CIVIL WAR SCORE SETTLING

Tommy Roberts Note: We are kin to all the folks in this story, both the guy who was killed and those who done the killing. Part of our heritage regardless of which side we were on.

Family Stories

Murder of Andrew Jackson Maxwell 

 By: David Montgomery

In 2010 a distant cousin Harold Ralph Maynard told me a story regarding an Ambush-Murder of my 3rd great grand uncle Andrew Jackson Maxwell by some of his (my) own kin folk whom were later indicted for his murder.  I decided to take a more in depth examination of this story and went to Putnam County Library, Ancestry Research Area and found the hand written court recorder’s record of the indictment procedure in an old Putnam County Circuit Court book

Brief Overview:

The American Civil War created terrible inner family and neighbor divisions and hatred in much of the Eastern half of Tennessee.  Grievances sometimes led to ambushing; better known then as “Bushwhacking”.  The bitter divisions of allegiances to one side or other put kin folk fighting and dying on opposite sides of the battle fields. The killings didn’t stop after the war was officially over; grudges were still to be settled.

 My 4th great grandfather Samuel Maxwell had five sons and five daughters.  His sons David Woods Maxwell and Andrew Jackson Maxwell fought for the confederacy while son Samuel and some of the son-in-laws fought for the Union, as did relatives 2nd great grandfather Craven Michael Shanks, 2nd great grandfather Amos Vaughn and Craven’s brother William Henry Shanks.

Andrew Jackson Maxwell was called by his middle name Jackson.  He was born 27 Feb 1815.  In1837 he married Martha Jane Maddux a daughter of my 3rd great grandfather Craven Maddux who came to Tennessee from Virginia.  Jackson Maxwell and first wife Martha had five children.  Martha died in 1850 and in1855 Jackson Maxwell married Matilda E Bennitt with whom he had five more children. Jackson’s son Thomas B Maxwell a member of L Company, 35th Infantry Division CSA died in the civil war on 24 Dec 1863.

Jackson Maxwell was a spy for the Confederate Army.  His information forwarded to the confederacy resulted in the death of some of his Union sympathizing kin and neighbors. His kinsman and my 2nd great grand uncle William Henry Shanks sent Jackson a message of warning to say he’d be killed when war was over.

 One instance of how Andrew Jackson Maxwell’s information helped the Confederate Calvary is told in the following story:      

2nd Great grandfather Craven Shanks secretly came home from the war to help the family kill hogs. His son Robert was a distance away on the lookout while Craven and two other men went about the hog killing. Soon Robert hollered: “they’re coming”.  A group of Confederate Calvary men were coming fast down upon them so they took off running through the woods.  Craven ran down a path where a large tree had fallen across, he jumped over the tree and slid down under it from the far side.  As he slid under the tree a large piece of bark scooted off the tree and concealed him.  The Confederate Calvary with their horses jumped the log never noticing Craven hidden there.  They continued on down the trail chasing the two other men, probably killing them.

When the war officially ended Andrew Jackson Maxwell came home to his family in Putnam County TN.  On 11 September 1865 while on his way to visit an old Confederate Veteran fiend named Zeb Carr he was viciously bushwhacked and killed there on Carr Ridge.  Two years later Andrew Jackson Maxwell’s widow Matilda Maxwell filed a law suit against the men she claimed was responsible for the murder of her husband. An exact word for word transition of the hand written indictment follows:     

Indictment for Murder of:

 Andrew Jackson Maxwell

 (Son of Samuel Maxwell and Martha Patton)

Transcribed from the Putnam County Circuit Court Minutes dated April 1866 – April 1868, pages 290 and 291. 

Wednesday September 4 1867.

The Grand Jury this day returned to court and filed a bill of indictment against William Shanks, Frances M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn, Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington for murder which bill of indictment is in the words and figures following to wit.

The grand jurors for the state of Tennessee elected, empanelled, sworn and charged to enquire for the body of the county of Putnam in the state of Tennessee upon their oath present that William Shanks, Francis M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn, Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington with force and arm in the county of Putnam in the state of Tennessee on the eleventh day of September in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty five not having fear of God before their eyes and being moved and  seduced by the instigation of the devil an assault did make in and upon the body of one Andrew J Maxwell then and there being in peace of God and our said State with pistols commonly called revolvers which the said William Shanks, Francis M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn, Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington then and there held in their right hands which pistols were loaded and charged with gun powder and leaden balls they the said William Shanks, Frances M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn, Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington with said pistols by them so had and held in their right hands loaded and so charged with gun powder and leaden balls as afore said did then and there willfully, wickedly, feloniously, deliberately, maliciously, premeditatedly and of their malice aforethought kill and murder in the first degree him the said Andrew J Maxwell by then and there discharging the said pistols so by them held as aforesaid loaded and charged with gun powder and leaden balls as aforesaid at, to, and upon the body of him the said Andrew J Maxwell inflicting in upon and through the breast and stomach of him the said Andrew J Maxwell seventeen mortal wounds of the length of one inch of the depth of six inches and the width of one inch and in and upon the head and arms of him the said Andrew J Maxwell various other mortal wounds with the pistols aforesaid so loaded and charged as foresaid and by them held as aforesaid and by them discharged at to in and upon the body, breast and arms of the said Andrew J Maxwell as a foresaid of which mortal wounds by the said William Shanks, Francis M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn., Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington inflicted upon the said Andrew J Maxwell as aforesaid he the said Andrew J Maxwell then and there immediately die so the grand jurors a foresaid upon their oath a foresaid do say that said William Shanks, Francis M Anderson, John H Roberts, Amos Vaughn, Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington in manner and form a foresaid in the county and state a foresaid willfully, wickedly, deliberately, feloniously, maliciously, premeditatedly and of their malice afore thought did kill and murder in the first degree him the said Andrew J Maxwell contrary to the form of the statue in such case made and provided and against the peace and dignity of the state.

Signed: Tim H Williams

           Attorney General                      

State of Tennessee Indictment, (page 291 Cont.)

William Shanks – Francis M Anderson – John H Roberts – Amos Vaughn – Thomas Carr and Edmond Pennington

Matilda Maxwell – Prosecutriix  

Page 292, Sept 4 1867

Matilda E Maxwell, Eda Swearington, Martha E Waller, Mary Jane Maxwell, Rhoda Maxwell, Lewis Leftwich, George Maddux, Rufus Brice, Elizabeth Whitehead, witness sworn in court and sent before the grand jury to give evidence of this bill of indictment this 3rd day of Sept 1867.  Amos Maxwell foreman of the jury ordered that court issues summons for the state all the witness named on this indictment.

Page 299, defendants come before court to get bailed out by family and friends

Robert Anderson bale $5000.

Page 321,Grand  Jury indictment of: William H Mancum, Lewis Mayner, James Maxwell, William Shanks, for murder of Andrew J Maxwell.

Amanda Mitchell prosecuterx      

Page 324 Frances M Anderson comes before court to post bail of $5000.

Page 326 and 343 John H Roberts comes before court to post bail $5000

Page 339 Amos Vaughn comes before court to post bail $4000

  Cosigned by Amos Maxwell, Craven M Shanks, Meridreth Grentry.

Page 433 may be some sort of agreement to acquit Amos Vaughn

Page 436 continuance till next term

Page 445 William Shanks comes before court for charges of 1 April 1868 for making unlawful contact with Matilda K Maxwell (wife of deceased Andrew Jackson Maxwell)

Page 453 some sort of agreement.