| Notes |
Name: Hirman Thomas Cobb
Sex: White Male
Death Date: 23 Apr 1936
Death Place: Sandyville, Ripley Dist, Jackson, West Virginia
Age at Death: 45y 1m
Burial Place:
Burial Date: 4/24/1936
Cemetery: White Pine
Funeral Home: JB Vail
Birth Date: March 22, 1891
Birth Place: Roan Co
Marital Status: married
Spouse: Sylvia M.Casto
Occupation: farmer
Address: Sandyville
Mother: Emma Jane Randolph
Mother's Birth Place: Roane Co
Father: James Cobb
Father's Birth Place: USA
Informant: J E Cob, Plum Orchard
Cause: Homicide, gun shot wound
Location: Joe's Run, Jackson Co
Hiram Thomas Cobb, son of James H. and Emily Jane Cobb, was born March 22, 1891 and departed this life April 23, 1936, aged 45 years, 1 month and 1 day. He was united in marriage to Sylvia Casto on December 20, 1914 and to this union eight children were born: Johnny, Sherman, Adam, Russell, Lucille, Lorene, Everett and Harold Raymond Cobb. Besides the widow and children, he is survived by his father and two brothers, Early and James W. Cobb; five sisters, Mrs. H. H. Hambrick, Mrs. Lloyd Hershman, Nora Cobb, Mrs. Floyd Hershman and Mrs. Hoyt Carpenter. His mother preceded him by a few hours, two sisters, Ruby Faye Cobb and Mrs. Lloyd Litton and one brother, Sherman Cobb, having died several years ago. Tom is sadly missed in his home and by his many friends. He and his mother were taken to White Pine church April 24, where services were conducted by Rev. James Anderson, and interment was in the cemetery close by. (Jackson Herald, 5 June 1936)
Farmer Slain in Jackson County; Another is Held
Quarrel Cited
Thomas Cobb, 45, Shot; Jim Cunningham is Placed in Jail
Self-Defense Plea
Attentions to Victim's Wife Led to Fight, Says Prisoner
Ripley, April 23 - Thomas Cobb, 45-year-old Jackson County farmer, was instantly killed by two charges from a shotgun during an argument with a neighbor at Joe's Run, near here, at 8 o'clock this morning.
The neighbor, Jim Cunningham, 65 years old, is held in the county jail here on a charge of murder. He will be arraigned this afternoon.
The shooting brought to a tragic climax an argument between the two men over attentions Cunningham is said to have admitted paying to Cobb's wife. Cunningham admitted the slaying to officers but said he fired in self-defense after Cobb threw an axe at him.
According to his story told to Corporal W.M. Beckett, of state police, Cunningham and Cobb left their homes early this morning to repair a fence separating their farms. Cunningham said he took his .12 guage shotgun along to shoot a hawk. When they reached their destination, Cunningham said, Cobb accused him of circulating tales about Cunningham's association with Mrs. Cobb, which he admitted. The argument and shooting followed.
Cunningham then went to the home of a neighbor, John R. Rader, and asked him to call police. Corporal Beckett, Trooper W.B. Lanham, City Patrolman Grover Hall and Coroner C. Royal Kessel investigated the shooting and brought Cunningham here.
The body of Cobb was brought to the Vail mortuary here. Funeral services will be held tomorrow afternoon at the White Pine church and burial will be in the church cemetery. Cobb is survived by his wife and nine children.
Word was received here following the shooting of the death last night of Cobb's mother, who lives near the Cobb farm.
(Charleston Daily Mail Thu April 23, 1936)
James Cunningham, 70 year old Joe's Run resident charged with the slaying of his neighbor, Thomas Cobb on the 23rd day of last April, was snatched from the gallows by the jury which heard the evidence in his case last Monday, when it recommended mercy along with a verdict of murder in the first degree. The verdict came shortly after five o'clock and about an hour after the arguments in the case had been closed and the jurors retired to their rooms to deliberate on the evidence. All the members of the jury filed into the room an hour after they had retired, the jammed court room and gallery were silent and the men and women leaned forward to catch the words, which would mean the fate of the man, who had gone on the stand in his own defense and proclaimed at the end of his story that "I have told it all, just as it happened".
Least perturbed possible among the four hundred who looked on this scene was Cunningham himself, who had been confident that a jury would not take his life after they heard his story, but who had said to newspapermen that he was ready to "pay the price" and that at his age most any degree of murder which would be brought against him would mean life. After hearing his fate, he walked back to his cell in the county jail, feeling that he had at least won his fight to be saved from the gallows and thankful in his heart that the attorney, which the court named to defend him, Oliver D. Kessel, who received no pay for his work, had fought his case courageously and had succeeded in bringing out Cunningham's side of the story.
Judge Miller did not go through the formality of sentencing the man Monday afternoon because that would be only a formality as the jury, by it's verdict, had made it mandatory that the sentence be life in prisonment. Cunningham, despite his age and his weakened condition due to the long summer days of being behind jail bars, bore bravely during the day. Only once did he appear to be overcome by emotion and that was when Corporal Beckett, in giving testimony, said that he had talked with Cunningham and that he said, among other things, that he prayed each morning and that he had prayed for "Tom that morning". He soon regained his composure however, and when he took the stand he told his story which differs only in minute details to the one he told officers and newspapermen on the day of the crime. He said in his testimony that Cobb had been making love to his wife, that he saw him leave the home on two occasions and that on Tuesday evening prior to the Thursday morning when the killing occurred, he came home and saw Cobb hugging his bride of only seven weeks. He said his wife denied the affair but that he took her back home the following day, spent the night before the killing in his home alone, arose early on the morning, went out to hunt the hawks which had been getting his chickens, that Cobb was late getting out to build the fence, that when he arrived, he asked him if he hadn't been telling people that he had been making love to Mrs. Cunningham, and he said that he told him that he had, that Cobb called him a liar and threw a hatchet at him, that he dodged the hatchet, fired the gun twice, Cobb was dead, and that he went to the home of John Rader, where officers arrested him something like an hour and a half later.
The members of the jury, who heard the case, were W. O. Carney, H. E. Puckett, William Sayre, A. H. Pursley, F. P. Surface, Lloyd Staats, Holly Whiting, Sam King, Arthur Young, F. D. Culver, W. S. Casto, and W. J. Flinn.
Just after the jury had been sworn in the case and the State was ready to call witnesses to testify, Juror Young became suddenly ill and was taken to the anteroom of the building by officers, where he was treated. The start of the case was delayed for about a half an hour because of Mr. Young's illness.
Prosecuting Attorney Carter Staats, asked for the death penalty and Mr. Kessel briefly outlined the defendants case, in which he said that an effort would be made to show that the act was done in self defense. Mrs. Dora Hambrick, sister to Cobb was the first witness, and she told of seeing Cunningham on the morning of the of the shooting and how he told her that he had killed her brother, where he had killed him and that he had shot him twice. Ardmus Cobb, 16 year old son of the slain farmer, was the next witness and he told about the man calling to him and saying that his father was killed. He also said that he saw the shooting. Sherman Cobb, an 18 years son, told about the call from Cunningham and his going to get Harrison Raines to go to the scene with him. Howard Hambrick, brother-in-law of Cobb, was the next witness to take the stand and told of threats Cunningham had made in his presence about his intentions to kill Cobb. E. C. Harmon took the stand but his evidence was not admitted because the incident about which he spoke had occurred more than a year ago at the new home of Chester Rader. Coronor C. Royal Kessel told about the examination of the body and said that his verdict was that the shotgun wounds resulted in his death. Undertaker Ralph Mills told of his preparations of the body and burial and also described the wounds. Harrison Raines testified about being called to the scene and about finding the lifeless body when he arrived. Corporal Beckett was on the stand for more than an hour and introduced the clothing, pictures, the implement which Cobb carried, the gun, the empty shells, etc., which was connected to the case. Mrs. Sylvia Cobb, the widow, was a pathetic figure as she took the stand for the State. She said that she was the mother of eight children, all of them at home, the youngest being 21 months old and the the oldest 20 years, that she had never seen Cunningham over three or four times and that on the morning of the slaying he told her that he "had shot hell out of Tom, come and get him". The State rested on 1:30 o'clock. Attorney W. F. Boggess, who was assisting the prosecuting attorney, did the questioning for the State during the time the State's case was presented and Mrs. Staats conducted the cross examination for the defense witnesses. No new evidence, by either the State or the defense, was developed and it was all along the line of facts and circumstances which had already been reported in the Herald and other newspapers.
It was reported in court circles that the jury stood ten to two for murder in the first degree without a recommendation for mercy for some time during the deliberation and that finally in order to reach a verdict the ten joined the two who had held out for the recommendation and the verdict was brought in slightly more than an hour after the case had been placed in the hands of the jury.
By agreement of counsel, Judge Miller gave oral instructions to the jury, it being the first time in a murder case in the circuit that this had been done, but counsel were of the opinion that the court would deal fairly in the instructions, that they had absolute faith in the fairness and ability of Judge Miller to explain to the jurors the law in the case. This is rarely ever done in a State Court, counsel usually preferring to confine the remarks of the court to specific language. (Jackson Herald, 28 Aug 1936)
James Cunningham, 70 year old farmer of Joe's Run, is still held in the county jail without bond to answer to the charge of slaying his neighbor, Thomas Cobb, early last Thursday morning. When taken before Justice A. A. Shinn for preliminary hearing, Cunningham waived to the grand jury and was taken back to his cell in the jail. Later in the afternoon he was questioned by county officers and told very much the same story he had told when brought back to the scene of the crime.
Several hundred persons attended the joint funeral services for Cobb and his mother at White Pine church in Washington District last Friday afternoon. The mother died as a result of a heart attack last Wednesday night and Cobb had not heard of his mother's death when he was killed as the brother who came to inform him of her death did not arrive at the home on Joe's Run until after officers were on the scene Thursday morning.
Cobb's body was brought to State Route 5 Thursday afternoon by O. F. Hutton and other citizens of the Joe's Run section and there it was turned over to Undertaker J. B. Vail who prepared it for burial.
In his story to officers Cunningham said that he got up before daylight that morning and got his breakfast and took the gun upon the hill to shoot some hawks. He also took along a hammer. He said that the evening before Cobb's son had come to his home and told him that Mr. Cobb wanted to help build a fence the next day. He said he went upon the hill where they were to build the fence and started watching for the hawk until Cobb came to work.
He said that Cobb did not get to work on time and that he called to him to hurry up and he said that he would soon be over. Cunningham said that he then sat down by a hickory tree and after awhile Cobb came up the hill with an axe and a post hole digger. He said that as Cobb approached he said, " you are getting out late to do a day's work" and Tom said, "not very". He said Cobb said, ''You are accusing me of talking to your wife" and Cunningham said that he replied "I am." What happened after that was related by Cunningham as follows: "Tom called me a damn liar and I said, "No, Tom, I don't think I am a liar. The gun was setting to the right of the Chestnut tree and I was sitting on a piece of bark but I got up when he called me a liar. I throwed the hatchet and he dodged the hatchet and I shot him around the right of the tree when I shot him the first time,"
Cobb was a first cousin of Cunningham's wife and there had been some trouble in the family and Mrs. Cunningham left the home on the evening before the shooting. Cunningham claimed that Cobb had said that it was his (Cunningham's) fault that they were having trouble. They had been married only seven weeks, members of the family said.
Officers believe that Cobb most certainly had the post hole digger on his shoulder when he was shot the first time. One of the handles was almost shot off and they point out that this had to be the shot which tore away part of Cobb's face. He then dropped the digger and ran some distance down the hiII, which when measured was about forty paces. While Cunningham stated that in his opinion he missed the first shot he fired, an examination of the body disclosed that he had hit the man both times. The first shot had hit Cobb in the face and it was then that he started to run down the hill. The second shot struck him in the back between the shoulders.
Cunningham made no denial of the shooting and talks freely about it to folks who visit him in the jail. His efforts at the present time seem to be directed toward furnishing bond but so far no bondsman had offered to go his bail and officers have not indicated whether or not bail would be accepted in his case. The case cannot be presented to the grand jury before the August term of the court. [1 May 1936] .
Autumn Love Tragedy Seen
West Virginia Mountain Farmer, 69, Kills His Neigbor, 45.
Ripley, W.Va., April 23. -- (AP) -
A 69-year-old farmer, charged with slaying his 45-year-old neighbor, prepared a plea of self-defense tonight.
State Trooper William B. lanham said James Cunningham admitted shooting Thomas Cobb, 45, during an argument about attentions he said Cobb paid to Mrs. Cunningham, 48, but claimed he fired only after Cobb threw a hatchet at him.
The men met early today to rebuild a fence between their farms on Joe' Run, five miles from here. Cunningham said he brought the gun from his house to kill a hawk which had been around his chicken coop.
The two walked up the hillside, Lanham said Cunningham told him, and then Cobb accused Cunningham of telling other neighbors about Cobb's supposed friendship with Mrs. Cunningham.
The trooper added: "The old man told me that Cobb hurled the hatchet at him, and then Cunningham fired twice. He apparently died instantly. Both loads hit him in the face."
Then Cunningham walked to the home of John R. Rader, State police arrested him there.
Cunningham declined a preliminary hearing before Magistrate A.A. Shinn.
Cobb is survived by his widow and nine children.
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West Virginia Pioneers
1891 - 1936 (45 years)
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