Public Hangings of Joe Jump and John Smith

THOUSANDS WITNESS EXECUTIONS IN GALLATIN, MISSOURI

Just a few hundred yards north of town (east of where Hwy 6 crosses over Route MM today), the only public in Daviess County occurred in executions 1886. Joe Jump, 19, and John Smith, 22, were found guilty of murdering William Gladson, an Iowa teamster laying track for the Rock Island Railroad. They killed for Gladson’s weekly pay: three $20 bills. The plot began with Jump placing a pitman rod near a vacant house with a nearby well in south Gallatin. The two men lured Gladson to the old house to play cards. Once there, Jump took the pitman rod and hit Gladson while Smith held him. When Gladson fell lifeless, the villains threw the body in the well and split the money. The crime was discovered when two men, wanting to store oats in the vacant house, noticed Gladson’s hat and the bloodstains at the well. The suspects were apprehended the next morning as Jump waited for a train to make his getaway. The trial leading to Jump’s conviction produced much publicity. The scaffold, located just off the Rock Island tracks, was built for the two men to be seated so as to be hung at the same time. The 3’x4’ trapdoors would be sprung with the pitman rod used to kill Gladson. A rope was attached to a boom eight feet above the platform and spiked together. A fence was placed around the structure which only allowed a few select men to be inside. A black coffin covered with gunny sacks was placed at the steps. Eventually, it was determined the two convicted felons would be executed separately. On July 23, 1886, Gallatin became a temporary city of 20,000-30,000 people. Both regular and special trains to Gallatin were loaded with passengers to witness the hanging of Joe Jump. The previous night some 250 wagon loads of spectators camped near the Grand River bridge, and about 100 teams camped northwest of town. At the hanging, ice water sold handsomely by the glass, and afterwards small portions of the hanging rope were sold as souvenirs. Daviess County Sheriff Witt invited 50 other county sheriffs to attend. The sheriffs lined up by twos to escort Jump to the gallows. At the appointed time, Sheriff Witt securely strapped Jump and put a black cap over his head, then unfastened the handcuffs, and fastened the rope around his neck. The murder weapon used to kill Gladson released the trapdoor, letting his body fall seven feet. Joe Jump was dead in 12 minutes.

The murder weapon (a Pitman rod used to kill Gladson) became the lever to open the trapdoor

The only public hangings in Daviess County occurred in 1886, a crime of murder for money. Photos taken during the execution of Joe Jump reveal few if any women witnessed the event.

SECOND HANGING NOT NEARLY AS SENSATIONAL

John Smith gained a brief reprieve from then-Gov. John Marmaduke, but public pressure prevailed. Smith was hanged two weeks later, on Aug. 7, 1886. The same ground preparations made for Jump’s hanging were used for Smith. The crowd was estimated between 8,000 and 10,000 people. At the appointed time the train carrying the prisoner arrived. Smith was escorted to the scaffold and seated by Sheriff Witt and Sheriff Smith. At roughly 12 noon, the sheriffs began pinioning John Smith. Soon, the pitman rod again was used to open the trap door and approximately 11½ minutes later, he was dead.