Volume Twenty-one      Number 36

Struggle Ends In Horrible Tragedy!
In Heart of City Tuesday Afternoon at Ball Home on Cumberland Avenue

When Chief of Police Jim Pope,
Lloyd Ball and Sidney Ball’s Lives Were
Snuffed Out In the Twinkle of An Eye

Coroner’s Jury Report:
(By Louis W. Denkler)

Chief of Police J.C. Pope, aged 32 years, Lloyd Ball, aged 50 years, and his son, Sidney Ball, aged 25 years, were all killed Tuesday afternoon at the Ball home on Cumberland Ave, when Chief Pope and Officer Angel went there to arrest two men who were alleged to be intoxicated.
According to information given us from various sources, Chief Pope had been called from the Court Room of the Circuit court where he was a witness for the commonwealth to investigate this trouble, and on his way to the Ball home, he met Officer Angel, commanding him to follow and assist him in arresting the men.

On the arrival of the officers at the Ball home, Chief Pope knocked on the door of the house and was invited to come in by Mr. Lloyd Ball. Chief Pope asked Mr. Ball where the drunken men were and was informed one was upstairs and another in a room downstairs, and that if the Chief would wait a little while, that he would himself bring the men to Court. Just at that time, one of the men came into the reception hall from an adjoining room and Chief Pope walked over to him, placing him under arrest. Sid Ball who had been upstairs, come down the stairs and started toward the Chief, when Officer Angel intercepted him, placing him under arrest, and a struggle ensued in which Sid Ball drew a gun and began firing, it is said. Officer Angel grabbed him, catching hold of his arms and trying to get him to break hold of the gun, but they wrestled sufficiently long enough for Sid Ball to fire several shots from the gun, a 32 Special, none of which touched Angel, although his coat was powder burned in three places. 

Angel, noting Sid Ball weakening, discovered blood running from a wound in his head, and releasing his hold, Sid Ball dropped to the floor, dying a few minutes later.
Turning around, Angel was in time to see the Chief stagger out the front door, and on a second glance around the room, saw Lloyd Ball lying on the floor dead with a bullet in his heart. Angel reached the sidewalk in time to see Pope fall on the grass near the curb. On account of the dense smoke in the small hall, and the fact that he was trying to keep Sid Ball from shooting him, Angel is unable to say who it was that killed him or Chief Pope, he has a hazy recollection that it was the man who escaped, that fired the shot killing Pope, and who so far, is unknown to Police officials.
He cannot say either, who killed Lloyd Ball, or what words passed between Chief Pope, Lloyd Ball and the unknown man. (My note: It was later determined that Jim killed Lloyd Ball).

On reaching the sidewalk, Angel drew his gun and started in pursuit of the unknown man, who passed from the house just behind Chief Pope, but he was unsuccessful in his pursuit. Some section men working on the railroad stated they saw a man answering the description given, running down the railroad track toward Baxter. Angel returned to the street in front of the Ball home, where he found Pope dying and hurriedly summoned an ambulance from the Harlan Hospital, but when the ambulance arrived, Chief Pope had died.

The Reporter reached the scene of the tragedy a few moments after the shooting. He found Sid Ball lying face downward upon a sack in the reception hall, and a great pool of blood at the feet of the body. The body of Lloyd Ball had been carried into the bedroom by members of the family. He had been killed in the same room as the others, but the exact position of his body when he fell has not yet been learned.

Sheriff J.H. Blair and Deputy Tobe Rutherford arrived on the scene shortly after the shooting, and together with the Reporter turned the body of Sid Ball over, revealing a ghastly sight. The sack under the head of Sid Ball contained one gallon of moonshine, one-half gallon in a jar, and the other half-gallon in two army canteens.
The whiskey was taken to the Sheriffs office. A 32-cal pearl handled pistol containing 6 exploded shells was found on the floor a short distance from the body of Sid Ball. The gun is in possession of the Sheriff. Chief Pope’s gun had two exploded shells in it, and was picked up where the Chief fell dead.

Blood was spattered all over the floor and on the lower step of the stairs. Those who got near enough to see inside the door turned away, apparently sickened by the sight. A further examination revealed 9 bullet holes in the wall of the house.

Mrs. Pope was notified, and hurried to the Hospital, but Mr. Pope was already dead. She collapsed and was removed to her home..

Drs. Howard and Cawood removed two 32 caliber lead balls from Pope’s body. One entered the left arm and side, ranging upward, and lodging in the neck; the other entering his right hand between the thumb and index finger lodging near the shoulder. Another bullet entered the middle of his back, but it did not pass through the body.

Sid Ball was shot right thru the right jaw, the bullet coming out the back of his head, his face being slightly powder burned and another bullet lodged in his right hand. Lloyd was shot through the heart, the bullet coming out his back.

The bodies of Lloyd Ball, and his son, Sid Ball, were taken to Ages, for interment in the family cemetery at that point. Burial took place at 12:30 Thursday afternoon. Surviving are his widow and six children.

The body of Chief Pope was taken to the family cemetery at Wasioto, KY for burial.

Great difficulty in arriving at the facts as they actually were on account of the confusion and inability to interview all persons who actually know the circumstances as near as we can cover, this the way in which the tragedy occurred as was given the Reporter.
Members of the Ball family would not discuss the matter Tuesday Afternoon.

At the Coroner’s inquest held this morning at 8 o’clock in the office of Coroner R.L. Farmer, the testimony of Dr. Vermillion, Dan Ball, Mrs. Sallie Ball and the young Dan Ball was taken. 

Dr Vermillion stated that he was at home at the time the officers went to the Ball home. He saw Mr. Ball just about five minutes before he was killed, standing on the back porch of his home. He heard shots fired, but could not tell how many, they were fired in rapid succession. It might have been five shots fired, it might have been five shots fired at one time, or three from one gun, and two from another, and then two 

Lloyd Ball came to his death by being shot to death by James Pope, Police, at his home in Harlan County, Kentucky.  END
 
 

I could not read certain parts of the newspaper article, therefore some of this account is not reproduced here. “….room, and Lloyd was sitting beside the fire mending a wagon for his boy, Lloyd’s wife was there also. Sid had come to the Ball house at the same time as he, and when Sid met his father, said, “I brought a drink of liquor for you old man.” And Lloyd said, “You are getting damn careless running around with liquor in a sack,” whereupon he said “It is better going around in the day instead of night”, and about this time the police entered. Lloyd and the police came in and asked Sid who was still out in the hall with his sack, his hand across the jar what he got there, and Sid told them he had a drink of liquor, and they asked him where he got it, and he said he brought it with him. They came over to me, and asked me how much belonged to me, and I told them none of it and Sid spoke up and said the liquor was his, and all belonged to him. One of the policemen, I don’t know them, walked into the room and said, “You got a gun,” and searched me and turned to Lloyd and searched him, but Sid never come in, they had told him he was arrested. They then took the jar, tore the paper off the jar, and smelled of it and Sid then said he had some clothes in the sack, and to let him take them out and Lloyd turned to Pope and said, “Jim you want me to go with you, Sid says the whisky is all his, and doesn’t belong to anyone else and it would not be necessary to get him.” Sid had moved around toward the stairway or somewhere in there and I never paid any attention and they picked up the sack and started to go out when the first shot was fired., and one of the Policemen and Sid was in a scuffle on the steps, but don’t know which one. They were scuffling and one shot was fired, and then the big shooting took place and the other man was standing in the door, and got in the edge of the door, and Lloyd went in there, and when the shooting commenced, I went out the back door and up the street crossed over, and went into Middleton’s store. END…..

JAMES C. POPE WAS THE BROTHER OF MILLIE POPE BROCK.  (Millie was my Grandmother)

This is basically the account of what I had heard before, some had said a woman with a shotgun shot Jim in the back, but now we see that was not the case.
One uncle, Gene Brock, had mentioned another officer, Pearl Osman, and that he had ran away when the shooting started. But no mention of a Pearl Osman was made in this article. It would seem to me that during the struggle with Officer Angel, Sid Ball got shot with his own gun, at least once.  As for Officer Angel, no reference was made as to his first name.

I hope this article, as it was copied from the newspaper account, sheds more light on what took place on Cumberland Avenue, in Harlan County, Kentucky, on that fateful day long ago.

Note: The last time I was in KY, I found the grave of Jim Pope. It is just off Route 119.
 Chills ran down my back as I placed my hand on his tombstone…..

 I also have photos of Jim that I would share if anyone might be interested.

Submitted by Orville L. Wagner [email protected]