“ He made the rope that hung Eli Sheets, the only murderer ever hung in Beaver county.”
~ Line from the untitled death notice of Jacob Bupp, as in was printed in The Black Hills Union (Rapid City, South Dakota), 27 July 1900, page 7
*This blog post is one in a series of blogs on my famous ancestor, Jacob Bupp, the Hangman's Ropemaker- click the page tab above labeled "The Hangman's Ropemaker" for more information and the blog series*
Eli F. Sheets was described in local newspapers as being of solid build and a dark complexion with fair hair and a mark underneath his left eye, which looked “as if he had been struck”. He was an unsavory type of character, and was known as a troublemaker in his neighborhood of South Beaver Township. Sheets had been in trouble with the law numerous times, having been charged with burning barns, horse-thievery, and a number of other heinous acts. In 1862, he was only twenty years of age, so one might suggest he was merely a rebellious youth.
On 21 March 1862, John Ansley was brutally and coldly murdered in South Beaver Township near Darlington in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. Ansley, when last seen alive, was asking for directions to Eli Sheets' house, as Sheets had traded Ansley a horse that was found to be stolen and Ansley was trying to confront him in regards to the stolen horse. As one can guess, the confrontation did not go well.
Ansley’s horse was apparently found first, lying dead in the road. Ansley’s dead body was found nearby, having been shot a total of six times; twice in the head, three times in the back and once through his right arm. It was the dead body of the horse that lead investigators back to the stable of Sheets and put Sheets under the suspicion of committing the crime.
Sheets was called to appear and testify before the coroner's jury at the time of the inquest into Ansley's death and failed to appear. He was then arrested on suspicion of murder, but managed to escape the officers assigned to arrest him while being taken to jail. A reward of 100 dollars was offered for information leading to his arrest and a massive manhunt was launched in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. He was arrested on 5 April 1862 while trying to cross the Ohio River at Wellsville, Ohio and brought back to Beaver under strong guard.
About 15 September 1862, Sheets was tried for murder in the Beaver County Courthouse in Beaver, Pennsylvania. His lawyers tried to prove an alibi, but the alibi was not strong. Sheets was found guilty of first degree murder. A motion was made for a new trial with four grounds:
- Two horse shoes not given in evidence were without the knowledge or consent of the defendant sent out with the jury when they retired to form verdict
- Verdict not sustained by law and evidence
- The discovery of new and material evidence
- James C Ferguson juror while in the box was asleep
Source: A. Warner, History of Beaver County, Pennsylvania: Including Its Early Settlement, Its Erection Into a Separate County, Its Subsequent Growth and Development, Sketches of Its Boroughs, Villages and Townships (Chicago: Donohue and Henneberry, 1888), 186; electronic book, Google Books (https://books.google.com/books?id=mdUwAQAAMAAJ&dq : accessed 9 January 2018).
In late October, Sheets managed to escape from the Beaver County jail by using a case knife to pry off his irons. At first, it was thought that Confederate spies had assisted him in escaping his cell and a reward of $500 was quickly offered. Another massive manhunt was launched. However, it was later discovered that he had help from the jailor, Daniel Dunbarington, and was found hiding in a house in the town, having never left the area. The house was owned by Mrs. Eliza Barker, the widow of a local doctor, and was near the river bank. Sheets was hiding under a bed.
Daniel Dunbarington was charged with aiding and abetting a criminal, but because he assisted in the recapture of Sheets the charges were dropped. Eliza Barker was charged with aiding and abetting for her role in harboring Sheets, but the charges were later thrown out, as it was determined she had no knowledge he was even in her home.
On 13 November 1862, the death sentence was issued for the first time in Beaver County when Eli Sheets was sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of John Ansley. When asked if he had anything to say, Sheets responded that he was innocent of the murder. As he was being taken back to the jail after sentencing, he managed to escape his handcuffs and captors and ran a few hundred yards before being captured again.
At Christmastime 1862 into the new year of 1863, Eli Sheets refused to eat, going on a hunger strike. A newspaper article that ran in syndication across the county stated that officials were worried he would die from starvation and a physician was called in to assess his health. He maintained he was innocent of the murder of John Ansley and insisted he knew who did commit the murder, but refused to name the culprit. His refusal to name who did kill John Ansley (if it really was not him) cast a great deal of doubt on his innocence.
On 10 April 1863, Eli Sheets was finally hanged in the jail yard at Beaver, Pennsylvania becoming the first ever person executed in that county. Forty people were witness to the execution, and over two hundred gathered outside the jailhouse to hear the news.
While Jacob Bupp was not listed as the manufacturer of the rope that hanged Eli Sheets in any of the papers at the time of the hanging, a later news account does list him as the rope’s maker.
Sources Used and Referenced:
“Barker Case Closed,” Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 28 November 1863, page 3, online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : Accessed 10 January 2018).
Bergner, George. The
Legislative Record: Containing the Debates and Proceedings of the Pennsylvania
Legislature for the Session of 1863 (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Telegraph
Steam Book and Job Office, 1863), 199; online images, Google Books
(https://books.google.com/books?id=Jb06AQAAMAAJ&pg : accessed 20 March 2019).
"The Beaver County
Murder," Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 7 April 1862, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 January 2018).
"The Beaver County Murder: Conviction of Eli F. Sheets," The Pittsburgh Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 25 September 1862, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 January 2018).
"Discovery
of Sheets the Murderer - Treachery of the Jailor," The Pittsburgh
Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 30 October 1862, page 4; online images,
Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 January 2018).
“The Execution of Eli F. Sheets at
Beaver, Pa.” The Pittsburgh Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 11 April 1863, page 3, online images, (www.newspapers.com : Accessed 28 October 2017).
“Four Days Without Food,” Newbern Weekly Progress (New Bern, North Carolina), 04 February 1863, page 1, online images, Newspapers.com, (www.newspapers.com : accessed 10 January 2018).
"Making Nine Ropes," Pittsburgh Dispatch (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 31 March 1890, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 16 August 2016).
"Murderer Sentenced," Pittsburgh Daily Post (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), 17 November 1862, page 3; online images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 January 2018).
"Untitled," The Black Hills Union (Rapid City, South Dakota), 27 July 1900, page 7; online images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 21 September 2017), Historic American Newspapers; citing South Dakota State Historical Society-State Archives.
"Untitled," The Star and
Enterprise (Newville, Pennsylvania), 3 April 1862, page 2; online images, Newspapers.com
(www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 January 2017).
Thanks for sharing your story and for listing your sources. I must correct you on one point however: the courthouse and jail are/were located in Beaver, not Beaver Falls.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the correction. I have updated accordingly!
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