Update

I know I have not posted in a while, but I am waiting for some information from the Texas State Library that I am requesting in Inter-Library loan. I will post some more as I receive it.

Tidbits about the Murders

Various sources from Blanco County offer small glimpses into the events around the killings, here are some:

We know from the diaries of James Redford Sr. (1821-1908) that his son Alex (1864-1953) was one of the men who helped to dig the graves for the victims of Albert:

8.

172

Aug 25 1885

Alex at digging graves for Six people shot by El Lackey yesterday

Greenbury Lackey and wife; Mrs. C. C. Lackey (Fanny Stokes, daughter of J. C. and Lucy) Mattie Lackey, J. C. and Lucy Stokes

Sandy Cemetery

from:http://www.rootsweb.com/~txblanco/recorded.html

Also, from the Blanco County Probate Records, we know what happened to some of the orphans.

Anna Mae Stokes (Daughter of Jim and Lucy Stokes) and Dora J. Lackey (Daughter of Charles Lackey and Fannie Stokes) were taken in by a C.M. Hornburg(Homburg?)

I am not sure why Fannie is listed as an heir of Jim and Lucy Stokes when her father was alive, perhaps someone could let me know?

Bennie and Jason Edward Stokes (Sons of J.C. and Lucy) went to live with the B.H. Watson family.

There is no record in the Probate Court that indicates what happened to Georgia, L.J., or Nettie Stokes.

Although the probate records only record Charles Edward Lackey (Son of Nathanial and Isabelle Lackey) being placed in the care of his older sister Minnie, we know from family history that all the children (Missouri, Nathanial, Joseph, Polly and Addie) were placed in her care and her Brothers (Sobe).

A young witness to the hanging

This photo is (reportedly) of Oscar Lackey (1878-1946) who as a young lad only a week from his 7th birthday was urging his uncle Al Lackey to jump as the wagon was moved from underneath him.

(photo courtesy of George Byars)

Sandy Cemetery

(Click on the photo for a larger image)

The victims of Al Lackey were laid to rest in Sandy Cemetery, Thanks to Gaye Fowler for this photo and labels.

AL LACKEY STILL RIDES THE NIGHT

AL LACKEY STILL RIDES THE NIGHT
Originally uploaded by mrbill78636

Bill Strain, a artist and former investigator in Kerrville did this great interpretation of the ghost of Al Lackey.

The Weapon used in the murders

Al most likely acquired a Winchester Model 1873 carbine, that was the most common Winchester of the era, chambered for the .44-40 round it had a capacity of 12, given that it is reported that he thought he had killed 6 and wanted to kill 6 more, this makes sense. Fortunately, Mr. Green did not have his carbine fully loaded.

New York Times follow up article on the Murders.

The day after their original article, the NYT published a follow up story that also ran in the Austin Statesman.

The old Blanco County Jail

One of the oldest buildings in Blanco, Al Lackey was held here for about 18 hours before being hung.

Survior and his family....

This photo is John W. Nicholson and his family (taken about 1896).

Article on the Murders

From the Saturday Herald in Decatur Illinois Aug 29, 1885

More articles:

From the Atchison Kansas Daily Star

From the Newark Ohio Daily Advocate, Aug 31, 1885

Blanco county in 1885

Here is a US Army map showing Blanco County in 1885, it shows the towns, roads, landforms and creeks.

Another account of the lynching...

This is a story that came off of the telegraph wires from San Antonio (from the Humeston, Iowa New Era, Sep 3, 1885):

A MONSTER MOBBED

Al Lockie, the Slayer of Eight Persons in
Texas in One Day, Hanged by Vigilantes
-He Confesses His Crime, and He Says
There Were Six Others Whom He Want-
ed to Kill.

San Antonio, Tex., Aug. 29 - Information from San Marcos reports that a mob of seventy-five persons at Blanco on Wednesday night went to the jail and demanded of Sheriff Jackson the keys. Jackson said that he did not have them, and also declared that he could not procure them. After a severe struggle Jackson was overpowered. The keys were found on his person, and the mob then entered the Jail and took out Lockie, the man who committed wholesale murder in Johnson City a few days since.

When Lockie was asked if he had anything to say he replied: "I have." In reply to the question: "Why did you kill them?" he replied: "They were fixing to mob me." He was then asked if he did not remember that his brother had told him on the morning of the killing that he (Al Lockie) had better leave the country and go as far away from it as he could. Al replied yes. "Did you kill everyone whom you felt disposed to kill?" "No," replied Lockie, bitterly "I did not. Six are still living whom I intended to kill." "Do you wish to pray?" "I have been praying" said the wretched man: then turning to an old man in the crowd he said: "You pray for me." The old man declined, saying: "The Bible does not teach me to pray for those such as you."

This ended the preliminaries. While the conversation was in progress, Lockie was ordered to mount the chair and stand on it. The noose was then adjusted and attached to the bough of a tree. The driver, at the signal, moved forward and the murderer was left suspended. The drop was sufficient and death was instantaneous. He died without a struggle.

Lockies relatives and neighbors imputed to him crimes with his stepdaughter and his own daughter. On Monday last, Lockie went to the residence of his brother, Berry Lockie, and shot and killed Berry and his (Berry's) wife.

(This story then goes on starting with the second paragraph of the New York Times article).

A map I am working on:

I am working on a map that shows the approximate location of the sites involved, these are only the marks of the center of their land, not necessarily structures.


View Larger Map

More interesting Data

These are the records from the US Army Signal Corps for the month of August 1885, it records the temperatures for that month:

Read this doc on Scribd: austin weather August 1885

These records indicate above average temperatures that week (98 degrees on the day of the killing at 5pm), could that have something to do with Albert snapping?

Interesting data for the day of the lynching:

U.S. Naval Observatory
Astronomical Applications Department

Sun and Moon Data for One Day

The following information is provided for Blanco, Blanco County, Texas (longitude W98.4, latitude N30.1):

        Wednesday
       26 August 1885        Central Standard Time        

                        SUN
       Begin civil twilight       5:43 a.m.               
       Sunrise                    6:07 a.m.               
       Sun transit               12:35 p.m.               
       Sunset                     7:03 p.m.               
       End civil twilight         7:27 p.m.               

                        MOON
       Moonrise                   7:04 p.m. on preceding day
       Moon transit              12:57 a.m.               
       Moonset                    6:54 a.m.               
       Moonrise                   7:40 p.m.               
       Moonset                    7:49 a.m. on following day

Phase of the Moon on 26 August: waning gibbous with 99% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated.

Full Moon on 25 August 1885 at 11:25 a.m. Central Standard Time.

New York Times article on the Murders

The telegraph made it possible for news to travel all over the country very quickly, within days, the entire country was following the chain of events in Blanco County.

EIGHT PERSONS MURDERED

ALL KILLED BY ONE MAN WHO THEN

TRIED TO KILL HIMSELF

Austin, Texas, Aug. 26 - A gentleman from Johnson City, Blanco County, gives the details of a terrible tragedy which occurred at that place on Tuesday (August 25). Al Lockie (Lackey), an old citizen of extensive connection, had a stepdaughter living with him, whom, it is alleged, he seduced several years ago. Lately his own daughter seemed to be in trouble, and this had been disturbing his mind, as his relatives attributed to him the crime of seducing her. On Tuesday afternoon Lockie left home, intending, he said, to go to John Green's place to borrow some money. Mr. Green and his family were away. Lockie entered the house, took Green's Winchester rifle, and returned to the residence of his brother, Berry Lockie (Nathaniel Greenberry Lackey). He shot and killed Berry and Berry's wife (Isabelle Adeline "Addie" Jackson).

A neighbor named John Nicholson rode up just then. Lockie forced Nicholson to go with him to Mr. Stokes's (James C "Jim" Stokes) house, where he shot and killed Mr. Stokes. There Nicholson was lost sight of. His horse was tied there when found, and it is supposed he was also killed. From there Lockied went to his own house and shot and cut the throat of Mrs. Henry(Fannie Stokes, actually the wife of Charles Lackey) Locke of Llano County, wife of his stepson, who was on a visit to him. He also shot and killed Mrs. Stokes, wife of the Stokes he had killed just previous to the killing of Mrs. Henry Lockie. Then he killed his daughter (Martha Lackey, age 17) and then tried to kill his wife (Aley Jane Pruitt), but his cartridges being exhausted, he could not fire another shot, and she escaped.

Having failed to catch and kill his wife, Lockie cut his own throat, mounted his horse, and started off in the direction of Johnson City. After riding a few yards he met Thomas Brunswick, whom he attacked and into whom he plunged a knife, inflicting fatal wounds. The murderer then rode toward Johnson City, but was arrested within two miles of that place. He was still alive at 8 o'clock this morning (August 26).

When the exception of the murder and cremation of the Lynch family near Hempstead, some years ago, this is the most horrible set of crimes ever committed in this State. By it about 20 children are left orphans.

Frontier Times Article on the Murders

This is the most oft reprinted article about the murders, it is a slight variation on the story:

Lackey Murders & Lynching
from Blanco County History by Moursand, and others, including the account as given in the Blanco News and reprinted in Frontier Times magazine, Bandera, Tx. April 1936 by Mr. Lee Brown. What is printed here is from the account written by Mr. Lee Brown (all spelling and punctuation is as was written)

"The Lackey Tragedy in Blanco County"

August 24, 1885, witness the most dire tragedy of the history of Blanco county, when on the morning of that day Al Lackey maddened or demented slew six of his immediate family or relatives on the Perdenales River and Hickory Creek, in the north end of the county. Saddling his horse and taking his Winchester rifle he started out to exterminate, seemingly, the entire Lackey connection. Going up the valley, he shot his niece who was sitting near the front door of her little home, rocking and singing to her little baby. And when the body was found lying on the floor the baby was asleep against the body covered with its mother's blood. His brother ran in endeavoring to escape but tripped and fell, and as he begged for his life Lackey stuck the gun behind his ear and pulled the trigger. Mr. and Mrs. Stokes, and aged couple fell before the fire of his rifle, and then his own daughter and another relative were slain, and then to Lackey's chagrin he found he had no cartridges. He rode back to his own home where he tried to kill his wife and small baby with a knife, but she managed to escape from the house and ran to a nearby thicket where he chased her for some time, fianlly giving up the chase and she saw him slash his own throat. he seemed to back out after one deep gash had been cut; went to his horse and getting into the saddle headed in the direction of Johnson City. On the road he met a neighbor, Al Bundick, and asked him to ride to a spring with him. Bundick noticed that Lackey had a handkerchief to his throat but took it to be a red bandana. Lackey rode behind Bundick and shortly attacked him with his knife, and having the faster horse of the two he was able to cut his victim until he fell from his horse, and then lackey again rode toward Johnson City. Upon reaching town he told that Bundick had killed some of his family and had attacked him, but he had escaped after his throat had been cut by Bundick. A posse was formed, but before it left town a son of Lackey came in and told officers his father had committed the crimes and that he did not know how many were killed. Bundick was found and taken home where physicians attended him; he was badly cut but recovered after some weeks. Mrs. Lackey told officers of her escape and seeing her husband cut his own throat. Six were dead and on August 25 the bodies were laid to rest in a little cemetery on Hickory Creek, some two miles below the Sandy post office. Blanco was then the county seat and Lackey was brought to jail here after physicians had sewed the deep cut in his throat. On the afternoon of August 26, Charlie Cabaniss was coming in from the ranch on Miller Creek when just behond Brushy Top he was overtaken by a large party of men who told him he could wait with them, have an early supper and come on to town with them. They ate supper at a spring some few hundred yards below the present crossing of highway 66. Some time after dark they rode quietly into town, captured the officers before any demonstration was made, then silently and in order rode to the jail. A few citizens discovered something was wrong and found the mob at the jail. Phil P. Cage, knowing several of the leaders, advised them that a very sick woman was in a home near the jail and asked that no commotion be made; some of the party thought he was trying to stop the lynching party, but the leader knew Mr. Cage well and toldhis followers to keep quiet. he then led the way to the cell in which Lackey was confined, told him that they had come for him to pay the price for his crimes and opened the door to his cell. Lackey grabbed alargeiron bucket which was in the cell and would have brained the leader had the bucket not hit the top of the cell; he was overpowered and taken from the jail yard. It had been the intention of the party to get to Blanco in the afternoona nd make a public hanging on the square, to a live oak tree which still stands at the southwest corner of the old courthouse building, but now they granted Mr. Cage's request and the mob, supplemented by quite a number from this section, rode north out of town and so quiety that very few knew that a new crime was about to be perpetuated in their midst; the only kind of its nature to darken the history of Blanco county, A mile north of town they stopped. At the side of the road stood two large live oak trees. SOmeone suggest a a limb on the nearest tree but Lackey who held to stoic silence looked up and said, "That limb is too low and almost over the road". Another tree just a few feet away was selelcted; the wagin in which Lackey was seated drove under the limb and the noose, which had been tied in the real hangman's knot, was placed abouth is neck: someone had suggested shooting on account of the deep cut in Lackey's throat; however the rope was thrown over the limb and as the wagon was started up he was told to jump from the chair in which he had been placed in standing position; he failed to jump and was dragged from the wagon by the rope on the limb. His neck was not broken and strangulation ended the life of one whose only request was to be permitted to return to the scene of the crime to finish his intended work of killed seven others. As the body swung and turned in the night breeze the rope untwisted and stretched until the feet almost touched the ground; another rope was tied in the noose and the body raised quite a distance higher, after which the main body dispersed north, going back to their homes in and about the scene of the tragedy. Next morning, August 27, Esquire Lewellyn Robinson held an inquest at the place of the hanging. Prof. W. H. Bruce made a pen sketch of the scene. Lackey was a large man with iron gray hair and mustache, and looked a terrible and gruesome giant as he swung in the air, the rope having buried itself in the cut he had inflicted in his throat. The body was brought to town and contract made with John R. Robinson for the interment of the body which was buried in the southeast corner of the Robison (now Alvin Wegner) field, one halfmile northwest of town. The "Lackey tree" stands just north of Paradise Hollow, one mile north of Blanco, on highway 66, just west of a topped tree near the highway, the second fork of the oak pointing toward the road is where the rope ended the career of Al Lackey, in a lynching party, for the murder of six of his own family connection; at that time the road the was just west of the trees, between them and the old rock fence.Return to Blanco County

Leaders of the group that hung Al Lackey

Starting from left to right: Frances Aaron Lackey (son of Thomas who was a brother to Albert), Sheriff Colvin Pruitt (brother-in-law to Albert ,who had attempted to kill his sister, Albert's wife), James C. and Charles C. (Step-sons of Albert and sons of James Lackey who was a brother to Albert. Albert had killed Charles' wife and her parents, and attempted to kill James and Charles' mother, his wife).

Photo courtesy of Claudia Lackey.

The Grave and the Tree:

Images courtesy of Claudia Lackey.

Contemporary Newspaper Accounts

Google has a great archive search that can search newspapers back to the 1860's. Here are some of the contemporary newspaper accounts of the era. It appears that it went out over the telegraph wires as "Lockie" instead of Lackey. Newspapers nationwide picked up the story and ran with it, it was front page news all over the country, the last week in August.

Overview.

For 3 days in August of 1885, Blanco county had its darkest episode occur. On August 24, 1885, Albert N. Lackey, who had apparently been the subject of rumors, decided to murder several members of his own and extended family.

Albert killed 6 people, wounded two more and was ultimately lynched by a mob led by members of his own family.

I will be posting links, newspaper articles and photos as I receive them, I will also be asking for any family stories that can shed light on the events of those days.

Chain of events

I guess the best way to start is to use the various sources to try to nail down a chain of events.

1. Rumors persist around Blanco County about the character of Albert Lackey and the nature of his relationship with his teenage daughter (Martha Lackey) and possibly a stepdaughter (Mary). (New York Times article and interviews with my Grandmother: Martha Nicholson Stokes).


2. Al procures a rifle, pistol and a knife, either his own, or of his neighbor a "John Green"(New York Times)


3. At that point, he went to his brother Nathanial Greenberry Lackey's home, killing his wife and then him. He did, however, spare their young child (Addie, age 3).
4. Hearing the gunfire, John Nicholson rode up to his neighbors house. According to my grandmother, realizing what Albert had done, he rode with him for a while attempting to talk him out of what he was doing and to ride with him to Blanco to turn himself in. Albert liked John and wished him no harm.
5. They reach the home of James Stokes, Albert then kills Mr. Stokes and John slips away. John apparently got away in the confusion and would later link up with the posse that was forming to bring in the killer.
6. Albert then returned to his home, there, he killed Fannie Stokes Lackey, wife of his stepson Charles, he also killed his daughter Martha, he attempted to kill his wife Aley but he was out of bullets and she was able to escape.
7. Albert attempted to chase her down, but having run into a nearby creek he lost her in a thicket of trees.
8. At this point Albert cuts his own throat, it is not clear he did this in an effort to kill himself or to make it appear that he had been attacked as well.
9. Some time after this, he caught up with a man named Bundick, who was unaware of what had been occurring. At some point Albert attacks Bundick inflicting serious wounds.
10. Riding on towards Johnson City, he was arrested after one of his own sons (as well as probably John Nicholson) rode in and revealed the crime.
11. Physicians in Johnson City sewed up the cut in Lackey's throat and he was transported to Blanco where he was thrown in the County Jail for the rest of the night.
12. On August 25th, the bodies of the victims were laid to rest in the Sandy Cemetery.
13. On August 26th, with two eyewitnesses and a confession, the people of Blanco County (mostly from Johnson City) decided not to wait for a trial.
14. Shortly after sundown, (about 7:30pm) a large group of men (estimated from 50-80), lead by Albert's stepsons, nephew and brother in law open the jail and take Albert out.
15. He is taken just north of town and hung.
16. Albert was then buried in a unmarked plot northwest of Blanco.
    

Welcome!

This Blog is set up for me to document my investigation into the Lackey murders that occurred in Blanco, Texas in 1885. I have been compiling information for years, and I now hope to document this tragic event, as best I can. Your comments and stories would be greatly appreciated.