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William McDonald Foster

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William McDonald Foster

Birth	:	5 Oct 1868 Pipers Gap, Carroll County, Virginia, USA
Death	:	14 Mar 1912 Hillsville, Carroll County, Virginia, USA
Burial	:	Maple Grove Cemetery, Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate	:	39.2924320, -87.1249510
Description	:	The Robesonian, Lumberton, North Carolina Monday, March 18, 1912 ~~ COURT OFFICIALS MURDERED -- Judge, Prosecuting Attorney and Sheriff Slain by Outlaws When one of Their Number is Sentenced -- Assassins Fled to Mountains. [Hillsville, Va., Dispatch, March 14.] ~~ A troop of mountain outlaws rode down out of the Blue Ridge today to the Carroll county courthouse here and assassinated the judge upon the bench, the prosecutor before the bar, and the sheriff at the door in less time than it takes to tell it, while sentence was being pronounced upon... Read More	The Robesonian, Lumberton, North Carolina Monday, March 18, 1912 ~~ COURT OFFICIALS MURDERED -- Judge, Prosecuting Attorney and Sheriff Slain by Outlaws When one of Their Number is Sentenced -- Assassins Fled to Mountains. [Hillsville, Va., Dispatch, March 14.] ~~ A troop of mountain outlaws rode down out of the Blue Ridge today to the Carroll county courthouse here and assassinated the judge upon the bench, the prosecutor before the bar, and the sheriff at the door in less time than it takes to tell it, while sentence was being pronounced upon FLOYD ALLEN, one of their number. When the crack of the rifles died away only one member of the human fabric of the court -- DEXTER GOAD, the clerk, was alive and he had been wounded. Jurymen and on-lookers were struck in the fusillade but none was wounded seriously. GOVERNOR MANN has offered a $3,000 reward for the capture of the assassins and holds State troops under arms for orders at Lynchburg and Roanoke. The shooting terrorized Hillsville to the point of paralysis. There was not a man to give an order or organize a pursuit. Citizens fled to places of safety and mothers gathered up their children, while the assassins rode out of town. JUDGE THORNTON L. MASSIE had risen from his chair as the bullets struck him and fell across his desk a bleeding corpse. COMMONWEALTH ATTORNEY WILLIAM FOSTER, with a dozen bullets in his brain, crumpled down to the floor. SHERIFF LEWIS WEBB was shot and killed as he reached for his revolver and sprang forward. Bullets grazed CLERK GOAD and in the confusion he was reported killed. Jurors who had been slightly wounded were reported dead and by that indefinable method of communication which prevails in the woods and country, reports of a wholesale slaughter shot out to the countryside. FLOYD ALLEN was before the bar this morning, convicted of taking a prisoner from a deputy sheriff. ALLEN had struck the sheriff over the head with the butt of a rifle and the prisoner escaped. SHERIFF WEBB had gone up into the mountains and taken ALLEN, despite dire warnings of what such a venture might mean. ATTORNEY FOSTER had prosecuted him fearlessly and a mountaineer jury gathered from the inland section, for no man in Carroll County cared to sit on the trial of an ALLEN, had convicted him. This morning the sentence of ALLEN attracted an unusually large gathering to the quaint old red brick court house, which stands on a green square, well into the center of the village. Those who could not get in the small room peered through the windows, opened to the first days of spring. Just as ALLEN was about to be called up for sentence, his two brothers, SIDNEY and JACK, at the head of a troop of about 20 mountaineers, rode up to the court house. The brothers and their companions, some carrying rifles and others armed with revolvers crowded into the small court room and stood behind the rail and about the door. FLOYD ALLEN, aged 50, tall and gaunt, much the familiar type of mountaineer, was tn the dock. JUDGE MASSIE mounted the bench and PROSECUTOR FOSTER moved sentence upon ALLEN, who stood up. There was a shuffling of feet and a general movement among the mountaineers in the back of the room, but no sign to foretell the tale of the terrible tragedy, then in the minds of every one of them. The usual legal formalities over JUDGE MASSIE began pronouncing sentence. The last words that fell from his lips precipitated the tragedy. "One year at hard labor." Before the last word was cold the fusillade began. ALLEN, with an oath that he would never go to prison, sprang out of the prisoner's dock as JUDGE MASSIE collapsed upon the bench. Another roar of shots and PROSECUTOR FOSTER was on the floor in a heap. SHERIFF WEBB was springing forward for his prisoner when the lead found him. Then holding the panic-stricken jurors and on-lookers at bay, although that probably was not necessary, the assassins slowly backed out of the court house and across the green to their troop of ponies. In a second they were galloping like mad men through the aroused village and off to the hills. With them the assassins half carried, half dragged one of their number, wounded, and it was said that this was FLOYD ALLEN. The quiet of Hillsville had never been disturbed by such a roar of firing and 300 men, women and children rushed to the court house. WEBB and FOSTER were stone dead. JUDGE MASSIE died in less than an hour. When a semblance of order came out of the chaos that followed some horsemen hurried down into Beaver Dam valley to spread the news and get help. More intrepid men rode off toward BETTY BAKER, where there is a railroad station and a telegraph wire. Word of the tragedy was slow in getting to points from which help could be asked, but the machinery of the law, once started, worked quickly. GOVERNOR MANN ordered the State companies of militia at Roanoke and Lynchburg to be ready to go to Hillsville, if their aid should be necessary. Police detectives and volunteers from nearby places took all the means of transportation to get to Hillsville. Late today GOVERNOR MANN telegraphed to JUDGE STAPLES, of the Roanoke Corporation Court, to go to Hillsville and take charge of judicial proceedings. ATTORNEY GENERAL WILLIAMS, of the State of Virginia has also been ordered to Hillsville. He and the new judge, STAPLES, will meet at Pulaski tomorrow and proceed together. The town is awkwardly situated for such an emergency as this. It is the county seat of Carroll County, and lies in the Beaver Dam valley four miles from the top of the Blue Ridge mountains, across the valley, a strip of indigo along the sky on a clear day shows the Alleghenies. The country is rough, the roads are bad and at this time of year with spring thaws, nearly impassible. Illicit stills are said to be many. FLOYD ALLEN lived on one side of the town and his two brothers on the other. All the men of the family have been known as stern characters and were feared by many in the county. The deputy sheriff who would serve a warrant or a summons on one of them was accounted a brave man. JUDGE MASSIE was one of the most prominent jurists of the State. He was appointed to the bench by GOVERNOR SWANSON in 1908, was 48 years old and is survived by a wife, two sons and a daughter. JUDGE MASSIE had been considered recently for promotion to the State Supreme Court bench. COMMONWEALTH ATTORNEY FOSTER had held his office for eight years. He was 40 years of age and known as a fearless prosecutor. He was a Republican leader in the county. SHERIFF WEBB had been a deputy for 15 or 20 years before being elected sheriff last November. (Submitted by Charlotte Hardamon Coble)

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is William McDonald Foster's memorial?
William McDonald Foster's memorial is located at: Maple Grove Cemetery, Clay City, Clay County, USA.
When did William McDonald Foster death?
William McDonald Foster death on 14 Mar 1912 in Hillsville, Carroll County, Virginia, USA
Where are the coordinates of the William McDonald Foster's memorial?
Latitude: 39.2924320
Longitude: -87.1249510

Family Members:

Parent

Spouse

Katherine Joana Tipton Foster

(1868 - 1960)

Children

Bernice Foster Walls

(1896 - 1914)

Mary Tipton Foster Gardner

(1897 - 1985)

Aline Foster Edwards

(1900 - 1972)

Franklin W. Foster

(1905 - 1958)

Flowers:

Nearby Cemetories:

1. Maple Grove Cemetery
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2924320, -87.1249510

2. Greenwell Cemetery
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2997017, -87.1213989

3. Goshorn Memorial Park
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2822564, -87.1188967

4. Middlebury Martz Cemetery
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2615852, -87.1200256

5. Liechty Cemetery
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2836760, -87.0726960

6. Sink Cemetery
Clay City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2454650, -87.1225290

7. Cole Cemetery
Harrison Township, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3211600, -87.0729500

8. Baumunk Cemetery
Saline City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3432999, -87.1130981

9. Saint Peters Cemetery
Hickory Corner, Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2934800, -87.0543300

10. Beech Cemetery
Coal City, Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2687470, -87.0459010

11. McCullough Zion Gummere Cemetery
Cory, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3457985, -87.1753006

12. Furry Ferry Cemetery
Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2619590, -87.0458710

13. Bower Mennonite Cemetery
Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3066216, -87.0356293

14. Sanders Cemetery
Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2317009, -87.1753006

15. Friendly Grove Cemetery
Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2358017, -87.2136002

16. Neihart Cemetery
Coal City, Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2366982, -87.0327988

17. Mast Cemetery
Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3161630, -87.0110210

18. Orman Cemetery
Bowling Green, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3458000, -87.0283000

19. Duncan Cemetery
Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2050890, -87.0881080

20. Swalley Cemetery
Bowling Green, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3522797, -87.0343475

21. Barber Cemetery
Saline City, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3833000, -87.1586000

22. Wilson Cemetery
Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.2097015, -87.0643997

23. Staggs Cemetery
Cory, Clay County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3602982, -87.2118988

24. Stephens Cemetery
Owen County, USA
Coordinate: 39.3379240, -87.0148030