JAMES FARM JOURNALr.b5z.net/i/u/10126339/f/newsletters/FOJF_JOURNAL... · lawyers, clergy and all voters to prom - ised they had not committed a long list of disloyal acts. • Forced

Long before Ancestry.com and the Internet made investigating one’s family history so easy, Ju-dith Tharp had an epiphany after

watching the TV miniseries, “Roots.” She became interested in author Alex Haley’s arduous research into his family history. Ms. Tharp was inspired to begin a search “for her own identity.”

Coming off a 20 year marriage, along with many other life-altering changes,

she embraced search-ing for her genealogy with tenacity. Armed with a list of family history, she began her quest for more infor-mation. “I was well aware of abundant family history on my mother’s side of the

family,” she said, adding that they were on the “winner’s side … Kansas and the Jay-hawkers.” Her father’s side, “the loser’s side … Missouri” she added, was less well known.

“I grew up with the understanding that my father’s people were simple farm-ers from Platte County, that had quaint southern sympathies … little did I know,” she said. Fifteen years later, Tharp has collected boxes and boxes of material, but as anyone who has researched family his-tory knows, not much of the information was organized. This was a time before computers and the Internet. “I can say

what began as a pastime became a lively interest, and at times, a rapacious pur-suit,” added Tharp.

Even after all the years of research, one day she was looking at a family tree chart she’d reviewed many times before, a piece of information jumped off the paper at her. “I discovered that my dad’s Uncle Jim Settle was actually Jesse James Settle, born in 1877 at Camden Point,” said Tharp. She began investigating this tidbit of information, eventually writing to the National Archives and collecting what-ever looked promising.

Jesse Peter Settle had moved from Cul-pepper County, Virginia with his family in the 1850s. His family owned slaves. He was the youngest of 10 children born to Mr. and Mrs. John J. Settle. The en-tire family moved from Virginia to Platte County in 1853. Jesse Peter Settle’s mother, Augusta Miller Settle, (who was Judith’s great-great-grandmother) had a brother, Jesse Miller. Miller married Margaret Jones Waller, a widow. She was Tharp’s great-great-grandfather’s sister. Since the Settle’s arrived in Platte Coun-ty too late in the fall to plant a crop for spring harvest, they lived with Miller until the following spring of 1854.

In the spring of 1854, John J. Settle bought 160 acres of farmland, of which Settle Station is now a part, and began

farming. Because this farmland was some distance from where the family was actu-ally living, John Settle sent his 18 slaves to live on and tend the land. They did their own cooking, farmed the land and were loyal to their master. In 1862, Settle’s daughter married John Hammit Styne. As a wedding gift, John Settle bestowed 80 acres of his farmland to them.

John Jesse Settle was only 7 years old when the War Between the States broke out. He said he remembered a battle between the bushwhackers and the Fed-erals that was fought in Camden Point. Several men were killed in this fight and are buried in the old cemetery north of town. Another battle he remembers was fought near what is now the old Ed Miller place. A soldier who was a Confederate was killed on the farm, which

JAMES FARM JOURNAL

Published by the Friends of the James FarmVOLUME 26, ISSUE 4 FALL 2015

IN THIS ISSUE

President’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

My James Farm Memories . . . . . . 2

Life in Post-War Missouri . . . . . . . 3

September 2015 Shoot . . . . . . . . . 4

The Murder of William Westfall . 5

September Shoot Photos . . . . . . . . 7

In Memoriam-Larry Butcher . . . . 8

Pete Kingery Remembered . . . . . . 9

Richmond’s Outlaw Days . . . . . . . 9

James-Younger Reunion . . . . . . . 10

Renew Your Membership . . . .11-12

GENEALOGY RESEARCH: THE LITTLE STRINGS THAT CONNECT

Continued on page 6

An interview with researcher Judith Tharp

“I grew up with the understanding that my father’s people were simple farmers from Platte County, that had quaint southern sympathies ... little did I know.”

JUDITH THARP

2 Friends of the James Farm • www.jessejames.org

JAMES FARM JOURNAL • VOLUME 26, ISSUE 4 FALL 2015

A look back at 2015 shows it has been a good year. The weather was a bit unique, we had three successful Old West Revolver

shoots and the Royals won the World Se-ries, a good year indeed. With your help and involvement, I trust 2016 will be an-other good year.

Important dates to save in 2016 are:

• Old West Revolver Shoot – April 9

• Old West Revolver Shoot and Reunion – June 11

• Old West Revolver Shoot – Sept. 24

Keep up to date with information and details on our website, JesseJames.org

The Friends of the James Farm Board members are currently planning the above events for 2016 and welcome any

and all suggestions and comments. Other new items to look for in 2016 are inter-views with people of interest and ties to the James’ and the era. Also look for changes to Friends of the James Farm member cards and certification.

In closing, I wish to thank our current and past “Board” and “Friends” members. Without your inter-est, research, con-cern, curiosity and love for the “farm” we could not continue.

Hope to see you at the farm,

Monte [email protected]

FRIENDS OFTHE JAMES FARM

Executive OfficersPresident (Term Expires 2016)

Monte GriffeyVice-President (Term Expires 2017)

Kevin MakelSecretary (Term Expires 2017)

Linda TarantinoTreasurer (Term Expires 2017)

Bryan Ivlow

Board MembersClass of 2016

Pam BannerScott Cole

To Be Determined

Class of 2017Martin McGrane

Paul Weller

To Be Determined

Class of 2018Liz Johnson

Kimberly HowardTo Be Determined

Ex-OfficioBeth Beckett

Christie Kennard, Vivie Tison

& Liz Johnson

Honorary MembersBetty BarrJanet Perry

Michelle PollardDavid Smith

Newsletter EditorsLinda Tarantino, Liaison

Contributors: Michelle Pollard, Liz Johnson & Martin McGrane

Contact editors at:

www.jessejames.org |Newsletter Design/Layout

Liz Johnson ~ Jolly Hill

Friends looking to 2016 events

By Monte Griffey

You know me as Monte Griffey, at present I am the Friends of the James Farm board presi-dent. Many of

you see me as the score-keeper at the Old West Revolver Shoots, as well. However, not everyone knows my connection to the James Farm, nor my family history.

My great-grandmother was Fannie Quantrill Samuel, which makes Frank and Jesse’s mother, Zerelda, and third husband, Reu-ben Samuel, my great-great-grandparents. Although not fully understanding how, and grow-ing up a kid in the 50s and 60s, I was very proud of my family connection to the famous outlaw brothers, Frank and Jesse James. I remember many physical con-frontations with non-believers on the school playground. “Just

because my last name isn’t James does not mean I’m not related.”

For the most part, my maternal ances-tors are all from the Kearney area and I grew up on a farm two miles south

of the James Farm. Between the ages of about 8 and 13, (prior to girls and au-tomobiles) I would spend most every, weather per-mitting, Sunday afternoon at the James Farm. I would saddle up my old buckskin quarter horse “Goldie” and ride the road banks up to

the farm. This was before Clay County bought the farm and it was in terrible condition.

During this time, Mae James, (Frank’s son Robert’s widow) was still living in Excelsior Springs

Early Memories of the James Farm

Continued on page 11

FANNIE QUANTRILL SAMUEL JOE C.HALL

Friends of the James Farm • www.jessejames.org 3


What was life like in post-war Missouri for southern sympathizers?

“Is the War Over?” was the headline that punctuated the front page of the Lexing-ton Caucasian Jan. 9, 1867.

The accompanying article referred to the indignities now being suffered by anyone who was a southern sympathizer during the war – those who refused to take the new oath of loyalty.

The editors spoke for the rebels, who counted the late Archie Clement (one of

Bloody Bill Ander-son’s former lieuten-ants) as one of their own. The newspa-per reported these sympathizers as the real targets of Gov. Fletcher’s militia of “secret vigilante squads, of grand juries that is-sued indictments for war-

time crimes and perjury in taking the Oath.”

Just prior to the Hughes & Wasson rob-bery (allegedly committed by the James -Younger Gang, Thursday, May 23, 1867), bands of militia and other law enforcement were hot on the trail of anyone thought to be a southern sym-pathizer out of Missouri, often choosing to kill them first and ask questions later.

(Frank and Jesse) James biographer Wil-liam Settle has said, “In all probability, boredom and an inability to adjust to the calm of postwar life drove them [former guerrillas] to crime.”

It seems that once the war had ended, things did not return to normal for any-one who fought for, or sided with the south. They were set apart, judged and punished – and this included the James/Samuel family.

Were they bored? Maybe. These south-ern sympathizers were mostly farmers before the war and could have likely continued in that occupation. They were used to living off the land, on the run, hiding out and could continue that way of life. Was risking their lives to rob banks and trains as an alternative to

farming a welcome choice?

Or, was the 16-year outlaw career of Frank and Jesse James devoted to con-tinuing the war against the Union and those who sought to oppress southern sympathizers afterward? Was each and every robbery politically motivated?

The men who became guerrillas during the war were men with strong beliefs and convictions. This did not change simply because the war was over.

What divides outlaws from guerrilla warfare? It was the political incentive of the guerrilla, according to the book Guerrilla Warfare: A Historical and Critical Study, by Walter Laquer, 1998.

The Drake Constitution, completed April 8, 1865 in Missouri, imposed the following:

• It banned the practice of slavery with-out exception.

• Restricted the rights of former rebels and rebel sympathizers.

• Embodied the “ironclad” or Kuckle-bur” oath, which required teachers, lawyers, clergy and all voters to prom-ised they had not committed a long list of disloyal acts.

• Forced an evacuation of the offices of all judges, lawyers and sheriffs (who were southern sympathizers) and re-stricted the right to vote to only those who had been loyal to Missouri and the Union.

• The Drake Constitution is known of-ficially as the Missouri Constitution of 1865.

Many Union sympathizers found the Ironclad Oath too restrictive and tyran-nical and refused to take it themselves.

In the end, eastern and central parts of Missouri rejected the Drake Constitu-tion. However, heavy support from the northwest and southwestern regions, where there had been heavy guerrilla activity during the war, provided the im-petus needed to pass the constitution.

I recently began researching what life was like in Missouri for southern sympathizers after the Civil War. It

has been repeatedly stated that the James brothers never could let go of the war and all their robberies were politically motivated.

Having never read much on this sub-ject before, I was appalled and grossly mis-informed as to how bad life was for anyone with southern proclivities after the war, in any southern state.

If we thought the Ferguson riots were bad, look to what occurred here, in Memphis or in New Orleans for the types of violence that took place after the Civil War.

Here, former guerrillas were often the victim of vigilante groups – often caught on the rode and hung imme-diately. People panicked when robber-ies did occur, such as the robbery of Richmond’s Hughes & Wasson Bank, Thursday, May 23, 1867.

A frenzy took place outside of Rich-mond in which innocent people were killed as well as those who were likely guilty.

Panicked, outraged people are not just a result of 21st century violence, it’s been ongoing for thousands of years.

While the Memphis and New Orleans riots just after the war ended were di-rected at African Americans, anyone who was sympathetic to them was slaughtered as well.

Those first few years of reconstruction were some of the most difficult in our nation’s history. Most unfortunate was the assassination of Pres. Abraham Lincoln, placing his vice-president An-drew Johnson in charge.

Life did not go easy for anyone. The in-nocent and guilty were caught up in the times, and in many ways the war didn’t end just because Lee surren-dered to Grant April 9, 1865.

COMMENTARY



Our fall shoot, held on Sept. 19, came off very well. The weath-er couldn’t have been better.

Our Park Ranger Rangemas-ter, Ranger Dave, enjoyed himself and did an excellent job. Even the people who shot after the match, really enjoyed their chance to shoot.

We had 28 shoot-ers and that included people who came from as far away as Colorado, Minnesota and Illinois, as well as our usual Missouri and Kansas shooters.

A suggestion was made by Jerry Barr,

that we have a bullseye target that we shoot at 12 times. Those who wanted to shoot it would have to use two revolovers – one in each hand, alternating between the left and right hands with one minute to take the 12 shots. He suggested calling it the Bushwacker Challenge, charging an extra $5 for those who had two guns and wanted to participate. We could of-fer a special medallion for the winner of that event. The FOJF board is open to this new category. I would also like our shooter’s comments on this. They may be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to: Friends of the James Farm, P.O. Box

404, Liberty, MO 64069.

Anna James

Cathy Simmons – First Place Tori Diekhoff – Second PlaceMary Beth Van Buren – Third Place

Standard Course, Cartridge Guns

Bruce Houston – First Place Bob Foreman – Second Place Terry Barr – Third Place

Cap and Ball Guns

Paul Weller – First Place Mike Clark – Second Place Mike Cerra– Third Place

Special Target, Cartridge

Bruce Houston – First Place Bob Foreman – Second Place Terry Barr, Randy Webber and Dave Triplett – Three-way tie forThird Place

Special Target, Cap and Ball

Paul Weller – First Place Mike Clark – Second Place Mike Cerra – Third Place

As you can see, we had plenty of prize winners, as well as six double prize win-ners.

Dates for the 2016 shoots are at top right.

See you all in April! Bryan Ivlow

September Old West Revolver Shoot Results

JESSE JAMES OLD WESTREVOLVER SHOOTS 2016

Saturday, April 9Saturday, June 11Saturday, Sept. 24

Registration 8 a.m. • Shoot 9 a.m. James Farm, 21216 Jesse James Farm Rd.

Kearney, MO 64060 • 816-736-8500

Test your skills on the favorite targets of Buck & Dingus, aka Frank & Jesse, and win a prize! This ain’t no tea dance so shooters are encouraged to dress accordingly.

Cartridge Revolver • Cap & Ball

Fixed sights and dueling stance only

Cost is $25 per shooter and includes the special target, AND, a year’s

membership with the Friends of the James Farm

PLUS, LADIES WE WELCOME YOU TO JOIN THE SHOOT ...

ANNA JAMES (FOR WOMEN)

Cartridge Revolver & Cap & Ball

Visit the website: www.jessejames.organd click on the link for the shoot for

rules and regulationsSponsored by Clay County Parks, Recreation &

Historic Sites and the Friends of the James Farm

More Shoot photos on page 7

Participants in the Sept. 19 shoot pose in vintage clothing on the side porch of the James farmhouse.

BANDIT OR SPECTATOR?

This raccoon climbed the roof of the James farmhouse and watched the shooters in September from the chimney.



William Harrison Westfall, the conductor on the Chi-cago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad shot and

killed by Jesse James July 15, 1881, was Ruth Bartle’s great-grandfather. Born in Leroy, McClean Co, Ill., Jan 9, 1843, to Levi and Susan (Clearwater) Westfall, he married Eliza J. Sweeney Sept. 29, 1867,

in Daviess County, Mo. William and Eliza had two sons and a daughter born in Missouri: Daniel in 1869; Lewis in 1871 and Willie in 1878.

Ruth is the daughter of William Westfall Bartle, granddaugh-

ter of Phillip Bartle and Willie Ann West-fall, the only daughter of Conductor William Westfall, shot and killed by the James brothers. The question remains – was his death simply part of that train heist or was the train heist secondary to the murder of William Westfall as the family believes?

Nationwide newspapers reported the in-cident. “One of the boldest robberies … six in number boarded the train … under the leadership of Jesse James … William Westfall, the con-ductor, was shot through the heart …” Thirty miles east of St. Joseph, Mo., the train was destined for Davenport, Iowa and was carrying several thousand dollars intended for the Farmer’s Bank in Gall-atin. Frank and Jesse took a seat in the smoking car. Wood Hite positioned him-self on a rear platform of the baggage car. Conductor William Westfall would have checked his watch, at the appoint-ed time giving the signal for the train to start, climbing aboard as the train slowly lurched forward. A few miles down the track on approach to Winston the train slowed and two more men, Clarence Hite and Dick Liddil ran from the treeline leaping undetected onto the back of the baggage car.

Conductor Westfall was going about his job collecting tickets in the smoking car

when the glass in the forward door of the car broke as two bandits burst in with raised pistols yelling, “Hand’s up!” Jesse and Frank stood up drawing their own guns. Some of the passengers reported having heard Jesse say, “You’re the man I want,” looking directly at Conductor Westfall. Frank fired the first shot hitting the conductor in the arm. As Westfall turned to run for the rear door Frank fired two more shots, missing him. Jesse voiced his exasperation at Frank, took aim and fired, hitting Westfall, who fell dead to the floor. His lifeless body was dragged from the train to the platform by the robbers, who returned to finish the robbery. Somewhere in the melee Frank shot and killed another railroad employ-ee, John McMillan. Westfall’s body rolled from the platform to the ground beside the tracks and was not recovered until the following day. William Harrison Westfall

was only 38 years old. He left behind his widow, Eliza Jane Sweeny, and three chil-dren between the ages of 3 and 12.

The James brothers were the railroad’s best customer and their worst nightmare. Frank and Jesse were known to ride a train for weeks before robbing it in order to become familiar with its schedule, its stops, what it might be car-rying, and of course, the railroad employ-ees. They studied who was honest, who wasn’t, and more importantly, where did their loyalties lie. Therein is the question as to whether Jesse or Frank had ridden the train, recognized Westfall and inten-tionally planned the robbery to coincide with his work schedule, which is what Westfall’s descendants contend.

William Westfall was the conductor for the Pinkerton raid on the James farm Jan. 26, 1875, injuring the outlaw’s mother and killing their little brother Archie. The conductor was not just a ticket-tak-er; he was responsible for the train and its crew. It moved when he said it moved and stopped when he said it stopped. With-out a doubt, the conductor would have known Pinkerton’s mission, but even so, it is unlikely he knew what Pinkerton would do at the Samuel’s farm.

To make matters worse, it immediately became apparent to Pinkerton that Frank and Jesse were not home. Pinkerton real-ized he might be in a bit of trouble him-self. He ordered his men to return to the train, which was waiting for them just outside of Kearney. As the men climbed aboard the caboose, Westfall asked Pinkerton how it had gone. Pinkerton told him, “Don’t ask, and don’t say anything about it.”

A public outcry arose against the Pinker-ton agency. There were cries for Allen Pinkerton’s head and charges of murder were filed against him and his men. How-ever, Pinkerton’s powerful allies were able to squash the charges.

The James brothers vowed to kill anyone

The murder of William Westfall by the James Gang

Great-granddaughter of Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Conductor William Harrison Westfall is Ruth Bartle Johnson. (Photo courtesy of Freda Cruse Hardison)

Continued on page 7



JUDITH THARP Continued from page 1

Settle would later own.

Jesse Settle had two brothers, Joe and Jim, who fought in the war under General Price. Jim was killed at Springfield and Joe was taken prisoner and paroled shortly before the War ended.

At this point, you are probably wonder-ing how does this relate to the James Farm and how did Judith get involved with sup-porting the James farm? As she continued to conduct re-search into her father’s family, she began to see a few “little strings” that connected her to the James farm.

William Paxton, who was a rising attorney in Platte Coun-ty prior to and during the Civil War, began keeping a journal of daily events in the area. He also kept genealogical notes. When Judith came across his book during the course of her research, she found that John James Settle is mentioned in his annals. Paxton’s Annals gives an even-handed account of the daily and major events occurring in Clay and Platte counties prior to and during the Civil War.

Jesse Miller had a large manor house where Kansas City In-ternational Airport is now lo-cated. Tharp has photos that show what is left of the house today. There is also a cemetery near the remains of the house where descendants of the orig-inal slaves who were brought to Missouri by Tharp’s ances-tors are buried. The slave graves are only marked with a round red rock. Between 2006 and 2007, through word of mouth, Judith heard there was a plan to move the cemetery. Many escaped slaves had settled in Parkville and were buried in the ceme-tery. An archaeological dig was done near the remains of the house.

As Judith continued her research she no-ticed how many men in her family were named “Jesse.” She began to realize that

this was a quiet and meaningful way for her father’s family to continue to show their Southern sympathies. She doesn’t think it was a coincidence that so many of her male ancestors had that particular name. She said that she discovered that her ancestors who had lived through the war didn’t talk about their experiences, even to their children. Their motto was to “keep their mouths shut and their elbows to the grindstone.” They were simple farmers

with “quaint southern sympathies.”

In 1985, Judith received some informa-tion on the James Farm. She decided to join the Friends and has been a member ever since. At the time she joined, Milton Perry was the site administrator. Judith went to the bookstore and saw the Wil-liam Settle book Jesse James Was His Name. She bought copies of the book for her family members. She wanted to locate

him, so she called him. She found out they are cousins. He recommended other books to her to help in her research. She said she had wonderful talks with him that she will always treasure. One of the books he recommended was Black Flag by Don-ald Hale. The book contains information about the guerrillas who rode with Wil-liam Quantrill. One name she saw in the book was Ortho Offut. He was quoted in Hale’s book.

Samuel R. Offut had come to Clay County in 1843 with his family. He married Sarah Settle who was Judith’s great-grandfather’s (Settle) sister. Sallie Settle, daughter of John James Settle and Achsah Miller, married Ortho Offut. Unfortunately, Judith couldn’t find anything on Ortho in the National Archives, so she is still trying to piece this together.

She thinks she may be relat-ed to Clell Miller, but hasn’t found anything to substanti-ate this. What is interesting to her throughout her research, she found out her parents were raised eight miles apart but there wasn’t much socializing between the two families.

One thing Judith is grateful for was the opportunity to meet her great-great-grandfather in 1957. She called him “Uncle Jim.” In addition to her gene-alogy research, Judith obtained a medical degree and worked as a prison doctor. She also has a masters degree in fine arts. She continues to be a generous supporter of the James Farm.

She said her daughter and 12-year-old grandson are interested in continuing the genealogy work and have found more in-formation on Ancestry.com.

Tharp says she will continue to follow the “little strings” tying her family to the James family genealogy.

In the words of Christian Mertz, 1846 – “... let your heritage not be lost, bequeath it as a memory.”

Four generation photo taken about 1900. Clockwise from rear: Sapronia Bell Harrington Settle, Achsah Miller Settle, Everett Ewing Settle and Jesse James Settle. (Photo courtesy of Judith Tharp)



WILLIAM WESTFALL Continued from page 5

associated with the raid on their family farm. After learning the name of the train conductor, he too became a marked man. Two weeks after the Gallatin train robbery, on July 28, 1881, the governor of Missouri, Thomas Crittenden, issued a proclamation offering an award of $5,000 for the capture of any of the gang members involved in the robbery and the killing of William Westfall and John Mc-Millan.

Jesse was killed by Bob Ford before he could be caught. Later in October of 1882 Frank turned himself in. He was indicted for McMillan’s death, brought to Gallatin and in the fall of 1883 a most sensational trial ensued, in which after deliberating for three and one half hours, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty.

History is not simply history. It is a reflec-tion of the lives that were touched by the actions of others, good or bad. No one ever faced a jury for the murder of Wil-liam Westfall.

Ruth Bartle wants the world to know. “William Westfall was a good man and my ‘great’ grandfather. Our lives remain impacted by the James brothers.”

Freda Cruse Hardison is the author of “Frank and Jesse James: Friends and Family,” 2015; “Vanishing Ozarks” series; “Voices of our Peo-ple” and Places of our People.” For more infor-mation, visit www.vanishingozarks.com.

A LOVE AFFAIR WITH OLD WEST GUNSOr was shooting at Jim Lane’s pic the draw?

SEPTEMBER SHOOT

Even spectators will dress in vintage clothing for our Old West shoots. It’s a serious sport – whether loading your gun or cleaning it.

Cole Younger, above, and Frank James, left, rarely miss a shoot.

Photos courtesy of Beth Beckett, Jesse James

Farm & Museum.



I came on the Friends of the James Farm board in early 2013. One of the first people I became friendly with was Larry Butcher, known as “The Judge.”

I didn’t know much about Larry, but one thing that became immediately apparent was his kindness, compassion, integrity and quiet honesty.

Larry became my champion through my short tenure as board president. He always stood behind and beside me in all deci-sions I made. He defended me when it was needed and supported me always. I knew I could depend upon him, as did the entire board, for the huge gift he brought to the board – his legal advice.

He kept us on the straight and narrow and was always quick to respond whether it was by email or physical presence. He attended the revolver shoots, reunions and most of the events we held, whenever he could.

Larry even got out of a sick bed to attend his last board meeting in October.

Early on Nov. 19th, we lost Larry after a difficult battle with pancreatic cancer. While his wife, children and family have lost a husband, father, grandfather, brother – we’ve lost the firm presence and strength that was Larry.

In the words of board president, Monte Griffey, “there will never be another Larry Butcher.”

We thank Larry for his years of service to the FOJF. Earlier this year, with great op-timism, he’d agreed to serve another three years and it grieved me to remove his name from our board list in preparing this news-letter. The following is just a portion of Larry’s obituary – his accomplishments are astounding.

~ Liz Johnson, FOJF Board

Larry E. Butcher, 73, of Kearney, died Nov. 19, 2015, at Kansas City Hospice House. Larry was born in Kansas City, Kan., in 1942 to Albert E. Butcher and Dorothy C. Butcher. Larry is survived by his wife of 32 years, Julie A. Butcher, of the home; sons, Brent A. Butcher (Sylvia), San Diego;

Blaine E. Butcher (Rebecca), San Diego; and Brandon G. Butcher (Shelly), Kansas City; younger sister, Nancy L. Thompson, of Denver; three grandchildren, Matthew, Aidan and Maia Butcher, and several cous-ins, nieces and nephews.

Larry graduated from Wyandotte High School in 1960, and from Kansas Univer-sity in 1964 with a B.S. in Business Admin-istration. Following graduation from K.U. Larry became a sales representative for Black & Decker, selling industrial power tools to the automotive, aircraft and con-struction industries in Kansas and western Missouri. After two years in sales Larry en-tered UMKC Law School in 1966.

While at UMKC he served on, and was a twice published member of the UMKC Law Review staff. He was elected president of the Student Bar Association, was a member of Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity, and was a member of the law school’s three-student national moot court team. Larry graduated from law school in 1969, standing fourth in his class. His academic performance at UMKC earned him membership in that school’s honor society, The Order of Bench

and Robe.

Following law school graduation, Larry moved to Washington, D.C., where he qualified for the Honor Graduate Program as a trial attorney in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In his three years at the Justice Dept., Larry pros-ecuted and won over 20 federal felony cases from San Diego to Miami, argued appeals in several of the United States Courts of Appeal, and worked on several briefs for filing in the United States Supreme Court.

He was admitted to practice in Missouri and Florida, and before the United States Supreme Court. In 1972 Larry returned to Kansas City to go into private practice. Larry later served as corporate counsel for Southwestern Bell and did some railroad injury work. During the 1980s Larry served as Vice President and General Counsel for Cameron Mutual Insurance Co., and was in private practice in Kearney from 1990 until his retirement in 2014. In that year the Clay County Bar Association recognized him with its award honoring him as Out-standing Member of the Clay County Bar for his many years of distinguished legal service to the community.

Larry served as the Municipal Judge for the City of Kearney from 1994 until his death. During that time he held membership on several boards of directors, including Jesse James Festival, Inc.; Friends of the James Farm; INNOVATION, a Planned Business Community in Kearney; and the Missouri Municipal and Associate Circuit Judges As-sociation. He served as president of that statewide judicial association in 2005-06, and was the recipient of the group’s high-est honor in 2013, The George Pittman Award. He was only the sixth judge in the 20-year history of the award to receive it.

He was also appointed by the Su-preme Court of Missouri in 2007 to serve on that court’s Municipal Judge Education Committee. Larry served for several years on that committee, teaching judicial basics to new incoming judges. He also taught many courses in judicial ethics and current case law for the state judges as-sociation.

Larry was a fellow of several talents,

IN MEMORIAM 1942-2015

Larry Butcher

Larry Butcher, left, at the FOJF 2013 reunion. (Photo by Liz Johnson)

Continued on page 9



LARRY BUTCHER Continued from page 8

especially when working with his hands. He was an accomplished draftsman, and he designed and drew the plans for his country home and its related out buildings in Kearney. Larry was an enthusiastic auto mechanic repairing and replacing the en-gines and drive trains in several of his boats, trucks and cars.

Yardwork on his acreage was always a fa-vorite pastime, utilizing one of the two old Ford tractors he had fully restored. With a wide assortment of tools, trailers and ve-hicles, Larry was often helping friends and neighbors with projects of theirs as well. In addition to caring greatly about his family, clients and friends, Larry enjoyed NAS-CAR and he always rooted for the consis-tently steady Kearney Bulldogs, the Chiefs, the Royals, and his beloved Kansas Jay-hawks. He was a member of the Kearney Lions Club, the Clay County and Missouri Bar Associations and was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Kearney.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests con-tributions to the Kansas City Hospice House & Palliative Care, 12000 Wornall Rd., Kansas City, MO 64145. Condolenc-es and memories may be left at www.hid-denvalleyfuneralhome/obituaries/larry-e-butcher/143/

Frank James, Cole Younger join Richmond’s Outlaw Days

Every year in early September Richmond holds Outlaw Days, which is themed after the al-leged robbery of the Hughes

and Wasson Bank by the James Gang, May 23, 1867.

A few reenactments are held through-out the day, many people come dressed in period clothing and there are plenty of vendors scattered around Richmond Square offering food, music, wares and history, including the Friends of the James Farm, who had a table at the day-

long event.

This year, Frank James (AKA Greg Hig-ginbotham) and Cole Younger (AKA David Bears) joined the festivities. Frank and Cole were not only dressed in their period clothing, but remained in character throughout the day, greet-ing festival-goers, holding an intimate chat with a few and participating in the reenactments – as spectators, because, as Cole said, “this is my first bank rob-bery, you see. I’ve never robbed a bank before.”

Top: Robbers shoot it out with town-folk in the reenactment of the Hughes & Wasson bank robbery. Left: Cole and Frank chat with a festival-goer in front of the Hughes & Wasson Bank (used for the day’s event, the real building burned in 2008). Above: Frank and Cole held an intimate chat with festival-goers later in the day. (Photos by Liz Johnson)

On Thursday, March 5, 2015, Pete Kingery, 81, of Kearney, passed away. Kingery was well-

known to the James Farm community and historians. In keeping with his long-time ded-ication to the farm and knowledge of history, a

tree was dedicated to Pete during the June revolver shoot.

Pete’s son, Drew and his wife came, along with Pete’s daugh-ter, Laura Jo and her significant other for the dedication.

Kingery remembered

KINGERY



The 2015 James-Younger Gang Reunion

The James-Younger Gang came to Kansas City for its annual re-union the first weekend in Octo-ber. They took several field trips

that included the Jesse James Bank Mu-seum in Liberty and the James Country Mercantile, in addition to the James farm.

Alan Soellner of Chisholm’s Trail Old West Leather, Newnan, Ga., gave a pre-sentation, The Friends of the James Farm’s own Bryan Ivlow presented a talk on antique guns and Betty Barr put in an appearance, greeting and welcoming guests. Betty had a surprise up her sleeve,

however. She presented three wonderful gifts to the museum, which are now on display: A pocket watch that belonged to her great-great-grandfather, Robert Sallee James (who died in 1850); and a copper collar button and tie tack that belonged to her great-grandfather Jesse James.

Betty Barr, great-granddaughter of Jesse James, presented a pocket watch, above right, belonging to Jesse’s father, Rev. Robert Sallee James; a tie tack, inset top right; and copper collar button, above, that belonged to Jesse James, to the Jesse James Museum at the James-Younger reunion. All three are now on exhibit. (Photos by Beth Beckett/Jesse James Museum)

Betty Barr met James painter, Har-lan Ray Bonar, with a print of his work (detailed close-up at right), during the James-Younger reunion.

FOJF Board member and antique gun enthusiast Bryan Ivlow, above, gave an informative talk on antique guns to the James-Younger Gang visitors.



Dear FOJF Member:

Aren’t the statements above the rea-son why you joined the Friends of the James Farm? You have a pas-

sion for history, perhaps you are a family member! Maybe generations of your fam-ily come from Missouri and you savor be-ing a part of the James family’s incredible history.

No matter the reason you joined “The Friends” – we hope you will continue your membership – to support and promote the James Farm, often known simply as “the birthplace of Jesse James.” The history is deep, from the old farmhouse, to Rev James’ ministry and travels to the Califor-nia gold fields, to the Civil War, to life after Jesse’s death.

Your membership to the FOJF supports the preservation of this history and helps to educate others. Visitors come to the farm

from all over the world. It’s important to keep this draw to Kearney, Missouri and the notorious guerrillas and outlaws, Frank and Jesse James, to continue for years to come.

Please fill out the renewal form found on the back page (12) of this newslet-ter and return it by Feb. 1 to continue your membership with the Friends of the James Farm. Feel free to invite your friends to join as well. Visit our website at www.jessejames.org and click on the membership application at the bottom of the main page.

We look forward to seeing you in 2016!

We welcome your input. What would you like to see, experience, learn? We would love to hear from you. Have you been to the farm? Share your photos with us. We now have a very popular Facebook page (Friends of the James Farm) and invite you

to “like” our page and please contribute!

YOU CAN SUPPORT FOJF WHEN YOU SHOP AT AMAZON!

Some Amazon customers have chosen to support the Friends of the James Farm when they shop at AmazonSmile, http://smile.amazon.com. We are now registered as the FOTJF Organization on Amazon-Smile, the link to our site is https://smile.amazon.com/ch/43-1254490. It is a way to give back to the Friends of the James Farm and the contribution is from Ama-zon.

IT’S TIME TO RENEW YOUR FOJF MEMBERSHIP

and the James farm was run and tended to by close friends, Mr. and Mrs. Milli-gan. They would greet tourists and con-duct tours of the old house. I guess I was around so much that I started giving tours myself. Years later at a joint reunion of the James-Younger Gang and the Friends of the James Farm in St. Joseph, I shared this story to the group. After the panel discus-sion was over a man and wife couple came up to me and said that they had toured the James farm back in the 60s and this young boy gave them a tour and he “really knew his stuff.” What a wonderful memory that made.

Back then you couldn’t go into the old part of the house because it was in such poor condition. There was a glass window in the top of the door between the “new part” and “old part,” and I had to stand on a chair to get a glimpse of all the old mysteries that lay on the other side. This was prior to the James Farm Museum and it seems there were more items in the house to view. I specifically remember a belt that hung by the west doorway to the porch that was supposed to belong to Frank. It had some beading on it and fit a 28” waist.

Many years have passed by since Goldie

died but I will always cherish the memo-ries that old horse and the James Farm have given me.

I am proud of the families and ancestors on both sides of my family and I’m most thankful for all the old memories. I am

looking forward to the new memories yet to come. In the end, that is all we wind up with.

Do you have memories of the James Farm? Email me with your memories: [email protected]

EARLY MEMORIES Continued from page 2

Pictured are Joe C. Hall and Fannie Samuel Hall, great-grandparents of Monte Griffey. Fannie was the daughter of Zerelda and Reuben Samuel, half-sister of Frank and Jesse James. In the background are Sara Jean Race and Lawson Race. Lawson Race married Fannie and Joe’s daughter, Susan. (Photo courtesy of Monte Griffey)



Continued on page 11

Friends of the James FarmP.O. Box 404Liberty, MO 64069www.jessejames.org816.736.8500

Membership Levels(Mark One)

Border Ruffian . . . . . . . . . . $20

Bushwhacker . . . . . . . . . . . $30

Clay County Irregular . . . . $50

Road Agent . . . . . . . . . . . $100

Long Rider . . . . . . . . . . . $250

Home Guard . . . . . . . . . . $500

Is this a renewal? Yes No

Outside the continental U.S., please add $5 to your membership contribution.

Return Service Requested

YES, I want to renew my membership with the Friends of the James Farm or begin a new membership. I have checked my level of membership in the box and enclosed a check or money order for the amount indicated.

Name:

Mailing Address:

City/State/Zip: Country:

Telephone: Email:

Please mail membership form and payment to:

Friends of the James Farm

P.O. Box 404 Liberty, MO 64069You can also scan

QR Code to visit our website.

www.jessejames.org

Documents

JAMES FARM JOURNALr.b5z.net/i/u/10126339/f/newsletters/FOJF_JOURNAL... · lawyers, clergy and all voters to prom - ised they had not committed a long list of disloyal acts. • Forced