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S E N T E N C I N G E S C A P E PA R D O N S P OV E RT Y FA M I
LY C O U RT S C I V I L R I G H T S R AC E C U LT U R E R E L I G I
O N O R G A N I Z E D L A B O R WA R I M M I G R AT I O N M I G R
AT I O N S U F F R AG E H O M E S T E A D I N G P RO H I B I T I O
N O R G A N I Z E D C R I M E T R A F F I C K I N G H A B E A S C O
R P U S T H E D E P R E S S I O N M I N E R S C OW B OY S FA R M E
R S L A N D WAT E R
IDAHOPENITENTIARY 1864-1947
INMATES OF THE
A COMPREHENSIVE CATALOG
INM
ATE
S O
F THE
IDA
HO
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NITE
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64
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47
$24.00 USDISBN 978-0-931406-18-8LCCN 2008934210
Idaho State Historical Society
Public Archives and R
esearch Library2205 O
ld Penitentiary Road
Boise, Idaho 83712 USA
ww
w.idahohistory.net
Preserving the pastEnriching the future
-
S E N T E N C I N G E S C A P E PA R D O N S P OV E RT Y FA M I
LY C O U RT S C I V I L R I G H T S RACE CULTURE REL IG ION
ORGANIZED LABOR WAR IMMIGRATION M IGRATION S U F F R AG E H O M E S
T E A D I N G P RO H I B I T I O N O R G A N I Z E D C R I M E T R
A F F I C K I N G HABEAS CORPUS THE DEPRESSION MINERS COWBOYS
FARMERS LAND WATER
IDAHOPENITENTIARY 1864-1947
INMATES OF THE
A COMPREHENSIVE CATALOG
-
Inmates of the Idaho Penitentiary 1864-1947: a comprehensive
catalog
Compiled and arranged byRachel S Johnstone, DPhil (Oxon)
With introductions byRachelle N LittauPamala S Parker
2008 Idaho State Historical Society
ISBN 978-0-931406-18-8
Library of Congress Control Number 2008934210
Idaho State Historical SocietyPublic Archives and Research
Library2205 Old Penitentiary RoadBoise, Idaho
83712USAwww.idahohistory.net/inmates.html
Published by the Idaho State Historical Society, with support
from a grant from the National Historic Publications and Records
Commission. Printed in Caldwell, Idaho, by the Caxton Printers,
Ltd.
The Idaho State Historical Society is an extraordinary system of
cultural and historic resources comprised of the Idaho State
Historical Museum, Public Archives and Research Library, State
Historic Preservation Office, and Historic Sites Program. We seek
to inspire, enrich, and engage all Idahoans by leading the state in
preserving and sharing our diverse and dynamic cultural
heritage.
National Historical Publications and Records CommissionNational
Archives and Records Administration700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Room
106Washington, DC 20408-0001USAwww.archives.gov/nhprc/
Copies of this publication may be downloaded free of charge on
our website. Costs associated with this publication are available
from the Idaho State Historical Society in accordance with Section
60-202, Idaho Code. HB366:10/2008/250/0349
Cover: Photos (left to right): Frank Shea (no 1121, dated 1905)
ISHS AR42/20072407/1005.3-3/1121 - William Land (no 883, dated
1902) ISHS AR42/20072408/1006.2-4/883 - George Hamilton (no 764,
dated 1900) ISHS AR42/20072405/1004.3-3/764. Cover and content
design and layout by Rachel Johnstone.
Preserving the past Enriching the future
-
Acknowledgements ivContributors ivPreface v
A brief legislative history vHow to use the catalog ixA note
about numbers and names xAsk a librarian or archivist x
Introduction: A historic mystery, solved, by Rachelle N. Littau
xiIntroduction: A tale of two inmates, by Pamala S. Parker
xiiiHidden Histories: A chronological outline xvGlossary to
cross-referenced collections xxiiiCatalog: Inmates of the Idaho
penitentiary 1864-1947 1Index: Names, alphabetical 319Index: Inmate
designations by county or jurisdiction 375Index: Women 393Index:
Juveniles 395
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1-a: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations 1864-1905,
compared to census (population) data viFigure 1-b: Idaho
penitentiary incarcerations 1906-1947, compared to census
(population) data viFigure 2: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations,
1864-1947, by crime group viiFigure 3: Idaho penitentiary
incarcerations, 1864-1947, by county viiFigure 4: Idaho
penitentiary incarcerations, by age at incarceration, 1864-1947
viiiFigure 5: Description of convict forms, 1884 and 1909
viiiFigure 6: Detail of Bertillon charts, 1897 and 1900 ix
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
In 2001, Bonnie Fuller, Dovie Darchuk, Suzanne Shemwell, Linda
VanZant, Barbara Wright, and Carolann Zagrafosmembers of the Boise
Dead Relative Collectors volunteered over 500 hours to create the
first electronic, alphabetical index to Idaho State Penitentiary
inmate files in the custody of the Idaho State Historical Society.
Julie Yandell volunteered to expand public access even further in
2003, by using census records, prison reports, and registers to
compile a list of territorial inmates. Steve Barrett, PhD, of the
Societys Public Archives and Research Library, leveraged this
generous contribution in 2007 to write a grant to preserve the most
fragile files and photographs (those originating between 1864 and
1947). A year-long project to preserve originally tri-folded
records, reunite documents with mug shots, develop and implement
procedures for handling material restricted by law, and catalog the
collection was funded by the National Historical Publications and
Records Commission. Rachel Johnstone took on management of the
project in September 2007; this catalog represents the ongoing
efforts of Society volunteers and staff to expand and enhance
access to Idahos historical public record.
Karri AldersonMargit Amundsen
Steve BarrettCarolyn Bowler
Heidi BoydTeresa Dewey
Kate FredericksenGary Frederickson
Bonnie FullerTobie GarrickSandy Hicks
Linda HofenbeckRod House
Don JeanroyRachelle Littau Phyllis Lyons
CONTRIBUTORS
With special thanks to Carole Anderson, for contributing more
than 390 volunteer hours in 2007 and 2008
Emily MannyElizabeth Margolis
Lori McKinleyDon McNarie
Linda Morton-KeithleyBob Olson
Pamala ParkerJim Riley
Bruce SchaeferJim Schneider
Michael Mags ShawGail Ulrey
Amy VecchioneSteve WalkerKalynn WardGail Wilson
and John Yandell
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PREFACE
During the 83 years encompassed by this catalog (1864-1947), the
Idaho Penitentiary was not merely a series of buildings, nor did
the penitentiary occupy a single location. Reflecting the migration
and evolution of the institution a history which echoed the
changing nature of the territory and the state this catalog
endeavors to present a comprehensive list of all territorial and
state prisoners from 1864-1947, as well as a key to inmate files
within the Department of Correction archival collection (AR42).
A BRIEF LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
In 1864, the territorial legislative assembly designated the
jails in Lewiston (Nez Perce county) and Idaho City (Boise county)
as temporary territorial prisons and the Nez Perce and Boise county
sheriffs as keepers under a prison commissioner (the territorial
treasurer, ex officio).1 In 1866, the assembly consolidated the
prison and transferred all territorial prisoners to the Boise
county jail.2 At least 89 men and 2 women were held as territorial
prisoners in these jails between 1864 and 1872.
In 1867, the United States Congress provided for the
construction of a central and permanent General Penitentiary and
Prison, an act which the Idaho assembly codified into territorial
law in 1869.3 Construction began outside Boise City in April 1870.4
In September a local newspaper reported:
The penitentiary looms up like the frowning walls of some
impregnable fortress. Distance lends enchantment. This building
will be ready for the reception of guests in a very little while.
The man who would commit a felony within sight of its gloomy walls
ought to spend the remainder of his days within them.5
1 An act to create a Territorial Prison Commissioner and to
provide for the care and safe keeping of Territorial Convicts, H.
14, Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Idaho, 2d Sess.
(1864), printed in Laws of the Territory of Idaho, Second Session
(Boise : Frank Kenyon Territorial Printer, 1866), chapter 13; cf
Idaho World (18 March 1865)
2 To create a Territorial Prison Commissioner and to provide for
the care and safe keeping of Territorial Convicts, Legislative
Assembly of the Territory of Idaho, 3d Sess. (1866), printed in
Laws of the Territory of Idaho, Third Session (Boise : Frank Kenyon
Territorial Printer, 1866), chapter 25
3 An Act Regulating the Conduct, Discipline and Management of
the Territorial Prison, Legislative Assembly of the Territory of
Idaho, 5th Sess. (1869), printed in Laws of the Territory of Idaho,
Fifth Session (Boise : James Reynolds Territorial Printer, 1869),
chapter 4
4 Idaho Statesman (2 April 1870) p3, c15 Idaho Statesman (27
September 1870) p5, c2
The following year, 1871, the assembly recognized,
That the Penitentiary Building erected by the United States, in
the County of Ada, in the Territory of Idaho, be and the same is
hereby declared to be the General Penitentiary and Territorial
Prison of the Territory of Idaho, wherein shall be confined for
reformation and punishment, and employed at hard labor, all
offenders who have been, or shall hereafter be convicted and
sentenced according to law, to imprisonment at hard labor in the
Territorial Prison.6
Prisoners, however, were not transferred to the new penitentiary
until March 1872, while the territory and federal government
negotiated the onerous particulars of financial responsibility,
including a contract with the United States Marshal for the
territory to act as keeper of the prison.7 Governance of the
penitentiary shifted again in 1885, when the legislature appointed
a three-person prison commission with oversight authority.8 In
1889, the commissions powers included the authority to investigate
allegations of mistreatment of prisoners, and to transfer inmates
to the Idaho Insane Asylum.9
Through an act of first state legislature in 1891, the
penitentiary became the Idaho State Penitentiary:
There shall be continually maintained, for the care and custody
of convicts in Idaho, a penitentiary at Boise City, in Ada County,
on the lands connected therewith and set apart and reserved
therefor and granted and donated to the State of Idaho by the
general government upon its admission into the Union.10
While the Idaho constitution (adopted July 1890) made provision
for inmates to apply for reprieve by creating a board of pardons
(distinct from the prison commission),
6 To Provide for the Keeping and Accommodation of Territorial
Prisoners, Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Idaho, 6th
Sess. (1871), printed in Laws of the Territory of Idaho, Sixth
Session (Boise : James Reynolds Territorial Printer, 1871), 49
7 Idaho World (28 March 1872); Idaho Statesman (2 March 1872)8
To Create a Prison Commission for the Territory of Idaho, and to
Define
Their Powers and Duties, Legislature of the Territory of Idaho,
13th Sess. (1885), printed in General Laws of the Territory of
Idaho, Thirteenth Session (Boise : James Pinney Territorial
Printer, 1885), 16
9 To Create a Prison Commission and to Prescribe Its Powers and
Duties, Legislature of the Territory of Idaho, 15th Sess. (1889),
printed in General Laws of the Territory of Idaho, Fifteenth
Session (Boise : James Pinney Territorial Printer, 1889), 16
10 To Provide for the Government and Maintenance of the
Penitentiary, and for the Care and Custody of State Prisoners,
Legislature of the State of Idaho, 1st Sess. (1891), printed in
General Laws of the State of Idaho, First Session (Boise : James
Pinney Territorial Printer, 1891), 21
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
vi
524,873445,032431,866
325,594
0
50
100
150
200
250
1906 1910 1914 1918 1922 1926 1930 1934 1938 1942 1946
Inca
rcer
atio
ns
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
Popu
latio
n
US enters fi rst world war (April 1917) US enters second world
war (December 1941)
161,772
88,54832,61014,999
0
50
100
150
200
250
1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904
Inca
rcer
atio
ns
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
Popu
latio
nPenitentiary outside Boise Cityopens (March 1872)
Idaho territorial prisons established (December 1864) Idaho
becomes a state (July 1890)
the board did not function until the legislature set a schedule
for the boards meetings in January 1891.11 This resulted in
practical delays for inmates petitioning for release, including
Thomas McClary (no. 8), who remarked to a friend on the unfortunate
circumstances which obliged a retreat into winter quarters on this
campaign of mine.12
The states 1891 legislation initiated a number of changes which
would define the operations and history of the penitentiary for
many years to come. It created the post of warden and expanded the
powers and duties of the prison commission (distinct from the board
of pardons), designated a prison physician, provided a mechanism
for the continued housing of federal prisoners, and set an
admission charge for visitors (not to exceed twenty-five cents),
the funds from which were to supply a prison library. The
legislation also limited punishment: No punishment shall ever be
inflicted except solitary
11 Constitution of the State of Idaho (Boise : Statesman
Printing Co, 1891), article IV, section 7; To Prescribe Sessions of
the Board of Pardons, the Manner in which Applications for Pardon
Shall Be Made, and to Regulate the Proceedings Thereon, Legislature
of the State of Idaho, 1st Sess. (1891), printed in General Laws of
the State of Idaho, First Session (Boise : James Pinney Territorial
Printer, 1891), 17
12 Thomas McClary to Major George Manning (19 November 1890),
AR42/20063153/1002.1-2/8
confinement on bread and water, or by wearing ball and chain
attached to one leg.13
During the period covered by this catalog (1864-1947), Idaho
incarcerated at least 7,570 men, women, and children in Lewiston,
Idaho City, and Boise (figures 1-2).14 These prisoners came from 46
counties (including the non-extant Alturas and Logan counties), as
well as federal jurisdictions, and at the time of their
incarceration, ranged in ages from 10 to 82 (figures 3-4). Indices
for women prisoners and juvenile inmates are provided at the back
of this catalog.
Beyond irregular reports submitted by the territorial prison
authorities from 1865, no systematic or central record of
13 To Provide for the Government and Maintenance of the
Penitentiary, and for the Care and Custody of State Prisoners,
Legislature of the State of Idaho, 1st Sess. (1891), printed in
General Laws of the State of Idaho, First Session (Boise : James
Pinney Territorial Printer, 1891), 21
14 1877 legislation further complicates reconstruction of the
historical record in respect to territorial prisoners. It provided
that, in cases where a territorial prison sentence was less than
one year, the jail of the county or adjoining county wherein the
prisoner was tried should retain the prisoner and the jail shall be
deemed the territorial prison. To provide for the imprisonment of
Territorial Prisoners in county jails in certain cases, Legislative
Assembly of the Territory of Idaho, 9th Sess. (1877), printed in
Laws of the Territory of Idaho, Ninth Session (Boise : Milton Kelly
Territorial Printer, 1877)
Figure 1-a: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations 1864-1905,
compared to census (population) data
Figure 1-b: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations 1906-1947,
compared to census (population) data
Sources: Idaho State Historical Society analysis of information
from its collections, and 1870, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930,
and 1940 population (total) data from US Census Bureau, 1990 Census
of Population and Housing, 1990 Population and Housing Unit Counts:
United States. CPH-2 (Washington, DC : US Census Bureau, 1993),
table 16
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vii
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
57
561
19
7
47
12
143
93
40
95
26
207
209
170
261
26
11
17
255
409
55
30
54
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
Adultery
Arson
Assault
Bigamy
Bribery
Burglary
Cohabitation
Counterfeiting
Embezzlement
Forgery
Fraud
Grand larceny
Incest
Jail Break
Kidnapping
Liquor
Manslaughter
Miscellaneous
Murder
Perjury
Polygamy
Prostitution
Rape
Robbery
Sodomy
Syndicalism
1466
1300
1987
2143
673106
84457
12777
132293
3821
4546
13232
14102
72146
29158
5976
1478877
335218
10847
15813
8792
47310196
6159
25320
47643
220
775
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
AdaAdamsAlturas
BannockBear LakeBenewahBingham
BlaineBoise
BonnerBonnevilleBoundary
ButteCamas
CanyonCaribou
CassiaClark
ClearwaterCusterElmore
FranklinFremont
GemGooding
IdahoJefferson
JeromeKootenai
LatahLemhiLewis
LincolnLogan
MadisonMinidoka
Nez PerceOneida
OwyheePayettePower
ShoshoneTeton
Twin FallsValley
Washington
NB Excludes federal jurisdictions, 1st and 2nd district cases,
and inmates for whom jurisdiction is not known.
Figure 3: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations, 1864-1947 by
county
Sources: Idaho State Historical Society analysis of information
from its collections.
NB Data include persons held on charges for each respective
crime group. For example, persons held for trial (robbery) are
counted under robbery. Assault includes a number of convictions
that might today be considered attempted felonies, for example,
assault with intent to rob. Liquor includes all such related
offenses, including trafficking alcohol in the Indian territories
(1871-1908), prohibition violations (1916-1932), and driving under
the influence. Prostitution includes convictions for those engaged
in, purchasing, or promoting prostitution. Sodomy includes those
convictions termed the infamous crime against nature. Miscellaneous
includes crimes with fewer than six incarcerations each, such as
depositing in US Mail for mailing and delivery obscene, lewd and
lascivious matter, malicious injury to buildings by explosion of
dynamite, or exposing another person to infection of a dangerous
disease.
prisoners was kept until 1878.15 Idahos 1891 penitentiary
legislation specifically addressed this deficiency, and obligated
the warden to keep and make available books, accounts, documents,
registers and reports concerning the operations of the
penitentiary.16 While penitentiary staff began to use log books and
registers in 1878, from
15 See the glossary of cross-referenced collections on page
25.16 See footnote number 13.
about 1884 they began to systematically record inmates through
the use of registers, forms, and photographs. Although many early
inmate files contain photographs, only in the latter half of the
1890s did penitentiary staff began to systematically collect mug
shots as part of the intake process.
Figure 2: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations, 1864-1947 by crime
group
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
viii
0
100
200
300
400
10 15 18 21 24 27 30 33 36 39 42 45 48 51 54 57 60 63 66 69 72
75 80
Inca
rcer
atio
ns
In addition to court records, family correspondence, petitions,
and employment, education, and punishment records, the files kept
on individual inmates contain two significant standardized forms.
These intake records the Description of Convict form (circa 1884)
and anthropometric Bertillon chart (circa 1893) reflect data
gathered through interviews with prisoners. These
Figure 5: Description of convict forms, 1884 and 1909
Source: James Bird (no. 50), AR42/20063165/1014.1-1/50; and
Edward Fitzgibbons (no. 1591), AR42/20072417/1009.4-4/1591
Figure 4: Idaho penitentiary incarcerations, by age at
incarceration, 1864-1947
files contain a wealth of social, environmental, and health and
occupational information about each individual (see figures
5-6).17
17 Bertillon charts are named for Alphonse Bertillon (1853-
1914), who is credited with developing the system of physical
measurements (anthropometry) which preceded the use of fingerprints
for criminal identification in law enforcement.
Source: Idaho State Historical Society analysis of information
from its collections.
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ix
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
File: AR42 / 20072408 / 1006.2-4 / 883
This catalog has endeavored to comprehensively cover inmates
from 1864 to 1947, including those for whom individual case files
do not survive and who can only be identified through reference to
a broad range of archives holdings. Inmates identified in this way
are indicated in the catalog as collection references, with
citations included in the notes field (see diagram on page 1).
However, due to the scarcity of documentation for the earliest
years of the penitentiary, lost inmates may yet be identified. In
the same way, cross-references provided in this catalog are by no
means comprehensive, but rather
HOW TO USE THE CATALOG
Standardized inmate records make up the bulk (185 cubic feet) of
the Societys correctional collection (AR42). These inmate files
were transferred to the Societys Public Archives and Research
Library by the Idaho Department of Correction in 1995. While the
majority of these documents remain in excellent condition,
extensive water and handling damage dating from the 1970s is
evident in some parts of the collection. During general archival
preservation of the inmate files, we also aimed to restore the
original order to the collection, while providing cross-references
to other archival holdings wherever possible. Inmates for whom the
archives holds distinct case files are assigned individual file
reference numbers, as follows:
Collection number
Accession number
Box number
File number
Figure 6: Detail of Bertillon charts, 1897 and 1900
Source: Clockwise from top left, John Hines (no. 544), George
Brown (no. 549), and James Fitzgerald (no. 599),
AR42/20063155/1004.1-3/544, 549, and 599; Bartley Rigley (no. 789),
AR42/20063157/1006.1-4/789
HO
W T
O
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
x
represent a starting point for researchers wishing to dig
deeper. For example, we have provided a limited number of
individual references to county criminal cases. If you are
interested in access to the criminal (or in some cases, probate)
court file for any inmate, please contact a librarian or archivist.
The Society holds a wide array of original and microfilm resources
for public access. A glossary to cross-references is provided.
A NOTE ABOUT NUMBERS AND NAMES
The arrangement of this catalog in chronological and register
order attempts to mirror the methods penitentiary staff used to
catalog and manage prisoners. Penitentiary staff began to assign
sequential register numbers to both new and existing inmates from
about 1884. This numbering system was neither uniform, nor
consistently applied, however. As late as 1902, some inmates were
processed without numbers or without a formal record. Frank Barrett
and George Ferguson both held on federal charges in 1902 were the
last known unregistered prisoners.
In addition, from 1886 to 1893 some 60 inmates were assigned
numbers which followed by the letter B paralleled the numbering
system for the main prison population. Of these B-numbered inmates,
15 were incarcerated for crimes related to trafficking alcohol in
tribal territories, and 25 for unlawful cohabitation or on a charge
of polygamy. In 1904, penitentiary staff reintegrated the remaining
B inmates into the general population, assigning each a new number
from the main register. In these cases, inmates are listed in this
catalog under both their standard and B numbers.
For inmates who recidivated (were incarcerated more than once),
the penitentiary assigned unique numbers for each new
incarceration.18 This is an important philosophical distinction,
one which delineates the difference between numbering a human being
and numbering an incarceration event. For example, when Bugs Miller
completed his sentence as inmate no. 748 in 1901, that number,
along with Millers sentence, was terminated. When incarcerated
again in 1911, Miller became inmate no. 1768, with distinct
sentence and a distinct opportunity to bring that particular event
to a close.
18 Harry McKay was the sole exception to this rule. McKay was
incarcerated twice at the penitentiary, as no. 213 in 1889, and as
no. 52B (reassigned later as no. 213.5) in 1892.
In addition, each inmate is listed by the name under which they
were incarcerated regardless of whether this name was proven to be
a true name or an alias followed by secondary names gleaned from
the inmates record. This arrangement is also designed to preserve
the original order of the collection. Joe Miller almost certainly
not his true name (no. 4322) had at least 21 names on record, any
one of which may have been the name he was given at birth. When
asked for his aliases during his intake interview, Frank Wilcox
(no. 3235) claimed to have had hundreds of them.19 To help
researchers identify multiple incarcerations and inmates who were
imprisoned under aliases, we have provided an alphabetical index to
the 13,190 names, nicknames, alternate spellings, and aliases used
by the 7,570 inmates in this catalog.
ASK A LIBRARIAN OR ARCHIVIST
Certain information contained in inmate files may be restricted
under Idaho Public Records Law. As laws are subject to change over
time, if you have any questions about access to inmate files,
please contact a librarian or archivist:
Idaho State Historical SocietyPublic Archives and Research
Library
2205 Old Penitentiary RoadBoise, Idaho 83712
USA
www.idahohistory.net/inmates.html
[email protected]
telephone (208) 334 2620
19 Wilcox (no. 3235), State Penitentiary, Boise, Idaho,
Description of Convict (10 February 1923),
AR42/20072433/1024.2-2/3235
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INTRODUCTION
Researching history is like detective work. You scour the scene,
look under every rock, talk to every possible witness, review
security tapes (okay, historic photos) and from your findings try
to present the most accurate picture of an event as you can. Of
course, the findings are subject to the detectives interpretation.
The Old Idaho Penitentiary can be a particularly difficult and
sometimes frustrating case to crack.
The Old Idaho Penitentiary at Boise served as Idahos prison for
101 years. Following the Idaho Department of Corrections move to a
new institution south of Boise in 1973, the Idaho State Historical
Society took over administration of the site. The acquisition of
the prison site and its subsequent opening to visitors gave people
from around the world the opportunity to enter the cellblocks and
walk the yards where prisoners worked and lived for more than a
century. While simply wandering through the site is a powerful
experience, that experience becomes more meaningful through sharing
stories of these prisoners. This is where the detective work comes
into play.
Beyond the physical prison site, the Idaho State Historical
Society administers a vast amount of resources that contribute to
the interpretation of this historic institution. The Idaho State
Historical Museum holds personal artifacts used by guards and
inmates, while the Societys Public Archives and Research Library
holds a vast collection of research materials including
photographs, oral histories, wardens reports, and inmate files. Yet
even with all these resources the Old Idaho Penitentiary still
contains mysteries that require detective work to try to solve.
The case of Douglas Van Vlack (no. 5264) is an excellent example
of just one of those mysteries. Van Vlack received the death
penalty for the kidnapping and murder of his estranged wife. He was
sentenced to hang at the prison on 10 December 1937. He never made
it to the gallows. After visiting with his mother on 9 December,
Van Vlack slipped past guards at the prison and climbed into the
rafters of his cellhouse. After a short time in the rafters, Van
Vlack proclaimed, My mother told me it was all right for me to
choose the way I wanted to die. Ill never
by Rachelle N Littau
hang on that rope.1 He then dove head first into the cellhouses
concrete floor. He died from his injuries a few hours later.
The story sounds straightforward but one small bit of the tale
is difficult to determine. Which Old Idaho Penitentiary cellhouse
was the location of Van Vlacks suicide? There are two
possibilities. Today, these two buildings are called the New
Cellhouse and Two House.2 Inconsistencies in the existing evidence
add to the confusion. However, an educated guess can be made by
examining and interpreting all the available evidence.
The Idaho Statesman, a Boise newspaper, provided a great deal of
evidence for this story in articles published in the days leading
up to Van Vlacks impending execution and following his subsequent
suicide.3 These events were front page news in the 8, 9, and 10
December 1937 editions. Most of the evidence from the Statesman
indicates that Two House was the site of the suicide. Photographs
in both the 8 and 9 December editions show the exterior of Two
House and identify it as the building where Van Vlack awaited his
fate. The 10 December edition printed an interior photograph of Two
House as well as an X drawn where Van Vlack purportedly climbed
onto a table to gain access to the second floor to begin his upward
ascent. No table is shown in the photograph.
Three articles about Van Vlack and the event appeared in the 10
December edition of the Statesman. One of these articles stated
that Van Vlack hurtled from a steel rafter 28 feet above the
concrete floor in the death house. Again the evidence points
directly to Two House. It has steel rafters as opposed to the
wooden rafters in the New Cellhouse.
There are, however, a few instances in the 10 December Statesman
that throw doubt on the assumption that Two House is the location
of the suicide. The 10 December
1 Condemned Prisoner Suicides In Wild Leap To Corridor Floor
After Eluding Prison Guards, Idaho Statesman (10 December 1937),
p2, c4
2 The New Cellhouse, the first cellhouse built after the
original structure in 1870, was constructed in 1889. Construction
on Two House, also known as the North Wing, began in 1899 and was
completed in 1911.
3 Idaho Statesman (8 December 1937); Idaho Statesman (9 December
1937); Idaho Statesman (10 December 1937)
A HISTORIC MYSTERY, SOLVED
-
IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xii
article noting the steel rafters added confusion to the story
mentioning twice that the cellblock had three tiers. Two House has
four tiers. The New Cellhouse has three. The 10 December Statesman
also details that a net was being brought into the cellhouse but
that the net could not be deployed because the corridor was only
seven feet wide (the net required a width of ten feet). Again, the
New Cellhouses corridors are less than ten feet wide; the corridors
in Two House are wider than ten feet.
If a researcher were to rely solely on newspaper accounts, Two
House would appear to be the most logical location for the suicide
even with minor inconsistencies in the evidence. However, other
resources exist that call this assumption into question.
Two possible witnesses to the event identified themselves to
Society staff. Both of these men were former guards and both were
adamant, more than a half century after the event, that the suicide
occurred in the New Cellhouse.
The Society also possesses other resources about Douglas Van
Vlack. His inmate file unfortunately does not shed any light on
which building he died in. Another clue to the mystery was recently
discovered in the E L Shorty Fuller collection. Fuller was a
freelance Associated Press photographer who photographed for the
Statesman from 1937 to 1942. This collection contains negatives,
photographic prints, and scrapbooks that document various news
stories. Two photographs in the collection, presumably taken
shortly after the suicide, show the interior of a cellhouse the New
Cellhouse. The first photograph shows a mattress on the ground next
to the wall. The back of the photograph reads, Where Van Vlack
died. A foot or two from where he did his dive from the rafter.4
One of the 10 December Statesman articles mentions this mattress.
The article says, Van
4 Idaho State Historical Society MS 511.863
Vlack was moved a few feet and was placed on a mattress. The
second Fuller photograph shows a table in the corridor of the New
Cellhouse that could be the one Van Vlack used to gain access to
the second tier of the cellhouse.
After reviewing all available evidence in the Van Vlack mystery,
most staff and volunteers at the Old Idaho Penitentiary believe the
suicide of Douglas Van Vlack occurred in the New Cellhouse. The
discovery of new evidence could always change that belief.
Those who share Old Penitentiary history with the public try to
be as accurate as possible, though determining what really happened
can often be challenging. The staff strives to be respectful to the
experiences of those men and women who spent time at the
penitentiary as those experiences bring value and relevance to the
old prison buildings. Sharing the sites stories with visitors as
well as the difficulty in finding the truth behind those stories
makes the visitors experience at the site interesting, meaningful
and can sometimes inspire them to investigate the prisons history
on their own.
The inmate files contain a wealth of information about the men
and women who served time at the prison. The Societys catalog of
inmate files will make accessing those files easier. This catalog
will provide one more resource for investigating Old Penitentiary
history and contribute greatly to uncovering stories of the Old
Idaho Penitentiarys former residents, staff and historic buildings.
The inmate files project has identified more than 1,250 missing
inmates. Previously, there was no evidence that these inmates whose
records were lost or sometimes folded into other inmates files had
served time here. Who knows what stories those missing inmates have
to tell?
-
I finished the book and put it down.1 It was one I choose to
take to the mountains to read on my familys hunting trip. It
attracted my attention because it was a novel based on a true story
of a murder that happened in Valley County, Idaho, in the early
1900s.
I finished reading the book, but I knew the story had not ended.
I wondered how much of this story was true. I couldnt wait to get
home to find out more.
My search started with the internet. I Googled. Nothing. I came
to the Idaho State Historical Societys website and found they had
an inmate catalog they were working on. I still had a huge hurdle.
I didnt know the real names of the victim or of the husband and
wife who were involved in the murder. I knew I would need to make a
trip to the Public Archives and Research Library. There I found
helpful staff who were able to determine the names of the husband
and wife. Both had served time in the Idaho Penitentiary.
I now knew the husbands name was Charles Ernst and the wifes
name was Frances Ernst. This was exciting, but that didnt compare
to the excitement I felt when this helpful staff member asked,
Would you like to see these inmate files?2 Of course I wanted to
see them. I had no idea that was even possible. My mind was
spinning with anticipation of what might be gleaned from an inmate
file. I opened up the first file and staring me in the face was a
photo of Charles. Wow!
That day at the Public Archives and Research Library, I was
handed a couple photos, some files about Charles and Frances, and
an invitation to step back in time into the lives of total
strangers, nearly 100 years in the past.
That one moment of curiosity that I couldnt shake has turned
into many months of fun and exciting research. A further search at
the Public Archives and Research Library
1 Smith, Don Ian and Naida West, Murder on the Middle Fork
(Rancho Murieta : Bridge House Books, 2005)
2 Charles Ernst (no. 2755), AR42/20063170/1019.1-2/2755; Frances
Ernst (no. 2755), AR42/20063170/1019.1-2/2756
uncovered the actual transcripts from Charles trial.3 This was
amazing and sometimes comical reading.
Just before the trial, Charles talked Sheriff E A Smith into
letting him go to the Mitchell Hotel were Frances was staying, so
they could talk.4 Sheriff Smith agreed with Charles scheme, even
though he knew this was not exactly appropriate. Charles was hoping
to talk Frances into taking the rap on the murder. Sheriff Smith
was hoping to hear a confession from Charles. Everyone had their
own agenda.
One of the new fangled Dictaphone machines was brought in. The
cone style voice transmitter end was placed in Frances room and the
telephone style receiving portion was placed in the adjacent room.
This failed miserably. The technology was not advanced enough for
the conversation to be heard. More meetings were arranged and on
the last attempt a 12 inch square hole was made in the wall
connecting the two rooms. On Frances side of the wall, a cover was
hung to hide the hole. In the adjoining room, a man was assigned to
stand with his head poking through into Frances room to listen for
a confession. This also failed.
Charles was found guilty of second degree murder and Frances
pled guilty to manslaughter. Both were sentenced to serve time in
the Idaho State Penitentiary, while their five year old son was
placed in the Idaho Childrens Home.
I am still turning the pages in documents located at the Public
Archives and Research Library, looking at microfilm, reading old
newspapers, and searching websites. Months ago I finished reading a
book, but today I am still looking for the rest of the story.
I know when I exhaust this search, there is yet another
interesting inmate story waiting for me to discover. Maybe there is
one waiting for you as well.
3 State of Idaho v Ernst AR9/19970692/179/3541; State of Idaho v
Ernst AR220/19972589/61-109/90
4 See Hopfenbeck, Linda, comp. Lawmen: the history of Idaho
sheriffs 1863-2000 (Boise : Idaho Sheriffs Association, 2002)
INTRODUCTION
by Pamala S Parker
A TALE OF TWO INMATES
-
IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xiv
-
HIDDEN HISTORIESA CHRONOLOGICAL OUTLINE
James Oscar Baker (no. 88) becomes the penitentiarys youngest
inmate at age 10. Baker pled guilty to manslaughter for shooting a
man in the Soda Springs saloon where his father tended bar. A
petition for his pardon claimed the inquest jurors were unable to
agree that a boy of Bakers tender years could be held responsible
for his acts or not.
Frank Ferron (no. 154) dug through the wall of his cell, into
the cell of Nate Young (no. 161) and Thomas Lovett (no. 162) in
preparation for his first escape attempt. Ferron was later
disciplined for assaulting Edward Harrington (no. 180) with a heavy
tin cup while at dinner, for escaping by removing the bricks from
the ceiling of his cell, for destroying food, and for insolence,
laziness, and disobedience.
The district attorney of Kootenai county railed in a letter
against First District judge Norman Bucks recommendation to pardon
Charles Ross (no. 177): I do not believe it will have any effect on
the Governor. First, because Governor Stevenson will not pardon
Ross if every man in the Territory recommended it unless he is
convinced that it was justifiable homicide, and secondly, that
Judge Buck has never convinced Gov. Stevenson of his ability,
honesty, or fairness any more than he has the people of Kootenai or
Shoshone Counties, and I can just fancy Gov. Stevenson throwing
down his recommendation with a look of disgust and the forcible
remark of Judge Buck be damned.
A letter to the governor regarding William Hordemann (no. 172)
noted that co-defendant Rodney Wright (no. 113) had come to Idaho
from Oregon ambitious, as many of our western boys are to become a
cow-boy. He was thrown into wreckless company, young full of
vivacity, got mixed up with a drunken carousal and shot one of his
companions... but most of the people, like myself, have little
sympathy with this cow-boy element.
John Wilson (no. 251) organized a prison Thanksgiving Programme
with music contributed from both inmates and the outside community.
Wilson, Monroe Palmer (no. 332) and Orlando Barker (no. 232) were
to play the harp, while Joseph Ross (no. 293) and James Marble (no.
240) sang.
A petition for the pardon of Richard Peeke (no. 98), signed by
over 250 citizens, addressed the Board of Pardons as Our Servants.
While condemning the license of the past by our ex servants in
pardoning cold blooded murders, the petitioners called on the board
to now let Richard Peeke out from our prison.
A letter of recommendation from the War Department called
attention to Dr E J OCallaghans (no. 135) service record in the
Indian Campaigns in Wyoming away back in the seventies, and a
recommendation from Admiral Benjamin Sands referring in the highest
terms to his conduct at the storming of Fort Fisher which assault
you know was no pic-nic.
1893
1892
1891
1890
1889
1888
1887
1886
1885
1894
Dennis McCarthy (no. 73), convicted of murder, received letters
of recommendation from five former wardens and superintendents of
the penitentiary. Among them, US Marshall John Hailey noted that he
entrusted McCarthy with the care of his two children, but professed
ignorance as to his guilt or innocence of the crime for which he
was sent here.
NB Sources for this timeline are available from the files and
cross-reference for each respective inmate. Check the catalog by
inmate number to find the reference numbers for each
individual.
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xvi
During a spree at the John Banks saloon in Payette, John Burns
(no. 498) cut a hole in the pocket of a sleeping friends overalls,
extracting two dollars, and spending a half-dollar on a round of
drinks at the bar. Burns spent less than seven months inside for
this grand larceny.
Levi Dixon (no. 731) was convicted of assault after a two-year
dispute with a man who tried to jump, and thereby secure a
preference right to land Dixon occupied under the Homestead laws of
the United States, and for which Dixon had sought, and obtained
recognition in the probate court of Nez Perce county.
Naomi Mc.D. Phelps, Evangelist and Alice Phelps, Evangelist
petitioned the governor for the pardon and release from that place
of Robert Gray (no. 513), convicted of stealing a cayuse pony,
worth about five dollars.
A former deputy sheriff from Colorado, Elmer Halford (no. 715)
was convicted of grand larceny after failing to cut another mans
horse from his own herds of horses and cattle herds that, according
to his petition for pardon, had taken years of his early life to
accumulate, and... have since been neglected and scattered until
only a small number remain. Halford requested a release in order to
gather and save the few remaining bands before the winter sets
in.
Petitioners claimed that William McGraw (no. 737) had not
received a fair trial or just sentence in 1897 due to the political
climate, namely, the judges aspirations to the Supreme Court, the
recent passage of a womens suffrage measure and influence of the
female vote, and the impact of 1895 legislation which raised the
age of consent (to eighteen).
Fifteen-year old Ida Laherty (no. 901) stole a team of horses
from a Moscow livery stable, at the request of a young gentleman.
Laherty and her accomplice drove the team to Oakesdale, Washington,
where they parted company. Laherty drove the team on her own 60
miles to Sprauge, where she was arrested. Laherty spent three
months in the penitentiary.
Physicians visiting the penitentiary at the request of the Board
of Pardons to attend to Major Darnold (no. 319) and Frank Reed (no.
320), reported: As to the Sanitary condition of the rooms occupied
by these two convicts, It is none of the best as they are, but may
be improved in some measures and made as aseptic as possible. The
most essential thing for the benefit of sick convicts at your
prison is a good light airy Hospital. Considering the number of men
now in the institution.
1903
1902
1901
1900
1899
1898
1897
1896
1895
1904 Spanish-American war veteran James Crea (no. 1045) killed a
man who threatened to strike him with a Tom & Jerry mug during
a fight in the Maze saloon (detail shown) in Grangeville.
In March, Arthur Arey (no. 538) requested the flower job from
the warden, in a bid for leniency from the pardon board. In July,
he was put at pounding rock after he was caught in a dope smuggling
conspiracy with Frank King (no. 870), Joseph ODonnell (no. 743),
and Michael Baker (no. 840). In December, his letter to the Board
of Pardons stated: I am no paragon. Between 1897 and 1905, Arey
received disciplinary action on no less than ten occasions; in 1905
he was confined to his cell indefinitely.
-
xvii
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
1913
1912
1911
1910
1909
1908
1907
1906
1905
1914
Petitions for pardon discussed how language and culture may have
affected the fair (or otherwise) trial of Yee Wee (no. 704), who
reportedly had abandoned some Chinese customs, and was out of
harmony with the Chinese residents of Hailey on race questions.
Frank Gardner (no. 871) was given charge of the penitentiary
photographic department, in addition to oversight of the prison
hospital.
Trusty David Richards (no. 850) request for parole was supported
by letters from six penitentiary staff, including the warden, a
judge, and some 300 citizens and merchants of Malad City, including
DL Evans, then of the Malad Cooperative. Within six months of his
release, residents reported that Richards was disturbing the peace
and is drunk and has been drunk the greatest part of the time for
the last two months.
Ernest Lindquist (no. 1431), recently immigrated from Sweden,
began his Idaho term (less than a year) for burglary. Within a year
of his release, Lindquist had killed another man and begun a
42-year term in Iowa, where he became known as the Forgotten Man of
the Iowa State Pen. Lindquist married shortly after his release in
1952; the US Department of Justice instituted deportation
proceedings against him in 1953.
Fred Harris (no. 1622), Harry Reel (no. 1648), James Cook (no.
1672), and John Burke (no. 1688) used nitroglycerin to burglarize
the Boise Ice Cream Company on Bannock Street.
Edward Streeter (no. 1393) complained to the warden that, while
on parole, his employer would only furnish me meat when he had it
himself. Sometimes I cant get any for 10 days at a time.
John Whittle (no. 1574), Harry ONeal (no. 1575), James Cameron
(no. 1576), Robert Page (no. 1577), Frank Martin (no. 1578), and
Bert Russell (no. 1579) all incarcerated in June 1909 were deemed
to be illegally imprisoned under indeterminate sentence law and
released on writs of habeas corpus.
While a trusty at the penitentiary power house, A E Miller (no.
1545) sabotaged the machinery by dosing the oil used with emery
dust.
Thomas Jennings (no. 1809) was born in Buffalo, New York, of
Irish-born parents, and had two daughters living in Santa Cruz,
California. He told the prison authorities he had worked in
California, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho as a railroad man, miner
and mining promoter, superintendent of streets, tax collector,
store owner, postmaster, optician, writer, Sewing Machine agent...
& etc.
Jack Clayton (no. 3062) was 16 when the first world war began.
He enlisted in the Signal Corps shortly after his eighteenth
birthday, and served in the Marne. At the time of his
incarceration, Clayton was making a living as a boxer and prize
fighter.
-
IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xviii
1923
1922
1921
1920
1919
1918
1917
1916
1915
1924
Oscar Neilsen (no. 2309) was convicted of burglary after being
discovered in a dry goods store on a Sunday morning standing near
the shirt counter where working mens shirts were kept, picking out
a shirt for himself. According to the prosecutor, There was no
evidence of any intention to get anything but things which he
needed for himself.
Lee Roy Rices (no. 2738) mother sent him a lock of her hair with
a letter: Abner got up & beat it three weeks ago last night at
about 11 oclock and left me with just 20 and not a speck of feed
for the stock and I have sure had some time to get things
straightened out. George Philips and Jack Murphy has been helping
me to put in some garden and water the stock for me and George went
after a load of hay for me so the stock wouldent starve. I wouldent
mind it so much if my lease on the place was all paid so they could
not set me out of a home.
Gust Haraldson (no. 2828) began a two-year term in the
penitentiary for being a member of the International Workers of the
World while employed on the construction of the North & South
State Highway. Haraldson was indifferent as to the purposes of the
organization as long as he secured employment, according to the
prosecuting attorney and Second District judge who, along with the
sheriff of Idaho county, offered character references.
After two years in prison for murder, Dong Sing (no. 3171) and
Lo Ming (no. 3172) were pardoned. Petitioners successfully argued
that the trial and subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court had been
prejudiced, as is usual in all Chinese murder trials.
Frank Coleman (no. 3244) was incarcerated for stealing 28 sacks
of grain, after a series of misfortunes: Drought in 1918 forced his
family to leave a farm in Iona. In 1920 the Reclamation Project
denied water to the parcel of land he filed under the Cary Act in
King Hill. In 1922, a series of miscommunications with a Fairfield
real estate man left his family homeless. The prosecuting attorney
wrote: Upon being accused he immediately confessed, saying that he
was up against it, and made no plea for mercy whatever. I cannot
understand him he seemed willing and ready to go to the pen.
Otto Weibel (no. 3106) was transferred to the Idaho State
Sanitarium in Nampa on the recommendation of the prison physician.
Thirty-six years later in 1959, the institutions superintendent
attempted to return Weibel to the penitentiary stating: Ottos
hearing difficulty has, no doubt, handicapped his learning to a
great extent... There is nothing in this which would make him
eligible for continued care at a school for a mentally deficient
person. In response, the Board of Correction granted Weibel a
discharge, post-dated to 1936, on the expiration of his maximum
sentence.
During negotiations to deport Rebecca Chacon (no. 3044) at her
own expense, federal immigration officials offered to reduce costs
by not hiring a female guard, if Chacon would guarantee to make no
complaint of her treatment by Immigration officers.
Seventeen-year old Lester Thompson (no. 3288, later no. 4372)
set fire to the floor of the Idaho Industrial School administration
building. While the Fremont county prosecutor argued that Thompson
has frankly confessed his faults and there is, of course, a chance
for reformation, prison intake records classed him as a criminal
type because of the shape of his ears (being small and close to
head).
While at home in Emmett on parole, Sam Galdus (no. 2928)
received a curt letter admitting that the penitentiary had failed
to inform him that he had been released under expiration of
sentence seven months earlier: The Attorney General called us up
and requested that we write you. So you are Free. Very truly yours,
WARDEN.
Lee Ross (no. 2402) was convicted of burglary, and his father
(Daniel Ross no. 2401), brother (J D Ross no. 2403), and stepmother
(Mamie Ross no. 2404) of receiving stolen property, thus,
reportedly, bringing an end to a string of burglaries in Albion,
Marshfield, and surrounding areas of Cassia county. Mamie Ross was
pardoned 10 months later, so that she could care for her infant
child.
-
xix
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
1932
1931
1930
1929
1928
1927
1926
1925
1924
1933
Petitioners for the release of John Starr (no. 3357) reportedly
included the Biggest business man in Emmett, an Old timer, the
Secretary of the Last Chance Ditch Company, the First white child
born in Boise and early settler in Payette Valley, and the Editor
of the Emmett Index, who says that he never heretofore signed a
petition for pardon, though he has many times been asked to do
so.
Anthony Zepina (no. 3358) entrusted his watch fob to the warden
for safekeeping, along with instructions that he should be buried
with it were he to die here. Zepina asked that his watch and money
be sent to an orphan in Jugo Slavia and his clothing and shoes
given to some american poor man. Zepina was paroled a few months
later without his watch fob having been returned to him.
On his intake form, Spanish immigrant Paul Arruti (no. 3589)
listed his nearest relative as the Merino Pool Hall in Boise. The
prosecuting attorney noted that Arrutis associates seem to be of
good average character, except as Arruti became Americanized he was
occasionally thrown in contact with the jazz class.
Forger John Doucas (no. 3206) violated his parole and was
arrested in Chicago after being sought by the California Bankers
Association, American Bankers Association, and the William J Burns
International Detective Agency. Doucas was killed at the State
Prison at Folsom while attempting to escape in 1927.Thomas OHaras
(no. 3039) letter to warden William Cuddy
addressed as Old Chap from a Chicago jail, protested that he was
unable to obtain employment, the Young Mens Christian Association
(YMCA) had taken his card away, the I.W.W. I fought for dont know
me now, and that he was being harassed by the Brutal Cops. The new
warden, Joseph Wheeler, replied that despite OHaras yeoman
service... in trying to establish the rule of the proletariat,
OHara would not be allowed to return to Idaho because while here
you acted very much like an ingrate, finding fault and carping
criticism with the cuisine service and other appointments.
To a letter from Albert Workmans (no. 3814) wife, warden Wheeler
replied: ...tone down your letters... Your husband will be
embarrassed and it is natural that such letters belittles him and
makes it appear to us that he comes from a very tough, immoral
environment and it lessens his chances. So be fair to your husband
and if you find it impossible to write decently, just omit
writing.
The Lewis County sheriff reported that John Ross (no. 4131) went
through the walls of our jail building on Mon. night while awaiting
trial. The prosecuting attorney claimed Ross had said he would give
up the criminal life only because it does not pay. He was later
(1941) killed as a prowler in Tulsa. Ross unidentified body was
reported to the FBI as an Unknown Dead Man.
Burel McCall (no. 4211) was convicted of possession of liquor
after crashing his car into a gasoline pump and later on a side
road, and entering a strangers home in Garden Gulch, near Culdesac,
where he demolished all of the furniture in the house, broke out
all thirteen windows, and set fire to an out building.
Commodore Perry Sam (no. 3344) wrote letters of petition to the
governor, a prosecuting attorney, a district judge, a Bannock
county commissioner, and Chief Satan aka that unsuspected Spirit of
the living, care of the secretary of state.
During the trial of James ONeil (no. 4448), a witness provided
the court with a recipe and proportions for making a little home
brew of lemon, sugar, water, yeast, and potatoes called Snake River
Special: Q. What kind of drink would that be after you got it made.
A. Real nice drink. Q. Real nice drink, was it. A. Yes, sir. Q.
Have you got any Snake River Special on hands at the present time.
A. I have not, but I wish I had. Prohibition ended two years later,
in 1933.
After his prison sentence was commuted to time in the Bannock
county jail, Leo Lucero (no. 4399) attempted an escape with Charley
Cornish (no. 4403) and Leroy Meyers (no. 4405), with the aid of
Rulon Wilson (no. 4610). The four men used hack saw blades and a
bottle of acid to cut a hole in the floor and through the window
bars. All three were sent to the penitentiary for the attempt.
Victor Chacons (no. 4379) pardon application reflected on 1,000
years of Mayo (Yoreme) history in the Americas, where my People
number about 14,000 Soules, my Father is one the Chiefs of his
People, we are an Independent Tribe enjoying full Tribal
Rule...
Lester Thompsons (no. 4372) second incarceration ended four
years with a Pocatello baseball team, the colored Giants. According
to the prosecutor, Thompsons father was a rodeo rider and was
killed in Montana a year or two ago; his mother maintained a
reputation as a fine woman with a quite respected family.
-
IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xx
1940
1939
1938
1937
1936
1935
1934
1933
1932
1941
Paul Rushtons (no. 4260) mother wrote to the governor and warden
requesting that if they received any inquiries about Rushton
(released a few months earlier) will you please pretend he hadnt
been there. As Mr Rushton my husband is running for Sheriff, best
for folks not know things. Paul Rushton was killed while robbing a
bank in Bozeman the same year.
David Minton (no. 4669 and 3988) accused nine prison staff
(including two wardens) of misappropriating prison supplies for
personal gain and complained about lax security at the womens ward.
On this occasion, his eighth incarceration, Minton was doing time
for assisting Lyda Southard (no. 3052) to escape in 1931.
Within two months, William Shaffer (no. 5123) robbed the Linder
Service Station, Ustick Mercantile Store, and, on the same day, the
Twin Bridges Grocery and Lords Brothers Grocery, while driving
three different borrowed cars. During his last two robberies,
Shaffer was foiled by the stores armed proprietors and was arrested
a few hours later. The prosecuting attorney called him one of the
toughest men sentenced to the penitentiary for some time, in
Idaho.
On providing him with a recommendation to the Board of Pardons,
the 11th District judge wrote to Harry Martens (no. 5162): You have
too much good stuff in you to be a damned crook. Get that girl out
here with you and, in this new land, go to batting straight to
first. I have taken a good many chances with men like you, and have
had seldom to look like a sheep for so doing. Now By God! See to it
that you dont throw me down.
Joy Louise De Cheverieux (no. 5341) was convicted of highway
robbery outside McCammon while hitchhiking from Rock Springs.
Described as transient, De Cheverieuxs record indicated she had
been shot once in the leg and had been held by police in
Greensburg, Pennsylvania, as incorrigible. De Cheverieux climbed
over the prison wall with Marjorie Bess (no. 5463) in a 1937 escape
attempt.
Luella Yates (no. 5444) shot a neighbor who, Yates claimed, had
threatened her on three occasions: He fell 14 feet inside of our
yard, and 231 feet inside our property. Ten jurors later signed a
petition on her behalf, one stating, I never did think you guilty,
when I was on the jury, but expected you to be paroled with the
verdict we turned in. Thought that it would be better than waiting
for another trial.
The Gooding County prosecutor advised the warden to use his
authority under the 1925 Eugenics law (HB 203) and as a member of
the Eugenics Board to sterilize Harvey Pettingill (no. 5455), whose
father and brother-in-law were also incarcerated for serious
crimes. In a report to his Oregon parole officer in 1944,
Pettingill said, I dont think people want to know me.
Timple Allen (no. 5740) broke into Brattons Department store in
Lewiston through a ventilating opening too small to get back out
of. Allen fell asleep behind a counter. When the employees of the
store opened up they found him asleep, called an officer, who
placed handcuffs on him and then woke him up.
Melvin Yeager (no. 6240) forged a check for $10.00 in order to
purchase a washing machine for his wife, and spent 18 months inside
for the offense.
Former inmates Edgar Pruett (no. 5658), William Rector (no. 5028
and 5723), and Lonnie Walling (no. 4592 and 5049) broke out of the
Pocatello jail and launched a crime wave in two states. The three
were brought in from Las Vegas by a penitentiary guard, the Gooding
County sheriff, and a Las Vegas deputy.
Inquiring about his parole in Washington state, forger John Abel
(no. 6108) found himself termed like Hitler... a lousy paper
hanger... Possibly by cementing a pair of boxing gloves on you
backwards, you could be kept out of prison for a day or two. You
would beat this arrangement however, by learning to handle a
fountain pen with your teeth or your toes... Respectfully, W. B.
Coffey, Chief State Parole and Probation Officer.
-
xxi
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
1947
1946
1945
1944
1943
1942
1941
W J Lamme (no. 6064) was arrested in Minnesota a few months
after his release from Idaho. A Minnesota attorney wrote to the
penitentiary, reporting on Lammes recent suicide attempt and asking
whether Lamme showed any tendency toward moroseness while he was in
custody in your State. I think it is due to the fact that he had
not been able to escape from our jail, when captured he had saws in
the souls of his shoes. The attorney went on to acknowledge
cheerily the stresses of wartime shortages: Fishing in Minnesota
has been good but because of tires, I have not been fishing every
Sunday this year.
James Erard (no. 7018) began accepting commissions for oil
paintings from the general public. Erard, who was incarcerated for
burglary for stealing bottle of perfume and a pair of driving
glasses from a hotel room, was responsible for painting a mural in
the penitentiary chapel.
John Allies (no. 6998) mother in Ohio sent him approximately
$323 dollars, most in two- and five-dollar increments, between 1946
and 1950. Two months before his release in 1951, Allies mother sent
one check for $82.
On his prison intake forms, Gerald Cline (no. 7113) listed his
occupation as tattoo artist and the clerk recorded 22 tattoos on
Clines Bertillon chart; one is clearly visible in Clines mug
shot.
Clarence Kristiansen (no. 6870) was convicted of manslaughter
after he drank an undisclosed quantity of beer and hard liquor and,
en route to his duty station at the Marsing Prisoner of War Camp in
an army one half (1/2) ton reconstructed truck, struck a group of
children on horseback. Kristiansen, a Silver- and Bronze-Star
decorated veteran of Monte Casino and Anzio, was pardoned after
nine months in prison.
The Board of Correction ceased to grants pardon without proof of
innocence. In the case of David Gemmell (no. 3517), who in 1963
requested a pardon for his 1925 incarceration so that he might
pursue citizenship, the board could not be persuaded otherwise by
the considerations of humanitarianism put forward by the
governor.
Tom Takahaski (no. 2847), who had been resident in the United
States since 1918 and spent time in the penitentiary in 1920-1922,
was subject to investigation as an enemy alien one month after the
attack on Pearl Harbor.
Three days after Pearl Harbor, James Hawkins (no. 6210)
organized a letter signed by 99 inmates and sent to local
newspapers. Hawkins and company offered their services for National
defense, arguing Tho in prison, we consider ourselves Americans
first and after that, as you may. As such, we count ourselves chips
from the same old block: Our county, Right or Wrong, Our Country!
... May America give its wayward men a chance to redeem themselves
in this present war.
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xxii
-
GLOSSARYTO CROSS-REFERENCED COLLECTIONS
AR1 / 20042718 / 93 Report of the Territorial Prison
Commissioner 1865
AR1 / 20042718 / 95 First Biennial Report of the Territorial
Prison Commissioner (Boise : James Reynolds, 1868)
AR1 / 20042718 / 97 Report of the Territorial Prison
Commissioner for the Years 1871 and 1872 (Boise : Milton Kelly,
1873)
AR1 / 20042721 Requests for Pardon
AR1 / 20072453 List of Prisoners in Idaho Penitentiary
1878-1884
AR1 /1/ 20042790 / 3 Pardons and Requisitions Book A 1870-1876
(series 1, folio 3)
AR1 /1/ 20042791 / 9 Register of Applications for Pardons A
1887-1890 (series 1, folio 9)
AR1 /1/ 20042792 / 6 Pardons and Requisitions Book B 1876-1881
(series 1, folio 6)
AR3 / 20031010 Requests for Extradition 1863-1892
AR3 / 20072458 11th Census of the United States (1890)
Statistics of Crime, Special Prison and Reformatory Schedule
AR5 / 20033351 /2/ 1915-1937
Report of Audit and Examination of the State Asylum and
Sanitarium Fund, 16 March 1915 to 5 May 1937 (box 2, folio
1915-1937)
AR5 / 20033351 /2/ 1937-1938
Report of Audit and Examination of the State Asylum and
Sanitarium Fund, 6 May 1937 to 30 June 1938 (box 2, folio
1937-1938)
AR42 / 20072454 Register of Prisoners 1880-1893
AR42 / 20072455 US Penitentiary Boise City Convict Record
1878-1893
AR42 / 20072470 Convict Register 1 Idaho State Penitentiary
Boise Idaho 1884-1917
AR42 / 20072479 Convict Register 2 Idaho State Penitentiary
Boise Idaho 1917-1942
AR42 / 20072486 Microfilm: Idaho Penitentiary Inmate Records
(incomplete) c1880-1897, Box 1
AR42 / 20072505 Microfilm: Idaho Penitentiary Inmate Records
(incomplete), nos 550 to 1057, Box 2
AR42 / 20072507 Convict Register 3 Idaho State Penitentiary
Boise Idaho 1942-1957
AR42 / 20072517 Alphabetical Index of names in Idaho State
Penitentiary Registers 1 through 6, 1884-1984
AR42 / 20072518 Punishment Record Idaho State Penitentiary
1886-1936
AR42 /2/ 20072461 /6/ 2 Reports of Territorial Prisoners
Confined 1876-1879 (series 2, box 6, file 2)
AR42 /2/ 20072497 / 23 Out of State Identification Wanted
Circulars and Mug Shots 1870s-1940s (series 2, box 23)
AR42 /3/ 20072462 /18/ 1 General penitentiary correspondence
(series 3, box 18, file 1)
AR42 /3/ 20072496 /1/ 1 Reports of the Territorial Prison
Commissioner 1865, 1866, 1868 (series 3, box 1, file 1)
AR42 /6/ 20072459 / 4 US Penitentiary Punishment Record
1878-1893 (series 6, folio 4)
AR200 / 19973478 Prison Record Alturas County Idaho
1882-1899
AR201 / 20017337 / 1 Register of Prisoners Confined in the
County Jail of Kootenai County 1890-1904
AR202 / 20051007 Ada County Criminal Register No 1,
1865-1885
AR202 / 20072481 Ada County Criminal Record, pages 333 to 450,
August 1924 to April 1925
AR205 / 20040807 / 5 List of Territorial and County Prisoners
1865
AR243 / 20019403 Register of Prisoners Confined in the County
Jail of Oneida 1885-1913
SpcCol KFI18.A3 1866-1867
Report of the Territorial Prison Commissioner 1866 in Journal of
the Fourth Session of the Council of the Idaho Territory (Boise :
Idaho Statesman Publishing Company Printers, 1867) pp451-4. Also
published in the Owyhee Avalanche (29 December 1866)
SpcCol KFI18.A3 1870-1871
Report of the Territorial Prison Commissioner 1869-1870 (Boise :
James S Reynolds, 1870) in Journal of the Sixth Session of the
Council of Idaho Territory (Boise : James S Reynolds, 1871)
appendix 7
GLO
SSA
RY
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
xxiv
-
CATALOGINMATES of the IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
Collection number
Accession number
Box number
File number
File: AR42 / 20072408 / 1006.2-4 / 883
883 Land, William MFile: AR42 / 20072408 / 1006.2-4 / 883Year:
1902 Approx. age: 22 Born: circa 1880Jurisdiction: Ada CountyCrime:
ForgeryNotes: Includes photographic material.
AR42/20072470/p176
Inmates register number
Surname, given name(s) and aliases (if any)
Collection number, used to cite or request files
Year of birth (often estimated by age)
Age at incarceration (often estimated by year of birth)
Year of incarcerationCounty or judicial district (eg, United
States) where
inmate was convictedReason for incarceration
Cross-references to other Society collections, along with file
notes
The following pages are arranged in chronological order, by
register number, and for inmates who were not assigned register
numbers, by surname within the year of their incarceration.
UN indicates an inmate without a register number
[...] indicates a surname or given name is not known
Asian names are listed without reference to surname, for
example: [...], On Gow
Unnumbered inmates are cited as:UN 1876 Henderson
Designation Year Name
CAT
ALO
G
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IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
2
-
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
CAT
ALO
G
UN [...], [...]File: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Nez Perce CountyCrime:
Held for trial (murder)Notes: Golden Age (Lewiston) (19
November
1864)
UN Goodwin, GeorgeFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Idaho
CountyCrime: Grand larceny or robberyNotes: Convicted with H Wilson
and George
Brown; AR1/20042721; San Francisco Bulletin (11 August 1864);
North-Idaho Radiator (4 March 1865); Golden Age (Lewiston) (19
November 1864)
UN Owens, George aka Owen, GeorgeFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Murder in the 2nd degreeNotes: Idaho Weekly (4
June 1864); Boise News
(5 March 1864); Idaho World supplement (29 April 1865);
AR1/20042721; AR205/20040807/5 (2nd Judicial District);
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Rich, JosephFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime:
Grand larcenyNotes: AR205/20040807/5; AR1/20042718/9;
Idaho Statesman (21 September 1865); Idaho World supplement (29
April 1865)
UN Richardson, E HFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Assault with intent to murderNotes:
AR42//20072496/1/1;
AR1/20042718/9; Boise News (28 May 1864); Idaho World supplement
(29 April 1865)
UN Roberts, JosiahFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: AR205/20040807/5;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; Idaho World supplement (29
April 1865)
UN Willey, Elijah aka Willey, ElijaFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Murder in the 2nd degreeNotes: AR205/20040807/5;
AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867;
Idaho Statesman (20 May 1865); Boise News (5 March 1864); Idaho
World supplement (29 April 1865)
UN Wilson, Charles WFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1864 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Died in prison 8 August 1866;
Boise News
(5 March 1864); AR205/20040807/5; AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Wilson, JackFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1864
Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Idaho CountyCrime: Grand
larcenyNotes: Possibly aka H Wilson, convicted with
George Goodwin and George Brown; San Francisco Bulletin (11
August 1864); North-Idaho Radiator (4 March 1865); Golden Age
(Lewiston) (19 November 1864)
UN Clavero, Manuel aka Claraveno, ManuelFile: Collection
reference / See notes / UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: [...]Crime: Highway robbery or grand larcenyNotes:
Escaped after conviction but
before sentencing in August 1865; AR42//20072496/1/1;
AR1/20042718/9; Idaho Statesman (9 April 1867); San Francisco
Bulletin (2 August 1865)
UN Gilmore, John aka GillmoreFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 /
UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Murder in the 2nd degreeNotes: Idaho Statesman (10
August 1865);
Owyhee Avalanche (19 August 1865); Idaho World supplement (29
April 1865); AR1/20042718/95; AR205/20040807/5; AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Leonard, Delevan aka Leonard, DelavanFile: Collection
reference / See notes / UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: Owyhee CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes:
AR205/20040807/5;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9
UN Omesdale, Gus aka Olensdale, Gustave; Armsdale, GusFile:
Collection reference / See notes / UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born:
circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Murder in the 2nd
degreeNotes: Committed for life; escaped September
1866; Idaho Statesman (9 September 1865; 9 April 1867); Idaho
World (6 April 1865); AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol
KFI18.A 1866-1867; AR205/20040807/5
UN Severson, Andrew aka Severton, AndrewFile: Collection
reference / See notes / UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1;
SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Spencer, WilliamFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Escaped November 1865;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; AR205/20040807/5
UN Stanton, John aka Stannton, JohnFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1;
AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867; Idaho Statesman (10
August 1865); AR205/20040807/5
UN Steinbach, DanielFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Assault with a deadly weaponNotes: Confined in lieu of
monetary fine;
AR1/20042721
UN Wilson, ThomasFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1865
Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Grand
larcenyNotes: Idaho Statesman (10 August
1865; 5 March; 9 April 1867); AR205/20040807/5;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9
UN [...], Nine PipesFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Nez Perce
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Idaho Statesman (8 December
1866)
UN [...], Wish-ta-kus-minFile: Collection reference / See notes
/ UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Nez Perce
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Idaho Statesman (8 December
1866)
UN Boley, Victor aka Bowley, VictorFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Ada
CountyCrime: MurderNotes: Idaho Statesman (1 May 1866; 9
April 1867); Owyhee Avalanche (1 April; 27 April 1867); People v
Bowly AR202/2002244/4/0; Crutchen v Cram AR1/20042724/2/29;
AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; AR202/20051007/p4;
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Deal, Michael aka Dial, MichaelFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Ada
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Escaped April 1867; Owyhee
Avalanche (1 April; 27 April 1867); AR42//20072496/1/1;
AR1/20042718/95; AR202/20051007/p8; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN Kurtz, Hiram aka Kurtz, Hyram; Curts, HiramFile: AR42 /
2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Murder in the 1st degreeNotes:
Idaho Statesman (9 April 1867; 18
June 1868); Owyhee Avalanche (2 December 1865; 1 April; 27 April
1867); Crutchen v Cram AR1/20042724/2/29; AR1/20042718/95;
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
UN House, James MFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1865 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Owyhee
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: AR205/20040807/5;
AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/9; SpcCol KFI18.A 1866-1867
-
IDAHO STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
4
UN Slocum, AlfredFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1866 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: Held for trial (embezzlement)Notes: Idaho Statesman
(18 January; 7 July; 24
July 1866; 9 April 1867)
UN [...], Ah Lee aka [...], Ah SeeFile: AR42 / 2006165 /
1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: 46 Born: circa
1821Jurisdiction: Ada CountyCrime: RobberyNotes: Idaho Statesman
(18 June 1868);
AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p9; 1870 Census
(Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21); AR202/20051007/pp66-7;
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871; People v Ah You
AR202/2002241/1/9,40
UN [...], Ah SinFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Owyhee CountyCrime:
Grand larcenyNotes: AR1/20042718/95;
AR42//20072496/1/1; Idaho Statesman (22 October 1867)
UN [...], Ah Yon aka [...], Ah YouFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Owyhee CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: AR1/20042718/95;
AR42//20072496/1/1; Idaho Statesman (22 October 1867; 18 June
1868)
UN [...], Ah Yon aka [...], Ah YouFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Ada
CountyCrime: RobberyNotes: Escaped June 1868; People v Ah
You AR202/2002241/1/9,40; AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721;
AR202/20051007/pp66-7; AR42//20072496/1/1; Idaho Statesman (18 June
1868)
UN Bradley, JohnFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1867
Approx. age: 21 Born: circa 1846Jurisdiction: Owyhee CountyCrime:
Grand larcenyNotes: Wounded following escape attempt 1870;
Owyhee Avalanche (0 July 1870; 4 March 1871); Idaho Statesman
(22 October 1867; 18 June 1868; 2 July 1870); AR1/20042718/95;
AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p29; 1870 Census (Idaho City, Boise
County, Schedule 1:21); AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A
1870-1871
UN Cozad, J DFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime:
AssaultNotes: Related case (no. UN 1867
Nash); AR1/20042718/95; AR42//20072496/1/1; Owyhee Avalanche (20
July 1867); Idaho Statesman (25 July 1867)
UN Crossen, BernardFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise
CountyCrime: ManslaughterNotes: AR1/20042718/95;
AR42//20072496/1/1
UN Dunn, Michael aka Dunne, MichaelFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: MurderNotes: Escaped April 1867, killed
during
recapture; Idaho Statesman (17 May; 10 July 1866; 2; 2 March; 5
March; 9 April 1867); Owyhee Avalanche (1 April; 27 April 1867);
AR42//20072496/1/1; AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; Crutchen v Cram
AR1/20042724/2/29
UN Finnegan, John aka Finnigan, JohnFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Counterfeiting (bugus gold dust)Notes:
AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871; Idaho Statesman
(25 July 1867; 18 June 1868); Owyhee Avalanche (20 July 1867)
UN McCormac, Daniel aka McCormack, DanFile: Collection reference
/ See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Ada CountyCrime: AssaultNotes: Idaho Statesman ( December
1867; 18 June 1868); People v McCormick AR202/2002261/21/4;
AR1/20042718/95; AR202/20051007/p76; AR42//20072496/1/1
UN Meyer, FrankFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime:
Grand larcenyNotes: AR1/20042718/95;
AR42//20072496/1/1
UN Nash, A J aka Duncan, [...]; Mrs A J Nash; Mrs N J NashFile:
AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Assault (resisting an executive
officer)Notes: Related case (no. UN 1867 Cozad);
AR1/20042718/95; People v Nash (Supreme Court) AR1/2004272/1;
AR42//20072496/1/1; Owyhee Avalanche (20 July 1867)
UN Page, John C aka Paige, Jonathan CFile: Collection reference
/ See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Ada CountyCrime: Counterfeiting (bugus gold dust) (first
term)Notes: Idaho Statesman (20 November; 17
December; 20 December 1866; 7 February 1867) ; Owyhee Avalanche
(20 July 1867); People v Page AR202/2002265/25/2; AR1/20042718/95;
AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p9; AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol
KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN Page, John C aka Paige, Jonathan CFile: Collection reference
/ See notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Counterfeiting (bugus gold dust) (second
term)Notes: Owyhee Avalanche (5 March 1870; 19
August 1871) 2; Idaho Statesman (18 June 1868; 1 January 1867;
26 February 1870); AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721;
AR42//20072496/1/1
UN Sing, Jim aka [...], Jun SingFile: Collection reference / See
notes / UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: 22 Born: circa 1845Jurisdiction:
Ada CountyCrime: RobberyNotes: Idaho Statesman (18 June 1868);
AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p27; 1870 Census
(Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21); AR202/20051007/pp66-7;
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871; People v Ah You
AR202/2002241/1/9,40
UN Smith, M L aka Smith, M SFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 /
UNYear: 1867 Approx. age: 0 Born: circa 187Jurisdiction: Owyhee
CountyCrime: ArsonNotes: Owyhee Avalanche (5 June 1869; 6 May
1871); Idaho Statesman (22 October; 26 October 1867; 18 June
1868); AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p1; 1870
Census (Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21);
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN [...], Ah LienFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1868 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
[...]Crime:Notes: AR1/20042718/95
UN Butler, JohnFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1868 Approx. age: 22 Born: circa 1846Jurisdiction: Ada CountyCrime:
RobberyNotes: Escaped with no. UN 1868 Stock, in 1870;
People v Butler AR202/2002246/6/11; AR/2001010/Stock; Owyhee
Avalanche (19 November 1870) 2; 1870 Census (Idaho City, Boise
County, Schedule 1:21); AR202/20051007/pp112-; SpcCol KFI18.A
1870-1871
UN Gillespie, A AFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1868 Approx. age: 0 Born: circa 188Jurisdiction: Ada
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: People v Gillespie
AR202/200225/1/21; AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p19; 1870
Census (Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21);
AR202/20051007/p120; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN Hepworth, John HFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear:
1868 Approx. age: 28 Born: circa 1840Jurisdiction: Owyhee
CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Owyhee Avalanche ( December
1870)
2; AR1/20042718/95; AR1/20042721; AR1/1/20042790//p24-5; 1870
Census (Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21);
AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN OBrian, James aka OBrien, JamesFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1868 Approx. age: 28 Born: circa
1840Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Escaped
with no. UN 1868 Stock, in 1870;
AR/2001010/Stock; Owyhee Avalanche (19 November 1870) 2;
AR1/20042718/95; 1870 Census (Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule
1:21); AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871; AR/2001010
-
5
INMATES OF THE IDAHO PENITENTIARY 1864-1947
CAT
ALO
G
UN Williams, John aka Burke, JohnFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1868 Approx. age: 24 Born: circa
1844Jurisdiction: Owyhee CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: Owyhee
Avalanche (0 July 1870)
4; AR1/20042718/95; possibly held for trial (murder) at Idaho
City 1865, AR205/20040807/5; 1870 Census (Idaho City, Boise County,
Schedule 1:21); AR42//20072496/1/1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN [...], Ah Foon aka [...], Ah HoonFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1869 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Boise CountyCrime: Assault with intent to murderNotes: Escaped with
no. UN 1868 Stock, in 1870;
AR/2001010/Stock; Owyhee Avalanche (19 November 1870) 2;
AR1/20042718/97; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN [...], Ah HanFile: Collection reference / See notes / UNYear:
1869 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Boise CountyCrime:
Assault with intent to murderNotes: AR1/20042721
UN Freeman, JamesFile: AR42 / 2006165 / 1014.1-1 / UNYear: 1869
Approx. age: 4 Born: circa 185Jurisdiction: Owyhee CountyCrime:
Grand larcenyNotes: Owyhee Avalanche (10 July; 24 July
1869; 11 March; 10 June 1871); AR1/1/20042790//p7; 1870 Census
(Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21); AR5/20051/2/1915-197/p2;
SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN Ginder, AlexanderFile: Collection reference / See notes /
UNYear: 1869 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction: Ada
CountyCrime: RobberyNotes: People v Ginder AR202/200225/1/8;
related material in no. UN 1869 Reed; Owyhee Avalanche (26 March
1870) ; Idaho Statesman (24 March 1870) ; AR1/20042721;
AR1/1/20042790//p1; AR202/20051007/p1; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871
UN Lands, John aka Landes, John; Sands, JohnFile: Collection
reference / See notes / UNYear: 1869 Approx. age: 41 Born: circa
1828Jurisdiction: Ada CountyCrime: Grand larcenyNotes: People v
Sands AR202/2002260/28/20;
escaped with no. UN 1868 Stock, in 1870; AR/2001010/Stock;
Owyhee Avalanche (19 November 1870) 2; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871;
1870 Census (Idaho City, Boise County, Schedule 1:21);
AR202/20051007/p10
UN Maize, Henry B aka Maize, BartFile: Collection reference /
See notes / UNYear: 1869 Approx. age: Born: circa Jurisdiction:
Owyhee CountyCrime: ManslaughterNotes: Pardoned 1870; Owyhee
Avalanche (27
November 1869; 26 March; 2 April 1870); Idaho Statesman (24; 1
March 1870); AR1/1/20042790//p11; SpcCol KFI18.A 1870-1871; Weekly
Arizona Miner (14 May 1875)
UN Reed, Andrew Jackson aka Reese, Andrew JFile: Collection
reference / See notes / UNYear: 1869 Approx. age: Born: circa
Jurisdiction: Ada CountyCrime: Robbery or grand larcenyNotes:
People v Reed AR202/2002266/26/8;
consolidated material in no. UN 1869 Ginder; Owyhee Avalanche
(26 March; 2 April 1870); Idaho Statesman (24 March; 1 March 1870);
AR1/20042721; AR1