Book to highlight 100 years of murder in Bollinger County

Sue Stanfill never imagined she would write a historical book about murders in Bollinger County. It’s not like it was on her bucket list.

“I am an avid genealogy researcher and have been researching for well over 30 years,” said Stanfill, who recently finished “Bollinger County Missouri Murders: 1855-1955” with the help of her cousin, the late Bob Fulton of Patton, Missouri, who died last summer.

“When I told Bob about the idea for this book and my doubts as a writer to accomplish this task, he kept encouraging me to proceed with the idea,” Stanfill said. “He felt a book like this would be an asset to Bollinger County history compiled in one book.”

Now living in Arkansas and retired from a career in management, Stanfill has deep roots in Bollinger County. She grew up in Fredericktown, Missouri, but both of her parents, Delmar and Vida Grindstaff Stanfill were raised in the Patton area. And her ancestors date back three to six generations in the county.

“The idea for this book began when I was researching in Bollinger County Archives for my own families’ histories,” Stanfill said. “I came across the ‘Register of Prisoner Book 1899-1932.’ I was surprised by how many people had been in jail on murder and various other charges. When I started talking to people at the archives about the prisoner book and the murders it included, they started telling me about various murders that they had heard of or read about in the county. These conversations raised my interest, and I decided I would try to compile the murder information into a book with the encouragement of the workers at that time at the Bollinger County Archives.”

Stanfill concentrated only on murders that occurred in Bollinger County. According to her research, the first murder took place in 1855, four years after the county formed.

“This book does not attempt to cover every murder that occurred in the 1855-1955 timeframe. But these are the ones I found,” she said. “This book represents a compilation of court records, files of the accused, newspaper articles, testimonies, and anything found on each crime.

“I have tried to give a glimpse into the lives of the people involved and people who knew those who were involved in these murders,” Stanfill said. “I hope this makes for more interesting reading and a helpful guide to anyone researching their family. Even if a member of your family was not murdered or accused of a murder, they may have been on a jury or a witness to the crime. This helps to show just how many in the county were involved with each case and how it might have affected the lives of many of our ancestors in Bollinger County.

“This book should help readers get a glimpse into the way people spoke, and how they felt about what was going on in their communities at that time,” she said. “I think these stories will help us to better know our ancestors and their friends and neighbors.”

Donna Calvert, manager of Bollinger County Archives, is excited about the book coming out.

“She let me read a lot of the cases,” Calvert said, “and I can’t wait to get a copy.”

The 273-page book is hardback, 8.5 x 11 in size for easier reading. Cost is $49.50, which includes shipping. Anyone interested in buying the book can email Stanfill at Sundown41@aol.com to reserve one before they are sold out.

A limited number of copies for the same price will be available soon at Bollinger County Archives in Marble Hill, Missouri, and Historical Madison County in Fredericktown.

“Anyone that buys a copy from either of them, I will donate a portion of the cost of the book to help them keep their history centers going,” Stanfill added.