Early Grayson County Criminals
Crime and punishment was a very real part of Grayson County from its earliest habitation. The following abstracts for criminal cases may offend some readers, however, to deny that it occurred is to deny that the citizens of the Valley were human with human frailties. The infractions listed are also a very significant indications of the moral standards to which the community was held. Some of these offense are trivial in modern thinking, however, considering how little the residents had during these pioneer days, often a small amount represented a considerable part of one’s personal property.
Crime rates for all crime during the period of this study are unavailable, however, the 1916 homicide rate for the region are probably indicative of murder in the region during the ante-bellum period. These numbers are also probably not indicative of the civil war years or the period of reconstruction. In Virginia the murder rate in the Blue Ridge was 6.0 per 100,000 population in 1916, while the state wide rate was 11.9; the mountain total was 8.1. In the Blue Ridge section of North Carolina the murder rate was 8.5, while the state wide total was 8.4. Campbell also reports that the murder rate among the black population was disproportionately high, which raised the statewide murder rates, perhaps skewing the mountain rate, where few blacks enter the picture, in relation to the rest of their respective states. For example, the black murder rate in North Carolina’s mountains was 20.8 per 100,000 population, while the white murder rate was 7.5. Statewide the white murder rate was 4.2 versus 15.8 for blacks. The theory of mountaineer justice and retribution seem to hold true if these numbers are truly reflective of society. Murder rates among mine workers, and probably other laborers, such as lumbermen, was somewhat higher in the small but growing industrial communities of the mountain south.
Not all crime was violent, nor was crime limited to the poorer residents of the Upper New River Valley. For example, Samuel McCamant, a member of the Virginia legislature from Grayson County, was charged with illegal gambling in Wythe County, Virginia on August 27, 1834. The specific charges against McCamant were playing cards and roullette. Other objectional behavior in the ante-bellum Upper New River Valley was drinking too much, or drinking more than necessary on Sunday. Gambling on cards, horse races or various other games of chance were likewise considered vices of the time. Petty theft occupied much of the criminal justice system in the Upper New River Valley as well. Other prevalent problems found in the court records are breech of contracts and assaults. The Ashe County, North Carolina Superior Court Records are infuriatingly silent on particular crimes, but note many citizens were found guilty of sundry violations of the law and fined or jailed for short periods, but charges are not recorded.
More serious criminal charges, such as murder, rape, arson and grand theft, happended, as they did every where people live, but were not everyday events. When such a crime was charged, the courts became a virtual side-show with many of the residents appearing on court days simply to view the spectacle. During the Ante-bellum period one of the most talked about crimes had national undercurrents, though the crime was probably not well known outside the immediate region.
Jails, Stocks and Gallows
According to John Preston Arthur, Jefferson was the site of the second jail west of the Blue Ridge (presumably in North Carolina). This structure was log and served the needs of the criminal justice system until 1833 when it was replaced with a brick structure. This jail was burned in 1865 by men in Federal Army uniforms, thought to have been members of Major General George Stoneman’s Raiders, though they could have been Union Army Deserters, or local men who had joined the Union Army seeking to settle an old score with local Confederates. The jail was rebuilt and served until burned by inmates in 1887, when repaired and served into the 20th century. Ashe County also had a set of stocks erected in the public square in old Jefferson. At what point they ceased to be used is unknown.
Alleghany County does not seem to have a separate jail until after the conclusion of the Civil War. This jail, large enough for only two or three prisoners had a dungeon. An early sanitation report on the Alleghany County jail noted that the jail was filthy, had a horrible odor, and should be demolished. Whether or not the recommendations were accepted by the county court is unknown.
Incarceration facilities in Grayson County were first established at Old Town and remained there until the courthouse and other county offices were moved to Independence about 1852. Grayson county also employed a whipping post and stocks at the court facilities at Old Town, but there is no indication that they were used at Independence.