Live By The Sword... or gun

The newspaper headline was tantalizing - "Twists of Fate. Man Slew Ex-husband First Wife; Slain Himself" and the article didn't disappoint, but it left me confused.

Birmingham, Ala. Jan. 21. (UP) -
The first time Charlie C. Graham, 45, married a divorcee, he killed her former husband.
He went to prison on a life sentence, but was paroled and married another divorcee.
Friday night the second husband killed Graham.
Eleven years ago Graham walked up to the automobile in which Glenn Harless was seated and shot Harless after an argument.
Friday night Graham walked up to the automobile where J.B. Rylant, 45, was seated, got into an argument, and Rylant killed him. They had been friends since boyhood.
Coroner __ M. Evans reconstructed the shooting today, and ordered Rylant held under $2,500 bond in a murder charge.

I was unsure who had married whom and when. All I really knew was that Charlie seemed to argue a lot and he was killed in circumstances very similar to those in which he had killed Glenn Harless. This is what I found out.

The murdered Glenn Harless was, in fact, Glen George Harless, son of Benjamin Franklin Harless and Sarah Fannie Leonard. Glen was born in Calera, Shelby County, Alabama on 28 November 1890. On 13 June 1915, he married Cory May Smith, it would prove to be his undoing. The marriage lasted until at least 1920, but on 31 May 1928, Cora married Charles Crisp Graham in Blount County, Alabama. Her name is given in the record as Miss Cora May Harliss, but the newspaper article calls her a divorcee. I wonder if Charles was aware of this prior to the marriage, but he certainly knew it afterwards. Just five months after the marriage, Charles Crisp Graham shot and killed Glenn George Harless. Charles was sentenced to a life term and he can be found in the 1930 Census in Kilby Prison. I do not know when he was released.

In 1934 Cora and Charles were divorced and on 23 December 1938 Charles married Bessie L. Haley in Anniston, Calhoun County, Alabama. Bessie had been married twice previously. Her latest marriage, to J. B. Rylant had ended in divorce in 1938.

On 20 January 1939, Rylant killed Charles Crisp Graham in Birmingham, Alabama.

I do not know what happened to Cora or Bessie, or even Rylant, but Glen George Harless did not appear to have had any children with Cora.

Emiline Niday Re-Visited!

Genealogy is only as good as the next record you find! I was reminded of this all too clearly today when Pamela McCunn kindly shared a copy of the death record for Sarah Nida. Although there were several Sarah Nida's, this record clearly stated that this Sarah was the daughter of Ferdinand and F. Harless.

Sarah Nida died 20 Apil 1859 in Roane District, Roane County, West Virginia. Cause of death was fever and ague. Her age was 65 years. Her parents, as noted, Ferdinand & F Harless. She was born in Giles Co., Va. The person giving the information of death was Emaline Stump, and if that wasn't clear enough, in the column for designation of informant we are told Emaline was her daughter. The column for "consort of, or unmarried" was left blank, indicating her husband had predeceased her.

I began this series wondering if Emiline Niday was the daughter of John Nida or Jacob Nida and that mystery is not resolved. If she was the daughter of Jacob, was this the Jacob Nighdy who took out a bond in Giles County, Virginia to marry Salley Kessinger on 16 March 1812? Or was she the daughter of the John Nida/Nidah/Niday who took out a bond to marry Sarah Harless on 23 October 1818 in Giles County, Virginia?

In the first instance we have a Jacob Nida marrying Sarah, but not as Sarah Harless - was she previously married? In the second instance we have a Sarah Harless but not a Jacob Nida.

For now I am going with Sarah Kessinger being one and the same as Sarah Harless daughter of Ferdinand and Frankie, but I am desperately hoping to find the next record!