Lincoln was assassinated four months later and Gayle was arrested in Alabama on May 25, 1865. As for notorious Alabama criminals, some of the most famous include Nancy Hazel Doss, also known as the Black Widow killer, who killed up to 11 family members; Bobby Frank Cherry, a Ku Klux Klan member who was convicted of four counts of murder after the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 2002; and Joseph Dewey Akin, who was a doctor suspected of killing over 100 people during his 10-year career in medicine. Did you already know about these murders? Gayle received a full pardon from Andrew Johnson. Burrow had been captured and taken to jail in Linden when he charmed the guards, asking for food. William Martin died in 1931 at the age of 86 and, as Alberta became known as the "last surviving Civil War widow" a title later challenged by Maudie Hopkins. With equity for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other underserved victims not prioritized in the true crime communitytogether we can do better. On February 28, 1890, Richard was executed, and people were paying up to $200 a ticket to watch. He was employed at Georgia-Pacific and often left his family alone at home while he worked. ", George Washington Gayle, threatened to assassinate Lincoln, 1807-1875. That same afternoon, a telegram announced that Richard married the former Mayes Story in Mississippi. An entertainer who played "Pogo the Clown" at children's parties, John Wayne Gacy was one of the most infamous serial killers in America. Jim had been known to escape from captivity, where he would be sent to work in mines. Lackey confronted Newman and as Newman called 911, Lackey began firing shots. Also, read about another Calhoun County "notorious" killer, Audrey Marie Hilley, here. In 1976, Clarence Norris, the only one living at the time, was pardoned by then-Gov. Daniels was an Episcopal seminarian. Earle Dennison, nicknamed the Aunt Killer, was executed in Alabama's electric chair in 1953 for the arsenic-poisoning death of her 2-year-old niece, Shirley Diann Weldon, for the insurance money. 1866. According to journalist Lee Peacock their story is included in "History of Conecuh County, Alabama" by B.F. Riley. The nine the teens and young men accused of raping two women aboard a train ranged in age from 13 to 20. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. From 1886 to 1890, Rube and his gang robbed express trains in Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Indian Territory, all the while eluding capture by lawmen and investigators from the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. He was stabbed to death in North Carolina in 1941. She died in 2004 at the age of 97and was buried with much fanfare in New Ebenezer Cemetery in Coffee County. Robert J. Bentley, elected as Alabama's governor in 2011, was born in Columbiana, Ala. He was captured in 2003, and on August 24, 2005, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole - four consecutive life sentences plus 120 years. Alabama has many different urban legends, ranging from the dark and sinister to the downtown creepy. The telegram also listed their train itinerary, so when cops caught up with Richard in Birmingham, they arrested him for murder. In May of 1992, Betty Wilson and her twin sister, Peggy Lowe, were arrested and tried for hiring James White to kill Betty's wealthy, well-known husband, Dr. Jack Wilson, an eye surgeon in Huntsville, Alabama. The murders also earned Birmingham the nickname Murder Capital of the Country. Successful engineer Richard Hawes murdered his wife, Emma, along with their two daughters, May and Irene. But an angry mob took the four men and hung them from nearby trees. She enjoys discovering new places and currently calls North Alabama home. He and Starr, also a famous outlaw, may have been romantically involved. Wyatt Tate of Monroe County was an outlaw who murdered Sheriff J.D. Murder of Judge Edward Aaron - Birmingham, Alabama 1957. He was captured in Washington County, Ala., and taken to Fort Stoddert. The people of Florence dedicated a memorial plaque to mark the grave, the inscription of which reads, in part: "The notorious outlaw gang leader who boasted that no one would ever run over Tom Clark lies buried near the center of Tennessee Street where now all who pass by do run over him. Marshall Herff Applewhite, cult leader, 1931-1997. Reuben Houston Burrow was fascinated by tales of Jesse James and his gang of outlaws. Finding the most notorious person from each of Alabamas 67 counties was no easy task. In 1915, Judge J.E. He was sentenced to life in prison, served 10 years, then died in 1969 from injuries sustained in a fall while working in Mobile. All nine were innocent it just took eight decades for Alabama to admit it. Patricia Dianne Krenwinkel was born Dec. 3, 1947, in Los Angeles, Calif., but her parents divorced when she was 17 and her mother moved to Mobile, Ala. Krenwinkel moved to Mobile briefly to attend Spring Hill College but soon dropped out and returned to California. It was overgrown with enormous trees and thick underbrush. Mountain Tom Clark, outlaw, birth unknown-1872, Tom Clark, one of the most feared men in North Alabama in his day, is buried beneath Tennessee Street near Florence City Cemetery in Lauderdale County. As a cowboy in Texas in 1876, he killed a fellow buffalo hunter but was never prosecuted. Emma's bruised and beaten body was soon discovered in the lake at Lake View Park, weighted down with iron. Robert Bentley signed an official pardon for the nine young men wrongfully accused of rape in 1931. (Grave of James Foster in Perdue Hill Cemetery in Monroe County via Darryl Searcy/ FindaGrave.com). After a brief period in which several African Americans were elected to office following the Civil War, a backlash occurred in sometimes bloody clashes. ALASKA: The Coulthurst family murders in Craig. Standing alone in the annals of illicit liquer-selling, was his scheme for disposing of mountain dew. On January 29, 1998, Eric Rudolph left a deadly FedEx package at the front door of New Woman All Women Clinic, in Birmingham. While some might assume the creepiest place is the site of a famous murder in Alabama, its actually much different. Read all the AL.com coverage of the Bentley scandal here. Yvonne Coley, a 28-year-old prostitute, was discovered hidden under a hedge on the edge of Cocks Moor Woods Golf Course at Warstock Lane, Kings Heath. Due to lack of evidence, the case was dismissed. By this time, even Lamar County residents were turning against Rube. Garrett tracked him to Fort Sumner on July 14 where he was shot and killed Garrett was murdered by Jesse Wayne Brazel on February 29, 1908. (1970 photo shows Manson Family follower Patricia Krenwinkel/AP/File Photo). Walter Cagle was a large man who lived in an isolated area atop Sand Mountain and gained a reputation for being able to foretell the weather. Hart was raised 2 miles from Camp Scott. Some occurred centuries ago, many occurred decades ago, and a few have occurred in recent years. He was convicted of three murders and confessed to at least five. This is just one of many Alabama cold cases solved and Alabama murders solved in the last few years with this form of evidence and technology. He was one of three inmates killed after a failed escape attempt led to a two-day battle in which two guards also died. Epicenter Press, 210 pages, 2020. Richard Hawes, family annihilator, 1857-1890. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. Jennifer is the Alabama staff writer for Only In Your State and has nearly 15 years of professional writing experience. The case. In 1992, he was indicted for theft, conspiracy, and ethics violations, accused of taking $200,000 from a 1987 inaugural account to buy such things as marble showers. Lackey then stabbed Newman more than 70 times. You'll receive your first newsletter soon! The most famous murder in Alabama history is the 1988 Hawes murders, which took place in the city of Birmingham. The victims were identified as Jerome Maurice. Edward Aaron was a Black handyman who was abducted by the KKK, badly beaten, castrated with a razor and left to die in a nearby creek . Robert Sanderson, a Birmingham police officer who worked off-duty at the clinic as a security guard, and nurse Emily Lyons, approached the package. When the Manson family became suspects in the murders, Krenwinkel returned to Mobile to live with her mother, where she was arrested in December 1969. Alabama is the only state whose anti-death penalty organization (Project Hope to Abolish the Death Penalty) was founded by death row inmates in 1989. Rhonda Bell Martin of Montgomery was executed in 1957 in Alabama's electric chair after confessing to killing her mother, two of her husbands and three of her children with arsenic, reportedly for the insurance money. Search the internet for James Earl Files + JFK and you'll find numerous interviews with a man who says he was the shooter on the "grassy knoll" in Dallas, who killed President Kennedy in 1963. He was an escaped convict that had been on the run for 4 years, before being captured. Legends often say that he was hanged on trumped-up charges for deserting the Confederate army, although details vary. Who did I choose for your county? Miller called the Legislature into session to pass amendments to collect state income tax and inheritance tax, as well as budget controls. They tied her up and left her in the hallway, she said. In 1988, Hubert Mathis, the 85-year-old mayor of Florala was impeached and removed from office. The Hawes trial began on April 22, 1889 at Jefferson County Courthouse. She was riding with her husband, H.C. Price Jr., when the lights on their car suddenly stopped working and it careened over an embankment. She was also accused of killing another niece, Shirley's older sister Polly. Sequoyah, who lived in later life in DeKalb County, is known for inventing a syllabary in 1821, making it possible for the Cherokee to read and write. McEwen was known for his uncanny "readings" of visitors to his store. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Maj. Milton Butterfield, man buried beneath church, unknown birth-1864, Milton Butterfield, a major with the 24thAlabama Infantry killed in Atlanta during the Civil War, is buried beneath Union Springs' Red Door Theatre, which occupies the ca.-1909 Trinity Episcopal Church. These individuals are also known to have committed some of the most infamous Alabama murders. He also held the title of exalted cyclops in the Ku Klux Klan and was once charged with "flogging" people but the charges were dismissed. Wed love to hear your thoughts! They were arrested when the train stopped in Paint Rock and taken to the nearest jail in Scottsboro. The victims were 37-year-old Connie R. Woolfolk of Flossmoor, Illinois; 22-year-old Sarah Szafranski of Oak Forest; 42-year-old store manager Rhonda McFarland of Joliet; 33-year-old Carrie Hudek Chiuso of Frankfort; and 34-year-old Jennifer Bishop of South Bend, Indiana. His trial, with a change of venue to Miami, in June, 1979, was the first nationally televised . They were wrong. Selocta donned the head and skin of a pig and pretended to rout as he made his way past the unsuspecting Red Sticks. One article from 1894 said Bannister was wanted in Cleburne County for shooting off the leg of a "Mrs. Cotton," and brutally beating Old Man Cotton. Wed love to hear from you in the comments section! "), Ira Thompson, exalted cyclops of KKK and attorney, 1889-1973. According to his entry on FindaGrave.com, he also used his office for personal gain. So, to answer how many homicides in Alabama 2019 by looking at the state of Alabamas Uniform Crime Report (UCR), there were 430 homicides in 2019 alone. He was assigned to round up troops for the Confederacy, but, according to accounts, became a violent man. On May 3, 1889, Hawes received the death penalty. Guilford (or sometimes Gilford) Coleman, a respected black Republican leader, had just returned from the Republican State Convention when he was taken from his house by masked men and murdered, according to The Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimesby Michael Newton. If they refused, they were killed. 1814-1884. According to the Hawes housekeeper, the weekend before Mays body was discovered, she saw Richard and May assist Emma with packing. This man, Sanders, was a millwright by trade who had served well during the Civil War, but following his resignation he became allies with a band of deserters who sought shelter along the Florida state line. In 1872, Clark, who terrorized helpless citizens during the Civil War, confessed to at least nineteen murders, including a child, and was hanged with two companions , (Carlotta Roddey from her book cover and Philip Roddey by Ronald Deavy via FindaGrave.com), Philip Dale Roddey, beloved general accused of scandal, 1826-1897, The accolades for Confederate brigadier general Philip Roddey are many and overshadow a questionable part of his life. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund website, the men "were shot and killed while attempting to arrest a suspect for a fraud offenseThe suspect was eventually shot and killed after officers opened fire with more than 1,000 rounds. She vanished for four days and was found crawling in the woods, soaked from the rain. He would guess their ages and vocations and was usually correct. In 2006, Betty was remarried in prison to Bill Campbell - an Army contractor who became highly obsessed with Betty after seeing her story on TV. This is a list of notable female murderers who committed their murders in Alabama, USA. George Washington Gayle, born in South Carolina in 1807, was an attorney who served in the Alabama Legislature, chaired the House Ways and Means Committee and was appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama. It was a bomb. Reynolds was shot and killed the same day. When I created this list, I tried to stick with more historical figures when dealing with violent crimes, to prevent highlighting any recent tragedies. Charles Christopher Sheats was the Winston County representative at Alabama's 1861 secession convention leading up to the Civil War. Half of the committee voted to hold off, citing an ongoing probe by the state attorney general's office.". Peacock said legend states the brothers were so despised that they were buried facing west instead of the traditional east when they were cut down from the gallows., (A late-19th century photo of John Kirkham from Barbara Kim Thigpen), John K. McEwen, beloved businessman and reader, 1856-1939. He made it to Jackson, who gathered 1,200 infantry and 800 cavalry and marched toward Talledega, saving the town. She is thought to have killed two other children but denied it. Blackwood sentenced Wilson to life in prison. Austin Mize, disappeared in Bermuda Triangle, 1900-1918. The Morrison sibling gang, which at one point included eight brothers, were friends of notorious outlaw Bart Thrasher. He became a self-appointed truant officer, picking up men who did not want to fight and giving them only a short time to join his side. Although he publicly denied his involvement in the bombing, relatives and friends testified that he continuously "bragged" about being part of the crime. 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