Tennessee Supreme Court Cases
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The files located in the Tennessee Supreme Court Cases represent an especially valuable resource for historical and genealogical research at the Tennessee State Library and Archives [TSLA].
Tennessee Supreme Court Cases
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| View Entry | Year | Case Name | County | Cause/Crime | Case Description | Division | Location | # Pages | Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Entry | 1904 | Arthur Bell v. State | Shelby | Insurance Claims and Policies | West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 882 | 97 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | Berry Ellison v. State | Knox | Keeping a Bawdy House |
"Keeping a gaming house." Case incomplete; opinion only. |
East | Range: 5 Section: E Shelf: Box Number: 100 | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Elvin Janes v. State | Weakley | Liquor, Sale of Illegal | West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 720 | 27 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | Ed Gardner v. State | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon |
Ed Gardner was arrested in Memphis for unlawfully carrying a pistol. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 884 | 33 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | George Spurling v. State | Polk | Carrying an Illegal Weapon |
George Spurling is charged with carrying a pistol |
East | Range: 8 Section: B Shelf: Box Number: 813 | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Henry Steele v. State | Shelby | Other |
Cause of Action: Vagrancy Incomplete case. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 706 | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Henry Frey v. State | Shelby | Larceny |
Stolen bicycle, $25.00. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 892 | 26 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Hardy Haughton v. State | Madison | Larceny |
Cause of action: Larceny of a pocket book containing $146.70 and belonging to Miss Lillie Trump. |
West | Range: 81 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 726 | 53 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | James Long v. State | Hawkins | Assault |
After hearing she had been talking about him, B. A. Arnold went to James Long's wife and called her a "stinking, dirty liar." James Long challenged Arnold, Arnold replying that he could not fight fair with a person of color. Arnold ran toward his tobacco barn to get his shot gun and Long produced a pistol, steadied himself and shot Arnold, allegedly to simply stop him from pursuing his shot gun. |
East | Range: 5 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 3a | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Jerry Davis v. State | Washington | Assault with Intent to Kill |
Plaintiff is appealing the charge that he assaulted D. D. Pugh with intent to commit murder in the second degree. Case file is incomplete; opinion only. |
East | Range: 5 Section: E Shelf: Box Number: 91 | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | John Hill v. State | Tipton | Murder |
Victim: Mrs. S. C. Hill, wife |
West | Range: 81 Section: G Shelf: Box Number: 928 | 1101 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Jim Puckett v. State | Weakley | Liquor Violation |
Selling liquor without a license |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 720 | 27 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | L. Faccaro v. State | Shelby | Gambling | West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 892 | 20 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | M. F. Mays v. State | Knox | Murder |
Plaintiff is appealing the charge that he/she murdered John Boyd. |
East | Range: 5 Section: C Shelf: Box Number: 30 | 1 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Martin Brown, Jr. v. State | Rhea | Liquor, Sale of Illegal |
Incomplete case file; brief for the State only. Brown was accused of selling within four miles of school & for selling liquor without a license. John Banks went to Dayton to buy brandy from Brown in the train depot. Banks drank it all with a friend & went back to brown to buy more. They were caught by the sheriff who found they had procured the liquor from Brown. |
East | Range: 5 Section: B Shelf: Box Number: 16a | 3 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Maggie Allen v. State | Shelby | Larceny |
Cause of action: larceny for $27.85. Victim: T. O. Sines. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 718 | 51 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Nathan Watkins v. State | Haywood | Assault and Battery |
Victim: Mary Elizabeth Frank also last name stated as Franklin. |
West | Range: 80 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 1025 | 7 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | Pleas Wynn & Catlett Tipton v. State | Sevier | Murder |
Victims: Laura & William Whaley. The victims were one of the last people to be killed during the mid 1890's, where a vigilante group known as the White Caps took the law into their own hands in order to rid Sevier county of vice. As a result of the widespread outrage of the Whaley's deaths the Tennessee Legislature banned extra legal conspiracies and vigilante groups. |
East | Range: 9 Section: B Shelf: Box Number: 1070 | 952 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | R. C. Austin v. State | Chester | Tippling | West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 690 | 26 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | R. B. Wright v. State | Fentress | Liquor, Sale of Illegal |
Opinion only. Wright was charged with selling liquor without license and convicted. He was fined $50 and sentenced to 6 months in County jail. The judgment was reversed and the cause remanded for a new trial. |
Middle | Range: 35 Section: D Shelf: Box Number: 827 | 1 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. C. H. Abernathy | Shelby | Fraud |
Check fraud or check kiting. Passed a bad or forged check in the amount of $27.50. |
West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 684 | 32 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. George Herbert | Shelby | Murder |
Herbert shot Sam Wolf to death. Witnesses included Carrie Wolf, Sid Friedman, Ike Wolf, B. G. Henning, George Digg, John Levy, George T. O' Haver, J. O. Sims, Smith Keen, F. S. Raymond, Albert Quinn, Robert E. Moran, M. M. Weatherly, Alice Chandler, Narcissa Brown, C. A. Sedinger, Henry Borsje & George B. Peters. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 698 | 224 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Walter Claiborne | Shelby | Burglary |
Defendant alias: Red Eye. |
West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 684 | 53 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Tom Martin | Shelby | Gambling |
Cause of action: Exhibiting slot machine to promote and encourage gaming. |
West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 690 | 11 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. John Vance (alias) | Shelby | Theft |
Stole three pieces of meat valued at $3 each for a total value of $9. |
West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 690 | 16 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Rosa Williams | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon | West | Range: 82 Section: H Shelf: Box Number: 690 | 12 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Jim Adams | Obion | Larceny | West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 706 | 29 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | Sanford Green v. State | Theft |
Cause of Action : Theft and Receiving Stolen Property |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 708 | 123 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Bob King & M. L. "Dude" Chambers | Carroll | Murder |
According to witness testimony, Bob King fired the shots that killed Jim Allen. The defendants are tried separately. Many pages are 50% or more illegible because of large areas of mold. Exhibits include two hand drawn maps of murder scene. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 716 | 164 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Will Coburn | Shelby | Other |
Cause of action: beating board bill Will Coburn is accused of unlawfully and fraudulently obtaining board and accommodations from John Rigby, of the amount and value of $223. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 718 | 135 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Frank Slaughter | Shelby | Assault |
Assaulted J. A. Nunnly with a knife |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 718 | 32 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Trice Chandler | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon | West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 718 | 15 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Albert Davis | Shelby | Assault with Force and Arms |
Assaulted Fred Jackson with a loaded pistol. |
West | Range: 82 Section: J Shelf: Box Number: 718 | 36 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Oscar Watson | Shelby | Larceny |
Victim: Ed Walker. |
West | Range: 81 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 740 | 70 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Pig Baucum | Carroll | Tippling | West | Range: 81 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 740 | 28 | Order A Copy | |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Louis Barnwell | Shelby | Assault and Battery |
Victim: C. H. Rayborne |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 878 | 12 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. John Denver | Shelby | Assault and Battery |
Victim: Eliza Goodwin |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 880 | 10 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. John Perryman | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon |
Carrying a pocket pistol illegally. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 887 | 29 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Walter Lanier | Dyer | Assault and Battery |
Victim: J. A. Dozier |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 882 | 35 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. H. S. Keitel | Shelby | Assault with Intent to Kill |
Victim: William Pritchard Alternate defendant name: S. H. Keitel |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 882 | 235 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Allen Wright | McNairy | Assault with Intent to Commit Rape |
Wright (17) is accused of assaulting Maggie Peery, a schoolgirl, with intent to rape. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 889 | 33 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Gus Wolf | Shelby | Assault with Intent to Kill |
Additional defendant: Mrs. C. R. Wolf Victim: S. R. Baxter No Docket Number |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 884 | 110 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Ben Springfield | Madison | Murder |
Defendant appealing his death sentence. Was found guilty of murder in the first degree in the Sept. 1903 shooting death of his wife, Willie (Pegues) Springfield. Defendant argued that her death was unintentional; he had meant to shoot her father, Annanias Pegues. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 886 | 131 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. G. W. Lavender | Shelby | Keeping a Bawdy House |
Defendant, George W. Lavender, found guilty of operating a house of prostitution at No. 160 Front Street. Defendant rented property in April 1903; appealing his $50 fine. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 886 | 97 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Dave Taylor | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon |
Defendant found guilty of unlawfully carrying a loaded pistol on 2 March 1904; appealing $50 fine & sentence to county work house. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 886 | 41 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. William Thorpe(?) | Shelby | Liquor Violation |
Defendant was found guilty of having sold "intoxicating liquor" within four miles of a school house on 7 March 1903. Appealing sentence. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 886 | 14 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Sam Coaker | Shelby | Murder |
The defendant, who went buy the alias of Sam Cox, was accused of stabbing and killing John Hill. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 894 | 72 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. Arthur Slinger | Shelby | Burglary |
Burglary of the home of Jesse Jackson. Slinger, 16, claims he entered the house by mistake looking for his uncle and that he was beaten at the police station in an attempt to obtain a confession. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 897 | 40 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. John Graham | Shelby | Carrying an Illegal Weapon |
Illegally carrying a pistol. |
West | Range: 81 Section: F Shelf: Box Number: 899 | 22 | Order A Copy |
| View Entry | 1904 | State v. A. M. Miles | Shelby | Murder |
A.M. Miles is accused of the first degree murder of his wife Mattie Miles. He was sentenced to death by hanging. |
West | Range: 80 Section: A Shelf: Box Number: 1008 | 135 | Order A Copy |