Contents
Acknowledgment
Preface
Part 1: Ella Barham
1. Who Was Ella Barham?
2. Courting Ella
Part 2: The Murder (November 21, 1912 - December 31, 1912)
3. The Morning of November 21, 1912
4. Searching for Ella
5. Planning the Coroner's Inquest
6. Sheriff James Helm and the Bloodhounds
7. Fever of Excitement
8. The Fallen Treetop
9. The Footprints at the Creek
10. The Press Coverage Begins
11. The Initial Coroner's Inquest
12. Laying Ella to Rest
13. The Peppered Socks
14. Who Was Odus Davidson?
15. Springfield Suspects
16. The Ravine and a Trail of Blood
17. Finding the Axe
18. Kansas Davidson Hires a Defense
19. Second Arrest and the Move to Berryville
20. The Pistol and the Prosecutors
21. The Coroner's Inquest in Zinc
22. The Verdict of the Coroner's Jury
23. The Barhams Grieve
24. Waiting for the Grand Jury
25. Gunfight and the Bond of Brotherhood
Part 3: The Trial (January 1, 1913 - February 3, 1913)
26. Grand Jury Indictment
27. Jury Selection
28. Dr. Taylor Testifies
29. Strong Chain of Evidence
30. The State Introduces the Axe
31. State Chemist Declares Blood on Axe Is Human
32. "I Will Get Even With Her"
33. Ella's Family and Friends Testify
34. A Surprise Witness from Cleburne County
35. Margie and Cora Potts Testify for the Defense
36. Odus Davidson's Sisters Testify
37. Odus Davidson's Parents Testify
38. The State's Rebuttal
39. Judge Reed Instructs the Jury
40. Closing Arguments
41. The Verdict of the Circuit Court
42. "They All Lied on Me"
43. Was Davidson's Conviction Legal?
44. February 3, 1913: Judge Reed Sentences Davidson
Part 4: Letters to Ella's Mother
Part 5: The Appeals (February 4, 1913 - August 8, 1913)
45. Filing the Appeal: Where Was E. G. Mitchell?
46. The Berryville Jailbreak Attempt
47. Writing the Briefs for the Arkansas Supreme Court
48. May 19, 1913: Mitchell Argues the Appeal Before the Arkansas Supreme Court
49. Seawel Defends the State's Case
50. A Funeral for Ella, Armed Horsemen in the Dead of Night, and Decoration Day
51. June 9, 1913: The Opinion of the Arkansas Supreme Court
52. "Is That So?"
53. A Tearful Goodbye
54. The Governor's Proclamation
55. Mitchell Pleads for Time
56. Mitchell and the Governors
Part 6: The Hanging (August 9, 1913 - September 15, 1913)
57. Davidson's Last Train Ride
58. August 11, 1913: Execution Day
59. Last Words
Part 7: Aftermath
60. Folklore and Ghosts
61. Who Killed Ella Barham?
62. Endings
Epilogue
Appendix A—People
Appendix B—Zinc: The Joplin of North Arkansas
Appendix C—The Appeals of Odus Davidson and Leo Frank
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author