The Pound Massacre??

[1530]

is that one true??

[shwalker32]

are you for real?

[Gotch]

The Pound Gap Massacre is actually a very complex story. Much more behind it than most books on local history tell.

The victims were crippled moonshiner Ira Mullins and others in his party. The accused were Dr. Marshall B. Taylor and the Fleming brothers, Cal and Henan.

So the accepted history goes something like this: Taylor and the Flemings ambush poor crippled Ira Mullins and his family at "Killing Rock" on Pine Mountain and Murder 5 of the 7 people in the party. Taylor is tracked down by Ed Hall and others and is hung at Wise on Oct.27 1893.

Much of this story was retold in John Fox Jr.'s "The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine".

Now on to all the things they don't usually tell you:

Dr. Taylor, the Red Fox of the Cumberland's is always portrayed as a "herb doctor" and a mad man. The fact is he was a college trained medical doctor having attended Louisville medical school (I believe it was). He was an minister in the Swedenborgian church. He was also a sworn federal law enforcement officer.

The "party" were Ira Mullins and his family and associates and they were returning from one of his many trips to sell moonshine. He had placed a bounty on the head of Doc Taylor as he had many others. A good number of whom and turned up dead.

Henry Adams and some of his 19 or so sons lived within a couple of miles of the shooting. Mullins had also placed a bounty on the head of Adams, who had already killed the brother of Ira Mullins in a dispute over a dog. Adams owned the same odd caliber of gun as Taylor, which was used in the killings and was the primary evidence used against Taylor.

When the coal barons first came to this area they found that most of the locals would not sell to them due to being suspicious of strangers, or fourniers as they were called by the mountain folks. so they hired local land buyers, like John Wright to make the purchases for them.

Doc Taylor, who had a very good reputation with the common folks was often heard to warn people against selling their land. He said that they would strip it of every inch of timber (which they did) and then enslave the local population in their mines (which basically they did). The local operators desperately wanted Taylor out of the way.

It's the contention of many, myself included, that the big money housed in Big Stone Gap paid to have Taylor framed for killing committed by Adams and sons.

The gun that was used as the primary piece of evidence against Taylor had been toyed with to change it from a rim fire to a center fire or vice versa. But, the gun was in the possession of McCorkle Lumber of Big Stone Gap while Taylor awaited trail?!?!?

When Doc Swindel, "Gooseneck" John Branham, and "Big" Ed Hall tracked the Flemings to West Va. and shot it out with them, Henan Fleming and John Branham were both mortally wounded.

When they got Cal Fleming back here to stand trail the judge dismissed the case for lack of evidence. Basically the same evidence that was used to sentence Taylor to hang....but then Fleming wasn't a financial liability to the coal barons.

Anybody interested in hearing about the substantial evidence that Taylor's hanging was faked and that he actually died of complications of diabetes in Missouri in about 1913?

[Gotch]

Oh, and John Fox Jr. was paid by his close buddies in the coal industry as a propaganda agent which is why he portrayed certain aspects of Taylor as he did. Aspects which can be disproved.

[Gotch]

Another interesting aspect to the over-all story is how Talton Hall is now portrayed as a psychotic killer and John Wright as sort of a hero.

Well, nearly everyone Hall killed he did so unders the orders of his boss, John Wright.

[Gotch]

Last post for now:

If anyone reads up on the story in detail you will come across the name Clabe Jones. That was a several times over great grandfather. He was sheriff of Floyd county and held a murder warrant against John Wright. He once wounded Talton Hall in the neck while trying to serve it.

[imported_elp6n]

Interesting about Doc Taylor. I had read in a few documents that specified that he had no formal training.

[Gotch]

Yeah, that's the standard line. He trained under a licensed doctor in Scott county and attended medical school.

[Gotch]

I just now clicked the link posted earlier, "The Trail Of The Lonesome pine" was not a fictional account of the Hatfield and McCoy feud, but of the Jones / Wright feud.

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Just to stay as accurate as I can on a story which has become very hazed with misinformation and self serving histories: I don't know that Taylor graduated medical school, I do know that he attended medical school.

[ChrisSabo]

There was an old Appleshop Video on this. Good video.