Volume 14 , Issue 12

100 Years Ago Today - March 19, 1912

Tuesday morning, March 19, 1912, The Bisbee Daily Review had this political cartoon by John T. McCutcheon, displayed on the frontage with the headlines reading "The Siege of the Suffragets, Will Mr. Asquith Surrender?."

Besides the "Siege Of Suffragets," other headlines one hundred years ago was the story of the "Allen Gang Still At Large." Who were the Allen Gang and what did they do? It seems they were some sort of Viginia bandits, charged with murder, led by Sid. Next to the article was a picture of a courthouse scene of crime and a portrait of Judge T. L. Massie, who was killed by Virginia Feudists. Hillsville, Carroll county, Virginia, was described as a little town at the foot of the Blue Ridge mountains, was the morning scene of the crime which crosses the border line of lawlessness and enters into the realms of anarchy.

Hillsville, Va., March 18, 1912 -- With the exception of the two arrested on the day of the Carroll county murders, the Allen gang are still free and very much alive. After a day of reconnoitering on part of the state forces night found the the outlaws with their followers still safely hidden near Devil Den, on the east of the Blue Ridge range. After a day's scouting on the part of the mountaineer detectives and the posse of deputy sheriffs it was acknowledged that the murderers and their supporters could remain in the thickly wooded mountains indefinitely, and that their capture dead or alive was likely to be accomplished only by patient and tedious efforts.

Yet the outlaws were still moving about with extraordinary daring. Instead of remaining in their stronghold on the crest of the mountain near the North Carolina line, the Allens, led by Sid, dropped down out of the mountain cover and it was said visited the house of Jack Allen, in the Fancy Gap region. Sid Edwards, a member of the Gang, showed up in the open. A posse of 14 detectives struck his trail in the foothills. SEveral members of the searching party followed the trail toward the summit. The hunting party when last heard from was about 18 miles from town.

Met At Jack Allen's

Jack Allen, at whose home the outlaws met, was a brother of Floyd and Sid. He had the reputation of being the most dangerous Allen of the lot. The Baldwin-Felts detectives heard that this meeting of the Allens at Jack's was a conference for the purpose of determining a plan of action. This conference was supposed to have been going on at the very moment that the posse was advancing on Sid Allen's home, only to find it deserted. If the posse had continued on to Jack Allen's, a few miles farther up the mountain, they would have stumbled upon the gang.

The Baldwin-Felts detectives were as familiar with the mountains as the Allens themselves. It is a case of mountaineer against mountaineer, and for this reason a alone no pitched battle was looked for. The detectives would continue cautiously on their quest, if possible, picking off one member of the gang at a time.

There was talk of the states of Virginia, Tennessee and NOrth carolina co-operating by throwing a militia guard about the Devil's Den region, but this would be an enormous undertaking and would probably be resented by many mountaineers not followers of the Allen family.

Landed In Roanoke Jail

Roanoke, Va., March 18, 1912 -- Floyd Allen, Victor Allen and Bud Marion were in the Roanoke jail, each in a separate cell. Floyd Allen was under guard, the authorities fearing he might attempt to take his life.   |  View or Add Comments (0 Comments)   |   Receive updates ( subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

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