January 18, 1882 - The James R. Wilmot/Wilmut Family Tragedy - Personal - http://maxpages.com/generations/Wilmot

We all have things in our family history that we wish had not happened the way they did. We all have something that we'd rather not talk about, write about or discuss. I've been lucky in that I've never been faced with a decission as to include hidden information or not.
The family tragedy on January 18, 1882 was a horrible incident that touched many, many lives. I've often marveled at the timing of events that happen in life, such as leaving work 15 minutes late and missing a horrific traffic accident, driving thro a horrible thunderstorm in Illinois, only to find out later that tornados hit the various towns a long the way only minutes later. Both of these things have happened to me.
The tragedy of January 18, 1882 took the lives of my g,g,g grandparents two of their children and my g,g,g,g grandmother. Was it shear luck, fate or as I belive, the will of God that my own g,g grandmother wasn't there when it happened? As I read thro these articles I always think about that. I also think about the terror and fear that would drive a person to do something that horrible. Did James at some time in his life go hungry or see a loved one dispossesed of everthing they own and left pennyless? We may never know what drove him to the point of his fateful decission, but I think we owe it to him to investigate rather than judge, emphasize rather than condem, and maybe someday we will understand even if we don't agree.
RM Rigney-Voron
August 4, 2002

There are two articles below, one is from a New Jersey newspaper, the other is from the New York times, my thanks to Nancy and Liz for sending them to me.

Flemington, New Jersey newspaper on Jan. 24, 1882
January 24, 1882, Forty-Fourth Volume, No. 23
A Father's Ghastly Crime

The town of Lancaster, Ky., was last Wednesday morning shocked by
the reception of the news of the most horrible tragedy that has ever taken
place in Garrard county, or indeed in the State of Kentucky.
About seven o'clock a negro came to town bringing the information
that James R. Wilmot, a farmer, living about two miles and a half from
Lancaster, near the Danville turnpike, had murdered his wife, mother, and
two daughters and then hanged himself. Squire R. Boyle, acting as Coroner,
immediately went to the scene of the tragedy, accompanied by a large number
of people. On his arrival he found, still untouched, the lifeless body of
James R. Wilmot hanging in his barn, the dead bodies of Elizabeth Wilmot,
his mother, aged eighty-nine years, Mattie and Mary Wilmont, his daughters,
aged about 19 and 15, lying in their beds with one awful cut across the neck
and breast of each, made by blows from a sharp new axe found lying on the
floor of the room, and also the body of Elizabeth Wilmot, his wife, lying on
her face on the floor, with three or four horrible gashes in her head and
back, made by the same axe.
For some time past Wilmot has been brooding over a security debt of
$450 which he had to pay for his brother in-law, and this had so worked upon
his mind that it is believed he finally went crazy. The day before he
talked rather strangely to his family, saying his stock was all going to
die, and himself and family also, of starvation. Two or three times in the
last few days he expressed a fear of death from starvation.
He was an honest, close, economical business man and had owned a
farm of about two hundred and fifty acres, on which he lived. He was in
good circumstances, being worth $8000 or $10,000. He was kind and
affectionate to his family and to his old mother he was the most devoted of
sons. It is singular that his little boy escaped his insane purpose, but it
is supposed he did so while his father was engaged in his awful work.

New York Times
19 January 1882
A Farmer's Four Victims
Killing his mother, wife and two daughters and hanging himself.

Lancaster, Ky. Jan. 18 - This town was shocked this morning by the
reception of news of the most horrible tragedy that has ever taken
place in Garrard County, or, indeed, in the whole state of Kentucky.
About 7 o'clock a negro came into town, bringing information that
James R. Wilmot, a farmer living about two and one half miles from
Lancaster, near the Danvill Pike, had murdered his wife, mother and
two daughters. Squire R. Boyle, acting as Coroner, immediately
went to the scene of the tragedy, accompanied by a large number of
people. On his arrival he found the still untouched, lifeless body of
Wilmot hanging in his barn, the dead bodies of Elizabeth Wilmot,
his mother, 89 years old, and Mattie and Mary Wilmot, his daughters,
about 19 and 15, lying in the beds, with cuts across the neck and
breast of each, made by blows from a sharp new axe found lying on
the floor of the room. The body of Elizabeth Wilmot, the wife, was
found face downward on the floor, with three or four gashes in the head
and back, made by the same axe. A jury was immediately impaneled
by Squire Boyle.

The first witness was Miss Alice Calvin, who had been doing some work
for Wilmot, and who was sleeping in a room up stairs during the commission
of the deed. She testified that the family retired last night as usual, Wilmot,
his wife, and little boy, about 8 years old, occupying one bed in the family
room, and his two daughters another in the same apartment. His mother
occupied an adjoining rom, and in one room upstairs was a son, James
J. Wilmot, and in the other the witness. About 5 o'clock this morning she was
aroused by a noise below, and going down she met Wilmot coming out of
the room where his mother slept. It was too dark for her to see any objects
distinctly, but she noticed something in his hand which she supposed to be
an axe. She asked Wilmot what he was doing, and he replied that he had
killed the whole family and was going to kill himself. Horror-stricken,
the young girl rushed through the other room, and, meeting the young boy,
caught him and took him out of the house with her, and went to a colored
man's house nearby. Just as she was leaving the family room an older son,
James J., who is about 20 years old, attracted by the noise below, came
down stairs in his night-clothes. This son testified that as he reached
the foot of the stairs he came in contact with his father, who had a
gun in his hand. He asked his father what he was doing, and he replied
that he was going to kill himself and would kill him too. His father
grappled with him and threw him down, but was unable to hold him.
The old man rose, grabbed the gun, and aimed to shoot, but the son
knocked the gun up and the ball went into the ceiling. The young man
then broke loose and ran for his life, the old man following to the steps
over the yard fence and then turning toward the barn. The boy
continued running until he had aroused some of the nearest neighbors,
who hastily went to the scene. No one was bold enough to enter the
house until daylight revealed the dead body of James R. Wilmot,
dressed only in shirt and drawers, swinging under the shed of the
barn. He had taken a plow-line, fastened it around his neck, climbed
up the side of the crib, fastened the other end of the line to a beam,
and then jumped off.

For some time Wilmot had been brooding over a security debt of $450
which he had to pay for his brother-in-law, and this had so worked upon
his mind that it is believed he finally went crazy. On the day before yesterday
he talked rather strangely to members of his family, saying that the stock
were all going to die, and himself and his family also, of starvation. Two
or three times within the last few days he expressed a fear of death from
starvation. James R. Wilmot was about 60 years old, and a farmer by
occupation. He was a careful business man, honest in his dealings, and
economical in his habits. He owned a farm of about 250 acres, on which
he lived, and was worth about $8,000 or $10,000. He was kind and
affectionate to his family, and to his aged mother he was the most devoted
of sons. It is considered singular that his little boy escaped his insane
purpose, but it is supposed the boy hid while his father was engaged in the
awful work. The bodies of Wilmot and his four victims will be buried
tomorrow in the family burying ground, a few hundred yards from the
house where the tragedy took place.

wvmystica@aol.com

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