The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-08-19
A REIGN OF TERROR.
THE ILLINOIS OUTRAGES.
HISTORY OF THE WILLIAMSON
COUNTY FEUD.


GINNING OF THE FEUD-slX PERSONS
KILLED, FOUR WOUNDED AND THREE SHOT /,
AT, BUT NOT HIT-NoT SOUL PUNIsHED
FOR ALL THESE CRIMEs-THE PEOPLE OF /
THE NEIGaBoRHooD CoMPLErELf CoWhD.
A special correspondent of the Chicago /
Tribune writes lengthy account OF tne
feud which has caused so much bloodshed
in Williamson and Jackson counties, LII.
From IL the following extract is CLEANED
The BulIiner family settled in Williamson
county in 1864. The family then consisted
of "Old George" 1.-THE father), and Dave"
John, Monroe and Emanuel (sonsl, the lat
ter of whom were young men. To the
tribe was added, by marriage, Wesley Coun-
Gil. a brother-in-law. The Bulliners were, or
gave out that they were, "Union refugees"
from McNair county, Tenn. They
brought with them capital and i've
stock to the amount of about
| SOS, GOO, bought land. and engaged in cotton
| growing,-sOId George also buying up
nearly the entire cotton crop OF the county,
which, at that time, was considerable. Ihev
were big-boned, broa -shoudered lot,
wonderfully developed IN muscle, and
"builv good fellows" except to psople who
didn't happen to agree with them From
their history, as recounted to me by num-
Der of old settlers, / should say the BULL
agreed in all things with them, and remark
ably disagreeable to those who in very small
things disagreed with the Bulliners. Tne
surrounding roughs soon learned that the
Bulliners had "sand in their craws."
wouldn't be s'put upon" by anybody and
licked unmercitully whoever interfered with
them. This, and the fact that they bad money,
at once gave the Buliiners command
ing influence in their neighborhood, and
thew speedily had their clan of retainers,
| IA 6rh Rnlllnarl whenever
there weren't enough Bulliners to do the
! fighting and more ready to drink at the
Bulliners' expense wherever invited. In
1865 the Hendersons came from Tennessee,
and settled in Williamson county, near he
Bulliners, about a mile and quarter from
what is now Gainesville Station, on the
railroad between Carbondale and Marion.
OF the HendersOns, there were "Old Jim,
"Old Bill" and ''Old Jo," and Jim and
Fielding yOunC men, sons Of "Old Bill"
and SAM and pad" sons of ''Old Jo,"
both young m n. 'Old jim" was q fellow
OF immense stature and herculean strength,
and, besides having most money, was natu-
rally leader. For the rest
THE KENDERsONs,
though possessed of a l:ttle less money, wero
e of precisely the same type as the Bnlliners,
and, in their turn, soon became quite as i'm
portant people in their neighborhoou, and
had quite as many recruits ready to fight at
their bidding and to drink at their expense.
> OF course, the neighborhood was too small
: to hold two such families. Not great while
elapsed before some of the Bulliners met
Field Henoerson at - drinking shop (gro-
$ cery," in the lingo of williamson, and being
two or three to one, duly threshed him. About
a week afterward, the Henderson who had
been beaten went over into field where
David Bulliner, Sra brother OF "Old
e George" David, sr., shortly alter returned
to Tennessee. and was therefore omitted
from the enumeration of the tribe(-was at
work Henderson bore with him a brace OF
loaded pistols, and demanded satisfaction"
wanted to fight it out then ard there.
David, ST., had small appetite tor that sort
of fighting, and respectfully declined the
shooting match; wherein henderson
q warned him that he would have to 'get Out
of this county," A few months after, David,
sr.,-'Old Dave" as he was called
did get-went back to Tennessee. His re-
turn weakened the Bulliner forces by so
much as his fighting abilities counted
for. and hostilities were not inn
mediately renewed But the bad
a blood of the Bulliners and the Hender-
sons was reused; and with these semi-sava-
ges in this semi-savage locality, blood let
l. ting was sure TO come of lt-which was only
a question of time, for the Bulliners and the
HendersOns never cease reveDgiDg them-
selves. In 1869, Sisney who owned farm
in the neighborhood, had "a difficulty" with
"Dave" Bulliner relative to % bushels OF
oats which each claimed TO have bought oil
= Burton, which was settled by a lawsuit.
In the ensuing year, 1870, they quarreled
about an account, and in the alteration that
= ensued, Dave Bulliner charged Sisney with
swearing to a lie in the suit, " thereon Sis ey
q struck him on the arm with spade,
n CUTTING DEEP CASH.
| Bulliner ran home, and soon resppesred at
Sisney's house with his father, "Old George, u
T and his two brothers-sll armed. SisDey
S saw them when about thirty yards distant,
! and appeared at the door armed with Spen
Ger rife. sold George" shouted, "Here we
come Cd d-n you! to kill you," and. with
9 the "boys," advanced at a run. Sisney fled
% TO q cornfield back of his house, where be
was shot in the leg by one OF the Bulliners
j. fighting, and, it is said, helped Sisney to his
"a house, and assisted Sisney's wife to dress the
: | wound. For this the Bulliners were prose.
cuted and fined 500 each, aud Sisney
wss fined like amount for hitting Dave
Bulliner with the spade. Sisney then
,. brought suit for damages for the shooting,
q which was compromised on payment of 500
;. by the Bulliners. This was the opening OF
hostilities between the Bulliners and Sisney,
>, Soon after, Sisney was whipped. in a fist
fight at Carterville, between himself and
Is some of his friends, and Wesley Council (tht
;: Bulliners' brot her in-law), and divers male
It members OF the Grain family" which tribs
y appears to have been not unlike that of the
n Bulliners aud Hendersons. The results
VIII roof was, that from thence the Bulliners
1t and the Grains were fast allies; and the
Grains, having been reinforced by brother
Is in-law Council against Sisney, 10 thelr turn
were ready to reinforce the
Bulliners against the HeDdersons-
IS which they proceeded TO do in various in
= stances. About this time, John BuliineI
: seduced the pretty gil of the settlement
g who happened to be a cousin of Tom Rus
q sell, which led to a quarrel, and thereafter
3 Russell was 10 be- reckoned among the al
/ herents of the Hendersons. The hostile
a factions were then arrsyed. On the one side
"A the BulIiners and Grains; on the other side