The Ashland Tragedy Proves Evil is Nothing New
By: Lisa Marie Fuqua
Tags: Murder, True Crime, Crime, History, Christmas

December 26, 1881

Two days after the murders, a service was held for the three teenagers at the Methodist Episcopal Church. There were so many in attendance a large part of the crowd was left to gather outside.

They were buried in a common grave in the Ashland Cemetery.

Later that afternoon, the Mayor of Ashland, John Means, called for a town meeting. He asked for donations so they could offer money for a reward, and to hire a detective to hunt down the murders.

Within a few days, they had gathered over $1,000 (over $25,000 in 2019).

Private Detectives from surrounding states, including Deputy US Marshal Heflin, who quickly became the man the townspeople wanted to handle the case.

Original and newer headstones for Robert and Fannie Gibbons | via Find a Grave

When They Get it All Wrong

Another Detective, J.B. Norris from Ohio, arrived with a theory. He believed that the killer had to be John Gibbons, the father of the house. From the outside, this doesn’t seem to make sense, he was out the state at the time, and the girls were savagely raped; this didn’t seem to fit.

But, Newspapers started running the story, and the streets were lined with wanted posters for the arrest of John Gibbons.



Marshal Heflin didn’t believe it was the father and pointed out that one man couldn’t have carried out the crime alone.

Unfortunately, people had already declared John Gibbons guilty before he had even been arrested. Heflin realized that they would have to bring the father in and clear his name before they would be able to focus on the real killers.

December 31, 1881

Helfin was able to track John Gibbons down to a remote area in West Virginia where he had been working. First, he had to tell John what had happened to his children. The news hadn’t reached him. Then he had to bring him back to Ashland, to clear his name.

Helfin was able to prove that John had been in West Virginia the whole time working, and was not the killer. This blow landed Detective Morris running for the train with his head down.

Ashland Tragedy written by The New York Times

Did They Know? The Killer Kept Asking Himself

After clearing John of being involved in the murders, the townspeople were back to wondering who could have done it.

Ashland’s general store Geiger, Powell & Ferguson would play a part in bringing the killers to justice. That day Mr. Powell waited on a regular named George Ellis, who wanted to purchase a cigar.

Powell making conversation said, “Well, now that old man Gibbons is in the clear, I wonder who it is going to fall on now?”

As soon as the remark was made, George Ellis looked startled. Suddenly he wouldn’t look up at Mr. Powell.

Then Ellis blurted out that he might know who did it, and then he said something about “states evidence” before turning and walking out of the general store quickly.

Ellis started walking down the street, but he felt like everyone was watching him. He began to think they all knew what he had done.

Did they know? He kept wondering.

After hours spent walking, he made his decision. He walked to the hotel, then straight to the door of Marshal Heflin.

Once inside, Ellis started to talk, telling Heflin that he lived near the Gibbons house and that he might know something about the murders.

Ellis took a seat then asked Heflin to explain to him the meaning of “States Evidence.” (What Ellis had mumbled back at the general store.)

Heflin told him that if someone was guilty of a crime informed on the others that were involved, that the informer would most likely get a lesser sentence.

After hearing that Ellis told Heflin, he wanted to relieve his conscience and explain what happened.

Marshal Heflin had interrogated quite a few criminals in his career and knew precisely what was needed to bring charges to get a jury to convict. One thing he knew he needed was a witness to the confession.

Confession Given by George Ellis to Marshal Heflin: “A few evenings prior to the 24th, I met Craft, who stated that he was going to see Fanny Gibbons and take her some black candy and that he was going to have intercourse with her, and he wanted me to come along. About midnight, the fatal night, we all started Craft, Neal, and myself, and when we got to the house, Craft raised the window with an old axe and stepped in first. Neal followed, and I stayed behind on the porch, and afterwards, I went in. Robbie was the first aroused and started to get up when Craft said: “you had better lie still.” Craft then went to the bed where the two girls were sleeping and began to take improper liberties with them. Robbie said, “you had better stay away from there,” when Craft hit him with the axe. He fell back on the lounge, then plunged forward and fell fully six feet from the bed under the stairs where he was found. The girls screamed when Craft jumped on the bed, and they both said: “George Craft, what are you here for?” Emma also started to jump from the bed when Neal choked her and pulled her onto the floor. She fought him, and I held her while he outraged her. Neal then struck her on the head with the big end of the crowbar, and she instantly died after throwing up her hands. Craft also had some trouble with Fanny Gibbons and called on me to come and help him. He then outraged her and killed her. Neal proposed killing the girls, and after they were dead, I took some coal oil, poured it over the bodies, and set fire to them with a match. We then left the house.”

Ellis told Heflin that for months before the murders, his two friends had been watching the girls.

One day while they were working in the back yard, Emma passed by, and William Neal declared he was going to have “carnal communication” with her before Christmas. Ellis said that George Craft had made similar remarks about Fannie.

Three Killers Arrested, (left-to-right) George Ellis, William Neal, and Ellis Craft | via Sword and Scale

Arrests Made

With Ellis’s confession, both Neal and Craft were arrested. The three men were transported to the County Jail in Catlettsburg about five miles away from Ashland.

For whatever reason, all three prisoners were put in the same cell. The first thing the next morning, Ellis tried to recant his confession, saying it wasn’t true but was told it was too late.

As word spread through Ashland that the killers were in jail, the talk of getting justice was overwhelming. So much so that officials believed the only way to get these men to trial would be to protect them until then.

So the court ordered the prisoners to be moved to the more secure jail in Lexington. Being escorted by armed guards, the prisoners were put on the Catlettsburg Ferry and headed down the river to Lexington. But the townspeople heard and boarded a steamboat to try and catch up with the ferry. Fortunately, the ferry eluded the steamboat, and no one else died that night.

The ferry made a stop in Vanceburg, Kentucky, where reporters were allowed to board and interview the prisoners. Craft and Neal were joking and singing, but denied they had anything to do with the crime.

Ellis was being held a distance away from the other two and refused to speak to the reporters.

Once in the Lexington Jail, George Ellis claimed his confession was coerced. He said that Heflin held him at gunpoint and forced him to say those things.