Anderson, Noah, Death: Articles in Various Newspapers, 1/26/1881

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Submitted by: Connie Graves [mailto:medowlark9@aol.com]

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THE LEXINGTON PRESS, Wednesday, January 26,1881, Vol XI, Number 4, Page 2,
Column 4

Terrible Tragedy Noah Anderson Shot to Death at Midnight, And His Son
Dangerously Wounded, Distressing Scene at the Anderson Homestead

[Carlisle Mercury]

One of the most unfortunate affairs it has ever been our duty to chronicle,
occurred on Tuesday night last, in which Noah Anderson was shot to death and his
son Samuel, aged fifteen, dangerously wounded.  The circumstances of the sad
affair we will endeavor to give simply as it occurred.

It appears that between the hours of 11 and 12 o'clock on the night above
mentioned a party of men, numbering eight or ten, went to the house of Anderson
and demanded admission.  It is not known what the object of the men was, but it
is thought that they intended to take Anderson out and whip him, on account of
alleged mistreatment by him of his family.  A few months ago Anderson whipped
his wife and drove her from the house at the hour of 1 o'clock at night, and
these facts coming to the ears of his neighbors aroused a bitter feeling against
him and many threats were made against him, of which he was aware, and when they
appeared at his house he readily divined their object and prepared to defend
himself.

Anderson and two of his sons slept in one room and his wife and the other
children in another.  The party came to the door of the room occupied by
Anderson and demanded admission, when he got up, seized his pistol and went to
the door, but before he could open it, it was pushed in, when Anderson fired
into the party, remarking, "Well, I'll get one of you." The men on the outside
then began an indiscriminate firing, and one of the balls struck Anderson on
right side, about two inches above the nipple, passing through his body and
coming out near the lower ribs on his left side and lodging in his left arm,
from which it fell out.  Anderson fell against the door and died almost
instantly. Samuel Anderson, the boy, was shot in the left side, under and near
the heart, and the ball lodged in his back, from which it was taken.  It was
extracted by Dr. McNew, who was sent for after the tragedy.  It proved to be a
38-caliber ball. When we visited the scene of the tragedy this morning
(Wednesday) we found Samuel resting easier than he had during the night, and he
was able to converse about the affair.  He said there were eight or ten shots
fired and that his father shot only once. Dr. McNew thinks his wounds are
dangerous and that the chances of his recovery are doubtful. The scene at the
house was one that would touch the heart of the most callous.  The body of the
husband and father lay in one bed and the son was groaning on a palet near the
fire; the mother was crying and seven or eight small children were comtemplating
the scene, without appearing to realize its horrible aspect.  There are ten
children in the family, the majority of them girls, and nearly all bear a
striking resemblance to the father.  The youngest is not two years old. Noah
Anderson was paralyzed nearly a year ago, since which time he has probably at
times been of unsound mind, which may have accounted for his mistreatment of his
family.  He was fifty-two years old.  His wife was an Isham, and they were
married in 1854.  They owned the farm on which they live, consisting of
something over a hundred acres. Noah Anderson was known to be a man of bad
disposition, was despotic, pitiless, but was honest and upright in all his
business transactions, so far as we know. It is not  thought that the party had
any other design when they visited the house than administering a chastisement.
One of the parties is understood to have been shot and taken to the house of a
neighbor, but as that is a case for the law, we forbear further mention. The
party went to the house of Robert Anderson, the oldest son of the deceased, who
lives about one mile and a half distance from the scene of the murder, called
him out and admonished him of his actions, and then visited his father's house
with the same intention, but were not so received.

Additional info from an article in THE PARIS KENTUCKIAN,  supplement, Saturday,
Jan 22, 1881 "The Carlisle Tragedy"   ".....Geo. Berry, supposed to have been
one of the mob, is lying at Butler Smart's with a pistol wound in the neck.
Noah Anderson had notified the merchants not to let his wife have anything, and
the mob hearing of this went to Bob Anderson's, son of Noah, and demanded of him
$317 he had that belonged to his father, which they intended giving to Mrs.
Anderson, but did not get it. Several parties have been arrested, and others
have fled the country."

Additional article from the Maysville Newspaper, January 26, 1881 Carlisle, Ky.
January 19    Last night at about 11 o'clock Noah Anderson, living about one
mile and a half east of this place, on the line of the railroad, was shot dead,
through the heart, and a 14 year old son was fatally wounded, by a party of
masked men, numbering six or seven.  The party first stopped at Bob Anderson's
another son of Mr. Anderson, and, callinlg him out demanded the money he had of
his father's.  He told them he had none, when, after some further conversation,
they left him, and the supposition is they then proceeded to Mr. Anderson's.
When  they called to come out it seems that  he refused, when they proceeded to
batter the door down, and finally succeeded.  As the door flew open Mr. Anderson
was standing near it, with his pistol in his hand, and whether he or the mob
opened fire first is not known. After Anderson was shot young Sam Anderson
caught him and while supporting him received a fatal bullet in his own body.  He
was shot with a thirty-eight ball, which entered near the left armpit, and
passing obliquely downward, being extracted about one inch from the spine,
evidently grazing the heart. Chances almost certain against him; air issuing
freely from the wound at every breath.  His father's wound is similar to his.  A
bullet shot from a thirty two pistol was found on the floor, supposed to be the
one which struck Mr. Anderson.  On the outside of the --- a bullet mark is
discernable, which penetrated about a quarter of an inch.  To the right of the
door, a few inches, and about half way up the length of the door is a bullet-
hole, which passed clear through the weather-boarding.  A small son of Mr.
Anderson's probably eight or nine years of age, and who was sleeping in the room
with his father and brother, was shot and they being the only ones in that room,
stated that the mob did the first shooting.  The boy who was shot, after being
hit ran out in the yard and saw the men riding up the hill, in a westerly
direction.  George Berry a resident of this place is lying at Mr. Butler Smarts
with a pistol wound in his neck which is not considered dangerous.  Mr. Anderson
shot three times.  Mr. Anderson a well-to-do farmer. He leaves a wife and ten
children the youngest being almost an infant.  He was a paralytic, and it has
been reported was abusive to his family, and the theory of a great many is that
the mob had gone there for the purpose of chastising him for  mistreating his
family, and meeting with resistance the fatal shooting took place.  Mr.
Anderson's mind was supposed by many to have been impaired since he had the
paralysis.  The excitement necessarily attending upon such an affair renders it
impossible to advance a satisfactory theory or to give full particulars.  We
have written it as we heard it and saw the scene of action.