Legend of John C. Bowling

This is another writing I have from Daddy, so I will type it in as he wrote it:

“John C. Bowling, born 1860, Clay County, Kentucky.

In his early life, two men came to his mother’s house and mistreated her, took her clothes, quilts, and blankets outside and burned them. Later, John shot and killed these two men. To avoid arrest and prosecution he went to the woods and stayed under a cliff, a neighbor man would send food to him by his boys.

Finally, he had to flee to another county, Leslie County.  As he reached Leslie County, he passed the place of a man by the name of Davidson.  This man had some dogs which came out on him. He shot at the dogs and the man began shooting at him and he returned the fire.  No one was shot, but he was arrested and lodged in the Leslie County jail.  A man by the name of Sam Morgan, who operated a logging outfit in Leslie County went his bond and got him out of jail and gave him a job working in the logwoods and running rafts of logs down the river to market at Beateville (Beattyville), KY. 

John (nick-named Burrhead) married one of Sam’s girls, Mary Jane, and raised a family. . . . During this time, he was appointed deputy sherriff of Leslie County.  One day they received word that three notorious outlaws, Link Smith, Carr Smith, and Bill Couch, were at a square dance on the head of Short Creek. He and the high sherriff got on their horses and rode up Short Creek to within sight of the house, dismounted, and went on in on foot. When they reached the house, they entered. The [high] sherriff entered first leaving John on the long, wide porch.  When the outlaws saw the law officers they drew their pistols and began to fire upon the sherriff.  He drew his pistol and wounded one of them and fled the house out into the yard.  John drew his pistol and stepped beside the door on the outside.  Bill Sizemore ran out the door in pusuit of the sherriff.  John fired at his head as he came out the door.  The bullet passed through the bridge of his nose just in front of his eyes. He fell backwards in the door.  Link Smith ran out the door stepping over Bill Sizemore, unaware that John was there.  He ran across the porch, put one foot upon the hand rail [and] fired at the [high] sherriff who was in the yard.  John fired on him from the door hitting him low down in the spine about the hips and he fell to the floor.  By this time, others had joined the shootout.  The [high] sherriff had fled into the darkness.  John fired from the porch down the steps and went over the top of the rail fence.  As he topped the fence, a man fired at him from the porch wit ha double-barrel shotgun, shooting the top rail out from under his feet.  He fell into a hog pen on top of a hog.”

The writing abruptly ends there, leading me to believe there was originally another page, but this is all I have.

I also have a copy of his obituary. I don’t know how to scan things into the computer, but I will type it as is: Rev. John C. Bowling  (Isn’t this funny . . . he went from murderer and outlaw to sherriff to Reverend)

“Rev. John C. Bowling, age 86 years, passed this life on October 12, 1946, after an illness of six weeks of which three weeks he was bedfast.  He died at the home of his son, Lawton Bowling, and burial was at his old homeplace on Hurricane Creek Sunday afternoon.  Rev. B.P. Deaton and Rev. Bill Pennington of Wooton and the Masonic Lodge of Hyden conducted the funeral and burial services.  Mr. Bowling had lived in and near Hyden the greater part of his life having been active in the ministry for many years.  He leaves surviving four sons, Ottis Bowling and Roy Bowling of Hyden, Lawton Bowling of smilax, KY., Pearl Bowling of Hazard, KY., four daughters, Mrs. Joe Feltner, Mrs. George Asher, Mrs. Delmon Hensley, Mrs. Tester Gibson of Busy, KY.  Also fifty-three grandchildren and twenty-four great grandchildren.”

*Submitted by Gail*