Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1879-09-19
THE CHISHOLM MURDERS.
A Terrible Story Of Blood and Butch
cry.

| ueE VI OOTnella ODlSDOlm on ApIli
29 tn, 1877, commenced this morn
! ing. Seventy witnesses, 80 for the
State and So for the defense, were
sworn, and put under the rule and
excluded from the court room. Mrs.
Chisholm, the first witness, testified
that an excited crowd of men entered
DeKalb ON the evening of April
2Sth, 1877. 1t was largely increas-
ed on the following morning. Sin
clair, then sheriff, arrested her hus-
band on the morning of the 29th.
He asked to be placed under guard
at his own house and besought an
instant investigation of the charges
against him. Armed men kept COM
ing around the house. The sheriff
| (Sinclair) conversed with them and
then talked to Chisholm. Chisholm
told one of the crowd, "YOu COW
ardly scoundrels, you will kill me
before evening, but before you do 1t
l will make some of you bite the
dust" Sinclair came to my husband
about IL o'clock and said, "They
say you musC go to jail" Mcclellan,
myself, my sons Clay, Johnnie and
Willie and daughter Cornelia accom-
panied my husband to the Jail. We
were clinging to him to shield his
body. Mr.. Mosely and Mr.. Over
street went inside the Jail with the
party and the door of the lower floor
of the Jail was locked behind them.
The family went up stairs and the
door was locked on the inside. l
was sent home by my husband on
an errand. Heard firing as 1 came
back toward the jail and saw the old
man Mcclellan fall pierced by sever
al bucksbot, behind the Jail. Rushed
inside the Jail and found the stair
way crowded with men. Rosser " as
at the top of the stairs and William
Gully trying to break the lock of the
upper door with axes. My daughter
Cornelia, my son Johnnie and Mr..
Overstreet were holding the door on
the inside. My daughters face was
bleeding. Rosser said to my daugh-
ter: ''Damn your soul, I will blow
your brains out if you don't get out
of the way" ROsser fired the first
shot through the broken lock which
severed my sons hand from his arm.
The door was here broken open and
my little boy fell shot through the
heart. Some one inside fred and
Rosser fell dead. Two men caught
him by the heels and dragged him
down stairs. Ny husband was be,
wildered at the death of Johnnie.
and my SOD Clay carried the dead
boy down stairs. Cornelia and her
father came down the stairs. Henry
J. Gully came up and raised his gun.
1 closed the grated door at the bot
tom of the stairway. My daughter
clasped my husband around the neck.
Gully fred through the CRATES in the
door. My daughter screamed, 81
am shot" Judge Chisholm opened
the door and as he stepped out Gully
came out of an adjoining room and
fred again at him and he fell. Clay
and 1 assisted my husband in reach
ing home. Ny daughter was bleed
ing in the face, her eyes were black.
ened by a blow, she was shot in the
wrist, in the ankle, and in the heel
She was shot by Henry Gully; she
died on the 18th of May. She died
from the effects of her wounds. Mrs.
Chisholm produced Cornelia's brace
let, which was broken and driven in
to her arm, also five buckshot taken
out of her body.
Cross examined.-She begged Ros:
serby the good God that made him,
the mother who bore him, and the
wife whom he loved, to be satisfied
with the blood of Gilmsr and McLeL
Ian. He replied that John Gully
had a wife and he would shoot any
woman who stood between himself
and Chisholm. The defense asked
the question-Did she not know that
Cornelia died from the effect of an
operation, etc. The witness said she
did not. In relating the scene con-
nected with the death of her son
Johnnie, Mrs. Chisholm tainted.
When asked if Sheriff Sinclair was
not oVerpowered by the mob, she
said she couldn't tell whether the
sheriff commanded the mob or the
mob commanded the sheriff
DR.. Chamberlain, who waited on
Cornelia Chisholm, testified that she
died from the effects of her wounds; /;
that one of the bones of her leg and
two of the bones of her arm were
broken by buckshot, and that she
was wounded in the face by some
blunt instrument, and that no treat
ment could have saved her life.
Charles Rosenbaum testified that
he came to town with Gilmer in the
custody of Deputy Sheriff Britton,
followed to town by eight armed
men-saw many others in town
with guns. As we walked toward
the jail saw Virgil Gully shoot Gil
mer in the back. Gilmer hollered
out "Oh Lordy, Pm killed, and ran
down an alley where he was follow
ed and dispatched by the shotgun
of Virgil Gully. Rosenbaum cor
roborated the statement of Mrs.
Chisholm as to the scenes in the Jail.
At the alarm of fire witness ran out
of the Jail and did not see the shoot
ing of Judge Chisholm and his
daughter.
PARIS, Sept. 1S.-The steamer West
| phalia, which sailed from Havre on the
To-