John
Nelson was the second person to be hung in Marion county.
Invitations were issued to the hanging, which occurred on the 28th
of Feb., 1896, in an enclosure near the Marion county jail at
Palmyra, Mo. Witnesses were Francis McCabe, M.D., Silas Sanford,
M.D., James Clark, M.D., W. B. Arnold, J. T. Hansbrough, A. J.
Gibson, L. H. Sharp, Preston V. Mathews, L. V. White, A. Banks, H.
H. Markell.
John
Nelson and his wife Lavina, were jointly indicted "as
principal and as accessory, shooting with revolver, one John Stull
in Ralls county on venue to Marion county." John Stull at the
time of his death was living about 100 yards south of Salt River
Switch, a station on the Hannibal and St. Louis railroad, three
miles north of New London and six miles Southwest of Hannibal in
Ralls county. Stull lived in a two room house, with his old
mother, "Mrs. Hughes," who was feeble and nearly blind,
his daughter Mary, age 14, and his son Willie, 8 years of age.
John Nelson and wife, in the spring of 1893, located their tent
about 360 feet south of Stull's home. Not long after, Samuel Minor
and wife came in a covered wagon and lived near the Nelson tent.
Mrs. Minor was the Mother of Lavina Nelson. Mrs. Minor became ill
and Nelson pulled the wagon with the sick woman into a slough.
Then Stull took the sick woman into his house and his old mother
cared for her wants. Stull and Nelson quarreled over the matter.
Nelson and his wife went to the Stull home. He had a revolver in
his hand, and Lavina had a heavy piece of iron. Lavina assaulted
Stull, striking him on the head. Then Nelson fired the revolver.
Mm Hughes fell with a bullet hole in her head. Nelson fired again
striking Stull in the abdomen. He fell and died in a few minutes.
The boy Willie was the only witness. H. Clay Heather was the
prosecuting attorney. The jury returned a verdict of murder in the
1st degree. |