The Hanging of Samuel Gaines
Written by Justin D. Lamb
Thousands gathered in Benton on Friday, July 13, 1866 to witness a “once in a lifetime spectacle” as officials prepared to hang a local renegade Samuel Gaines. The event became a show of entertainment as several traveled from throughout the region to witness only the second public hanging in Marshall County.
Samuel Gaines spent most of his life in Marshall County and after returning from service in the Confederate Army, he married and settled on a tract of land between Bishop Mills and Olive. Unsatisfied with the life of a farmer, Gaines became involved with a band of outlaws who ravaged and pillaged the countryside of Marshall County.
On a spring day in March 1865, B.F. McNabb along with several of his neighbors were clearing off a new piece of ground near Bishop Mills. During the work of the day, Gaines and MacDonald Hamilton rode up on horseback and began harassing McNabb. When McNabb demanded that they leave, Gaines and Hamilton pulled out their pistols, shot McNabb, and then rode off into the countryside.
When news of the murder reached Sheriff G.S. Jones, he and his deputy John J. Dupriest went to Olive to arrest Gaines and Hamilton for the murder. That afternoon a jury was assembled at the courthouse and the pair were tried and convicted of murder in a speedy fashion. Circuit Judge E.I. Bullock fixed Hamilton’s punishment to life imprisonment, but drew a harder line with Gaines, fixing his punishment to death by hanging. After the sentencing, Judge Bullock told the court that he wanted to send a warning to any other renegades in the county that if they continued they would meet the same fate as Gaines.
That evening, Samuel Gaines’ wife rode to Benton in a horse and buggy with several friends and neighbors to see her husband. The jailer left Mrs. Gaines to visit with her husband one last time. Upon returning a short time later, the jailer discovered that both Gaines and Hamilton had escaped. A search was organized, but no trace was found of either man. Officials in the county offered a $1,000 reward for their capture.
As 1865 turned into 1866, neither Gaines nor Hamilton had been seen or caught. However, in the late spring of 1866, Reverend Tice, a Methodist minister from Murray, was visiting Louisville when he noticed a man that closely resembled the photograph of Samuel Gaines that he had saw on the reward poster. Rev. Tice notified officials in Marshall County and Dave Collins, a private detective who was working the case, took the five day trip from Marshall County to Louisville to arrest Gaines.
When Collins arrived in Louisville, he paid $250 to Rev. Tice for the tip and then went after Gaines. Collins caught up with Gaines later that day and instead of arresting him, he made a deal with Gaines. Collins told Gaines that if he went peacefully, he would split the reward money with him and with his share of money he could clear himself of the murder charges. After seeing that the deal was his only chance at freedom, Gaines accepted Collins’ deal and went peacefully back to Marshall County.
When Collins and Gaines arrived back to Marshall County, news had reached Benton that Hamilton had been captured and his sentenced had been commuted by the governor from a life imprisonment to a ten year sentence. Collins and Gaines went to the courthouse to see the sheriff and once they arrived, Collins turned over Gaines to the law. Before being handed over, Gaines asked Collins for his share of the reward money so he could buy his way out of the murder charge, but Collins walked out keeping all of the money for himself. A few days later, an execution order was sent to the County Judge Wesley A. Holland from Governor Thomas Bramlette ordering the immediate execution of Gaines. Extra deputies were deputized to prevent another escape from Gaines
A gallows was built in the field of F.M. Poole in the north end of Benton (which later became the Morgan Parrish farm and now where Taco Johns and Dairy Queen sit today). On Friday, July 13, 1866, the execution took place without any problems. According to an 1891 article in the Benton Tribune, Gaines had no emotion and died without making any talk or plea on the scaffold.
Sources:
History of Marshall County, Kentucky. Published by the Marshall County Genealogical Society. 1984
History of Marshall County, Kentucky. Written by Leon Freeman and Edward C. Olds. 1933
Lemon’s Handbook of Marshall County. Written by James R. Lemon. 1894