Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Showing posts with label Chinn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinn. Show all posts
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Sympathy Saturday - Katherine Stanhope Bassett
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Sympathy Saturday - Frank G. Bowman
Frank G. Bowman was my dad's maternal grandfather and my dad is his namesake. It's a quaint habit the Bowman's and the Chinn lines had. At any rate, Frank Bowman died in 1930, long before I was even a glimmer in my parents' eyes, since my dad was just four years old when his grandfather passed.
From the Lexington (Missouri) Daily News:
Frank Bowman Dies After Long Illness
Secretary of Chamber of Commerce and Founder of The News Victim of Paralysis
Frank Bowman, secretary of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce, died at his home on North Seventeenth Street, at 1:10 o'clock Monday afternoon after an extended illness. Paralysis was the cause of death. The funeral service was held Wednesday afternoon, conducted by the Rev. W. A. Wimberly, pastor of the First Christian Church.
Mr. Bowman was born in Lexington on September 4, 1854. He was married to Miss Elizabeth Webb on April 3, 1883. The wife and four children survive as follows: Mrs. Hugh Rogers, Lexington; Mrs. James A. Rankin, Claremont, California; Mrs. John S. Percival, Detroit, Michigan; and John Bowman of Kansas City.
Stricken with paralysis on October 22, last, Mr. Bowman later rallied considerably and was believed to be on the road to recovery, but later developments brought gradual weakening.
Mr. Bowman was the founder of The Lexington News and for many years operated this newspaper in partnership with a brother. He was a man of strong convictions and unfailing adherence to the simple virtues. Through his political connections in later years he acquired friendships throughout the state and was widely admired for likable qualities. He was postmaster at Lexington under the administration of Grover Cleveland, later became secretary of the state board of charities and correction. He was also deputy county recorder under Henry McNeel and enrolling clerk of the house of representatives for twelve years. He had been secretary of the local Chamber of Commerce for a number of years.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
 |
| Frank Graves Bowman 1854-1930 |
From the Lexington (Missouri) Daily News:
Frank Bowman Dies After Long Illness
Secretary of Chamber of Commerce and Founder of The News Victim of Paralysis
Frank Bowman, secretary of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce, died at his home on North Seventeenth Street, at 1:10 o'clock Monday afternoon after an extended illness. Paralysis was the cause of death. The funeral service was held Wednesday afternoon, conducted by the Rev. W. A. Wimberly, pastor of the First Christian Church.
Mr. Bowman was born in Lexington on September 4, 1854. He was married to Miss Elizabeth Webb on April 3, 1883. The wife and four children survive as follows: Mrs. Hugh Rogers, Lexington; Mrs. James A. Rankin, Claremont, California; Mrs. John S. Percival, Detroit, Michigan; and John Bowman of Kansas City.
Stricken with paralysis on October 22, last, Mr. Bowman later rallied considerably and was believed to be on the road to recovery, but later developments brought gradual weakening.
Mr. Bowman was the founder of The Lexington News and for many years operated this newspaper in partnership with a brother. He was a man of strong convictions and unfailing adherence to the simple virtues. Through his political connections in later years he acquired friendships throughout the state and was widely admired for likable qualities. He was postmaster at Lexington under the administration of Grover Cleveland, later became secretary of the state board of charities and correction. He was also deputy county recorder under Henry McNeel and enrolling clerk of the house of representatives for twelve years. He had been secretary of the local Chamber of Commerce for a number of years.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Thriller Thursday - The Murder of Edna Chinn Sykes
 |
| Newspaper account |
MRS. EDNA CHINN SYKES KILLED IN LOS ANGELES.
Daughter of Late Claude Chinn is murdered by Jealous Suitor.
Los Angeles, Cal., July 21 (1914). -- Mrs. Edna Chinn Sykes, a native of Lexington, KY and later Norcross, Ga., was killed here yesterday by Charles H. Haag, a contractor, who broke in the room where she was asleep. Haag then killed himself.
Haag has been paying attention to Mrs. Sykes, her friends say, who had brought suit for divorce from William Sykes. Mrs. Sykes' friends say that Haag had learned that she was receiving $150 alimony and in a fit of jealousy fearing that she might return to her husband, killed her and then himself.
Disposition of her five-year-old son will not be determined until advice is received from his father, who it is believed is in Atlanta, Georgia.
-----
Mrs. Edna Chinn Sykes, who was shot and killed yesterday at Los Angeles by Charles Haag, was a daughter of the late Claude Chinn, formerly County Clerk of Fayette County, and was born and reared in Lexington. She was married several years ago to William Sykes, whose home is now in Atlanta.
About two years ago, Mrs. Sykes went to California to be with her mother, Mrs. Chinn, whose health was not good. Mrs. Sykes has one brother, Joseph Chinn who is in business in Indianapolis, and a sister who is the wife of W. B. Anderson, of this city, a gauger in the Internal Revenue service here. Mrs. Anderson is now in Indianapolis with her brother.
[Blogger's note: Edna was actually married to Leon Odus Sykes, NOT William Sykes.]
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Thriller Thursday - The Murder of Addison Ball Chinn concluded
The following are newspaper accounts of the capture, sentencing appeals and hangings of Whitney and O'Brien, murderers of A. B. Chinn. Note that Thompson was Earl Whitney's alias. These articles date from October 1902 through July 1903.
WARNING: These accounts include a very graphic account of the execution.
"Two men are held as suspects in Chinn murder"
Developments in the murder of Mr. A. B. Chinn and the serious wounding of his son Asa by masked burglars at an early hour Saturday morning took a serious and sensational turn last night at 7:30 o'clock when two white men giving their names as Charles Thompson and Claude O'Brien were placed under arrest by the police on suspicion of being the men who entered the Chinn home.
"Hangings"
Whitney and O'Brien, sentenced to be hanged February 13, 1904 for the murder of A. B. Chinn.
"Murderers of A. B. Chinn Must Hang"
The Court of Appeals today affirmed the judgments of the Fayette Circuit Court sentencing Claude O'Brien and Earl Whitney to be hanged for the murder of Merchant A. B. Chinn at Lexington. The murder was committed in October last, which Chinn surprised the men trying to rob his house.
"Would Not See Her"
Mrs. E. C. O'Brien, the mother of Claude O'Brien, the doomed murderer of A. B. Chinn, called this morning to Mrs. Chinn, the wife of the murdered man at her home on East Maxwell street presumably in the interest of her son.
From the Lexington Herald, July 25, 1903.
STOICS
---
TO THE LAST, THEY DIED
--
WHEN BLACK CAP WAS DRAWN SMILE PLAYED OVER WHITNEY'S FACE.
Unshaken By a Tremor, O'Brien's Lips Were Moving in Prayer. Remarkable Courage Displayed By Boys Hanged Yesterday.
Their last gaze upon a crucifix, a blur of curious faces dimly appearing in the background; a smile still playing upon the features of one and a stoical expression wrapping the countenance of the other, his lips moving in his last prayer for forgiveness and peace as the black caps were drawn, two boys yesterday morning shot through a trap that left their bodies with necks broken dangling at the ends of the hangman's chords, and the murder of Addison B. Chinn was expiated.
It was 8:08; the chant of the priests was still echoing through the corridors of the Fayette county jail and all was silence within the enclosure where a hundred stood with uncovered heads, when the cluck of the trigger, the thud of the released trap and the groan of stretching hemp told in chorus the earthly agony of Earl Whitney and Claude O'Brien was ended.
Though meeting death under most ignominious circumstances, the display of courage, of grit, of fortitude, of poise furnished by these two lads was admirable, and robbed the execution of a horror and gruesomeness that was expected. It was an inspiration to see boys die like martyrs who were offering up their lives as sacrifices on the altar of some great cause, and one paused to consider what impress such masterly courage and such innate power might have left upon the century could it have been directed along lines of good instead of evil. In itself a powerful sermon, the hanging of these youths was probably the most impressive ever witnessed in Kentucky. It was the supreme test; they met it like heroes.
March to the Scaffold.
Excepting the scenes enacted on the scaffold itself the march from the death cell was the most impressive incident of the execution.
At 7:58 the death march began. The sheriff with his deputies had gone to the death cell where the condemned men were in religious service with the priests. In the corridor they were met by Jailer Wallace and his deputies. The formal transfer of the prisoners was made to the Sheriff to do with them according to the dictates of the law. The death march was delayed several minutes at the request of the priests.
At 7:58 o'clock with the priests in their sacerdotal robes leading, O'Brien and Whitney following. Sheriff Wilkerson and his deputies next and Jailer Wallace and his deputies last, the procession moved with measured tread through the corridors down the winding stairs of the jail. The priests chanted the while and the subdued sound of their voices penetrated the remotest corner of the jail, and floated like the sound of some distant dirge out to the hundred bared spectators in the yard below. Gradually the sound of the chanting became more distinct as the dread procession drew nearer, and finally emerged from the small steel door into the yard.
Doomed Men Appear.
Every eye was riveted upon the doomed men. At 7:59 o'clock out of the door they came with heads erect, smiling faces, and tread as firm as if they were going to receive the plaudits and laurels of an approving audience for some heroic deed, rather than to meet an ignominious death. Whitney appeared much the cooler, more self possessed man of the two and was actually laughing. As he emerged from the door, he passed several policemen to whom he waved his hand and said cheerfully "Good bye boys, good bye to you all." The words were spoken without a tremor and more like he was bidding farewell to friends whom he would see in the evening. Just before mounting the scaffold, he paused a moment to shake hands with several parties. The grip was firm and the hand shake was hearty, while the words of parting were spoken with a smile. His actions did not seem forced, but were as natural as they might have been under the most happy circumstances. While O'Brien was not noticed to smile, and did not speak to any person, his conduct was thoroughly characteristic of his entire course of action since his imprisonment, he being more reserved and distant than Whitney. His step was firm and in his face there was no tremor.
On the Scaffold
Up the ten steps of the scaffold the procession moved in the same order in which they emerged from the door. As O'Brien cleared the last step and was on the scaffold it was just eight o'clock.
Whitney was still smiling, but the countenance of O'Brien remained unmoved. On the scaffold the prisoners took position on the trap facing each other, Whitney looking toward the north and O'Brien toward the south. As they took their places O'Brien looked round to the upturned faces, then to the persons on adjacent buildings and then toward the sun. He then looked down at the platform and remained in this position through the services read by the priests. Whitney looked with smiling face out upon the curious throng. While Father Boland, of Somerset, read the service the boys stood reverently attentive, and O'Brien's lips moved in fervent prayer. O'Brien seemed more fully to realize the terribleness of the situation than did his partner in crime. While reading the hand of Father Boland shook perceptibly and his voice was unsteady.
Kiss the Crucifix.
At the conclusion of the reading, Father Cunningham presented the crucifix, which was kissed first by O'Brien and then by Whitney. The priests then shook hands with both boys, bidding them good bye, and then stepped behind. In the farewell there was no sign of quaver or unsteadiness upon the part of the boys, who remained as firm as at any time since they took their stand upon the scaffold.
Hands Bound.
After the conclusion of the service and as soon as the priests had stepped from the trap, the officers took hold of the boys and turned them facing Limestone street, Whitney on the south and O'Brien on the north. Deputy Sheriffs C. H. Wilkerson and John McElroy then proceeded to strap Whitney's hands and feet, while Deputy Freedman performed the same duty for O'Brien. In the strapping, the hands of the officers shook so that they could with difficulty accomplish the work.
Pulled the Rope Too Tight.
Deputy McElroy then placed the rope around Whitney's neck in doing so pulled it so tight as to choke the prisoner, which caused his face to turn red and the tears to start in his eyes. Whitney said, "Don't pull the rope so tight, it's choking me." The rope was immediately readjusted.
Deputy Ben Freedman placed the rope around O'Brien's neck. The work was done rapidly and without the least confusion. The black caps were then placed. That for Whitney had to be cut as it was too small.
The Trap Sprung.
As soon as this was done, the deputies stepped back, and at 8:08 o'clock Sheriff Wilkerson pulled the lever. The bodies shot downward. There was no sound save the groan of the ropes and the click of the trap as it caught by the lever which retained it in place and kept it from swinging. The work was done so quickly that the spectators could hardly realize that in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye the two lives had been taken.
The Straps Released.
The straps were immediately removed from Whitney's limbs by Jail Physician A. W. Jones, and Dr. A. W. Hawkins, while Drs. F. O. Young and R. L. Gordon unbuckled those which bound the hands and feet of O'Brien. After the limbs of Whitney had been released the body drew up in several contortions, his hands moving and his whole body trembling for a moment. From the first O'Brien did not more than quiver. It was plainly evident that O'Brien's neck was broken, the vertebra being pulled apart, but there were many in the crowd who believed that Whitney was dying of strangulation. The necks of both boys were broken, however, though Whitney's neck resisted the severance shown in O'Brien's condition.
At 8:15 Dr. Young pronounced O'Brien dead and at 8:22 Dr. Jones pronounced Whitney dead. The time required for life to become extinct in the latter was fourteen minutes.
The drop for Whitney who weighed 145 pounds, was 5 feet 4 inches and for O'Brien who weighed only 118 pounds, 5 feet, 10 inches. For Whitney a three quarter inch rope was used and for O'Brien a five-eighths inch rope.
Jail Yard Cleared.
As soon as the trap was sprung the police began the work of clearing the yard. The spectators exhibited considerable reluctance in leaving before they had seen the whole thing through, and it was sometime before the last of the crowd was forced to leave the yard.
As soon as the crowd began to move out County Judge Bullock instructed Coroner Molloy to examine the bodies and see that life was extinct.
Ropes Cut and Bodies Taken Down.
At 8:20, after the bodies had been examined by Coroner Molloy, the ropes were cut and the bodies taken in charge by Undertaker Baker, of the firm of J. H. Wiehl & Son. The ropes were cut by Deputy Freckman, and with the assistance of two negro helpers they were placed in baskets in the yard for the purpose.
The Inquest.
When the bodies had been placed in the baskets, Coroner Molloy summoned jurors from the spectators and held an inquest according to the requirements of law. The verdict of the jury was that the bodies before them were those of Claude O'Brien and Earl Whitney, who had come to their death from being legally hanged.
Removed to Undertaking Establishment.
At the conclusion of the inquest the bodies were placed in Wiehl's dead wagon and removed to the undertaking establish where they were prepared for burial. The body of Whitney was shipped to Nashville, Tennessee, yesterday afternoon, leaving on 5:10 C & O train. The remains of O'Brien will be shipped to Nashville sometime today.
The Last Night.
The last night was spent in the utmost quietude, the prisoners remaining cool and cheerful. Shortly before retiring O'Brien engaged in an exchange of pleasantries with James Bess, under sentence to be hanged for the murder of Mrs. Martha Martin. The sounds of the voices could be heard throughout the gratings of the cells and the repartee was much enjoyed by the prisoners.
"I want to see the hanging," said Bess.
"You'll be next," retorted O'Brien.
"I've got some good evidence coming for me," responded Bess.
"It don't looked good to me," was the rejoinder.
The parries were greeted with titters by the prisoners.
Whitney went to bed at 9:45, while O'Brien stayed up and played his French harp until 10:15. By half past ten both boys were sound asleep and slept until wakened Friday morning at 5:30 o'clock by Deputy Thornton. They both said they "never felt better."
Fathers Boland and V. Cunningham came to the jail at 6 o'clock and at 7 o'clock the boys breakfasted. As they were both Catholics they ate no meat, and fish and eggs were the predominating articles of the meal. Even this meal was deferred until they received holy communion.
Long before the day had dawned the crowds began to collect about the jail, but were later dispersed by a squad of police under Captain Jenkins and Lieutenant Overly. Ropes were stretched across Short street on each side of the jail, and only those having tickets to the execution and newspapermen were allowed to pass.
Until the time to put on their grave clothes at 7:30 the boys remained with the priests. Both made confessions, but did not give permission for them to be given to the public. Shortly before the trap was sprung, the Sheriff asked the boys if they had any statement to make. Both declined the offer and the secret as to which fired the shot which killed Mr. Chinn goes to the grave with them.
Herald Extra.
The drop fell at 8:08 o'clock. Seven minutes later the Herald had its extra on the streets. Its competitor was beaten by twenty minutes. A special telephone line from the office of the jail enabled the Herald to receive a continuous account from the scene of the hanging.
They were executed by hanging on July 24, 1903. Justice was swift back then.
I couldn't find death certificates, but did find these transit permits for shipping the bodies for burial.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
WARNING: These accounts include a very graphic account of the execution.
"Two men are held as suspects in Chinn murder"
Developments in the murder of Mr. A. B. Chinn and the serious wounding of his son Asa by masked burglars at an early hour Saturday morning took a serious and sensational turn last night at 7:30 o'clock when two white men giving their names as Charles Thompson and Claude O'Brien were placed under arrest by the police on suspicion of being the men who entered the Chinn home.
"Hangings"
Whitney and O'Brien, sentenced to be hanged February 13, 1904 for the murder of A. B. Chinn.
"Murderers of A. B. Chinn Must Hang"
The Court of Appeals today affirmed the judgments of the Fayette Circuit Court sentencing Claude O'Brien and Earl Whitney to be hanged for the murder of Merchant A. B. Chinn at Lexington. The murder was committed in October last, which Chinn surprised the men trying to rob his house.
"Would Not See Her"
Mrs. E. C. O'Brien, the mother of Claude O'Brien, the doomed murderer of A. B. Chinn, called this morning to Mrs. Chinn, the wife of the murdered man at her home on East Maxwell street presumably in the interest of her son.
From the Lexington Herald, July 25, 1903.
STOICS
---
TO THE LAST, THEY DIED
--
WHEN BLACK CAP WAS DRAWN SMILE PLAYED OVER WHITNEY'S FACE.
Unshaken By a Tremor, O'Brien's Lips Were Moving in Prayer. Remarkable Courage Displayed By Boys Hanged Yesterday.
Their last gaze upon a crucifix, a blur of curious faces dimly appearing in the background; a smile still playing upon the features of one and a stoical expression wrapping the countenance of the other, his lips moving in his last prayer for forgiveness and peace as the black caps were drawn, two boys yesterday morning shot through a trap that left their bodies with necks broken dangling at the ends of the hangman's chords, and the murder of Addison B. Chinn was expiated.
It was 8:08; the chant of the priests was still echoing through the corridors of the Fayette county jail and all was silence within the enclosure where a hundred stood with uncovered heads, when the cluck of the trigger, the thud of the released trap and the groan of stretching hemp told in chorus the earthly agony of Earl Whitney and Claude O'Brien was ended.
Though meeting death under most ignominious circumstances, the display of courage, of grit, of fortitude, of poise furnished by these two lads was admirable, and robbed the execution of a horror and gruesomeness that was expected. It was an inspiration to see boys die like martyrs who were offering up their lives as sacrifices on the altar of some great cause, and one paused to consider what impress such masterly courage and such innate power might have left upon the century could it have been directed along lines of good instead of evil. In itself a powerful sermon, the hanging of these youths was probably the most impressive ever witnessed in Kentucky. It was the supreme test; they met it like heroes.
March to the Scaffold.
Excepting the scenes enacted on the scaffold itself the march from the death cell was the most impressive incident of the execution.
At 7:58 the death march began. The sheriff with his deputies had gone to the death cell where the condemned men were in religious service with the priests. In the corridor they were met by Jailer Wallace and his deputies. The formal transfer of the prisoners was made to the Sheriff to do with them according to the dictates of the law. The death march was delayed several minutes at the request of the priests.
At 7:58 o'clock with the priests in their sacerdotal robes leading, O'Brien and Whitney following. Sheriff Wilkerson and his deputies next and Jailer Wallace and his deputies last, the procession moved with measured tread through the corridors down the winding stairs of the jail. The priests chanted the while and the subdued sound of their voices penetrated the remotest corner of the jail, and floated like the sound of some distant dirge out to the hundred bared spectators in the yard below. Gradually the sound of the chanting became more distinct as the dread procession drew nearer, and finally emerged from the small steel door into the yard.
Doomed Men Appear.
Every eye was riveted upon the doomed men. At 7:59 o'clock out of the door they came with heads erect, smiling faces, and tread as firm as if they were going to receive the plaudits and laurels of an approving audience for some heroic deed, rather than to meet an ignominious death. Whitney appeared much the cooler, more self possessed man of the two and was actually laughing. As he emerged from the door, he passed several policemen to whom he waved his hand and said cheerfully "Good bye boys, good bye to you all." The words were spoken without a tremor and more like he was bidding farewell to friends whom he would see in the evening. Just before mounting the scaffold, he paused a moment to shake hands with several parties. The grip was firm and the hand shake was hearty, while the words of parting were spoken with a smile. His actions did not seem forced, but were as natural as they might have been under the most happy circumstances. While O'Brien was not noticed to smile, and did not speak to any person, his conduct was thoroughly characteristic of his entire course of action since his imprisonment, he being more reserved and distant than Whitney. His step was firm and in his face there was no tremor.
On the Scaffold
Up the ten steps of the scaffold the procession moved in the same order in which they emerged from the door. As O'Brien cleared the last step and was on the scaffold it was just eight o'clock.
Whitney was still smiling, but the countenance of O'Brien remained unmoved. On the scaffold the prisoners took position on the trap facing each other, Whitney looking toward the north and O'Brien toward the south. As they took their places O'Brien looked round to the upturned faces, then to the persons on adjacent buildings and then toward the sun. He then looked down at the platform and remained in this position through the services read by the priests. Whitney looked with smiling face out upon the curious throng. While Father Boland, of Somerset, read the service the boys stood reverently attentive, and O'Brien's lips moved in fervent prayer. O'Brien seemed more fully to realize the terribleness of the situation than did his partner in crime. While reading the hand of Father Boland shook perceptibly and his voice was unsteady.
Kiss the Crucifix.
At the conclusion of the reading, Father Cunningham presented the crucifix, which was kissed first by O'Brien and then by Whitney. The priests then shook hands with both boys, bidding them good bye, and then stepped behind. In the farewell there was no sign of quaver or unsteadiness upon the part of the boys, who remained as firm as at any time since they took their stand upon the scaffold.
Hands Bound.
After the conclusion of the service and as soon as the priests had stepped from the trap, the officers took hold of the boys and turned them facing Limestone street, Whitney on the south and O'Brien on the north. Deputy Sheriffs C. H. Wilkerson and John McElroy then proceeded to strap Whitney's hands and feet, while Deputy Freedman performed the same duty for O'Brien. In the strapping, the hands of the officers shook so that they could with difficulty accomplish the work.
Pulled the Rope Too Tight.
Deputy McElroy then placed the rope around Whitney's neck in doing so pulled it so tight as to choke the prisoner, which caused his face to turn red and the tears to start in his eyes. Whitney said, "Don't pull the rope so tight, it's choking me." The rope was immediately readjusted.
Deputy Ben Freedman placed the rope around O'Brien's neck. The work was done rapidly and without the least confusion. The black caps were then placed. That for Whitney had to be cut as it was too small.
The Trap Sprung.
As soon as this was done, the deputies stepped back, and at 8:08 o'clock Sheriff Wilkerson pulled the lever. The bodies shot downward. There was no sound save the groan of the ropes and the click of the trap as it caught by the lever which retained it in place and kept it from swinging. The work was done so quickly that the spectators could hardly realize that in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye the two lives had been taken.
The Straps Released.
The straps were immediately removed from Whitney's limbs by Jail Physician A. W. Jones, and Dr. A. W. Hawkins, while Drs. F. O. Young and R. L. Gordon unbuckled those which bound the hands and feet of O'Brien. After the limbs of Whitney had been released the body drew up in several contortions, his hands moving and his whole body trembling for a moment. From the first O'Brien did not more than quiver. It was plainly evident that O'Brien's neck was broken, the vertebra being pulled apart, but there were many in the crowd who believed that Whitney was dying of strangulation. The necks of both boys were broken, however, though Whitney's neck resisted the severance shown in O'Brien's condition.
At 8:15 Dr. Young pronounced O'Brien dead and at 8:22 Dr. Jones pronounced Whitney dead. The time required for life to become extinct in the latter was fourteen minutes.
The drop for Whitney who weighed 145 pounds, was 5 feet 4 inches and for O'Brien who weighed only 118 pounds, 5 feet, 10 inches. For Whitney a three quarter inch rope was used and for O'Brien a five-eighths inch rope.
Jail Yard Cleared.
As soon as the trap was sprung the police began the work of clearing the yard. The spectators exhibited considerable reluctance in leaving before they had seen the whole thing through, and it was sometime before the last of the crowd was forced to leave the yard.
As soon as the crowd began to move out County Judge Bullock instructed Coroner Molloy to examine the bodies and see that life was extinct.
Ropes Cut and Bodies Taken Down.
At 8:20, after the bodies had been examined by Coroner Molloy, the ropes were cut and the bodies taken in charge by Undertaker Baker, of the firm of J. H. Wiehl & Son. The ropes were cut by Deputy Freckman, and with the assistance of two negro helpers they were placed in baskets in the yard for the purpose.
The Inquest.
When the bodies had been placed in the baskets, Coroner Molloy summoned jurors from the spectators and held an inquest according to the requirements of law. The verdict of the jury was that the bodies before them were those of Claude O'Brien and Earl Whitney, who had come to their death from being legally hanged.
Removed to Undertaking Establishment.
At the conclusion of the inquest the bodies were placed in Wiehl's dead wagon and removed to the undertaking establish where they were prepared for burial. The body of Whitney was shipped to Nashville, Tennessee, yesterday afternoon, leaving on 5:10 C & O train. The remains of O'Brien will be shipped to Nashville sometime today.
The Last Night.
The last night was spent in the utmost quietude, the prisoners remaining cool and cheerful. Shortly before retiring O'Brien engaged in an exchange of pleasantries with James Bess, under sentence to be hanged for the murder of Mrs. Martha Martin. The sounds of the voices could be heard throughout the gratings of the cells and the repartee was much enjoyed by the prisoners.
"I want to see the hanging," said Bess.
"You'll be next," retorted O'Brien.
"I've got some good evidence coming for me," responded Bess.
"It don't looked good to me," was the rejoinder.
The parries were greeted with titters by the prisoners.
Whitney went to bed at 9:45, while O'Brien stayed up and played his French harp until 10:15. By half past ten both boys were sound asleep and slept until wakened Friday morning at 5:30 o'clock by Deputy Thornton. They both said they "never felt better."
Fathers Boland and V. Cunningham came to the jail at 6 o'clock and at 7 o'clock the boys breakfasted. As they were both Catholics they ate no meat, and fish and eggs were the predominating articles of the meal. Even this meal was deferred until they received holy communion.
Long before the day had dawned the crowds began to collect about the jail, but were later dispersed by a squad of police under Captain Jenkins and Lieutenant Overly. Ropes were stretched across Short street on each side of the jail, and only those having tickets to the execution and newspapermen were allowed to pass.
Until the time to put on their grave clothes at 7:30 the boys remained with the priests. Both made confessions, but did not give permission for them to be given to the public. Shortly before the trap was sprung, the Sheriff asked the boys if they had any statement to make. Both declined the offer and the secret as to which fired the shot which killed Mr. Chinn goes to the grave with them.
Herald Extra.
The drop fell at 8:08 o'clock. Seven minutes later the Herald had its extra on the streets. Its competitor was beaten by twenty minutes. A special telephone line from the office of the jail enabled the Herald to receive a continuous account from the scene of the hanging.
I couldn't find death certificates, but did find these transit permits for shipping the bodies for burial.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Sympathy Saturday - Lucie Howard Chinn
One database that I have used over the years, is Duff's Funeral Notices, a wonderful resource for those with history in the Lexington, Kentucky area. More than the memorial card of today, these were actually "invitations" to the funeral. In this time, there were often no daily death notices in the newspapers, since most newspapers were weeklies. These funeral cards were sent out to notify friends and relatives of the funeral arrangements.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
 |
| Funeral Notice for Lucie Howard Chinn, May 27, 1869. |
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Thriller Thursday - The Murder of Addison Ball Chinn continued . . .
BLOOD IN UNUSED POULTRY HOUSE ANOTHER LINK IN CHAIN OF EVIDENCE
Grass Found on Socks of Prisoners; Thompson Suffers Much From Wound.
Police Confident the Right Men Are Under Arrest; Daughter Arrives; Men Will Be Taken Before Mrs. Chinn for Identification; Yesterday's Developments in Chinn Murder Case.
Lexington continued to stand agape yesterday at the horrible tragedy committed Friday night. The first words at greetings were expressions of opinions as to the guilt of the two men arrested. The police are confident that the guilty men are in custody.
The most important development of yesterday was the discovery by Capt. Stough of clots of blood in a chicken shed adjoining the Chinn home. The shed is in the rear of an unoccupied house owned by Mr. George Ott. The discovery of this blood lends strength to the theory that one of the murderers at least was wounded. The police believe that the burglars entered this shed and removed their shoes, that they walked to the Chinn house barefoot in order to make no noise and thus to enter the house. The theory is that one was shot, and after making their escape through the window, they went to the shed after their shoes and a few drops of blood dripped on the floor. The blood, however, may not be human blood or it may be much older than is supposed.
Grass on Socks
This discovery adds strength to the incriminating evidence against Thompson and O'Brien. When Thompson's* shoes were removed at the station house, his socks were found to be not only badly soiled, but muddy. Spanish needles were adhering to them and on the bottom of one of the socks was a stick weed, a grass resembling Timothy. These stick weeds and Spanish needles are found in the path leading to the chicken shed. It is known that the burglars that entered the house an hour previous on the same night entered in their sock feet. This was apparent from the muddy imprints on the bare floor where the burglar had overstepped the rug.
Difference in Bullets.
Another important development was the discovery upon closer inspection that the bullet extracted from Thompson's leg is identical with the bullets fired from Asa Chinn's pistol, which were found on the floor and in the door. All the bullets connected with the case are 38-caliber, but one of the bullets picked up off the floor and the part of the bullet which was found and which was believed to have been the one that fractured Asa's jaw is hollowed at the butt end, just as are the bullets in Mr. Slade's pistol. The police believe the burglars that entered the Slade home and stole a pistol also went to the Chinn home and committed the murder with this pistol.
Thompson Suffers From Wound.
Thompson says he was shot by a negro last Wednesday. Jailer Wallace says that when he visited the men in the jail suspected of breaking into Van Deren's Hardware store, Thompson did not limp. He limped very slightly Friday morning when arrested. He could not walk without assistance when he was taken to the jail Saturday night. He did not leave his bed yesterday. He was kept away by the pain all Saturday night and when the wound was dressed yesterday afternoon the leg was badly swollen and more inflammation had set in. An opiate was given him last night to make him sleep. Had he been shot Wednesday, as he says, the police and doctors reason that he would have been unable to walk by Thursday night.
Upward Course of Bullet
Besides the bullet entered his leg at a distance of 20-1/2 inches from the ground and was cut out an inch and three quarters higher. That is. It too a decidedly upward range, such as it would have taken had he been shot by Asa Chinn when the latter was on the floor. If he had been shot by the negro in the position he indicated, it would have taken a downward course. the bullet did not strike a bone and thus was not deflected. Thompsons made conflicting statements to reporters Saturday as to the manner in which the difficulty between him and the alleged negro arose.
The other evidence against them was the fact that the clothes of both boys were saturated when arrested. They stated that they entered the car at midnight, at which case their clothing would have been dry, for it did not begin to rain until about half past two o'clock Saturday morning.
Fatal Mark on Trousers
The trousers which Thompson wore had no bullet hole to mark the entrance of the bullet. He says that he destroyed the trousers he had on at the time the negro shot him and purchased a pair of second-hand ones. The ones he now wears bear the mark of "Lowenstein, Nashville." O'Brien's trousers have a hole in them at the knee which corresponds to Thompson's wound and the police believe that they exchanged trousers with the idea that if they were arrested the wound would escape detection. However, O'Brien's trousers are rather small for Thompson, and vice versa. The police are unable to find the local dealer whom Thompson says sold him the trousers.
No incriminating evidence was found on the men when they were arrested nor after a thorough search of the car. If they are guilty, their pistols and masks have been done away with. The police made a thorough but futile search for the pistols and masks on the route from the Chinn premises to the railroad yard.
Citizens Asked to Search
Chief Reagan requests the residents of Lexington, and especially of the southern portion, to make a search of their premises for these articles and to have their boys search vacant lots and other places where the articles may have been thrown or concealed. If anything is found it should be reported immediately to the police.
A Mrs. Chisholm, living in Adamstown, near Lexington avenue, says she heard the volley of shots and in a few minutes heard two men running south on Lexington avenue. This clue indicates that the murderers ran in that direction after the tragedy.
Just as soon as Mrs. Chinn is able to withstand the ordeal and Thompson's wound will permit him to walk, the prisoners will be taken before her for identification. They will also be taken before Asa Chinn. Mrs. Chinn stated to a relative that she believed she would recognize the men whose forms she saw and whose voices she heard on the fatal night. It will be remembered that the men struck a match on entering the room, and though they were masked, she observed their stature, etc.
How Prisoners Spent the Day.
Throngs of visitors were attracted to the jail yesterday, but very few were admitted to see Thompson and O'Brien as they insist on calling themselves. Perhaps no one will now be admitted without the permission of Chief Reagan.
Thompson, the wounded man, is occupying the topmost cell, known as the hospital. A prisoner named Morris keeps him company. He suffered a great deal from his wound Saturday night and yesterday and it was necessary to give him an opiate to make him sleep last night after his wound was dressed in the afternoon. He ate very little and was not inclined to talk.
Neither prisoner was allowed to read the newspapers.
O'Brien is the only prisoner on the ground floor. It was in one of the eight cells on this floor that Axline was kept in confinement for a long time. It is on this floor that the old scaffold is stored. Neither of the prisoners appeared to worry over his predicament. O'Brien ate both meals heartily and was by no means reticent, though very few people were given access to him. Capt. Stough had a long talk with him in the afternoon, but he still sticks to his first story. Thompson did not get out of his bed yesterday. O'Brien has no one to talk to except the guards when they bring his meals.
Tell-tale Course of Bullet.
It appears almost providential that the bullet in Thompson's leg did not pass through it, but spent its force before it reached the outer skin. Had it passed on through, it could not be told definitely at which end of the wound the bullet entered, and it could not be discerned whether the bullet ranged upward or downward. As it is, there is no question that the range was upward. There are only three possible explanations of this. He might have been standing in an elevated position when shot, which is unlikely. He may have been recumbent or his assailant was recumbent. He says that he and the alleged negro were standing. Had this been so, the bullet would have taken a downward course. The range is just such a one as would result from a wound inflicted by Asa Chinn, who was prostrate on the floor when he shot.
The Daughter Arrives.
Miss Eleanor Chinn arrived from New York with her uncle, Mr. Charles Runyon, on the Q & C train last night. She was met at the depot by her uncle, Mr. James Runyon, and Dr. Coleman. The party drove to the Good Samaritan Hospital. The meeting between mother and daughter was an affecting one. Clasped in each other's arms, their heart throbs beat in unison and their tears flowed together in a common grief. The young woman had left father and brother in happiness, in perfect health, in all the comforts of security. In a brief while she returned. The father was dead and the brother dangerously wounded. She was not taken to see her wounded brother, as he was sleeping. Mother and daughter remained at the hospital last night. Miss Chinn stood the journey in the shadow of the awful tragedy remarkably well. Mrs. Chinn was much more composed today.
May Have Been In Tyrone.
The police received a telephone message from a man in Tyrone yesterday that he believed from the description of the suspects he saw them in that place Wednesday. He will be here today to identify them. If they prove to be the men he has in mind, they could not have been a Williamstown Wednesday, where Thompsons says he was shot by a negro.
No Clue to Others.
No word has been received concerning the two suspicious looking white men Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Graves met nine miles from the city on the Winchester pike early Saturday morning. The police are still desirous of finding these men and learning their story. Although the police believe the guilty parties have been captured, they have not relinquished their efforts to "round up" all the suspicious characters. Every clue possible will be run down.
The Jail Guarded.
Guards remained at the jail Saturday night until three o'clock and remained until midnight last night. They usually lock the jail about ten o'clock. One man is left at the jail, but the keys are not in his possession.
The Fayette county jail is one of the most secure in the country. Entrance can not possibly be gained except through the front door. It would require hours of work to break this open without the keys. One man on the first landing could keep a regiment out. If the keys were given to a mob it is doubtful if they could get to the prisoners, so complicated are the locks.
It is impossible to burn the building. On account of the arrangement of the street, a few policemen could keep a mob from off the street.
Asa Chinn Doing Well.
At the hospital it was reported that Asa passed a very quiet day and rested easy last night. His physicians are sanguine of his recovery, but the marks of that awful night will go with him to his grave. His face will not be very much disfigured, but the scars will always remain. The wounds in the nose and lips may become almost indistinct. The fractured jawbone will always be more or less prominent and a scar will always remain on his cheek.
Diagram of the House.
A brief word diagram of the Chinn home in which the murder was committed will suffice to give a general impression of the desperate encounter. The house is a two-story frame on the south side of Maxwell street, beyond Lexington avenue. On the east is the vacant house belonging to Mr. Ott, and on the west the home of Mrs. Thompson, Both of these houses are close. The driveway to the Chinn home is on the east side of the house under Mrs. Runyon's window. The front door opens into a hall. On the east side of the hall is the parlor and in the rear of this, Mrs. Runyon's room. Just beyond her door is the bottom of the stairs running up from the hall. The front room on the west side of the hall is Asa's room and at its rear is the family room. Asa's room door and the parlor door are directly opposite. The family door opening into the hall and Mrs. Runyon's door are directly opposite.
When Asa was awakened by his mother's screams of murder, he secured pistol and rifle, stepped out of his room and went to the family door, about twelve feet away. A confused idea is prevalent as to who fired the first shot. Asa and Mrs. Chinn agree that the burglars heard Asa in the hall and fired. One of them had his pistol pressed against Mr. Chinn's breast, which was powder burned. The burglar shot was the signal for Asa to open fire. He emptied his revolver of five chambers. Three of his bullets struck the door. The bullet which penetrated the door showed the elevation. He was in a prostrate position. Perhaps one of the bullets which did not strike the door struck a burglar, and Thompson's wound corresponds to one made by a ball that he may have fired.
A desperate encounter evidently ensued in this terrible hand-to-hand battle at the door. Bullets flew thick and fast. Asa was shot to floor as the burglars came out of the room. That he was lying on the floor is apparent from the range of the bullets in the door and from the fact that one of the burglar bullets tipped his nose and went through his lips and into the floor. Otherwise it would have entered his breast.
Mr. Chinn tottered out of his bed and fell to the floor of the hall lifeless, his feet almost inside the family room. It was then that Mr. Runyon aroused the neighbors and called the police. Many of the neighbors had already been awakened by the peal of the shots.
Groundless Rumors
A great many groundless rumors were afloat yesterday. One stated that a pistol had been found near the Chinn home, and that it had been identified as belonging to a man who was held up and robbed Friday night. This report is groundless, and as far as the police have learned, no man was held up Friday night. Other reports gained currency which were found to be groundless. One reported stated that confessions had been obtained, which was without foundation.
The Funeral Today
The funeral services of Mr. A. B. Chinn will take place at the family residence, No. 248 East Maxwell street, at 2:30 o'clock this afternoon. The services will be conducted by Rev. I. J. Spencer of the Central Christian Church.
The honorary pallbearers are Major R. S. Bullock, Messrs. Cicero Coleman, R. P. Eastin, Albert Allen, R. C. Morgan, C. F. Estill and Thomas F. Cassell.
The active pallbearers are Profs. James G. White and A. Fairhurst, Judge Matt Walton, Dr. B. L. Coleman, Messrs. Jacob Graves, James A. Todd, G. A. DeLong and William F. Price.
The burial will be in Lexington Cemetery.
{*Blogger's note: It was a few days before it was discovered"Thompson" was an alias and he was correctly identified as Earl Whitney.}
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Grass Found on Socks of Prisoners; Thompson Suffers Much From Wound.
Police Confident the Right Men Are Under Arrest; Daughter Arrives; Men Will Be Taken Before Mrs. Chinn for Identification; Yesterday's Developments in Chinn Murder Case.
Lexington continued to stand agape yesterday at the horrible tragedy committed Friday night. The first words at greetings were expressions of opinions as to the guilt of the two men arrested. The police are confident that the guilty men are in custody.
The most important development of yesterday was the discovery by Capt. Stough of clots of blood in a chicken shed adjoining the Chinn home. The shed is in the rear of an unoccupied house owned by Mr. George Ott. The discovery of this blood lends strength to the theory that one of the murderers at least was wounded. The police believe that the burglars entered this shed and removed their shoes, that they walked to the Chinn house barefoot in order to make no noise and thus to enter the house. The theory is that one was shot, and after making their escape through the window, they went to the shed after their shoes and a few drops of blood dripped on the floor. The blood, however, may not be human blood or it may be much older than is supposed.
Grass on Socks
This discovery adds strength to the incriminating evidence against Thompson and O'Brien. When Thompson's* shoes were removed at the station house, his socks were found to be not only badly soiled, but muddy. Spanish needles were adhering to them and on the bottom of one of the socks was a stick weed, a grass resembling Timothy. These stick weeds and Spanish needles are found in the path leading to the chicken shed. It is known that the burglars that entered the house an hour previous on the same night entered in their sock feet. This was apparent from the muddy imprints on the bare floor where the burglar had overstepped the rug.
Difference in Bullets.
Another important development was the discovery upon closer inspection that the bullet extracted from Thompson's leg is identical with the bullets fired from Asa Chinn's pistol, which were found on the floor and in the door. All the bullets connected with the case are 38-caliber, but one of the bullets picked up off the floor and the part of the bullet which was found and which was believed to have been the one that fractured Asa's jaw is hollowed at the butt end, just as are the bullets in Mr. Slade's pistol. The police believe the burglars that entered the Slade home and stole a pistol also went to the Chinn home and committed the murder with this pistol.
Thompson Suffers From Wound.
Thompson says he was shot by a negro last Wednesday. Jailer Wallace says that when he visited the men in the jail suspected of breaking into Van Deren's Hardware store, Thompson did not limp. He limped very slightly Friday morning when arrested. He could not walk without assistance when he was taken to the jail Saturday night. He did not leave his bed yesterday. He was kept away by the pain all Saturday night and when the wound was dressed yesterday afternoon the leg was badly swollen and more inflammation had set in. An opiate was given him last night to make him sleep. Had he been shot Wednesday, as he says, the police and doctors reason that he would have been unable to walk by Thursday night.
Upward Course of Bullet
Besides the bullet entered his leg at a distance of 20-1/2 inches from the ground and was cut out an inch and three quarters higher. That is. It too a decidedly upward range, such as it would have taken had he been shot by Asa Chinn when the latter was on the floor. If he had been shot by the negro in the position he indicated, it would have taken a downward course. the bullet did not strike a bone and thus was not deflected. Thompsons made conflicting statements to reporters Saturday as to the manner in which the difficulty between him and the alleged negro arose.
The other evidence against them was the fact that the clothes of both boys were saturated when arrested. They stated that they entered the car at midnight, at which case their clothing would have been dry, for it did not begin to rain until about half past two o'clock Saturday morning.
Fatal Mark on Trousers
The trousers which Thompson wore had no bullet hole to mark the entrance of the bullet. He says that he destroyed the trousers he had on at the time the negro shot him and purchased a pair of second-hand ones. The ones he now wears bear the mark of "Lowenstein, Nashville." O'Brien's trousers have a hole in them at the knee which corresponds to Thompson's wound and the police believe that they exchanged trousers with the idea that if they were arrested the wound would escape detection. However, O'Brien's trousers are rather small for Thompson, and vice versa. The police are unable to find the local dealer whom Thompson says sold him the trousers.
No incriminating evidence was found on the men when they were arrested nor after a thorough search of the car. If they are guilty, their pistols and masks have been done away with. The police made a thorough but futile search for the pistols and masks on the route from the Chinn premises to the railroad yard.
Citizens Asked to Search
Chief Reagan requests the residents of Lexington, and especially of the southern portion, to make a search of their premises for these articles and to have their boys search vacant lots and other places where the articles may have been thrown or concealed. If anything is found it should be reported immediately to the police.
A Mrs. Chisholm, living in Adamstown, near Lexington avenue, says she heard the volley of shots and in a few minutes heard two men running south on Lexington avenue. This clue indicates that the murderers ran in that direction after the tragedy.
Just as soon as Mrs. Chinn is able to withstand the ordeal and Thompson's wound will permit him to walk, the prisoners will be taken before her for identification. They will also be taken before Asa Chinn. Mrs. Chinn stated to a relative that she believed she would recognize the men whose forms she saw and whose voices she heard on the fatal night. It will be remembered that the men struck a match on entering the room, and though they were masked, she observed their stature, etc.
How Prisoners Spent the Day.
Throngs of visitors were attracted to the jail yesterday, but very few were admitted to see Thompson and O'Brien as they insist on calling themselves. Perhaps no one will now be admitted without the permission of Chief Reagan.
Thompson, the wounded man, is occupying the topmost cell, known as the hospital. A prisoner named Morris keeps him company. He suffered a great deal from his wound Saturday night and yesterday and it was necessary to give him an opiate to make him sleep last night after his wound was dressed in the afternoon. He ate very little and was not inclined to talk.
Neither prisoner was allowed to read the newspapers.
O'Brien is the only prisoner on the ground floor. It was in one of the eight cells on this floor that Axline was kept in confinement for a long time. It is on this floor that the old scaffold is stored. Neither of the prisoners appeared to worry over his predicament. O'Brien ate both meals heartily and was by no means reticent, though very few people were given access to him. Capt. Stough had a long talk with him in the afternoon, but he still sticks to his first story. Thompson did not get out of his bed yesterday. O'Brien has no one to talk to except the guards when they bring his meals.
Tell-tale Course of Bullet.
It appears almost providential that the bullet in Thompson's leg did not pass through it, but spent its force before it reached the outer skin. Had it passed on through, it could not be told definitely at which end of the wound the bullet entered, and it could not be discerned whether the bullet ranged upward or downward. As it is, there is no question that the range was upward. There are only three possible explanations of this. He might have been standing in an elevated position when shot, which is unlikely. He may have been recumbent or his assailant was recumbent. He says that he and the alleged negro were standing. Had this been so, the bullet would have taken a downward course. The range is just such a one as would result from a wound inflicted by Asa Chinn, who was prostrate on the floor when he shot.
The Daughter Arrives.
Miss Eleanor Chinn arrived from New York with her uncle, Mr. Charles Runyon, on the Q & C train last night. She was met at the depot by her uncle, Mr. James Runyon, and Dr. Coleman. The party drove to the Good Samaritan Hospital. The meeting between mother and daughter was an affecting one. Clasped in each other's arms, their heart throbs beat in unison and their tears flowed together in a common grief. The young woman had left father and brother in happiness, in perfect health, in all the comforts of security. In a brief while she returned. The father was dead and the brother dangerously wounded. She was not taken to see her wounded brother, as he was sleeping. Mother and daughter remained at the hospital last night. Miss Chinn stood the journey in the shadow of the awful tragedy remarkably well. Mrs. Chinn was much more composed today.
May Have Been In Tyrone.
The police received a telephone message from a man in Tyrone yesterday that he believed from the description of the suspects he saw them in that place Wednesday. He will be here today to identify them. If they prove to be the men he has in mind, they could not have been a Williamstown Wednesday, where Thompsons says he was shot by a negro.
No Clue to Others.
No word has been received concerning the two suspicious looking white men Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Graves met nine miles from the city on the Winchester pike early Saturday morning. The police are still desirous of finding these men and learning their story. Although the police believe the guilty parties have been captured, they have not relinquished their efforts to "round up" all the suspicious characters. Every clue possible will be run down.
The Jail Guarded.
Guards remained at the jail Saturday night until three o'clock and remained until midnight last night. They usually lock the jail about ten o'clock. One man is left at the jail, but the keys are not in his possession.
The Fayette county jail is one of the most secure in the country. Entrance can not possibly be gained except through the front door. It would require hours of work to break this open without the keys. One man on the first landing could keep a regiment out. If the keys were given to a mob it is doubtful if they could get to the prisoners, so complicated are the locks.
It is impossible to burn the building. On account of the arrangement of the street, a few policemen could keep a mob from off the street.
Asa Chinn Doing Well.
At the hospital it was reported that Asa passed a very quiet day and rested easy last night. His physicians are sanguine of his recovery, but the marks of that awful night will go with him to his grave. His face will not be very much disfigured, but the scars will always remain. The wounds in the nose and lips may become almost indistinct. The fractured jawbone will always be more or less prominent and a scar will always remain on his cheek.
Diagram of the House.
A brief word diagram of the Chinn home in which the murder was committed will suffice to give a general impression of the desperate encounter. The house is a two-story frame on the south side of Maxwell street, beyond Lexington avenue. On the east is the vacant house belonging to Mr. Ott, and on the west the home of Mrs. Thompson, Both of these houses are close. The driveway to the Chinn home is on the east side of the house under Mrs. Runyon's window. The front door opens into a hall. On the east side of the hall is the parlor and in the rear of this, Mrs. Runyon's room. Just beyond her door is the bottom of the stairs running up from the hall. The front room on the west side of the hall is Asa's room and at its rear is the family room. Asa's room door and the parlor door are directly opposite. The family door opening into the hall and Mrs. Runyon's door are directly opposite.
When Asa was awakened by his mother's screams of murder, he secured pistol and rifle, stepped out of his room and went to the family door, about twelve feet away. A confused idea is prevalent as to who fired the first shot. Asa and Mrs. Chinn agree that the burglars heard Asa in the hall and fired. One of them had his pistol pressed against Mr. Chinn's breast, which was powder burned. The burglar shot was the signal for Asa to open fire. He emptied his revolver of five chambers. Three of his bullets struck the door. The bullet which penetrated the door showed the elevation. He was in a prostrate position. Perhaps one of the bullets which did not strike the door struck a burglar, and Thompson's wound corresponds to one made by a ball that he may have fired.
A desperate encounter evidently ensued in this terrible hand-to-hand battle at the door. Bullets flew thick and fast. Asa was shot to floor as the burglars came out of the room. That he was lying on the floor is apparent from the range of the bullets in the door and from the fact that one of the burglar bullets tipped his nose and went through his lips and into the floor. Otherwise it would have entered his breast.
Mr. Chinn tottered out of his bed and fell to the floor of the hall lifeless, his feet almost inside the family room. It was then that Mr. Runyon aroused the neighbors and called the police. Many of the neighbors had already been awakened by the peal of the shots.
Groundless Rumors
A great many groundless rumors were afloat yesterday. One stated that a pistol had been found near the Chinn home, and that it had been identified as belonging to a man who was held up and robbed Friday night. This report is groundless, and as far as the police have learned, no man was held up Friday night. Other reports gained currency which were found to be groundless. One reported stated that confessions had been obtained, which was without foundation.
The Funeral Today
The funeral services of Mr. A. B. Chinn will take place at the family residence, No. 248 East Maxwell street, at 2:30 o'clock this afternoon. The services will be conducted by Rev. I. J. Spencer of the Central Christian Church.
The honorary pallbearers are Major R. S. Bullock, Messrs. Cicero Coleman, R. P. Eastin, Albert Allen, R. C. Morgan, C. F. Estill and Thomas F. Cassell.
The active pallbearers are Profs. James G. White and A. Fairhurst, Judge Matt Walton, Dr. B. L. Coleman, Messrs. Jacob Graves, James A. Todd, G. A. DeLong and William F. Price.
The burial will be in Lexington Cemetery.
{*Blogger's note: It was a few days before it was discovered"Thompson" was an alias and he was correctly identified as Earl Whitney.}
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Thriller Thursday - Chinn Murder continued
From the Lexington Leader, page 1 and page 8.
CLEWS TAKEN UP
---
Police Send Out Circulars to Central Kentucky Towns.
---
Suspicious Characters Chased on Winchester Pike, But Get Away
---
SEARCH FOR CHINN MURDERERS
The chase after the murderers of Mr. A. B. Chinn, who was shot to death in his house at an early hour this morning, was taken up at once by the police department, although in formation of the crime was not communicated to the station house for probably fifteen minutes after its commission.
Patrolman James Peel was the first officer on the scene. Detective Harry Stough was also communicated with, and he summoned his department together and the search began.
The various all night sallons were searched adn the roads, pikes and railways leading in and out of the city were watched, while Captain Stough, Lieutenant Jenkins and Detctive Hayes went on to the fair ground and searched the different stables in the hope that the murders might have made their way out there and hidden themselves until daylight. No clue could be found and after hunting till daylight the officers went out on another track.
The only things left by which the murderers may possibly be identified if the officers are successful, are the bullets picked up and the footprints left of the men as they went away. This morning as a LEADER reporter was exmaining the premises he found and a clear and distinct print of the heel of a man's boot on the window sill. Careful measurement of it was taken which was preserved.
TOOK UP A CLUE.
At 8 o'clock this morning Lieutenant of Police Charles Overly, Sergeant Thomas J. Ready and Dective D. J. McCarty were at the residences when Mr. Jacob Graves of Chilesburg, a cousin of the murdered man, arrived. He at once told the officers that on his way to Lexington and when about six miles from the city, he met two men on the road, both of whom acted in a very suspicious manner. One of them he stated, appeared as if frightened and sought to avoid being seen. He said they acted so strangely that his close attention was directed to them and at one time he thought of stopping and questioning them. He did not, however, and continued his journey to Lexington.
TELEPHONED AHEAD OF THEM.
With this information Lieutenant Overly, accompanied by Fire Chief G. W. Muir, in the latter's buggy started for Winchester. As soon as they left Sergeant Ready telephoned to both Winchester & Chilesburg asking the officers at both places to llok out for one or two men, and if strangers to pick them up and hold them. At noon Lieutenant Overly communicated with the local department from Pine Grove saying that he had not come across the two men as described by Mr. Graves.
CIRCULARS SENT OUT
The entire police and detective forces are at work on the case, Chief of Police Reagan caused several hundred circulars to be mailed to different points in Kentucky describing as nearly as possible the men and peculiar features of the crime.
By noon today nine persons of a suspicious character had been arrested and held pending an investigation into their whereabouts last night and early this morning. Their ages arange from 18 to 35. No formal charges were preferred against any of them, but they are simply held on suspicion. They will be released, however, on giving satisfactory accounts of themselves or if no evidnece can be found against them.
SAW SUSPICIOUS MEN.
James Alexander, colored, a servant at the residence of George Denny, at the corner of Mill and Pine streets, tells a story which indicates that he probably saw the men who did the terrible deed at the Chinn residence.
Alexander had been out late and returned at 12:30 o'clock. He went at once to his room in the basment adn prepared to go to bed. He heard footsepts on the street in front of the house, which sets very close to the street. He threw open the shutters of his room with considerable noise and saw two men go out Pine street at a brisk run. Alexander says they went toward the east. They were, he says, men of small stature. He is convinced that shes were the men who did the deed, since hearing the description given by Mrs. Chinn of the men who killed her husband. Alexander's description of them and hers are similar.
SUSPECTS GOT AWAY
Chief G. W. Muir and Lieut. Overly returned to the city shortly after 1 o'clock, after having a long chase after the men Mr. Graves saw on the Winchester pike and who appeared to him to be acting suspiciously. This chase was fruitles. Chief Muir said on returning: "We drove as fast as we could out the Winchester pike, and although we inquired of every person we met and the residents along the road, no one seemed to have seen the men. We drove to Pine Grove, about four miles this side of winchester, but nodbody there had seen the men. We then went down the Clintonville pike, crossed into Bourbon passed through Clintonville and returned around by the L & E Road to the Bryan Station pike, inquiring as we went. No trace could be found of the men.
"It is my opinion that these men were probably the men. If they had been all right there would have been no occasion for them to leave the pike as they evidently did. Their taking through the country indicates that probably Mr. Graves' suspicions were well founded. All of the poeple out in that section that we could reach were notified to be on the lookot and others were asked to notify all whom they met. I think the report was pretty generally scattered."
The fact that the men were masked when seen by Mrs. Chinn by the light of the match prevented her from being able to determine whether either of the men wore whiskers.
Before the LEADER went to press this afternoon fully thirty men had been arrested on suspicion, but a larger portion of them were released on giving satisfactory accounts of themselves. No positive clue had, up to that time, been discovered.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
CLEWS TAKEN UP
---
Police Send Out Circulars to Central Kentucky Towns.
---
Suspicious Characters Chased on Winchester Pike, But Get Away
---
SEARCH FOR CHINN MURDERERS
The chase after the murderers of Mr. A. B. Chinn, who was shot to death in his house at an early hour this morning, was taken up at once by the police department, although in formation of the crime was not communicated to the station house for probably fifteen minutes after its commission.
Patrolman James Peel was the first officer on the scene. Detective Harry Stough was also communicated with, and he summoned his department together and the search began.
The various all night sallons were searched adn the roads, pikes and railways leading in and out of the city were watched, while Captain Stough, Lieutenant Jenkins and Detctive Hayes went on to the fair ground and searched the different stables in the hope that the murders might have made their way out there and hidden themselves until daylight. No clue could be found and after hunting till daylight the officers went out on another track.
The only things left by which the murderers may possibly be identified if the officers are successful, are the bullets picked up and the footprints left of the men as they went away. This morning as a LEADER reporter was exmaining the premises he found and a clear and distinct print of the heel of a man's boot on the window sill. Careful measurement of it was taken which was preserved.
TOOK UP A CLUE.
At 8 o'clock this morning Lieutenant of Police Charles Overly, Sergeant Thomas J. Ready and Dective D. J. McCarty were at the residences when Mr. Jacob Graves of Chilesburg, a cousin of the murdered man, arrived. He at once told the officers that on his way to Lexington and when about six miles from the city, he met two men on the road, both of whom acted in a very suspicious manner. One of them he stated, appeared as if frightened and sought to avoid being seen. He said they acted so strangely that his close attention was directed to them and at one time he thought of stopping and questioning them. He did not, however, and continued his journey to Lexington.
TELEPHONED AHEAD OF THEM.
With this information Lieutenant Overly, accompanied by Fire Chief G. W. Muir, in the latter's buggy started for Winchester. As soon as they left Sergeant Ready telephoned to both Winchester & Chilesburg asking the officers at both places to llok out for one or two men, and if strangers to pick them up and hold them. At noon Lieutenant Overly communicated with the local department from Pine Grove saying that he had not come across the two men as described by Mr. Graves.
CIRCULARS SENT OUT
The entire police and detective forces are at work on the case, Chief of Police Reagan caused several hundred circulars to be mailed to different points in Kentucky describing as nearly as possible the men and peculiar features of the crime.
By noon today nine persons of a suspicious character had been arrested and held pending an investigation into their whereabouts last night and early this morning. Their ages arange from 18 to 35. No formal charges were preferred against any of them, but they are simply held on suspicion. They will be released, however, on giving satisfactory accounts of themselves or if no evidnece can be found against them.
SAW SUSPICIOUS MEN.
James Alexander, colored, a servant at the residence of George Denny, at the corner of Mill and Pine streets, tells a story which indicates that he probably saw the men who did the terrible deed at the Chinn residence.
Alexander had been out late and returned at 12:30 o'clock. He went at once to his room in the basment adn prepared to go to bed. He heard footsepts on the street in front of the house, which sets very close to the street. He threw open the shutters of his room with considerable noise and saw two men go out Pine street at a brisk run. Alexander says they went toward the east. They were, he says, men of small stature. He is convinced that shes were the men who did the deed, since hearing the description given by Mrs. Chinn of the men who killed her husband. Alexander's description of them and hers are similar.
SUSPECTS GOT AWAY
Chief G. W. Muir and Lieut. Overly returned to the city shortly after 1 o'clock, after having a long chase after the men Mr. Graves saw on the Winchester pike and who appeared to him to be acting suspiciously. This chase was fruitles. Chief Muir said on returning: "We drove as fast as we could out the Winchester pike, and although we inquired of every person we met and the residents along the road, no one seemed to have seen the men. We drove to Pine Grove, about four miles this side of winchester, but nodbody there had seen the men. We then went down the Clintonville pike, crossed into Bourbon passed through Clintonville and returned around by the L & E Road to the Bryan Station pike, inquiring as we went. No trace could be found of the men.
"It is my opinion that these men were probably the men. If they had been all right there would have been no occasion for them to leave the pike as they evidently did. Their taking through the country indicates that probably Mr. Graves' suspicions were well founded. All of the poeple out in that section that we could reach were notified to be on the lookot and others were asked to notify all whom they met. I think the report was pretty generally scattered."
The fact that the men were masked when seen by Mrs. Chinn by the light of the match prevented her from being able to determine whether either of the men wore whiskers.
Before the LEADER went to press this afternoon fully thirty men had been arrested on suspicion, but a larger portion of them were released on giving satisfactory accounts of themselves. No positive clue had, up to that time, been discovered.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Thriller Thursday - Home Invasion circa 1902
This particular victim, Addison Ball Chinn, was my second great granduncle - the eighth child of twelve of my great-great-great grandparents, Dr. Joseph & Barbara (Graves) Chinn.
From the Lexington Leader, October 11, 1902, p1 c-14
A. B. CHINN IS MURDERED BY BURGLARS IN HIS SLEEPING ROOM
Robbers Enter House at an Early Hour This Morning and Murder the Popular Merchant After Demanding Money
His Son Asa Fires on the Intruders, Who Turn Their Murderous Weapons on Him, and a Desperate Fight Ensues.
Battle in the Hallway in Which the Young Man is Shot and Seriously Wounded -- A Heroic and Unequal Struggle
MURDERERS MAKE GOOD THEIR ESCAPE AFTER BLOODY DEED
Mr. Addison Ball Chinn, senior member of the well known local dry goods firm of Chinn & Todd, was foully murdered in his own home at 248 East Maxwell Street, at 3:20 this morning by two masked burglars who had entered the house through a window for the purpose of robbery, and Asa Chinn, his son, was shot and dangerously wounded.
At the time of the tragedy, the house was occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Chinn, Asa Chinn, his son, Mr. George B. Runyon, brother of Mrs. Chinn, who occupied a room upstairs, and Mrs. Mary G. Runyon, the mother of Mrs. Chinn, who is now 93 years of age.
The family had all retired at the usual hour with the exception of Asa who had been to a German at the Merrick Lodge building, and did not get home until after 1 o'clock. He was asleep in bed when the robbers entered the house. LEADER reporters went to the Chinn hope this morning and from interviews with various persons obtained the details of the distressing tragedy.
DETAILS OF THE TRAGEDY.
Shortly after 3 o'clock this morning Mrs. Chinn was awakened from her slumbers by the sound of some one moving in the house. She aroused her husband and told him of her fears. He replied that as some of the windows were open the noise she had heard might have been caused by the wind. Just at that moment, the door of the room opened and two masked men forced their way into the room and approaching the side of the bed, covered both Mr. and Mrs. Chinn with revolvers and demanded money, on pain of death if they refused.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Chinn sat up in bed but did not get up and told the intruders that they had no money in the house but that they could look round the house, take what they wanted and leave. Again the robbers demanded money and Mrs. Chinn began to scream. Her screams awoke Asa, the son, who was sleeping in an adjoining room, and he, springing out of bed, grasped a pistol in one hand and a small rifle in the other and ran out into the hall prepared to give battle to the men.
The house was in complete darkness and nothing could be seen of a moving figure or figures and the only opportunity that any one now living had of seeing the men was when they struck a match in the bed room for the purpose of getting the locality of the bed and its occupants. Mrs. Chinn saw the men plainly at that time, but only for an instant before the light of the match flickered out. She describes them as being two in number, short, and heavily built. Bot wore green masks which completely concealed their features, but from the sound of their voices she knew they were white men. She also describes one of wearing a soft black or slouch hat, but did not notice the other before the light of the match went out.
FIRED THE FATAL SHOT.
When the son ran into the hail and had got near to the door of his parents room, the robbers, doubtless hearing his coming, fired the bullet which ended the life of Mr. Chinn. The ball, which was of 38 caliber penetrated the breast on the right side passing through the lungs producing internal hemorrhages which caused death. The bullet deflected slightly in its course through the body and passed out the back an inch or more below the line of entrance on the right side of the spinal column. When the pistol was fired it was held within an inch of the body, as the wound bears the plain marks of numerous powder burns all around it. As soon as he was shot, Mr. Chinn sprang out of bed, saying to his wife, "Mother, I am shot," and gave chase to the robbers, who fled through the window through which they had entered. On reaching the hallway Mr. Chinn fell. When lights could be procured the body of the aged merchant was found dead with a pool of blood about it that had flowed from the wound.
SON'S HEROIC FIGHT.
Upon hearing the alarm Mr. Asa Chinn, with the pistol and small rifle in his hands, ran to the room and opened fire though the partly open door of the bed room. He emptied his pistol, firing six shots altogether. The robbers then turned and opened fire on him, the first bullet striking him in the arm, causing him to drop the rifle, but he still kept firing with the pistol. In the darkness he could see no object, but he was familiar with the hall and hearing the sound of voices convinced him that the invaders were in his parents' room, and he shot in that direction. Three bullets were picked up by the police which are now in their possession. One of the bullets from Asa's pistol struck the upper panel of the door, another struck the lower rim of the woodwork, and a third passed through about the center of the door. It is not known if either of the robbers was wounded. The young man gave it as his opinion that at least one of them was hit, but which he could not tell.
The burglars fired four shots at Asa Chinn and one at the father, thereby suggesting by inference that the weapon used was a five chambered pistol. One of the bullets struck Asa on the tip of the nose and plowed its way though the flesh portion of the cheek. Another, evidently shot from behind, entered the neck on the left side and struck the jaw bone, producing a fracture and turning inside pass through the cheek. The third ball penetrated the arm below the elbow and plowing through the fleshy parts came out above the elbow, thus, producing two wounds with the same bullet. The fourth bullet, fired downwards buried itself in the floor of the hall and was found by the police and extracted.
JUMPED OUT OF A WINDOW.
After wounding Asa Chinn the robbers made their escape by crossing the hall and passing through the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon, jumped out the window which they had left open. Mrs. Runyon, whose vision is defective by reason of extreme age, said that after hearing the sound of the shots she called to Mr. Chinn to come to her assistance, not knowing that he had been mortally wounded, and she then saw the form of a man disappearing through the window of her room. The robbers made good their escape and left no clue behind them.
Asa, bleeding profusely from his wounds, paced the hall while Mr. George Runyon, who had been attracted by the sound of the shots rushed down stairs and seeing the young man's dangerous plight went for medical assistance.
The report that one of the men escaped through the door in front of the house is erroneous, as Mr. Runyon states that the door was locked and that it remained locked until he turned the key to open it to go after a doctor. Asa Chinn never lost his feet in the struggle he engaged in with the murderers of his father. He was full conscious of all that was taking place and maintained his coolness until put to sleep through the administration of opiates.
LEFT TRACES BEHIND
While the burglars and midnight assassins left no trace of their identity behind them they left visible signs of their approach and departure to and from the house. The window through which an entrance was made is situated on the east side of the house and overlooks a driveway. The window, as previously state, belongs to the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon and is never fastened at night. On account of infirmities it is necessary that she have a plentiful supply of fresh air and following the usual custom the top sash of the window was pulled down nearly sixteen inches from the top, thereby leaving the window sashes unfastened. The burglars had obtained a large dry goods box which stood in the driveway and moving it beneath the window they stood on this to enable them to raise the lower sash with as little noise as possible. From the marks left on the sill, it is evident that a small instrument was used to pry the sash up to enable them to get their fingers under to lift it further. The instrument used was either a large nail or a knife as the scratches are discernable on the sill. Having opened the window they got into the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon, passed through the door leading into the hall, cross the hall to the room directly opposite and which was occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Chinn. The door of this room was closed at the time and they opened it and entered, when the terrible tragedy as above related followed. They departed in precisely the same way as that in which they had entered after killing Mr. Chinn and seriously wounding his son. The burglars got no booty.
MOVED TO THE HOSPITAL
Dr. David Barrow responded to the call for medical assistance from Mr. Runyon and upon his arrival at the scene of the crime he dressed the wounds of the young man. Dr. Barrow pronounced the wounds as not necessarily fatal, although extremely serious. At 11 o'clock this morning, on Dr. Barrow's advice, the young man was removed to the Good Samaritan Hospital and the ambulance was used to convey him.
Mrs. Chinn, who was compelled to sit by and see her husband murdered in cold blood in his own bed, by the hand of marauding assassins, was prostrated with grief and the shock to her nervous system was so severed that her attending physician, Dr. H. Bewlay, was in constant attendance upon her. Acting upon his advice she was also taken to the Good Samaritan Hospital and followed her son to that institution. Both are resting well as the LEADER went to press.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
From the Lexington Leader, October 11, 1902, p1 c-14
A. B. CHINN IS MURDERED BY BURGLARS IN HIS SLEEPING ROOM
Robbers Enter House at an Early Hour This Morning and Murder the Popular Merchant After Demanding Money
His Son Asa Fires on the Intruders, Who Turn Their Murderous Weapons on Him, and a Desperate Fight Ensues.
Battle in the Hallway in Which the Young Man is Shot and Seriously Wounded -- A Heroic and Unequal Struggle
MURDERERS MAKE GOOD THEIR ESCAPE AFTER BLOODY DEED
Mr. Addison Ball Chinn, senior member of the well known local dry goods firm of Chinn & Todd, was foully murdered in his own home at 248 East Maxwell Street, at 3:20 this morning by two masked burglars who had entered the house through a window for the purpose of robbery, and Asa Chinn, his son, was shot and dangerously wounded.
At the time of the tragedy, the house was occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Chinn, Asa Chinn, his son, Mr. George B. Runyon, brother of Mrs. Chinn, who occupied a room upstairs, and Mrs. Mary G. Runyon, the mother of Mrs. Chinn, who is now 93 years of age.
The family had all retired at the usual hour with the exception of Asa who had been to a German at the Merrick Lodge building, and did not get home until after 1 o'clock. He was asleep in bed when the robbers entered the house. LEADER reporters went to the Chinn hope this morning and from interviews with various persons obtained the details of the distressing tragedy.
DETAILS OF THE TRAGEDY.
Shortly after 3 o'clock this morning Mrs. Chinn was awakened from her slumbers by the sound of some one moving in the house. She aroused her husband and told him of her fears. He replied that as some of the windows were open the noise she had heard might have been caused by the wind. Just at that moment, the door of the room opened and two masked men forced their way into the room and approaching the side of the bed, covered both Mr. and Mrs. Chinn with revolvers and demanded money, on pain of death if they refused.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Chinn sat up in bed but did not get up and told the intruders that they had no money in the house but that they could look round the house, take what they wanted and leave. Again the robbers demanded money and Mrs. Chinn began to scream. Her screams awoke Asa, the son, who was sleeping in an adjoining room, and he, springing out of bed, grasped a pistol in one hand and a small rifle in the other and ran out into the hall prepared to give battle to the men.
The house was in complete darkness and nothing could be seen of a moving figure or figures and the only opportunity that any one now living had of seeing the men was when they struck a match in the bed room for the purpose of getting the locality of the bed and its occupants. Mrs. Chinn saw the men plainly at that time, but only for an instant before the light of the match flickered out. She describes them as being two in number, short, and heavily built. Bot wore green masks which completely concealed their features, but from the sound of their voices she knew they were white men. She also describes one of wearing a soft black or slouch hat, but did not notice the other before the light of the match went out.
FIRED THE FATAL SHOT.
When the son ran into the hail and had got near to the door of his parents room, the robbers, doubtless hearing his coming, fired the bullet which ended the life of Mr. Chinn. The ball, which was of 38 caliber penetrated the breast on the right side passing through the lungs producing internal hemorrhages which caused death. The bullet deflected slightly in its course through the body and passed out the back an inch or more below the line of entrance on the right side of the spinal column. When the pistol was fired it was held within an inch of the body, as the wound bears the plain marks of numerous powder burns all around it. As soon as he was shot, Mr. Chinn sprang out of bed, saying to his wife, "Mother, I am shot," and gave chase to the robbers, who fled through the window through which they had entered. On reaching the hallway Mr. Chinn fell. When lights could be procured the body of the aged merchant was found dead with a pool of blood about it that had flowed from the wound.
SON'S HEROIC FIGHT.
Upon hearing the alarm Mr. Asa Chinn, with the pistol and small rifle in his hands, ran to the room and opened fire though the partly open door of the bed room. He emptied his pistol, firing six shots altogether. The robbers then turned and opened fire on him, the first bullet striking him in the arm, causing him to drop the rifle, but he still kept firing with the pistol. In the darkness he could see no object, but he was familiar with the hall and hearing the sound of voices convinced him that the invaders were in his parents' room, and he shot in that direction. Three bullets were picked up by the police which are now in their possession. One of the bullets from Asa's pistol struck the upper panel of the door, another struck the lower rim of the woodwork, and a third passed through about the center of the door. It is not known if either of the robbers was wounded. The young man gave it as his opinion that at least one of them was hit, but which he could not tell.
The burglars fired four shots at Asa Chinn and one at the father, thereby suggesting by inference that the weapon used was a five chambered pistol. One of the bullets struck Asa on the tip of the nose and plowed its way though the flesh portion of the cheek. Another, evidently shot from behind, entered the neck on the left side and struck the jaw bone, producing a fracture and turning inside pass through the cheek. The third ball penetrated the arm below the elbow and plowing through the fleshy parts came out above the elbow, thus, producing two wounds with the same bullet. The fourth bullet, fired downwards buried itself in the floor of the hall and was found by the police and extracted.
JUMPED OUT OF A WINDOW.
After wounding Asa Chinn the robbers made their escape by crossing the hall and passing through the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon, jumped out the window which they had left open. Mrs. Runyon, whose vision is defective by reason of extreme age, said that after hearing the sound of the shots she called to Mr. Chinn to come to her assistance, not knowing that he had been mortally wounded, and she then saw the form of a man disappearing through the window of her room. The robbers made good their escape and left no clue behind them.
Asa, bleeding profusely from his wounds, paced the hall while Mr. George Runyon, who had been attracted by the sound of the shots rushed down stairs and seeing the young man's dangerous plight went for medical assistance.
The report that one of the men escaped through the door in front of the house is erroneous, as Mr. Runyon states that the door was locked and that it remained locked until he turned the key to open it to go after a doctor. Asa Chinn never lost his feet in the struggle he engaged in with the murderers of his father. He was full conscious of all that was taking place and maintained his coolness until put to sleep through the administration of opiates.
LEFT TRACES BEHIND
While the burglars and midnight assassins left no trace of their identity behind them they left visible signs of their approach and departure to and from the house. The window through which an entrance was made is situated on the east side of the house and overlooks a driveway. The window, as previously state, belongs to the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon and is never fastened at night. On account of infirmities it is necessary that she have a plentiful supply of fresh air and following the usual custom the top sash of the window was pulled down nearly sixteen inches from the top, thereby leaving the window sashes unfastened. The burglars had obtained a large dry goods box which stood in the driveway and moving it beneath the window they stood on this to enable them to raise the lower sash with as little noise as possible. From the marks left on the sill, it is evident that a small instrument was used to pry the sash up to enable them to get their fingers under to lift it further. The instrument used was either a large nail or a knife as the scratches are discernable on the sill. Having opened the window they got into the room occupied by Mrs. Runyon, passed through the door leading into the hall, cross the hall to the room directly opposite and which was occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Chinn. The door of this room was closed at the time and they opened it and entered, when the terrible tragedy as above related followed. They departed in precisely the same way as that in which they had entered after killing Mr. Chinn and seriously wounding his son. The burglars got no booty.
MOVED TO THE HOSPITAL
Dr. David Barrow responded to the call for medical assistance from Mr. Runyon and upon his arrival at the scene of the crime he dressed the wounds of the young man. Dr. Barrow pronounced the wounds as not necessarily fatal, although extremely serious. At 11 o'clock this morning, on Dr. Barrow's advice, the young man was removed to the Good Samaritan Hospital and the ambulance was used to convey him.
Mrs. Chinn, who was compelled to sit by and see her husband murdered in cold blood in his own bed, by the hand of marauding assassins, was prostrated with grief and the shock to her nervous system was so severed that her attending physician, Dr. H. Bewlay, was in constant attendance upon her. Acting upon his advice she was also taken to the Good Samaritan Hospital and followed her son to that institution. Both are resting well as the LEADER went to press.
Copyright 2010, ACK for Gene Notes
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)