Upper photo is Van Buren in the early 1900s. Lower photo is Garrison Avenue in Fort Smith in 1870
In 1859, killing an Indian in the wild territory of Western Arkansas was generally believed to be justified. It was unusual for someone who committed this deed to be charged. People thought it best to acquit or worse, not even bring such a killer to trial. Think of the old saying, “The only good Indian is a dead Indian.”
Considering the facts of John Raper’s case, even his arrest would surprise a lot of people. Nevertheless, he had a jury trial and was found guilty of killing John Rogers, a Cherokee.
Raper lived and worked on his farm in Arkansas not far from the Indian Territory line. One afternoon, his young son went to visit a friendly Cherokee family in the Indian Nation. That night he was attacked by several Indians and brutally murdered.. It would be the next morning before Raper heard of the killing. He was also told that John Rogers was the one who murdered his son.
Raper hurried to the spot and found the terribly mutilated remains of the boy. While kneeling beside the body, deep in grief, the Cherokee John Rogers rode by whooping, howling and hollering. He then reined in his horse, dismounted and headed for a nearby house. Upon spotting this man who he believed had slain his beloved son, Raper raised his rifle and shot him dead.
A quick jury trial held at the Van Buren courthouse December 1, 1859, resulted in a conviction of Raper. Eight days later, the judge sentenced him to hang and set a date of April 27, 1860 for his execution. People were incensed. A large number of leading citizens in Van Buren, including the judge who had held the trial, signed a petition. It was forwarded to President James Buchanan along with information telling exactly what had happened that led up to Raper killing John Rogers.
The president commutted Raper’s sentence to life imprisonment at Little Rock. The following year Raper, and all other prisoners held in Little Rock, was released by the Confederate soldiers. It is thought that he entered the southern army and was killed in battle.
Plenty of men were hanged on the scaffold at Van Buren. Judge Isaac Parker, the man who would gain a reputation as the “hanging” judge wouldn’t arrive in Fort Smith until 1875.
The term Hell on the Border was originally coined by outlaws of the Southwest. The jail quarters at Fort Smith were horrendous. As many as 200 prisoners at a time were kept in two inadequate basement rooms beneath the old stone barracks which was used for the court. Young, old, sick and well, hardened criminals and first offenders, all were crammed into these rooms together. In 1886 money was appropriated to build a three-story brick structure. The building was completed in 1889 and it adjoined the court building on the south.
The permanent gallows at Fort Smith was the site of many a hanging. One of the most infamous was Cherokee Bill. More about him in a future blog.
Check out my western historical romances, all based on historical happenings.
Dream Walker is the story of a Cherokee woman who leaves the Indian Nation to live a life in her father’s white world. It depicts the founding of the Cherokee Trail from Fayetteville, AR to California by Cherokee and white businessmen in 1849. Their intention was to strike it rich in the gold fields and bring the money back to Arkansas.
Order Dream Walker and The Montana Trilogy here:
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Watch for the release of Stone Heart’s Woman from The Wild Rose Press in February, 2012
Read first chapters on my website.
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