ACCOUNTS OF THE BILL SMITH MURDER

Mr. Bill Smith of the Virginia Community north of Mullen in south Cherry County, died on December 20, 1923, at his ranch. Few people at first suspected his death happened in any other than the way his wife of nearly eleven years said it did – an accident involving a team and wagon.

The "Hooker County Tribune" of December 28, 1923, carried Bill Smith's obituary. It stated that James William Smith was born in Wythe County, Virginia on June 30, 1875 and was 48 years old when he accidentally met his death. The article says, “Mr. Smith had just returned home with a (wagon) load of coal and was in the act of backing the load up to the coal bin door when he accidentally fell in front of a hind wheel which passed over his head crushing his skull and causing instant death.'' The obituary further states that Bill “was married to Miss Lottie Jenkins at VanMetre, Iowa, on February 2, 1913, and to this union six children have been born, four of them now living as follows: Jessie, Isabelle, May and John. In life Mr. Smith was a kind and loving husband and father and good neighbor and his death will be mourned by all who knew him. He moved from Madison County to south Cherry County about 15 years ago, since which time he had followed the occupation of farming and stock raising. The funeral service was conducted at the home on Friday and interment made in the James Cemetary. The last rites were conduct-ed by Rev. Clinton Senneff of the M.E. Church of this city.'' (Several former neigh-bors of the Smiths who attended the funeral say it was in the Virginia schoolhouse – no doubt the paper errored in stating it was held at the Smith home.)

According to those who lived as neighbors to the Smith family and who still live in the Mullens area, it was soon generally thought in the neighborhood that Bill's wife, Lottie and their hired man, Clinton Smith (no relation) were not telling the truth about the cause of Bill's death. Lee Boyer states that his father Charlie was a good friend of the Smiths and was their closest neighbor. The Boyers were the first to be notified of Bill's death and Lee says his father realized right away when he got to the Smith ranch that night that the stories told by Lottie and Clinton did not appear to be borne out by the evidence. Lee, Ray Reigle and Howard Huddle all remember that their fathers, after investigating the matter, were instrumental in getting the authorities (Sheriff Hammon, County Attorney Heelan Deputy Coleman from Valentine) to investigate the matter. According to former neighbors, and Cherry County authorities dug up the body and performed an autopsy. In a 1924 news article in Gussie Osborne's scrapbook – on Christ-mas day an inquest was held by Heelan and Coleman and the “verdict was death from unknown causes''; and it also stated that County Attorney Heelan was not satisfied and arranged for Clinton Smith to be under surveillance and procured a job for him on the P.H. Young ranch. When Clinton sent Lottie an invitation to visit him in Valentine written on a postal card, and after she had made several statements incriminating herself in her husband's death, she was placed under arrest as was Smith. Each then was informed the other had double crossed the other. Finally they each admitted that Bill had been struck over and head and then the team of horses led so that the wheel of the wagon ran over and crushed his head. Both claimed that the fatal blows were struck by the other (it appears that the truth was never known). The authorities in Valentine (according to news accounts), felt Lottie's only part in the murder was to have assisted in the planning of it which had been done for 2 days prior.

Eventually, according to Gussie's news article, both Lottie and Clinton pled guilty to second degree murder and Judge Westover sentenced each to the state penitentiary for a period of 30 years at hard labor. Quote: “When asked if they had anything to say why sentence should not be pronounced, the woman said no, and the man requested permission to receive visits from his people who reside in Kansas and from his wife in Casper.'' This the court granted. News item: “Mrs. Smith, since her sen-tence, has at times completely broken down and cried repeatedly for her children, four in number ranging in age 2 to 11 years. She states that she desires that they have the best education possible and states that while her husband was good to their children, he never showed her any consideration and treated her indifferently. From her early childhood she says that she never had a day's happiness and that the many years of lonely life on their sandhill place so worked on her that when this strange man came along and showed her consideration, she became dominated by him and thinking that at last happiness was in store for her, she, while under his influence, entered into the plan to kill her husband and flee with the younger man. She had known him for only two weeks. Her husband was 48, she 30 and her accomplice 31 years of age. She states that she intends to go to the penitentia-ry with the intention of observing the rules and she has atoned sufficiently for the crime that she now realizes the enormity of, and that in the years to come she may be freed. Smith shows no emotion whatever and spends his time in the jail singing and talking. When his finger prints were taken yesterday he informed the sheriff that he had served 18 months in the Federal prison at Leven-worth.'' . . . “Both will be taken to the penitentiary Sunday morning. Mrs. Ham-mon, Sheriff Hammon's wife, will accompany them. Mrs. Smith has been staying at the sheriff's home the past several days.''

The "Hooker County Tribune" February 1, 1924 had a different story to report quite different from the one originally published in Bill Smith's obituary. Quote: “The determi-nation of neighbors and friends of the late J.W. Smith to go to the bottom of a well-founded belief that he had met with foul play, was rewarded Monday at Valentine when Clinton Smith, a hired man at the J.W. Smith ranch, and the dead man's wife pled guilty to the brutal murder in open court before Judge W.H. Westover. The details as given before the court after both had expressed a willing-ness to plead guilty to the awful charge, were contained in a special telegram to the "Lincoln Star" . . . ''

Two of the paragraphs from the "Lincoln Star" quoted as reading: “Smith met his death shortly after dark on tbe evening of Decem-ber 20 last, and was buried at 3 o'clock the following day. It was through this unusual procedure that suspicion of foul play began – burial having been made less that 24 hours after his death.'' “Mrs. Lottie Smith and Clinton Smith were sentenced to 30 years each in the state prison by Dist. Judge Westover when they pleaded guilty to second degree murder in connection with the death of Mrs. Smith's husband, John W. Smith, a rancher near Mullen, Nebraska, who was beaten with a pitchfork handle to which an iron bar was attached.''

Gussie's clipping states, “The speediness of the confessions secured and the expedition with which sentence was pronounced has saved Cherry County a heavy expense and both county attorney Heelan and Sheriff Hammon with deputy Coleman are to be commended for the efficient work they have accomplished.''

Lee Boyer and Ray Reigle remember their families kept the Smith children (other families may have too) from the time of Lottie's arrest until Bill's brother from Virginia came to get them. The oldest child, Jessie, was taken to Beatrice to the home for the mentally retarded.

Gussie and Lee remember that the Smith family was a frequent visitor at the Charlie Boyer's and that they were participants in many games that were played there such as dominoes and Flinch. Those who still remem-ber Bill – Lee, Gussie, Ray, Myrtle Reigle, Virginia and Howard Huddle, to name a few, all say Bill was honest, hard working and tried hard to succeed in life. He was a good neighbor and very well liked in his commu-nity. Some told of Bill singing at the church services which were held at the Virginia schoolhouse. It was clear Bill was liked and missed.

Footnote: Mamie Osborn Collier of Dun-ning, Nebraska has a news article in her scrapbook that appears to be from Septem-ber 1938 paper: Mrs. Lottie Smith, 44 who was sent to the penitentiary in 1924 for the murder of her husband, J.W. Smith, died Wednesday morning at the state reformatory for women, at York, Nebraska.''