6 July 1906--MURDER AND SUICIDE --George Wheeler in a Drunken Frenzy Deals Out Death and Destruction With Big Revolver --Perhaps Fatally Wounds An Aunt of His Brother’s Wife, Then Murders His Own Child--Wife and Ends His Terrible Work by Blowing Out His Own Brains --Worst Tragedy in County’s History --Booze to Blame --Perhaps the most bloody and shocking tragedy ever in the history of the county, if not in this part of the state, was enacted by Geo. Wheeler at about 3 o’clock on the morning of the 4th, when in a drunken frenzy he shot and killed his wife, perhaps fatally wounded a lady relative and then killed himself. Not within the memory of the oldest inhabitant has the community sustained such a shock and it will be a long time before the horror of the terrible affair ceased to be a nightmare. Like a vast majority of such tragedies, it was the sole and direct result of booze, and how any man, especially one of a violent temper, can go and drink the vile stuff after seeing the mute witnesses of this fearful tragedy, is more than we can understand. The first intimation that any one in town had that anything unusual had taken place was when Marshal W. I. Williams was called up over the phone about four o’clock Wednesday morning and informed that Geo. Wheeler had killed himself and wife at the home of his brother north of town. Mr. Williams, not knowing any of the particulars took Constable Andrews along with him, and when they arrived at the Wheeler home a sight met their eyes that made their blood run cold. Lying in the middle of the road, in a pool of his own blood, was Geo. Wheeler stark and cold in death, a bullet hole through his head and lying near him and against the yard fence of the little home was Wheeler’s child wife, also dead, having been shot three times. Lying by the side of Wheeler was the revolver which had ushered two souls into eternity, a 45-calibre colt. Wheeler had fired the six cartridges and all of them had taken effect but one, and this one had only missed its mark by a very narrow margin. Dr. Burkhalter and Nichols had also been summoned and seeing that Wheeler and his wife were dead they proceeded to the house to render assistance to Mrs. Bethena Sturgeon who had been shot through the body. They found that she had been shot in the small of the back, the ball passing through the body just in front of the spinal column which it injured in such a manner as to produce paralysis of the lower limbs. And the cause of it all was a few glasses of liquid damnation, otherwise known as beer. Just think of it! The tragedy so completely paralyzed those present when it happened and those who arrived before the officers and acting coroner, that the dead were left lying in the road until almost seven o’clock when they were conveyed to the home of the dead man, just north of Oscar Baker’s and about a mile south of the scene of the tragedy, where the inquest was held before Justice D. L. Barron. The particulars, as we could gather them were these: Wheeler, who runs a machine at mine No 11, quit work about nine o’clock Tuesday night, something about the machine having broke, and went home, although the night boss told him he thought the machine could be fixed in a short time and that in the event it could not be he would allow him his wages if he would stay. Wheeler seemed determined to go, and made the remark, “I guess I’ll go as I have got hell in me tonight.” After reaching home he dressed in his street clothes and went to the home of his brother, Will, about a mile north, where his wife and one or two neighbors were to sit up with Mrs. Wheeler, who has been quite sick for some time. He seemed in the best of spirits and laughed and joked with those present and no one dreamed that death in such a terrible form was so near. When George entered his brother’s home he took his pistol from his pocket and put it in a bureau drawer, making some remark about carrying it for the purpose of killing some vicious dog. Will testified at the inquest that it was their custom to get a keg of beer every Fourth and that one had been procured the evening preceding the tragedy. No one got drunk, it seems, but George, and he was duly sober when Will went to bed at 10:30 o’clock. The latter testified that he was awakened between two and three o’clock by one of the women present excitedly saying, “Don’t do that, don’t do that,” whereupon he got up and found George crazed with drink and endeavoring to get the revolver from the bureau drawer, while Mrs. Addie Ahlbom was trying to keep him from doing so but could not. George was insisting that his wife go home with him but she did not want to do so as he was drunk and inclined to quarrel and had struck her in the face. Will Ahlbom, who was in the room at the time, remonstrated with Wheeler and endeavored to get the revolver away from him, but could not, and in the scuffle, both got out of the house and into the yard. During the scuffle Will had told his brother that he would not put up with any such doings, especially as his wife was sick, and that if didn’t behave himself he would send to town for an officer to arrest him. This threat only made George worse and he threatened to kill Will. Ahlbom was making a heroic effort to quell Wheeler and was taking him to the gate where his wife, having decided to go home, was waiting when Will’s wife, hearing her husband threatened, came to the door and told George to go on home and behave himself. At this Wheeler lost what little control he did have of himself and fired from the gate at the woman standing in the door, the ball barely missing her. From this point to the end he seemed to be a perfect demon. After firing the first shot he ran back to the house and firing through the window screen, presumably at his brother Will, and hit Mrs. Sturgeon. The latter uttered a piercing scream when Wheeler ran back to and through the gate. Here he was again accosted by Ahlbom who approached him for the purpose of securing the pistol if possible. Wheeler realized his actions to some extent at least, for he drew down on Ahlbom and warned him that if he came another step closer he would kill him, and the latter wisely stood back. Wheeler evidently believed that he had killed some one in the house for when he rushed back to the gate he said something about “ending it all,” and in the next instant had fired three shots into his wife’s body. He then placed the revolver, which now contained but one load, to his right temple and fired, the ball passing through his head. He died instantly. Mrs. Wheeler’s death is also supposed to have been instantaneous, as any one of the three shots would have proved fatal. One ball entered the bottom of her left jaw bone and ranged upward, while the others entered her body just under the left arm pit, one ranging a little downward and coming out on opposite side and the other coming out through her left breast just over the heart. The muzzle of the revolver could not have been over three or four inches from her when it was fired, as her face as well as her clothing was badly powder burned. Wheeler was 27 years of age while his wife was a mere child, being but 15. They were married the 11th of last month in the home where the tragedy occurred. She was the daughter of the widow John Stone, and a sister of Thomas Stone of Higbee. So far as we can learn their married life had been a happy one, and but for a few drinks of a beverage which some people, despite the many awful examples to the contrary to be seen every day, can see no harm in, both would be enjoying life and happiness today. They had just gone to housekeeping and George, the day of his marriage, told his brother that from henceforth he was done with drink. The poor child lying in her own blood at the gate through which she passed a happy bride only a few days before, and her husband lying in the road with the blood coated revolver by his side, was a sight to make the stoutest heart quail and one that will never be forgotten by those who witnessed it. Fully as sad was the scene at home which a few hours before had been the scene of happiness and contentment --the manly looking husband in one room, the delicate girl wife in the other, both cold in the embrace of death. It was a sight to make even devils weep. Two souls ushered into eternity, one at least, unprepared to die! Wheeler was a very quiet and inoffensive man when sober, but a perfect demon when drunk, and every person under the government responsible for strong drink being sold will be held responsible just that much for this crime in the last great day. The coroner’s jury, composed of J. C. Elgin, O. D. Wallace, J. T. Lewis, C. H. Lewis, Blackford Adams and Jas. Barron rendered a verdict in accordance with the above facts. Funeral services were held at the desolated home yesterday at ten o’clock and interment made in the City Cemetery. (Transcription of the Old Higbee News by-Kathy Bowlin.)
Posted on: Sat, 06 Jul 2013 12:40:19 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015