The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1909-06-04
JAIL MUST
Be HAUNTED.
Spirits Said tie Hover About The
Nelson County
BaStile.

The Nelson county jail Is haunted,
AT least that is tie verdict of many
of those people who have from time
to time been incarcerated therein.
Though n comparatively new stl1Jc-
ture having been erected In 1874, a
| number OF grewsOme occurrences have
TRANSFERRED wvfuhin it's walls. Here it
was George Murrell, the notorious out
law, after being fatally hhot by Mar
shall Hunter, fingered ard died in
the most awful egony. Harvey Pash,
negro murderer sdd Phil Evons, a
negro rapist, spent tie late morth up
on eartbwftbiI tie gloomy edifice, and
were nreEly led Forth ito ode upon the
soffold whiGh still stands a forbid
ding looking object, close to the wa lis
OF the building. Ms,ntin Hill, wife
muItaei. died in a cell of the j2hl Of
consuming fever, after weeks bf
lingering torture, and thereby cheated
the gallows. 1t is said by those in
poei5ion to know that It is tie
spirit Of this Last named who haura1s
theNjail and suliey his crime was hor
rible enough ard his death of such
aeony as to cause his miserable spirit
to know 10 rest. In the early DAM
Of 1885 Martin HILL walked into q
neighbours rouse, where his wife he'd
fled to escape his brutal treatment.
and shot the defenseless woman down
WITHOUT a word of warning. Hills re-
punton had always been unsavory.
and though he came of a GOOD fami-
~, Ids career had. been thurougihly
wDclod. His hast and cTownrng cri-
mfna1 act Tire inlumam murder of his
wife. aroused the deepest indigna-
tion end the woman if his nteghbor-
hood swore ttet If he was not hanged
they would themselves tear down the
court house stone by stone. However.
'beSore he could be brought to final
tmal he was slmitte by fever. which
resulted in his DEATH. Otizens. who
@1hrlded him in his hast Illness avow
Tint his alffdngs We're the most ter
ribie ever Witnessed, and that during
hds moments OF delirium his rawlings
and blasrhemies We're awful to hear
PrDsoneas wto have since been Com
lined I'm the Jail hear strange SOUNDS
In the cail where he died He is
heard. N rs alleged pacing up and
down as was his wont. during his con-
fmemsnt- He Is also heard DO groan
and to restlessly upon his bunk and
as a climax 10 the wlhloe hhd bAood
curddng screams he omitted while
struggling in the thr,oes of death
d1nSs through the stone corridor with
thrilling disftfIctness. Thesd andapy
other manifestations are spoken. of
and he is considered brave man in
deod, who mill willingly venture nsan.
the haunted cief a6tennight. Within a
Few years Of The haunted structure is
eoated the original old stone pu,ison,
puIlt near the close of the last century
ny odd Stone Hammer Matdalf, af-
terwaltis Governor OF Kentucky. John
ffoch. the inventor of the steamboat.
med IN the old jaal. He was mot a
PRISONER, however but was boarding
wth the jaaler Alsnanden NInOown,
who was his dearest friend. Many MO
ted cl'tminals have looked ahrolIgh the
bars of tihds old prison house, ansong
Them WaHson, the murdarer of two
men. who wss the first white ma,n
saeaMy executed in Nelson county.
Three negro slaves, who ssaassdnated
thie1' master James G. MaxwaIl and
Samuel II. Calhoun, Federal soldier
who murdered William Sutherland a
pronhrmte oddzan, were led to the
enilows from this old jasl. -BaiVsstown
Standslid