The Killing of Holt Pugh – 1918

Volney, Grayson County, Virginia

Contributed by Lessie Blevins Farmer

There was a store owned by Poley York he as most store owners back then bought and sold from the local people. Poley had been noticing his eggs had been getting gone so he got to watching and when a certain young man (Holt Pugh)came in eggs would get gone then in a couple hours or so this same young man would come back and bring eggs to sell him. Well needless to say ole’ Poley got wise to this and he confronted the young man and they got into a fight with Poley getting the best of Holt. Holt went home mad. So he offered his brother which was Booker $ 25.00 to kill Poley. Well a day or two passed by and Poley heard about the offer Holt had made Booker. So Poley was kindly looking for trouble. So one night Booker took Holt up on his offer he went to kill Poley. But Poley seen Booker first and he shoot him. Some one found Booker dead the next morning. (There is a pole with a sign on it where Booker was found dead at.) I heard Poley was Hauled out of Volney that morning in a hog crate in back of a wagon to North Carolina for his safety until the trial. He was found innocent : Self Defense.