Letter from J. J. Gainey to L. M. Hall; July 30, 1870
Title
Letter from J. J. Gainey to L. M. Hall; July 30, 1870
Subject
Alcorn, J. L. (James Lusk), 1816-1894; Ku Klux Klan (19th century); Mississippi. Governor; Trials (Murder)
Description
From the Mississippi Department of Archives and History Governor Alcorn Collection. Letter from J. J. Gainey, agent of the Mississippi Secret Service, to L. M. Hall describing his investigation into attacks made by the Ku Klux Klan against African Americans in Lafayette County, Mississippi, including the confession of one of the Klansmen revealing the names of the perpetrators.
Creator
Gainey, J. J.
Publisher
Mississippi Department of Archives and History. (electronic version); Mississippi Digital Library. (electronic version)
Date
1870-07-30
Contributor
Funding for this project provided by The Dale Center for Study of War and Society-USM, the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, the Mississippi Digital Library, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the University of Southern Mississippi, and the Watson-Brown Foundation
Rights
NO COPYRIGHT - UNITED STATES; http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/
Language
English
Identifier
mdah_786-971-1869March-09
Coverage
1870
Text
Page 1:
Jackson Mississippi
July 30th 1870
L. M Hall, Esq,
Chief of Secret Service Bureau
State of Mississippi
Jackson Miss
Sir
I have the honor to submit for your information the follow-ing report together with the enclosed affadavits.
On the night of the 18th of July I left Jackson, and arrived in Oxford, the County seat of Lafayette County [strikethrough]on[strikethrough] about noon of the 19th, next morning I went to the office of Mr C. N. Wilson, Circuit Clerk of the county and formerly Mayor of Oxford, from whom I recevied information which at once gave me clue as go ^whom were^ the perpetraters of the outrages mentioned in the inclosed affidavits [strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]
After remaining in Oxford for two days I left for the plantation of Mr Thomas Woods, about 14 miles from Oxford, where I remained for seven days, in the meantime I so worked into the confid-ence of Mr Woods, and his son a young man about twenty years old that I had every hope of being able to break
Page 2:
2.
the organization of the three Ks in said county had not a communication appeared ^in^ the Oxford Falcon to the following effect, Dame rumor has it that one of J. L. Alcorn's deliveries had been in town, from this I should judge what Mr Wilson the circuit clerk, or Mr Ford the chancery clerk, the only persons whom I [strikethrough]intrusted with[strikethrough] informed of my business there betrayed my confi dence, on the receipt of this news they appeared to get very shy of me, and although I done every thing ^in^ my power to make it appear that said [strikethrough]dective[strikethrough] detective was in search of me, they would not treat me as freely as before, seeing that my hopes of getting into the organization of the three K.'s would be a failure I deterimined to leave, although previous to this intelliengence in the paper Few Woods informed me that they would initiate [strikethrough]me on[strikethrough] ^me^ into the organization in a short time, and ^I^ had been introduced to leader of the organization who reside in that section of the County, in fact I had worked myself into their confidence so well that they even carried me to where a couple of them were running an illicit still, and endeavoured to persuade me to
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remain in the county,
I still was on the best of terms with Few Woods, from whom I learned the names of the perpetrators of the outrages mentioned in enclosed affadavits after pumping the young scoundrel out of inform-ation I could, I asked him to accompany me to Oxford where we arrived about 9 Oclock P.M. after reaching town I gave him some money to go and buy some wine and other things in town telling ^him^ that as I was afraid of arrest I would not go in any place but told him to get those things and meet me on the road. after he left me I went to the house of Mr Wilson and requested him and Mr Mahon the former sheriff of the county to hide themselves under a certain bridge [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] on the road [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] so that they might hear the confession which I would draw out of young Woods. after seeing them I went up the road and met Woods returning we both went down the road and upon reaching the bridge we sat down and after plying him with the bottle I ^[strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]drew^ him on to make the following statement, while on the bridge he acknowledged to being a memb^er^ of the three, K,s', and at the same
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^time^ that he was in the gang that done the shooting on the Widow Watsons place and he named the following persons who were there with him, John Conkle, Mat Gouldsby and John & Kim Armstead he stated that when Mat Gouldsby was aiming his gun at one of the colored men he the colored man knocked him down and while struggling John Conkle shot him the colored in the back with a double barrelled shot gun, forty-seven buck shot entering into him, and that on the day preceeding the party who done the shooting went to Yokona about seven miles from the Widow Watsons place [strikethrough]so[strikethrough] thinking it would throw [strikethrough]persons[strikethrough] any person who would endeavor to investigate the matter of of their track, after drawing the above information from him we left the bridge and in going to the Raid Road Station I learned from him that N. B. Forrest, late Major General. C.S.A organized [strikethrough]that[strikethrough] the Klan in Lafayette County, they organized April 1867.
The uniform or disguise of the Klan is white with exception of the mask which ^is black and^ adhering very tightly to the features—[strikethrough]nothing has been done in the above[strikethrough]
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5
Mr Wilson [strikethrough]on the former[strikethrough] on the 17th of May [strikethrough]endeavored to[strikethrough]endeavored to investigate the affray at the Widow Watson place and was compelled ^to^ go out to the Widow Boones[?] place about half a mile from the Widow Watsons, to get the parties to appear and then but one of the three who were summond appeared. Joe Westbrooks, and he it seems is not a member of the organ-ization nor was he in this affair. nevertheless he is a bad character and it is my impresion that he is the murderer of four colored men who were killed at a store in Pine Bluff Arkansas in the year of 1868 [strikethrough]and if[strikethrough] at least it seemed to strike me that I had seen his discription before, and from him I learned that he did at one time live in that state but where I could not learn. I would [strikethrough]advise the opening of that[strikethrough] suggest that the Governor of that state be applied to for information. Nothing more was done in this case by the civil authorities, I did not inform the Sheriff of my discoveries. Nothing has been done as yet, Would suggest that the Sheriff be instructed to arrest Few Woods—
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John Conkle, Mat Gouldsby, [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] John and Kim Armstead, Daniel McFarland, Edgar Kimmons, Sam Newell and Newt Lorantz Billy McFarland and William Brown, and that ^he^ be instructed to search the [strikethrough]premises[strikethrough] store of John Armstead well and there he will find some [strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough] disguises belonging to Few Woods, John & Kim Armstead, and others unknown,
In conclusion I would state that affairs in Lafayette, Co. are truly Comen-table, almost every young man in the county is a member of the organization or in sympathy with those who are in it, colored men dare not go to see their friends in the county during the night except at the risk of their lives, the Klan fear not, they say that if one of their member is arrested they will take him out of the hands of the officers, and of the militia are organized they will have more than half members of the organization who are sworn to assist them
I close with the request that action be taken on those cases at once
Very Respt
J. J. Gainey
&c Blank
Jackson Mississippi
July 30th 1870
L. M Hall, Esq,
Chief of Secret Service Bureau
State of Mississippi
Jackson Miss
Sir
I have the honor to submit for your information the follow-ing report together with the enclosed affadavits.
On the night of the 18th of July I left Jackson, and arrived in Oxford, the County seat of Lafayette County [strikethrough]on[strikethrough] about noon of the 19th, next morning I went to the office of Mr C. N. Wilson, Circuit Clerk of the county and formerly Mayor of Oxford, from whom I recevied information which at once gave me clue as go ^whom were^ the perpetraters of the outrages mentioned in the inclosed affidavits [strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]
After remaining in Oxford for two days I left for the plantation of Mr Thomas Woods, about 14 miles from Oxford, where I remained for seven days, in the meantime I so worked into the confid-ence of Mr Woods, and his son a young man about twenty years old that I had every hope of being able to break
Page 2:
2.
the organization of the three Ks in said county had not a communication appeared ^in^ the Oxford Falcon to the following effect, Dame rumor has it that one of J. L. Alcorn's deliveries had been in town, from this I should judge what Mr Wilson the circuit clerk, or Mr Ford the chancery clerk, the only persons whom I [strikethrough]intrusted with[strikethrough] informed of my business there betrayed my confi dence, on the receipt of this news they appeared to get very shy of me, and although I done every thing ^in^ my power to make it appear that said [strikethrough]dective[strikethrough] detective was in search of me, they would not treat me as freely as before, seeing that my hopes of getting into the organization of the three K.'s would be a failure I deterimined to leave, although previous to this intelliengence in the paper Few Woods informed me that they would initiate [strikethrough]me on[strikethrough] ^me^ into the organization in a short time, and ^I^ had been introduced to leader of the organization who reside in that section of the County, in fact I had worked myself into their confidence so well that they even carried me to where a couple of them were running an illicit still, and endeavoured to persuade me to
Page 3:
3
remain in the county,
I still was on the best of terms with Few Woods, from whom I learned the names of the perpetrators of the outrages mentioned in enclosed affadavits after pumping the young scoundrel out of inform-ation I could, I asked him to accompany me to Oxford where we arrived about 9 Oclock P.M. after reaching town I gave him some money to go and buy some wine and other things in town telling ^him^ that as I was afraid of arrest I would not go in any place but told him to get those things and meet me on the road. after he left me I went to the house of Mr Wilson and requested him and Mr Mahon the former sheriff of the county to hide themselves under a certain bridge [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] on the road [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] so that they might hear the confession which I would draw out of young Woods. after seeing them I went up the road and met Woods returning we both went down the road and upon reaching the bridge we sat down and after plying him with the bottle I ^[strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough]drew^ him on to make the following statement, while on the bridge he acknowledged to being a memb^er^ of the three, K,s', and at the same
Page 4:
4
^time^ that he was in the gang that done the shooting on the Widow Watsons place and he named the following persons who were there with him, John Conkle, Mat Gouldsby and John & Kim Armstead he stated that when Mat Gouldsby was aiming his gun at one of the colored men he the colored man knocked him down and while struggling John Conkle shot him the colored in the back with a double barrelled shot gun, forty-seven buck shot entering into him, and that on the day preceeding the party who done the shooting went to Yokona about seven miles from the Widow Watsons place [strikethrough]so[strikethrough] thinking it would throw [strikethrough]persons[strikethrough] any person who would endeavor to investigate the matter of of their track, after drawing the above information from him we left the bridge and in going to the Raid Road Station I learned from him that N. B. Forrest, late Major General. C.S.A organized [strikethrough]that[strikethrough] the Klan in Lafayette County, they organized April 1867.
The uniform or disguise of the Klan is white with exception of the mask which ^is black and^ adhering very tightly to the features—[strikethrough]nothing has been done in the above[strikethrough]
Page 5:
5
Mr Wilson [strikethrough]on the former[strikethrough] on the 17th of May [strikethrough]endeavored to[strikethrough]endeavored to investigate the affray at the Widow Watson place and was compelled ^to^ go out to the Widow Boones[?] place about half a mile from the Widow Watsons, to get the parties to appear and then but one of the three who were summond appeared. Joe Westbrooks, and he it seems is not a member of the organ-ization nor was he in this affair. nevertheless he is a bad character and it is my impresion that he is the murderer of four colored men who were killed at a store in Pine Bluff Arkansas in the year of 1868 [strikethrough]and if[strikethrough] at least it seemed to strike me that I had seen his discription before, and from him I learned that he did at one time live in that state but where I could not learn. I would [strikethrough]advise the opening of that[strikethrough] suggest that the Governor of that state be applied to for information. Nothing more was done in this case by the civil authorities, I did not inform the Sheriff of my discoveries. Nothing has been done as yet, Would suggest that the Sheriff be instructed to arrest Few Woods—
Page 6:
6
John Conkle, Mat Gouldsby, [strikethrough]and[strikethrough] John and Kim Armstead, Daniel McFarland, Edgar Kimmons, Sam Newell and Newt Lorantz Billy McFarland and William Brown, and that ^he^ be instructed to search the [strikethrough]premises[strikethrough] store of John Armstead well and there he will find some [strikethrough][unclear][strikethrough] disguises belonging to Few Woods, John & Kim Armstead, and others unknown,
In conclusion I would state that affairs in Lafayette, Co. are truly Comen-table, almost every young man in the county is a member of the organization or in sympathy with those who are in it, colored men dare not go to see their friends in the county during the night except at the risk of their lives, the Klan fear not, they say that if one of their member is arrested they will take him out of the hands of the officers, and of the militia are organized they will have more than half members of the organization who are sworn to assist them
I close with the request that action be taken on those cases at once
Very Respt
J. J. Gainey
&c Blank
Original Format
letter