EMMA D. THURMAN
Whipped by Masked Night Riders

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Note from editor, Don Smith: On 9 SEP 2003, I found this article on the internet, concerning an Emma Thurman Johnson who was whipped in 1908 by masked night riders, warning her not to divorce her husband.   As children, we had heard of a brutal husband who beat my Grandma Emma.   This man was a well known man in the area who sent his night rider friends, hidden by masks, after her.  She recognized them, of course.  The story had come out in the newspaper.  My Aunt Bertie was a child of this man.  My grandmother divorced that man, married my grandfather John D. SMITH and had 6 more children.  This must be the article because it is in the correct time frame.   It is in Union City, Obion County, Tennessee.  John D. Smith’s family, the family of Luke Lee Smith, Jr., were all living in Obion County at that time. 

 

 

A ReelFoot Lake Night Rider

 


Night Rider masks generally were
made from meal sacks and pointed
at the bottom to resemble a beard.

 

 

    The story is retyped and displayed below, and below    
    that section is the actual article from the newspaper.    

 

Coshocton Daily Times (Coshocton, Ohio) – 22 DEC 1908

 

WOMAN TELLS OF WHIPPING

 

Dragged From Bed By Masked Men.

 

Beaten Over Shoulders With Strap Until She Promises To Withdraw Suit For Divorce – Testimony Comes As Climax To Day Of Sensational   Developments In Night Rider Trials – Plot To Rescue Prisoners Thwarted By Judge Jones' Action.

 

Union  City, (Obion County,) Tennessee, Dec. 22, 1908.

 

The state practically completed its case against the eight alleged night riders on trial for the murder of Captain Ranken, when it drew from Frank Fehringer, a member of the band, a detailed statement not only of the murder itself and those who committed it, but of a score or more of other outrages.  An then, just to add the finishing touches, it called to the stand Mrs. Emma Thurman Johnson, one of the two women known to have been whipped by the band, and had her tell her story. It was a dramatic close to a day of sensational developments.  

 

As Mrs. Johnson's name was called a murmur of satisfaction arose. Nearly every one knew she had been whipped, but except for the grand jury and prosecuting officers, no one had heard her story. A tall, slender young woman, attired in black and heavily veiled, walked rapidly to the stand.  Mrs. Johnson had married Joe Johnson, a man 30 years older than she was.  She lived with him four years and a child was born.  Last August she sued him for divorce, charging cruelty, and asking maintenance.  Early in September the riders visited her fathers home and left word that she must withdraw the suit.  She failed to do so, and on a second visit her father was whipped.    

 

On both occasions, she was at her sister's home.  The riders seemed to have realized this, for on Sept. 30, about 11 o'clock at night, they went to the sister's house.  Mrs. Johnson awoke from a sound sleep beside her babe to find her bedroom filled with masked and armed men.  A man, whom she recongized as Fred Pinion, one of the defendants, was standing so close that she could touch him.    

 

"We have come to tell you for the last time that you must dismiss that divorce suit." said Pinion, whom she had known for years and who lived scarcely a mile away.         

 

" I will not withdraw it," she replied.  

 

"You will before we get through with you," replied Pinion.  "If you dismiss it now we will see that he supports the child, but you must not touch his property."   

 

Mrs. Johnson obstinately insisted that she would press the case.  Then the bandits filed out into the yard to consult.  In a few moments they returned.  Pinion stepped over to the young woman, dragged her roughly from the bed in her night clothes and out into the night.  They hurried about 250 yards away.  They threw her on a log in the woods and one of them beat her across the shoulders with a strap.  After the first beating the asked her if she would dismiss the suit.  She said no.  Then she was again whipped.  This time her fighting spirit was broken and she sobbingly said she would give in to their demands.

 

Judge Jones sent out the jury  before court adjourned, and said, "There are eight defendants here charged with a captial offense.  They are not handcuffed and are under guard of only two deputies.  I do not think this is safe.  Therefore I order the sheriff to handcuff these men and ask the military to detail ten armed men to serve as guards."

 

 

Article From Coshocton Daily Times, Coshocton, Ohio, 22 DEC 1908. Article is about Emma Thurman Johnson being whipped by night riders.

 

 

EMAIL FORWARDED BY  CHAS. T. CARTER, JR.

TO EDITOR DON SMITH ON 08/05/2004


From: Chas T CARTER  (8/3/2004 1:42:30 PM)

To   : Frankie King name.withheld@com

 

I'm doing research on those "nightriders" that were active around the Reelfoot Lake area in the above time-frame. A Joseph A. Johnson was a confessed rider (?) who was married to a Emma Thurman. She was abused by the riders & got a divorce..... Do you have any information on this family or up-to-date info on the "riders"?? Emma also had a child by Joseph in 1905. Rumor has it that Emma later married a John Smith... Anything to this????

 

** Thank you for your time & consideration **

Chas. T.



From:     Frankie King <name.withheld@com>

To   :     Chas. T. Carter <name.withheld@webtv.net>

Subject: Nightriders (1904-07) of Obion County re: Joseph A. Johnson

 

Dear Chas Carter,

 

In response to your e-mail of 08/03/04 regarding the Nightriders ofObion County, the following information was found:

 

SOURCE: Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture NIGHT RIDERS OF REELFOOT LAKE Probably no event in the region's history, with the exception of the Civil War, polarized the population of Obion County as did the Night Rider episodes of 1908. Nearly a century later, public opinion still varies greatly in regard to the character and motivation of the men and women involved in the Reelfoot violence. For seven months in 1908, masked horsemen rode roughshod over a portion of Obion County and imposed their brand of justice with whip, arson, and shotgun. But if the riders are judged guilty of excesses, their adversary, the West Tennessee Land Company, with its example of  callous greed, must share in that guilt. Unfortunately, when the State of Tennessee intervened in the matter, it too showed scarcely more restraint than the other participants in the events.

 

Simply stated, the Night Rider episode was a dispute over title to Reelfoot Lake and the surrounding land. Created by the cataclysmic forces of the 1811-12 earthquake, the lake and its wildlife supplemented the diets and incomes of subsistence farmers in the area. Although claims on the land existed prior to the earthquake, the local population

regarded the lake as public domain. When the West Tennessee Land Company quietly purchased old claims and made plans to drain at least part of the lake and convert it to cotton production, the region's residents reacted violently.

 

On the night of October 19, 1908, after several weeks of increasingly violent activities, events moved swiftly to a tragic stage. Masked riders kidnaped Tennessee Land Company officers R. Z. Taylor and Quinton Rankin from Ward's Hotel in Walnut Log. Rankin was murdered, but Taylor escaped into the swamp and was presumed dead. He survived by hiding under a cypress log and was found more than twenty-four hours later, wandering and disoriented.

 

Governor Malcolm Patterson personally took charge of matters and arrived in the lake region with the Tennessee National Guard. By the end of October, nearly one hundred suspects were incarcerated in a makeshift camp set up by the Guard. The suspects received very harsh treatment while in the custody of the state, and two died while awaiting trial.Eventually, six were found guilty in the murder of Quinton Rankin and sentenced to death. The Tennessee Supreme Court overturned their convictions in 1909.

 

Public opinion favored the plight of the Reelfoot Lake people. As a consequence, the state acquired title to the lake in 1914, ending the threat of private ownership.

 

In addition to this article I also located a book, Night Riders of Reelfoot Lake by Paul J. Vanderwood which gives a detailed overview of the night riders.  The book contains three references to Joe Johnson and Emma Thurman.  A copy of these pages as well as several pages from an article, "A Concise History of Obion County, Tennessee" can be requested for a processing fee of $5.00.  Simply enclose a check or money order for that amount along with a printout of this e-mail and send it to:Tennessee State Library and Archives, 403 Seventh Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37243-0312. 

 

I did not find an answer to the question of a second marriage for Emma Thurman.  Our marriage index for Obion County only covers the years 1824-1877.  If you want to request a search of the microfilm records of Obion County for a further search of marriages for that county please note the information below:

 

Marriages 1861-1944 can be found in the records of each county. There is no state-wide index to marriages during this time period. We can search for a marriage record if given the names of the groom and bride, county of marriage, and the date of the marriage or a 5-year date span. If the marriage occurred in one of the four metropolitan counties

(Davidson County, Hamilton County, Knox County and Shelby County), a 3-year date span must be specified.

 

Starting in 1945, there is a state-wide index to Tennessee marriage records. The index covers 1945-1953.  For marriage records from 1954 to the present, contact the Office of

Vital Records at Central Services Building 1st Floor 421 5th Avenue North Nashville, Tennessee 37247.

 

ORDERING INFORMATION AND FEES: There is a $10 fee to search for a marriage record on microfilm. If the record is found, we will mail a copy to you. If the record is not found, you will be notified by mail. The $10 fee is not refundable. Payment in advance by check,  money order or credit card is required.  Send your request to Tennessee State

Library and Archives, Research Department, 403 Seventh Avenue North, Nashville TN 37243-0312. For Tennessee Residents with a current Tennessee mailing address the fee is $5.00. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT ONLY ONE REQUEST MAY BE PLACED AT A TIME.  ONCE YOU RECEIVE AN ANSWER TO THE FIRST REQUEST,  ANOTHER REQUEST MAY BE PLACED.

 

hank you for contacting the Tennessee State Library and Archives. Please let us know if we can be of any further assistance.

 

Sincerely,

Del Dorr, Library Assistant II

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