at the behest of a judge. A local tradition maintained that if a boy discovered a red ear of corn, he had the choice to kiss any girl at the party. Friel Allen was tried in August 1912 and after confessing to shooting prosecutor Foster, was sentenced to 18 years in prison. With the death of the Sheriff and so many of the Allens on the loose, the state sent help. Marshall. SIDNA ALLEN'S TERM FIXED AT 35 YEARS; Head of Hillsville Clan Sentenced for Killing of Three Court Officials. Samuels' departure forced Commonwealth's Attorney William M. Foster to rely on testimony from Deputy Easter. Mann asking either that the Allens be given clemency or be executed swiftly. His grandfather, Howard Gilmer, was a young attorney who had been in Hillsville that day, and he was one of the last people to comfort the mortally wounded judge, Thornton Massie, Gilmers neighbor and mentor back home in Pulaski. In a presentation he called The Last Witness, he recounted his grandfathers story and reminded people that, with the return of the trial documents to Carroll County, they were all watching history unfold. Alex Murdaugh listens to Dr. Paul McManigal's testimony during Murdaugh's trial for murder at the Colleton County Courthouse on Tuesday, February 28, 2023. [21] Two more illegal stills were found at Sidna Edwards' house. Jack Allen denied all responsibility for the allegations of intimidation, which he stated were untrue and insisted neither he nor his brother was guilty of wrongdoing. He refused them both. If done right, this sounds as though it could make for a captivating film. 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. He has a wonderful essay in there titled The American Geographies. He speaks of the need to understand the stories, the voices of memory over the land. I think that is why I always insist on exploring my neighborhoods by walking (or on bicycle) and reading about them. Yep, I think we do have similar tendencies. His mother was afraid theyd find him guilty of 1st degree murder, which carried the death penalty, so she convinced him to plead guilty to 2nd degree murder, which did not. Massie had been urged by Foster and Goad to disarm the throng before the trail began. That day was March 14, 1912, the day five people were killed in a shootout between members of the Allen family and court officials on the floor of a small-town courtroom, an event forever known as The Courthouse Massacre.. Howard Gilmer had traveled to Hillsville with Massie because he had a case pending in court. It is amazing how nothing changes Today, a story gets retold till its stale, unless something big happens to push it off the headlines. Indications are that they will clash with the Allen's tonight or early in the morning. Their trials took place in Wytheville. See details- ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK - HILLSVILLE 1912: A SHOOTING IN THE COURT: A FAMILY BECAME Buy It Now Add to cart Watch Sold bymoviemars (2843836)97.1% Positive feedbackContact seller About this product Product Identifiers Record Label CD Baby UPC 0884501678674 eBay Product ID (ePID) 28046038825 Product Key Features Artist Conner & Miller Format [13], The rumor that the Allens were intimidating witnesses was called to the attention of the court. On 13 March 1912, in the Carroll County Circuit Court, . When the jury returned a guilty verdict against with a sentence of one year in the penitentiary, Floyd Allen is reported to have said to Judge Massie: "If you sentence me on that verdict, I will kill you. Director Rick Bowman Writers Rick Bowman Bill Perrine Stars [29] Marshall then related that Sidna Allen's bullet buried itself in the window about six inches above his head. He apparently also hopes that the early hour will serve to dampen the spirits of the Allens. Supposedly Floyd said, as the Sheriff and the Clerk of the Court approached to take him into custody, Im not going. The shooting then started. Sidna Allen was never tried for his part in the altercation, while Barnett Allen was acquitted at trial. [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. In some ways, the county never recovered from that day. [4], Judge Robert C. Jackson, an attorney in Roanoke and Judge Thornton Massie's predecessor in the Carroll County courtroom, stated that, "Floyd Allen was perhaps the worst man of the clan overbearing, vindictive, high tempered, brutal, with no respect for law and little or no regard for human life. 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 . [11] There was only one set of handcuffs, and because Sidna Edwards had tried to escape a couple of times, Wesley was handcuffed in the front seat of the buggy and Sidna was tied in the back seat. [20], Within a month, all suspected shooters were in custody, except Sidna Allen and Wesley Edwards. He also wrote that as the judge lay dying, he told his young protg, Tell my brother Robert to take care of my family.. [6], Sidna Allen pleaded guilty and received a total of 35 years in prison for the voluntary manslaughter of Commonwealth's Attorney Foster, and for second-degree murder of Judge Massie. Not knowing all the details, I wasnt sure what to do with this information. [34] Sidna Allen and Wesley Edwards then left Virginia, eventually reaching Des Moines, Iowa. - Andrew Howlett, one of the spectators who was wounded during the Courthouse Tragedy, was a brother to Mack Howlett, who shot and killed Carr Allen in 1898. shot up the Carroll county court at Hillsville last March, resulting in the death of five persons, was found guilty of murder in the Second degree for the killing of Judge Thornton L. Mas sie. 1912 SIDNA ALLEN CRIMINAL HOUSE FANCY GAP HILLSVILLE VA COURT SHOOTING ~ A1 (#185771767538) s***s (604) - Feedback left by buyer s***s (604). The historical societys museum resides on the first floor of the old courthouse, which no longer is a government building but still majestically commands the high ground of Main Street like it did in 1912. 10994 Hillsville Masscre Sidna Allen, No. 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.. [2], Floyd Allen met the buggy south of Sidna Allen's home as he was on the way to his own home. Hillsville 1912: A Shooting in the Court (video) Library of Virginia "Mug Shot Special" Floyd and Claude Allen Friel Allen, No. He proved to be right. [2] Deputy Samuels pulled a gun (later determined to be inoperative) and ordered Floyd to move away, and Floyd rode back past the buggy to Sidna's store where he then blocked the narrow road with his mare. 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. [20] Sidna Edwards had scalded his foot some years before and was partially lame, and limped out of the courthouse, riding his mother's horse back to his home. It was Thomas and his father who swore out warrants for the Edwards brothers as a result of the fight at the schoolhouse/church the next day. The words, the handwriting and the language remind us that these people long dead and seemingly characters set in stone like the Confederate statue that still stands in front of the old courthouse were human beings caught up in a cataclysmic tragedy. One shot. William Hodges Mann from Hillsvilles one outside line brought the famed Baldwin-Felts detectives to town the next day. Floyd said Goad and Foster were part of a privileged clique, according to Hall, one that would never include the likes of Floyd or his family. The bullet came up under the skin of her right breast. When Floyd and Claude Allens bodies were brought back to the familys house in Cana, Frances Allen Floyds wife, Claudes mother entered the room dressed in black and fell across her sons coffin, embracing his body like a child. Ninety seconds later, 57 bullets had been fired. Autopsies were not conducted on the dead nor was any meaningful forensic investigation of the crime scene undertaken even though the science such studies existed in 1912 which only generated more questions, arguments, fights and conspiracy theories over the decades. Again it is . Carroll County Historical Society and Museum. More by Ralph Berrier Jr. Support Cardinal News and connect with more than 13,000 of our most engaged readers by sponsoring a Cardinal News newsletter.

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