''Sure, I want this thing solved. Evelyn tried to explain what had happened, that nobody had accused the children of stealing, and Trena said, Why would my effing daughter lie? . The county prosecutor, David Baird, said there was not much more he could do. The truth is that the people of Skidmore, Missouri, were sick and tired of living their lives in fear under tyrannical reign of Ken McElroy, which by then had stretched over two decades. Learn about how to make the most of a memorial. Once you boil away to the facts of what occurred, you can probably point to hundreds of similar reports every week across the United States., If McElroy had been shot by a lone gunman on a dark road at night, it would have made the Maryville paper for a day, MacLean said. Investigators found shell casings from two weapons a .22-caliber Magnum rifle and an 8 mm Mauser, a German World War I-era long-range rifle. She took her complaint to at-the-time Nodaway County Sheriff Roger Cronk. Trena had to be hospitalized because of her injuries. Ken McElroy He lived to satisfy his own desires, and abided by his own sense of self-serving justice. To use this feature, use a newer browser. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. We had shoplifting, but a lot of people were on hard times. She said her dad told her that del clement lived a rather miserable life after this happened. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. He was the fifteenth of sixteen children born to a poor, migrant tenant farming family that moved between Kansas and the Ozarks before settling outside of Skidmore, Missouri. Retaliation would be severe. Calling the sheriff about his threats was risk few were willing to take not that it would have done much good, Goslee said. It was either going to be him, or somebody else., Investigators never got anyone to confess or give information about who had fired the lethal shot. While the meeting was going on, McElroy was back in the D&G Tavern drinking with Trena. Trena had to go to hospital for the injuries she had suffered at the hands of McElroy. A lot of them didnt even tell their wives and children. A federal grand jury was convened. It failed McElroy, too, because it failed to protect him from himself. He would also follow them home, sit outside in his truck and stare at them with his dark, sinister gaze for hours on end. Skidmore townsfolk may not all have liked how he was killed it was murder, after all but when he died, most of the towns 435 residents let out a heavy sigh of relief. She was preceded in death by her father. Just a single name can cause a physical reaction when uttered out loud in a room filled with those in the know. Nearly 30 years of silence about the killing of a bully - STLtoday.com Henry stopped the truck and Ken Rex approached the passenger side, the window rolled down, the barrel of the 12-gauge trained on Henry. However, most of his sexual affairs werent with women, but rather underage girls, with whom he collectively had at least ten children. Just as he was taking his first drag, the sound of two gunshots rang out. I think its admirable that you have not forgotten the good people who helped you. Somebody would hear his name, and the legend grew bigger. Murder is still murder. Add to your scrapbook. Looking back, the justice system had as much to do with killing Ken McElroy as anyone in Skidmore did.. I have a feeling his neighbors would have described him somewhat differently. General Mills Recalls Gold Medal Flour Due To Salmonella Risk, 3 Soldiers Killed After 2 U.S. Army Helicopters Crash In Alaska, What To Do When Neighbor Dogs Jump On You, Poop Wherever [Block Talk], Bugs, Insects, Spiders Spring To Life; Let Some Bee, Squish Others, Allergy, Hay Fever Sufferers See An Early Start To Pollen Season, Morel Mushrooms Popping Up In Woods Across America: Where To Find Them, The Great American Solar Eclipse Of 2024 May, Ahem, Eclipse 2017. Ken Rex McElroy was not a nice man. He waved the gun around inside the tavern, proclaiming that he was going to finish off Bo Bowenkamp. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. Hed leave, then hed come back, Monte said. They thought about his wife and his children, and where it left them particularly the children.. POPULATION: ONE BAD MAN PART I. She then worked in the customer service department at Walmart and Target for several years. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Anywhere from 30 to 90 people watched the 47-year-old McElroy die in an act that ended his decade-long reign of terror over the people of Skidmore. There is a problem with your email/password. His first wife, Sharon, was fifteen when they met, while McElroy was at least twenty. But there was no reason to go looking for trouble. Try again later. Will people who were there start to leak information as time goes on? (SECOM) ; Oleta McElroy-Anderson of Conway, Tammy Wertenberger of St. Joseph, Teresa Dorris of Helena, Mo. To welcome her back, McElroy had found yet another girlfriend, Trena McCloud, who was twelve years old, while McElroy would have been around thirty-five. Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters. They surrounded McElroy, shouting at him that they had had enough and that his days were numbered. ''It ain't easy to feel bad for somebody that never did no good for your town,'' said the postmaster, Jim Hartman. You may request to transfer up to 250,000 memorials managed by Find a Grave. He would follow the bus route that took Trena to school in his pickup truck. GREAT NEWS! Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? McWilliams Media Tulsa, OK Website Design. You dont take cases to trial to see what might happen, the former prosecutor said. 3. Drag images here or select from your computer for Debbie Ann McElroy memorial. Not long after leaving school, McElroy sustained a head injury when he fell from a hay wagon. Verify and try again. Imagine what McElroy would make of that: a college graduate for a son. Bo survived, McElroy was arrestedbut he got out on bail, and began harassing the officer who arrested him, Richard Stratton. You know how he oppressed and threatened us. Failed to report flower. After her husband's death, Mrs. McElroy moved away. Both were fuming over the seemingly insignificant incident. Before I left on my trip to Skidmore, I wondered on this blog if I would encounter any difficulty with local residents who had recently expressed concern, to put it lightly, over my characterization of shooter Del Clement as a short, hot-tempered drunk. When the shooting ended, McElroy was slumped over the steering wheel. He knew which people to pick on the weak people and he followed through on his threats just often enough to make people believe he was going to do what he said he was going to do. When the driver pulled the bus over, Ken Rex would demand that he open the door and let Trena out so that she could get in his pickup truck with him. Just a single name can cause a physical reaction when uttered out loud in a room filled with those in the know. cemeteries found in Saint Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. Please try again later. Eventually, Trena grew tired of the foster house and the rules she was expected to mind under, after all she was still a young girl, and she ran away. Although Ken Rex was married to his second wife Alice, he could not help but notice the pretty girl with long blonde locks. Kenneth M. McElroy, 60, of Butler passed away Tuesday at Butler Memorial Hospital. What gave rise to that theory is that they were in the Legion hall for a meeting, then went down to the D&G [when they heard McElroy was in town]. So what was left?. McElroy moved Sally onto the family farm with Sharon and their two children. Burial. 'A Really Nice Truck', ''It's really a shame about the Silverado,'' said Dave Dunbar, a former marshal who said Mr. McElroy once threatened him with a highpowered rifle. 'No One Saw a Thing': A town torn apart by 38 years of violence Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Ernst Bo Bowenkamp (source: morbidology.com). Instead of leaving, McElroy turned around and shot Henry in the stomach with his shotgun. You dont have a town full of people who were hiding a guilty conscience, he said. Evelyn lived cross the street, and he made sure she could see them. And thats exactly what they did. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. This is far from what happened in the case of McElroy. The story was thrust back to the forefront this month by No One Saw a Thing, a six-part Sundance TV docu-series exploring the moral ambiguity of frontier justice and the unspoken, yet universally intriguing, question: When, if ever, does someone like McElroy deserve to die? They know the story of Ken McElroy, but they werent here when it happened. She was taken to a foster home in Maryville with the couples baby. This went on for months, thanks to his trial being subject to constant delays. He showed back up in front of their house that night, and he and Trena sat there and watched them, Monte said. Ken Rex McElroy (1934-1981) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree Contact Wagner & Lynch today to set up a free initial consultation! -. They just went stone silent. Gene McFadin, McElroys nickel-slick lawyer from Kansas City could get Ken off every time, Kirby Goslee, a 71-year-old Skidmore farmer who still works the land his family homesteaded six generations ago, told Patch. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. He was as mean as he looked, but there was more to his baleful demeanor, said Colorado lawyer and author Harry MacLean, who lived with a prominent Skidmore farm family off and on for about five years while he researched In Broad Daylight, a New York Times bestseller chronicling McElroys life and death. Somebody opened the passenger door and pulled Trena out of the truck and into another building nearby. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? No. Eventually, after an altercation at a bar during which McElroy threatened him with a shotgun, Alices stepfather dropped the assault charges. Harry MacLean, author of "In Broad Daylight". The law wasnt going to help the people of Skidmore. I will soon post photos of my visit. Your Scrapbook is currently empty. On July 10th, 1981 Ken Rex McElroy was shot dead in the street in broad daylight infront of 60 witnesses. She ended up dropping the charges. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. Horton, Brown County, Kansas, USA. With the charges still looming over him, Ken Rex acted fast. It sounded like the Wild West out there.''. . Failed to delete memorial. One assumption Skidmore hasnt been able to shed is that McElroys killing was an act of vigilante justice. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. Debbie Ann McElroy, age 54 of Conway, Missouri, passed away Sunday, June 14, 2020 at her home in Conway. Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print. Search above to list available cemeteries. 3PL . ''And I wouldn't tell you if I did.'' For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. Somebody was going to get killed. Henry, his entrails falling into his lap, eased into unconsciousness and assumed death. The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. The D&G Tavern in 1981; it has since closed. They include the 1981 vigilante murder of town bully Ken Rex McElroy, whose killing by multiple gunmen was witnessed by dozens of residents, yet no one was We stood up and did the right thing. McElroy raised the barrel of the gun and pointed it at the cab of the approaching truck. Despite the facts, the residents of Skidmore, MO, weren't so eager to talk If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. She was in shock but not physically injured. When the meeting ended, the group made their way across the street to the tavern to confront McElroy. Born in Overland Park, Kansas, on June 1, 1934, McElroy was the fifteenth of Tony and Mabel McElroys sixteen children. Copyright 2017 Wagner & Lynch | Ken Rex fell quickly in lust with Trena. She had seen a man named Del Clement (the co-owner of the D&G Tavern) standing across the street with a rifle, at which point she told Ken they needed to get out of there because he was going to get shot. Please reset your password. In order to stop him from doing so, McElroy carried on with his usual scare tactics he told him he would kill his entire family if he testified, followed him and sat outside his house for hours. Though arrest and criminal charges were a common part of his life, conviction or punishment was foreign to Ken Rex. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Investigators dug and dug, but Skidmore residents maintained their silence. You may request to transfer up to 250,000 memorials managed by Find a Grave. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. Search above to list available cemeteries. Beside him was his wife, Trena. ''We follow new leads, but there aren't many,'' Mr. Baird said. McElroy soon bored of Sharon, Sally and his seven children, and found another underage girl, Alice Wood, who is widely referred to as McElroys second wife. He returned when Trenas parents were away, shot the family dog and burned down the house. Why are you doing this? Add to your scrapbook. Last Names. He stalked the house where she was, brandishing his shotgun, and boring holes into the residents of the home with his steely eyes. 0 cemeteries found in Saint Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri, USA. U.S., Cemetery and Funeral Home Collection, 1847-Current, U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current, U.S., Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 2, Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. How to Use This Collection. , . McElroy His favored methods of intimidation included approaching people, hissing threats at them and shoving his shotgun in their faces. Not one of them felt bad. The shot violently ripped Romaine Henrys stomach opened, the right side of his body peeling away and laying across his lap. (D & G stood for Del and Greg Clement. Behind those eyes laid the cold, calm embrace of violence and death that wrote his biography. Injured at work? She let it be known that she had gone ''somewhere in Missouri'' because someone might try to kill her. That was the last straw, MacLean said. People Projects Discussions Surnames Mr. McElroy was hit in the head and neck. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. Not long after moving into McElroys farmhouse, both Trena and Alice (Ken Rex and Alice remained together despite him moving Trena in) fled to Trenas parents home. Neither Baird nor MacLean, whose crime novel has been praised as an accurate account of McElroys killing, buy that. I dont believe youre coming nowafter we needed your help all this time.. The charges came as a result of what Trena had told the police. 20, , 40 , Close to fifty of them had come together and made a plan to protect the witnesses who were going to testify against McElroy. The death of the 47-year-old McElroy, who was known as a thief with a violent temper, drew attention for its resemblance to Wild West, vigilante- style justice. He relied on witness intimidation to prove his innocence, and he was a master at it. Someone warned her, Youre about to meet Ken Rex McElroy, Monte said. Every school has a bully or bullies, and every small town has that family or families. He forced the two women and the children into his truck and drove them back to the farmhouse. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. The mainstreet is eerily quiet in mid-morning. Im having trouble downloading the pictures, but should have them up soon. Ken Rex McElroy did not limit his torture and abuse just to those who lived with him. Had I sought out the Clements and their crowd, I would have gone to the Elks Club in Maryville on Saturday night, the scene of my almost-violent encounter with Del and his friends years ago. He made no deathbed confession, but someone wrote in a memorial tribute that he was a good, brave man. McFadin, the lawyer who once told The New York Times the town got away with murder, is dead, too. There are a bar, a grain elevator, a bank, Mom's Cafe, B & B Groceries and a hardware store, but agriculture is the main business. MacLean told Inside Edition: Whatever had been done might not be morally right, but he needed killing. But not one person has come forward. SLAIN BULLY'S TOWN LOOKS BACK WITHOUT PITY You need a Find a Grave account to continue. Joyce Monte, daughter of injured grocer. Year. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. However, he lived only to experience the next chapter in the saga of being a victim of Ken Rex McElroy. Fidelity wasnt a strong suit of Ken Rex, or of any interest to him at all for that matter. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. MacLean doesnt believe the men gathered at the Legion hall that morning ever made a group decision to kill McElroy. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. At least some of the witnesses surely knew who fired the bullet that shattered the back window of McElroys truck and blew off the back of his head. Dunbar talked to him, and [McElroy] pulled a gun on him, Monte said. Ken McElroy was a middle-aged married man with out of control sideburns and a burly physique. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. Kenneth Rex McElroy "Bully" Murder - Getty Images That was the last failure of criminal justice.. Kenneth McElroy Obituary Get out of town, they said. Failed to delete flower. The story of Ken Rex McElroy began on June 1, 1934. It really is that it was never spoken of they had an instinctive reaction to close up. . This is a carousel with slides. Police said he had previously been charged with chicken theft, attempted , SKIDMORE, MO Four decades after Ken Rex McElroy was gunned down on the main drag of Skidmore, Missouri, in one of Americas most infamous cold cases, the story of the notoriously brutal town bully has refused to die with him no matter how much the farmers and blue-collar workers who live in the small farming town wish it would. Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). Place. Few residents seem to care. The Bowenkamps became the new objects of McElroys intimidation scheme. It should have been open and shut - there were dozens of witnesses, and the shooting occurred in broad daylight - but it wound up being anything but. But it was too late. By this point in his life Ken Rex had become a master of escaping punishment. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Your email address will not be published. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. We didnt have sufficient evidence to go to trial.. Each time anyone brought charges against him (which happened a total of twenty-one times), he would intimidate his accusers into dropping the charges, leaving them terrified and fearing for their lives. He went to Trenas parents home, where he viciously beat Trena and Alice, then burned the McCloud house to the ground. We have set your language to This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. McElroy for years had terrorized the small town of Skidmore Missouri, and was considered the town bully. You know what he was like. They could finally sleep peacefully at night, especially Bo and Lois Bowenkamp and their children. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. Ken Rex McElroy (1934-1981) - Find a Grave Memorial Trena, who was twenty-three by this time, began yelling at the clerk, which drew the attention of the stores owners, Ernst and Lois Bowenkamp. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Romaine Henry was a Skidmore resident and farmer. ''Everybody knows what the next guy is saying and doing,'' said one investigator. Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper Richard Stratton, the only lawman in northwest Missouri ever known to stand up to McElroy, hunted McElroy down and arrested him on an attempted murder charge. McElroy was spinning so hard out of control, I have no doubt he would have tried to kill my dad again, given the chance. Ken McElroy However, a new cafe opened across the street, in the old post office, in front of which the shooters were standing when they opened fire. That they had guns at the ready wasnt unusual. It was a matter of self-preservation. Cite This Collection "British Newspaper Archives, Obituaries." spur of the moment that got completely out of hand how do I know I was one of the people who witnessed the killing , or as some people say , murder all of us took an oath , the shooters & the other witnesss .it was surreal as to what happened he sat their [in his pickup truck] , just like in the movie calmly & looked in his mirror to see the crowd behind him , he knew I believed that it was the end for him & that he was about to die , no way in hell was that crowd letting him leave. When you park in front of the old D & G. McElroy may have been shot there 30 years ago (next July), but in some ways it could have been last July. McElroy knew that how to hedge his bets and he did just that when he hired Richard McFadin, a well-known and regarded criminal defense attorney from the Kansas City area. Yes, that would make him Ken McElroys grandson. Ken was my grandfather derome was my father Im deromes oldest my mother is trace I wish I could of meet my grandfather An understandable wish. Im sure youve heard many good and bad things about him. Tony , I am your aunt Tina your dad is my brother . I havent seen you since you was about 2. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Debbie McElroy (224629012)? By his teens, McElroy became known as the town bully of Skidmore, notorious for his cruel treatment of anyone who dared challenge him. And not too long ago, Sumys, a gas station and coffee shop since 1943, closed. Please reset your password. He ruled with an iron fist, inciting fear and causing a persistent sense of dread amongst townsfolk. WebGenealogy for Ken Rex McElroy (1934 - 1982) family tree on Geni, with over 230 million profiles of ancestors and living relatives. What happened in Skidmore that day wasnt much different than the completely predictable result from shaking a carbonated beverage until the top finally blows. I was a witness , not a shooter we all talked & took a vow of silence , NO MATTER WHAT to our death bed. Ken Rex moved her out of her parents home and into his, which he still shared with his wife Alice. Skidmore Forever the Town that Killed Ken Rex McElroy 20 Everyone in town seemed to know McElroy had done it, yet he spent only a single night in jail for nearly killing the man. Now that the hearing had been delayed, and McElroy no doubt knew who the witnesses were, the entire town felt a sense of impending doom about what was to come. . They were running away, seeking refuge away from Ken Rex. They settle in Skidmore. Try again later. They were witnesses. I have no doubt hed have tried to kill my mom. As well as the piece on McElroys son. He would sit outside a witnesss home, and shoot those cold blue eyes and the death that sat fixed behind them into the psyche of his target. Are you sure that you want to delete this flower? His foot fell to the accelerator when he was shot, causing the engine to run at full bore. He got divorced and his drinking finally killed him. The townspeople resented the constant feeling of anxiety McElroys presence left them with. Death. A swarthy, physically intimidating man who carried about 270 pounds on his more than 6-foot frame, McElroy had thick black eyebrows and bushy sideburns. Former Nodaway County prosecutor David Baird, Its proceedings are secret, but in news interviews at the time, McElroys widow said she told a county grand jury who murdered her husband. Try again. Henry survived, and unlike the majority of McElroys other victims, actually went on to testify in court against him. Its called the Outcast Cafe, and is big and clean and cheap. Eventually, Sharon and McElroy had two children. Faulkner wrote that The past is never dead. A system error has occurred. All told Ken Rex McElroy faced felony charges twenty-one times without ever being convicted. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. The media descended on Skidmore after the killing, an event that continues to define the people of the small town to the world at times with wildly exaggerated versions of what happened. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. WebKenneth Rex McElroy "Bully" Murder AS her daughter Tami listens, Trena McElroy retells how she watched her husband's life shot away by a man she and her attorney describe This part is a rollercoaster. Trena McCloud went on to become Ken McElroys third wife ( lifedaily.com ). Needless to say, McElroy was having none of this. He went to Trenas parents home, where he viciously beat Trena and Alice, then burned the McCloud house to the ground. They felt a sense of safety in numbers. Trena moved away from Skidmore, remarried and had more children. Talked to a lady who grew up close to skidmore. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Try again later. Unresolved: The Town That Killed Ken McElroy

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