Scene of the crime – Madison Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee On an April afternoon in 1921, Eula Bass and her friend, Mrs. Lee Howard were sitting in her car enjoying ice cream on their lunch hour. The two friends worked in the city of Memphis, Tennessee at Kraus Cleaners on Madison Avenue. Around 12:30 pm, […]
The Murder of Eula Bass Read More »
I have posted the entire story of the murder of Sheriff J.M. Poag from my book – Without Penalty on this website. However, if you would like a copy of the book, please feel free to email me! Chapter 1 – The Murder of Sheriff J.M. Poag “Early this morning, one of the most daring
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As word of the murder of Sheriff J.M. Poag traveled across the country and Tate county, the small town of Senatobia was flooded with people from all sections of the county. In fact, The Senatobia Democrat reported that Sheriff Poag laid in state inside the jail where people by the hundreds came and grown men
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On Monday, April 17, 1905, roughly five days after the murder of Sheriff J.M. Poag, the spring term of the Tate County Circuit Court began. Due to the magnitude of recent events, Judge J.B. Boothe wasted no time in selecting the grand jury and informing them of their duties. Because of the excitement surrounding the
Chapter 3 – The Mob Trials Read More »
Sheriff Poag was killed because a mob wanted to lynch a man named James “Jim” Whitt. In order to fully understand what happened to the sheriff, it is important to know who James Whitt was and how he happened to be in the Tate County jail on the morning of April 12, 1905. The date
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April 1904 State of Mississippi vs James “Jim” Whitt Case #1773 Judge – J.A. Boothe Prosecution – W.A. Roane Jim Whitt was arraigned on April 28, 1904 for the murder of O.R. “Buster” Thomason. He pleaded not guilty. Due to Whitt’s lack of funds or support, he was unable to hire an attorney until roughly
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April, 1905 State of Mississippi vs. James “Jim” Whitt Case #1773 Judge – J.B. Boothe Prosecution – W.A. Roane After the members of the mob were granted a change of venue and the court dates set for later in the year, the spring term of the Tate County circuit court continued with the second trial
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October 1906 State of Mississippi vs. James Whitt Case #1862 Judge – J.B. BootheProsecution – W.A. Roane On October 26, 1906, testimony began in the final trial of James “Jim” Whitt. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain the transcripts to this particular trial. However, the Senatobia Democrat – November 2, 1906 edition reported that “the
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Unlike the trials of Jim Whitt, I was unable to acquire any of the court transcripts from the mob trials. However, I did find a very detailed article published in the September 15, 1905 edition of the Commercial Appeal. The information from that particular article allowed me to summarize the first mob trial below: The
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There is honestly not an appropriate way to end this story. It began with a tragic event and ended without any justice or penalty. When I discovered the outcome of this story, I was simply sad. It seems impossible to me that no one was held accountable. However, I hope that after reading this heartbreaking
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“Henry had felt for a long time that the Lord had called him to preach. After much praying, he asked Ora what she thought was the thing for them to do. She told him if the Lord had called him to preach, she thought he ought to prepare himself to do what
Suffering for Victory: The story behind the book Read More »