The Brutal Murder of Pearl Bryan (1896)
One of the most sensational Kentucky cases was the brutal murder of Pearl Bryan in 1896. Pearl was 21 years old, the youngest of twelve children, and came from Greencastle, Indiana. She had done well at school and was very popular. At the time of her death, she was five months pregnant.
Her body was discovered on February 1, 1896, at Alexandria Pike near Fort Thomas by a sixteen-year-old farmhand in the orchard owned by his employer, John Lock. He immediately reported the find to Colonel Lock, who informed the police.
To their horror, officers found that Pearl had been strangled and then decapitated. Her head was not found. At this time, police had no means of identifying the victim but were able to get a strong lead from the unusual shoes she had been wearing. Thanks to the good record-keeping of a shoe factory and a retail store in Greencastle, the purchaser was identified.
Pearl had been reported missing by her brother. Together with the fact that she had bought the only pair of size 3 shoes out of a batch of 12 pairs sent to the shop and other details discovered by the autopsy, it was clear that this was her body. Her heartbroken family was able to identify the clothes found on her at the scene as belonging to Pearl.
The Relationship with Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling
Pearl had been having a relationship with a 26-year-old dental student in Cincinnati named Scott Jackson, by whom she had become pregnant—something completely socially unacceptable in those times. Jackson had broken off the relationship but, when informed of Pearl’s condition, told her to come to Cincinnati, where he would arrange for her to have a backstreet abortion. Pearl agreed but told her parents she was going to Indianapolis to visit friends.
Nineteen-year-old Alonzo Walling had also attended the Indiana Dental College and knew Jackson. He, Jackson, and Pearl were seen together, and on the morning of January 30th, the three got into a fight, with Pearl complaining that Jackson had not kept his promise regarding the abortion.
They all dined together the next night. Jackson spiked Pearl’s drink with cocaine before they left in a cab. Unbeknownst to Pearl, the cab was to take them to the scene of her murder near Fort Thomas.
It seems that Jackson first tried to strangle her, then pulled a knife. She fought back as best she could and grabbed the knife, causing serious injuries to her hand and fingers. She managed to escape momentarily, but Jackson caught up with her and cut her throat. He then proceeded to cut her head off and arranged her clothing to make it look like a rape scene. The head and the knife were placed in one of Pearl’s cases and later thrown into the Ohio River.
Dr. Tingley, Coroner of Campbell County, examined the body at the scene and later gave evidence at the trial.
Arrest and Trial
Jackson was arrested on February 5 and taken to the mayor’s office, where Mayor Caldwell interrogated him at length. Later at the police station, Jackson was thoroughly searched. Blood spatters were found on his clothes, and two deep scratches—inflicted by Pearl while fighting for her life—were discovered on his arm.
Jackson asked one of his jailers if Walling had been arrested but refused to give any further information when challenged. Walling was arrested two days later and subsequently charged with the murder. He provided some details of the crime and directed police to where he had hidden Jackson’s blood-stained coat, which showed damage to the sleeve where Pearl had scratched him.
The police later interrogated both men in the morgue in the presence of Pearl’s body, lying in an open casket, but did not obtain a confession. They were placed in Hamilton County Jail to await trial.
The Trials and Sentencing
Jackson’s trial opened on April 22, 1896, after an initial postponement and lasted until May 14 before Judge Helm. The evidence against him was overwhelming, and it did not take the jury long to convict him.
Walling’s trial commenced on May 20, 1896, lasting until June 18. Much of the evidence was the same, and he too was convicted. Both were sentenced to death.
Feeling locally was running high, both men feared lynching and, in fact, refused to leave the jail when other inmates made a mass breakout.
The Execution
Governor Bradley signed the death warrants, delivered on February 17th, setting the executions for 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 20, 1897. The hangings were to take place on a white-painted gallows erected at the rear of Campbell County Jail in Newport. The scene was protected from public gaze by a high wooden stockade.
Just before the appointed hour, Jackson asked to speak to the minister attending them and to Sheriff Plummer, telling them, “I know that Alonzo Walling is not guilty of the crime of murder.” Plummer halted the hanging and telegraphed the news to Governor Bradley, who replied that he would require more information but would commute Walling’s sentence if Jackson confessed to the crime and disclosed what he did with the head. Jackson replied that he had nothing further to say.
The execution was rescheduled and commenced at 11:30 a.m. The two men emerged from the jail wearing new suits and ascended the fourteen steps to the gallows. Neither made a last-minute confession.
Jackson’s last words were, “I have only this to say, that I am not guilty of the crime for which I am now compelled to pay the penalty of my life.” Walling’s last words were, “Nothing; only that you are taking the life of an innocent man and I will call upon God to witness the truth of what I say.”
After preparations and a hymn and prayers by Rev. Mr. Lee, the drop fell at 11:41 a.m. Sheriff Julius Plummer reportedly gave each man a five-foot drop. However, the photo of the execution indicates a longer drop, as neither man’s head is visible above the platform.
Jackson was certified dead at 12:01 p.m., and Walling at 11:55 a.m. Reports vary as to their suffering, with some papers claiming they died in great agony, while others say they suffered very little. Neither man’s neck was broken; both died from asphyxia.
It is somewhat unclear what part Walling played in the murder, but he was definitely present, did nothing to prevent it, and assisted at least in the disposal of the head and Jackson’s bloody coat.
This case was very much front-page news, with numerous newspapers following it assiduously, reporting every development, and giving substantial coverage to the final act. The executions were photographed, which was sometimes allowed at this period.
Clarence Williams and “The Hanging Extra” (1899)
Clarence Williams was an illiterate 25-year-old Black man who shot and killed his girlfriend, Josie Tilman, on March 22, 1899, in Claysville. Williams and Josie were talking in a shop doorway that afternoon when another man called to her from across the street. Josie started over to see him, but Williams called her back. At this point, she began to run, and he fired three shots at her, one of which proved fatal.
Williams escaped from the scene, but an arrest warrant was issued for him. He was captured an hour later in a cornfield at a nearby farm. He immediately inquired whether Josie was dead and informed officers that he had only meant to scare her. (Josie was still alive at this time; she died the following day.) The murder weapon, a loaded revolver, was still on him. Williams was taken to jail at Paris in Bourbon County.
The coroner’s inquest ruled that Josie had been murdered by Williams.
Trial and Execution of Clarence Williams
Judge Charles Webb, assisted by S. B. Rogers, was appointed to defend Williams at his trial on July 5, 1899, in Bourbon Circuit Court before Judge Cantrell. Williams was prosecuted by Commonwealth Attorney Franklin. The trial lasted just half a day, and the jury took only 20 minutes to reach a guilty verdict and recommend death.
Judge Webb lodged an appeal, but on September 29, the Court of Appeals affirmed Williams’ death sentence. Governor Bradley fixed Monday, December 11, as the date of execution.
The gallows was bought from Lexington and erected on Friday morning on the southwestern side of the jail. Hundreds of people came to see it. The death warrant was read to Williams by Sheriff Bowen on Saturday morning.
Williams received the Rev. Webster on his last Sunday and told him that he was resigned to his fate and knew Josie would have forgiven him. He wrote a note thanking jailer Kiser for all his kindness.
At 6:50 a.m. on Monday, Williams was led from the jail and mounted the gallows with a firm step, wearing a black suit with a rose in the lapel. Fifty witnesses with written invitations were admitted into the enclosure. J.C. Graves, an elder of the church, sang a hymn and delivered a prayer. The pinioning of Williams’ legs was completed, and the hood and noose were put in place.
The drop fell at 7:05 a.m., and he was pronounced dead at 7:15. His neck was broken by the drop. Williams was reported as being the “gamest person” ever executed in Kentucky.
The Bourbon News published a “Hanging Extra” edition on the afternoon of the execution, with the front page entirely devoted to the case.
Williams had previously served two years in prison for shooting and killing Will Warren.
Kentucky Executions in Early 1900s
By February 1905, there were no fewer than thirteen men awaiting execution in Kentucky, all for murder. Five were in Jefferson County at Louisville, two in Fayette County in Lexington, two in Daviess County at Owensboro, two in Kenton County at Covington, and one at Hopkinsville in Christian County (for the Pembroke murder).
Two of these men were Roy Green and Robert Mathley, both jailed in Owensboro.
Roy Green: Murder and Execution
Roy Green, a 17½-year-old Black man originally from Rockport, Indiana, had beaten to death James Coomes of Slaughterville in Webster County on July 31, 1904, in an old shack at the fairgrounds. He then stole $28.00 and fled. He visited his sister in Evansville for a week before traveling to Louisville, where he was arrested on August 12.
Green confessed to his crime while being transported back to Owensboro. He told police that after killing Coomes with a plank, he had pulled off a large splinter and forced it through the victim’s throat and into the ground. In his statement, Green said he was drunk at the time on whiskey Coomes had given him.
The Owensboro jail had an armed guard to prevent Green from being lynched. His trial took place between August 31 and September 3, 1904, with Commonwealth’s Attorney Ben D. Ringo prosecuting, assisted by County Attorney LaVega Clements.
Green pleaded not guilty and did not take the stand in his defense. The jury took just 31 minutes to reach a verdict and recommend death. Witnesses cheered in court when the verdict was read.
An appeal to the Kentucky Court of Appeals was denied on January 13, 1905. Governor Beckham set February 17 as the execution date.
The gallows was erected on the north side of the county jail behind a twenty-foot-high wooden fence. Fifty witnesses, including several women, had tickets to attend. One woman had previously witnessed a double execution by guillotine in France and was keen to see an American execution.
Several hundred men and women sought views through the knot holes of the wooden fence surrounding the gallows.
At dawn on Friday, February 17, 1905, Green mounted the gallows and addressed the witnesses: “Good people, I want to say that I did this awful crime and I have repented of it. Mind what your mothers tell you and leave whiskey out. Don’t do as I have done, for I have done wrong this far.”
Deputy Sheriff Harry Cooper sprang the trap at 7 a.m., and Green took eleven minutes to die, his neck not being broken by the drop.
Robert Mathley: Murder, Trial, and Execution
The second hanging at Owensboro in 1905 was that of 40-year-old widower Robert Mathley (white), convicted of shooting to death his 17-year-old ex-girlfriend, Emma Watkins, who was pregnant by him.
Emma had formed a new relationship with her cousin James Gregson, and Mathley was very jealous. Shortly before 9 p.m. on Sunday, June 26, 1904, Mathley asked Emma to marry him. When she declined, he shot both James and Emma.
The two victims were sitting in the same room of the home of Will Warren on Cherry Street. Mathley first shot James, shattering his spine and causing his death two days later in the hospital. He then fired a single round at Emma, who died at the scene.
Mathley remained in the house and was arrested by four police officers soon afterward.
His trial lasted four days, with the verdict delivered on August 31, 1904 (the same day that Green’s trial started). Commonwealth’s Attorney Ben D. Ringo prosecuted again, assisted by County Attorney LaVega Clements.
The all-male jury retired for just 52 minutes before unanimously finding Mathley guilty and sentencing him to death. Tears appeared on Mathley’s face as the verdict and sentence were read.
Mathley appealed to the Kentucky Court of Appeals on the grounds of insanity, but Judge Barker affirmed his conviction and sentence on April 26, 1905.
In late June 1905, Mathley attempted to escape from prison by overpowering his jailer and stealing the keys but was quickly foiled.
Mathley attempted suicide the night before his execution by cutting his left wrist with a fingernail.
His execution was carried out at dawn on July 7, 1905, on the same gallows used for the Green hanging. Admission by the general public was not permitted, but several individuals climbed onto roofs to look down into the enclosure. Dr. T. N. Compton, pastor of the First Baptist Church, read a psalm and prayed.
Mathley had to be supported on the trap as the preparations were made and trembled violently as the black hood was drawn over his head. Deputy Sheriff James Jones sprang the trap door at 4:46 a.m., and Mathley was pronounced dead at 5:01, his neck having been broken by the drop.
On the same morning, George Holland was hanged at Hopkinsville for the Pembroke murder committed in 1903.
The Case of Floyd Frazier – May 19, 1910
Twenty-year-old Floyd Frazier was hanged at Whitesburg in Letcher County for the rape and murder of 30-year-old Miss Ellen Flanary, a widow and mother of four, at Pert Creek in Letcher County on May 21, 1907. The body of Mrs. Flanary was discovered near her home beneath a heap of rocks, stabbed in the chest, with her throat cut and several bone fractures.
Floyd Frazier, aged 18, who came from a very good family, was found nearby with bloody clothes and was arrested. The first trial resulted in a hung jury, but the second trial in Perry County convicted him and sentenced him to hang. This verdict was overturned by the Court of Appeals, and a third trial was held in Knott County, which reinstated the previous verdict and sentence.
On Friday, February 4th, Frazier’s appeal was dismissed. Governor Wilson duly set May 19, 1910, as the day of execution. Frazier made no public confession to the crime. The drop fell at 1:30 p.m., and Frazier was pronounced dead 11 minutes later. Some 5,000 people witnessed the hanging.
The Last Hanging for Murder – Roger Warren, May 25, 1910
On May 25th, 1910, Roger Warren became the last man to hang for murder, as opposed to rape or rape-murder, when he was executed at Frankfort, using the same gallows that had been used for Jackson, Walling, and some 20 other men.
Introduction of Electrocution in Kentucky
Kentucky passed a law stipulating that all executions from June 15, 1910, should be carried out in private by electrocution at the State Penitentiary in Eddyville. The electric chair, shown below, was constructed for this purpose. Eddyville was known as the “Castle on the Cumberland” due to its architecture. The chair was housed in the basement of Cellhouse 3. The execution room, electric chair, and controls cost around $7,000.
The First Electrocution – James Buckner, July 8, 1911
Shortly after midnight on Friday, July 8th, 1911, 18-year-old James Buckner became the first murderer to die by electrocution in the state. He had been convicted of stabbing to death police officer Robey in May at Lebanon in Marion County.
Robey had gone to investigate a disturbance and arrested Buckner and another lad, Jesse Smith. They turned on Robey and stabbed him 16 times. The two were quickly re-arrested and taken to jail in Louisville as it was feared they might be lynched.
The prison doctor at Eddyville, R. H. Moss, nearly got electrocuted too, as he moved to examine Buckner before the electricity was switched off.
Mass Electrocutions and Statistics
Between midnight and 1:30 a.m. on July 13, 1928, seven murderers went to the electric chair, one after the other. Four were white and reportedly near collapse; three were black and sang beforehand in the holding cells.
There would be a total of 162 electrocutions between July 1911 and July 1997: 138 for murder, 21 for rape, and three for armed robbery.
Hanging for Rape Mandated in the 1920s
Although the electric chair had replaced hanging in 1911, a new law came into effect in the early 1920s, following the rape of a 9-year-old girl in Lexington that caused public outrage. It mandated hanging for rapists and rape/murderers in the county where the crime occurred.
This led to nine hangings — seven for rape, two for rape/murder — between August 28, 1925, when Ray Ross was put to death in Fayette County, and June 1938, when Harold Venison was executed in Kenton County. Thereafter, a further seven rapists were executed by electrocution, with Robert Sheckles becoming the last in 1956.
Rainey Bethea: The Last Fully Public Hanging in the U.S.
The Crime and Arrest
The US’s last fully public hanging took place at Owensboro on August 14, 1936, when 22-year-old Rainey Bethea was executed for the rape and murder of 70-year-old Lischia Edwards. Florence Thompson was the sheriff. She had taken over the job from her husband, Everett, some three months earlier after he died of pneumonia.
In law, it was her duty to spring the trap herself, although she was allowed to hire someone to do it for her. The idea of a female sheriff carrying out an execution greatly added to the excitement and attention the case received from the press.
The Victim and Investigation
Lischa Edwards was a 79-year-old widow who lived in a three-room apartment at 322 E. Fifth Street in Owensboro. The crime was discovered by her neighbor, Robert Richardson, who failed to get a reply when he knocked on her door on the morning of Sunday, June 7, 1936, after he became concerned about her not leaving for church. He and other neighbors gained entry and found Mrs. Edwards dead on her bed.
Coroner Delbert J. Glenn found that she had been strangled and raped during the previous night.
A search of the apartment revealed a broken cheap black celluloid ring with a black “R” against a white background. Police determined that the robber had climbed onto a coal shed roof, then onto a servant’s house, the roof of a covered walkway, and finally onto the kitchen roof and into Mrs. Edward’s apartment. It was clear that the perpetrator was familiar with the building.
Bethea’s Background and Confessions
Bethea was the first suspect. He had worked as a servant for several Owensboro families and had been employed at the apartment building where Mrs. Edwards lived. He had served time in Eddyville for burglary but was released on parole after six months.
The celluloid ring had been obtained in Eddyville and was identified as belonging to him. On June 16, a warrant was issued for his arrest on charges of murder and rape. He was arrested by two patrolmen after a worker at Owensboro River Sand & Gravel spotted him hiding beneath some bushes along the Ohio River bank.
After arraignment before Judge F.A. Roby, he was transferred to Jefferson County jail in Louisville to prevent the possibility of a lynching. During the drive, he made a verbal confession to the escorting officers and later a written one at Louisville.
In this, he stated that the jewelry he had stolen from Mrs. Edwards was hidden in his room. This was found to be untrue, and Bethea withdrew this confession only to make another in which he said the jewelry was stashed in a barn near his victim’s apartment, where the police found it.
Trial and Sentencing
On June 22, 1936, Circuit Court Judge George S. Wilton convened a special session of the grand jury. Commonwealth Attorney Herman Birdhead decided to proceed only with the rape charge, as this would permit Bethea to be hanged in Daviess County.
The Grand Jury took just one hour and fifteen minutes to return an indictment on the rape charge.
The trial began three days later (the minimum time allowed by Kentucky law) in a packed courthouse. Bethea pleaded guilty. Over the next three hours, the prosecution still presented the facts to the jury as they would need to decide the sentence. There was no defence.
At 12:23 p.m., after just 4½ minutes, they returned with a unanimous verdict of guilty.
Judge Wilson sentenced him to be “hanged by the neck with his body suspended so as to cause death, between sunrise and sunset July 31.”
Appeals and Execution Date
The case was taken up by four black lawyers from Louisville arguing that he had not received a fair trial because he was a black man charged with raping a white woman. They presented a motion for a new trial, but the deadline for filing had already expired.
On July 28, Bethea’s new lawyers filed an appeal, which was dismissed by the Kentucky Court of Appeals, which refused a stay of execution the following day.
However, U.S. District Judge Elwood Hamilton in Louisville reviewed the case and on August 3rd ruled that the execution could proceed.
On August 6, the Governor, A.B. Chandler, signed the death warrant for Bethea to be hanged at sunrise on Friday, August 14.
The Execution: August 14, 1936
The hanging took place in the yard of the County Garage and was the first in Daviess County for 31 years (see Roy Green and Robert Mathley above). It was supervised by Phil Hanna, who supplied the hood and rope and had taken part in some 70 executions. He was assisted by Sheriff Lester Pyle, from Carmi, Illinois.
It was estimated that some 10,000 people witnessed the execution from all over Kentucky and further afield. The local hotels were all full, and according to some newspapers, there was a carnival atmosphere in the town.
Final Hours and Execution Details
On Thursday, August 13, Bethea’s lawyers said there would be no further appeals, and so at 6:00 p.m. he was given his last meal of fried chicken, pork chops, cornbread, pickles, mashed potatoes, lemon pie, and ice cream. After eating it, he wrote a letter to his sister.
Late in the evening, he was driven from Louisville to Owensboro, arriving around 4 a.m. the next morning.
Retired police officer Arthur Hash, who had been hired by Sheriff Thompson to pull the lever, arrived by train, and she came to collect him and drive him to the execution site. At 4:20 a.m., the gallows was tested. At 5:29 a.m., Bethea was brought to the place of execution in a patrol car and was led to the gallows, handcuffed between two deputies.
The Final Moments
At the foot of the gallows, Bethea said, “Let me take off my shoes. I want to put on a clean pair of socks.” This he was allowed to do and put on a clean pair of silk socks.
Once on the platform, he prayed with Rev. H. J. Lammers, the Catholic priest who had baptized him in jail. The black hood was put over Bethea’s head, and his hands were strapped in front and legs strapped above and below the knee, as was standard practice.
Phil Hanna placed the noose around Bethea’s neck and gave the signal to Hash to pull the lever. However, Hash was reportedly drunk and failed to notice. “Do it now!” Hanna commanded sharply.
Bethea dropped 8 feet 6 inches through the trap, breaking his neck. He was certified dead 8½ minutes later but not before several spectators had managed to tear off parts of the black hood as souvenirs.
He was buried in Potter’s Field in an unmarked grave.
Public Reaction
This, the last public hanging in the US, drew very bad press, with many editorials slamming it, principally because they felt that the crowds enjoyed it too much!
Also, see Kentucky Murders 1962-2008.
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