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The Infamous History Of Water Valley

Editor’s Note: This history story was the winner of the Bruce Gurner Award – Local History Writing Contest.

By Leah Byars
Special To The Herald

    

The dawn revealed the axe-battered body of a prominent citizen of Water Valley, Mississippi, and the mutilated body of his wife. Why had this peaceful couple been slain? Who were the mad murderers?

May 5,1931, marked the beginning of a series of shocking discoveries at the home of Mr. and Mrs. W.B. Wagner. The discovery in the home of one of North Mississippi’s most prominent families would send shock waves through the peaceful town of Water Valley, Mississippi.

On the morning of May 5th, the Wagner’s cook, Callie Wiggins, went to the home to prepare breakfast for the couple. When she entered the home, she saw turned over furniture and blood on the floor. Callie ran out of the house and called the neighbors for help, and they called the sheriff.

When Sheriff C. T. Doyle and City Marshall Leonard Redwine arrived on the scene, they knew immediately a serious crime had been committed. Bloody footprints were on the floors and furniture was overturned indicating a fierce battle had gone on. The biggest clue, however, was the obvious weapon: a bloodstained axe. Neither Mr. Wagner, nor his wife, could be found.

Meanwhile, a crowd of neighbors and townspeople were gathering. As the investigation was progressing inside, two of the neighbors yelled out that they had found a body buried in a shallow grave in the garden behind the house. They began digging and soon uncovered the mutilated body of Mr. Wagner. His skull had been crushed to a pulp behind his left ear. His forehead had been bashed in, and a huge gash marked his face from the right forehead downward across the left cheek. There was no sign of Mrs. Wagner and no clue as to her fate.

On inspection of the garage, the sheriff saw a bloody handprint on the light bulb that was hanging in the small enclosure. There was blood on the seat of the Chevrolet sedan. The sheriff and his deputies could not fathom why the brutal killers would take Mrs. Wagner away from the house and not bury her with Mr. Wagner.

Sheriff Doyle immediately closed off the town in case the murderer or murderers tried to escape. They began to assemble a list of suspects. The bloody axe in the house was left untouched in case fingerprints were left on its handle. Mr. Wagner was the President of the Bank of Water Valley and owner of Wagner Department Store and as such an influential person, he was sure to have enemies.

A frantic search of the countryside was in progress for Mrs. Wagner. Soon a messenger reported they had found Mrs. Wagner and she was dead. Two volunteer searchers, C.A. Hervey and Robert Pearce, found her body about two miles up the road in a ravine.

It was a grisley scene. The slain banker’s wife lay at the bottom of a deep gully where she had been tossed. Because of her size, they figured it took two killers to do this deed. Sand had been heaped on her face and when that was removed they found bruises and lacerations about her head, but the fatal wound was her slashed throat. The horrible death of this lady led the sheriff to believe the motive was revenge. What could possibly cause such burning hatred?

The first person interviewed was Callie Wiggins, the cook. She told them that the only person she saw that morning was Sam Green Whitaker, the 18-year-old houseboy and chauffeur. He told Callie there was no need to go in because the Wagners were not at home. How could he know this if he had not been in the house?

This was the first real clue, and they brought Sam in for questioning. They noticed a red splotch on one of Sam’s shoes during the interrogation, but only when they found dried blood under his fingernails did the young man admit to having killed the Wagners. Mr. Wagner slapped him for stealing a shotgun and told him he would be whipped the next day.

Sam Whitaker told them his little sister, Adelle Whitaker, and Emmett Shaw were his accomplices. Emmett Shaw was serving time on a chain gang for petty theft, but he was a trustee and was not locked up at night. Emmett had worked for Mr. Wagner but had been fired for stealing. At first, he denied his part in the killings, but with all the evidence and Adelle Whitaker’s testimony, he finally admitted his guilt. Adelle was 15 years old and happened upon her brother and Emmett when they were burying Mr. Wagner. She was not a part of the plot. Sam Whitaker told the investigators he and Emmett plotted their revenge and went to the house the night of May 4,1931, to kill them both. He also told them he first hit Mrs. Mamie Wagner in the head with the axe and she fell to the floor. Meanwhile, Mr. Wagner was coming in the door, so they bashed him in the head with the axe. Sam and Emmett took Mrs. Wagner up the road a few miles and dumped her in a gully. The two heard her groan and knew she was not dead. Sam climbed down the ravine and slashed her throat to, “put her out of her misery”.

The extremely brutal nature of the killings had the town in a dangerous mood. The sheriff wisely took the defendants to be housed in the stronger jail in Greenwood until the trial date. On the way, Sam told them that the first blow to Mrs. Wagner had knocked her across the dining table and got the table cloth bloody. He also told them where he had hidden the bloody cloth that proved to be a valuable piece of evidence as it was found in the clothes hamper, right where he said he put it that night.

The prisoners were not returned to Water Valley until after their indictments by the Grand Jury. Sam Whitaker and Emmett Shaw were both indicted for first-degree murder.

Their trials began on June 10,1931. Judge Greek Rice presided and a young lawyer, Kermit Cofer, was the court appointed counsel for the defendants. Angry citizens of Water Valley and the surrounding towns packed the heavily guarded courtroom, but there was no disorder to mar the solemn legal procedures. The jury found the defendants guilty after eleven minutes of deliberation, and charged that the two men must die for their horrible crimes. They were hanged in the Water Valley jail on Friday, July 17 1931. Adelle Whitaker was found guilty on the charge of being an accessory-after-the-fact. Her punishment for helping to conceal the crimes was fixed at five years in the Mississippi State Prison at Parchman.

The old jail building still stands today as does the Wagner house located on Wagner Street. Rumor has it that the house is haunted! The young attorney, Kermit Cofer, practiced law hi Water Valley for many years. He later became a Chancery Court Judge and finished his career as Justice on the Supreme Court of Mississippi.

As in any gruesome case, there were rumors of another person or persons involvement at the time of this crime, but nothing was ever proven.

 The hanging of Sam Green Whitaker and Emmett Shaw were the last time anyone was legally hung in Water Valley. This crime is still remembered as the most brutal and heinous crime ever committed in Water Valley.

Two graves in the Oak Hill Cemetery in Water Valley show that William Buford Wagner was born in 1871 and died in 1931, and Mamie Herron Wagner was born in 1867 and died in 1931. He was sixty, and she was sixty-four. Although this is a part of the history of Water Valley, it is a sad and notorious part of its history.

10 Comments

  1. Ginger Mixon Allen on March 23, 2020 at 1:39 am

    This story was first told to me by Tillet and Mary Alice Swindoll of Water Valley, Mississippi. They were my Uncle and Aunt.

  2. Gayla Burks on August 8, 2020 at 8:15 pm

    My great-aunt told us that these men were falsely accused. Instead, the niece and nephew of the Wagners’ killed them for insurance money. Given the time and rampant racism of the day, I don’t believe the story told above. If they truly were the killers, why would there be any “rumors” after they were “fairly” convicted? Also, my great-aunt said they were not hanged in the jail but in public in the courtyard. She said that the older gentleman’s last words were “When I go into the Kingdom, Mr. & Mrs. Wagner’s blood will not be on my hands.” She continued by saying, “Blacks and whites in the crowd wept and said ‘No, they didn’t do it.” This story, IMO, deserves to be re-investigated so the true story can be told, and hopefully, some justice can finally be given to all the families involved.

    • Renee wagner on September 24, 2020 at 2:54 pm

      Your comment is false. They did kill them. This story you tell was cooked up because racism was such a big thing in that day. Sorry to tell you them family got justice as soon as these people were hung.

      • Bridget Trusty on April 18, 2021 at 10:13 pm

        It’s a real shame that in this nation when there is black in white crime during a gruesome murder that people of color always scream the people were innocent . Not knowing the people or the circumstances. There is a confession of basically 4 people all of color and you still want to scream they were innocent just because of their color . It’s really ashamed that every thing has to be about that then and now . Justice was served for this poor family . And no matter what color any of them were or could have been they got the punishment they deserved . White people were hanged just as blacks were . Stop the hate . You are part of the problem .

  3. Joe Jones on March 17, 2022 at 5:02 pm

    I’m black from Columbia Ms and I ditto that last comment!

  4. MP Berry on September 27, 2022 at 6:24 pm

    Dear Madam Trusty & Sir Jones;
    TRUTH is refreshing & can free us from our inner demons if we allow it. Otherwise we become defensive, bitter, needlessly embarrassed & attack the messenger.
    Madam, you did not offer any PROOF to support the veracity of the “confession”.
    Sir, when is TRUTH part of the problem?
    My family lived on Cemetery Street during that time. They were EYEWITNESSES to the alleged “confession”.
    The accused were beaten & tortured by a rabid, frothing at the mouth, screaming for black blood, white mob.Tens of Blacks who had no connection to the incident were randomly & beaten with whips.The accused were also threatened that if they did not confess, their families would ALSO be lynched. The accused were not lynched on the spot because the Sheriff & local merchants wanted time to create a carnival atmosphere so as to make $$$$$$ during the PUBLIC HANGING/LYNCHING.
    Most of my Great Grandparent’s children & siblings fled to Shelby County TN, E.St Louis IL, Chicago IL, Waterloo Iowa.
    Some ‘upstanding’ CHRISTIAN white ‘pillars of the community’ used this incident to force some of my family members to sell their valuable land for pennies on the dollar by making offers they cdnt refuse. They used not so veiled threats of further violence & trumped up criminal charges.
    There is a stark profound difference between a fair trial & then legal (execution) hanging as opposed to ‘give’m a quick trial (11 minutes) then lynch’em’.
    Madam, why are you attacking the truth? Is there some racist inter-generational demons you are trying to hide?
    Sir, have you been infected with the Stockholm Syndrome?

    • Brown on May 12, 2023 at 10:07 am

      Wow Im a black male from New York City and I knew you guys had it rough but not this rough. May all the souls rest in peace.

  5. Sunflower on October 20, 2022 at 8:34 pm

    The truth lies with the deceased. The lord will repay; that’s real justice.

  6. Anthony Green on October 27, 2022 at 10:18 am

    that was my great great great grandpa He did not kill them If one more person talk about my grandpappy ima Wagner you people My Pappy was hung for this frame he needs justice

  7. Jeannie Stricklin on January 19, 2024 at 8:31 am

    Mr.Green, the LORD will give justice. I was born and raised in Water Valley. It didn’t matter the color of skin, you just had come from poor families, or have a last name that the rich folks considered “trash “. And like many other small towns it could have been a beautiful place but is clouded with many unjustly situations. I do go back from time to time, cause I have family there and it hasn’t changed.

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