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Alleghany: Ransom Brooks, criminal gang September 9, 2019 The Case Of Ransom Brooks,
Alleghany Co, NC It was in 2001 when my cousin Dennis
Brooks loaned me three rolls of microfilm of The Alleghany Times covering the
years 1933 to 1941. After a few weeks
of meticulously scrolling through every page of the newspaper and finding
only brief mentions of familiar names, I discovered a series of very
surprising articles. The title of the
first article graced the front page on February 24, 1934, and was titled
Worst Criminal Gang in Alleghany For Years Apprehended in Recent Raid. The second paragraph begins by naming
Ransom Brooks as the ringleader of a gang who, it later says, had “terrorized
Alleghany citizens over a period of several months”. Ransom Brooks was my great-grandfather. I had no idea my great grandfather was
so infamous. Even though I had heard
him referred to as “The Bull of Bullhead Mountain”, I assumed that it was
just a spirited nickname for someone who might have caused a bit of mischief
at times. As it turns out, he earned
that moniker as a result of much more serious and criminal actions. Ransom Garfield Brooks was born on
9/23/1903 to John A. Brooks and Meadie Ann Edwards, the youngest of six
children. They lived in Cherry Lane
about a mile west of where US 21 now crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway. At the age of 24, he married Edith
Blackburn on 2/15/1928 in Alleghany Co at the home of the Justice of the
Peace, J. F. Royal. Later that year
they had their first son Harrel, followed by another son Bill in 1930. They had a daughter Dorothy born in
February 1933. That’s about the time
when things got interesting in the life of Ransom Brooks. He is pictured here, perhaps in the 1930s. As were many people in the North
Carolina mountains in the 1920s and 1930s, Ransom Brooks was in the liquor
business. For some it was simply a way
to make extra money when there weren’t many other options to farming. However, Ransom’s tactics were more
aggressive and creative than most. It
has been said that he would stand at the NC/VA state line, dressed as a
member of the clergy, and stop passing cars.
He would sell them liquor before letting them go on their way. He would also change into a patrolman’s
uniform, chase cars down, and forcefully take their liquor. Ransom Brooks believed that a diversified
approach was the key to success. This photo was probably in the 1920s or
early 1930s. On February 14, 1934, his adventures
came to an abrupt halt when he was arrested that night in Sparta along with
Odell Holbrook, age 18. A third person
Vess Douglas, age 30 of Surry Co, was arrested the next day. Ten days later the story made the front page
of The Alleghany Times describing how multiple law enforcement agencies from
across the state assisted with the round up.
Authorities suggested that multiple recent crimes had been committed
by this gang who had been “preying upon the people of this section” for
several months.
The Alleghany Times (Vol 9, No 40),
February 24, 1934 Pages 1, 4 Worst Criminal Gang in Alleghany For
Years Apprehended in Recent Raid Jail Keys, Policeman’s Outfit And Parts
Of Stolen Cars Among Articles Found In Possession Of Men Arrested The State Highway Patrol, assisted and directed by Walter M.
Irwin, Alleghany County Deputy Sheriff, swooped down in Alleghany and Surry
Counties last week and frustrated what is thought to be one of the worst
gangs of criminals heard of in Western North Carolina for many years. The raid came as a complete surprise to the
people of the county and was so carefully planned that even county officers
did not know that it was coming. As a result, Ransom
Brooks, 29, and Odell Holbrook, 18, of the Bull Head section of Alleghany
county, and Vess Douglas, 30, of the Mitchell’s River section of Surry
County, are lodged in the Winston-Salem jail charged with several serious
crimes ranging from highway robbery to impersonating officers of the law. Several thousand
dollars worth of stolen property has been recovered and it is expected that a
series of holdups, automobile thefts, store breaking, etc., will be
explained. Douglas has admitted his
part in the crimes and has implicated the other parties being held. For several months
this gang has been preying upon the people of this section. Several motorists have been stopped on the
Sparta-Elkin highway and relieved of their automobiles and valuables. Several people have been stopped and
allowed to go on unmolested after having been identified by members of the
gang. They have made a specialty of
liquor laden cars, and in all cases where liquor was found on the car the
driver was allowed to escape and the car and liquor confiscated. In Brooks’ home was
found a complete patrolman’s uniform, including cap, badges, a John Brown
belt, hand cuffs, etc. A complete set
of perfectly fitting keys to the Alleghany county jail was in a dresser
drawer in the home of Brooks. The
search also revealed burglary tools, a large amount of dynamite taken from
the road camp near Independence, a stolen gas lamp taken from a nearby church
and a set of chains taken from the car of Mack Edwards, of Whitehead, the
night before the arrest of Brooks and Holbrook, when the car was towed four
miles from his home and stripped of tires, lights, tools, etc. Brooks and Holbrook
were arrested in Sparta Wednesday night of last week in a carefully arranged
plot. In their automobile were found a
sawed-off shotgun, one other shotgun, two high-powered rifles, burglary tools
and a coil for starting cars without a key.
The car was equipped with a police siren. A pistol was taken from the person of
Brooks, which he attempted to use when arrested by Sergeant Guy Duncan of the
State Patrol. The trio are also
charged with breaking into the Cash & Carry Store at Sparta in November
when six thousand pounds of sugar, a cash register, etc., were taken, and
Douglas has admitted his part in this theft.
The body of the car of J. M. Parsons that was stolen from Independence
last fall was found within a few feet of Brooks’ residence, hidden under some
brush. The car which Brooks was
driving when arrested contained parts from several stolen automobiles. Douglas was arrested
at his home in Surry county. Several
truck loads of automobile parts were found around his home. It is thought that all cars stolen and
hi-jacked by the gang were taken to Douglas for re-building. Some of the cars have been traded, and
officers are making a close check-up in locating all the cars that have been
in their possession. Captain Farmer, of the
State Patrol, and L. L. Harris, of the Motor Vehicle Bureau of Investigation,
both of Raleigh, were here in person and assisted in the round-up. Two members of the United States Bureau of
Investigation and one detective employed by insurance companies were on the
scene, also. It is expected that
the three will be tried at the May term of Alleghany Superior Court here. In the March 1, 1934 issue of the
newspaper, Lieutenant W. J. Croom of Greensboro said that they were trying to
find parts of automobiles stolen over the last two or more years. The officers said, “Working the most intricate
jig-saw puzzle is easy in comparison with this job of gathering together
these scattered portions of cars.” The
paper goes on to say, “By illustration, the officers on an all-day tour last
week, identified a light roadster, 1932 model, stolen in Salisbury on August
1, 1932, after locating the body of the machine in Jonesville, the rear axle
in Sparta, the motor on Bull Head Mountain, and the wheels evidently are
still revolving some place, the officers believe.” On March 8, the newspaper describes the
carefully planned apprehension of the “gang”.
The operation included members of the NC State Highway Patrol, the
Motor Vehicle Bureau, the Automobile Underwriters Detective Bureau, and the
Alleghany and Surry Co Sheriffs Offices.
When the officers arrested Douglas, in his possession “was found a
car, the motor of which belonged in a car that was stolen from J. W. Conklin,
Mouth of Wilson, VA”. After obtaining
a warrant to search Brooks’ home, officers found a coupe body “stored in the
woods near the home and it was later identified as belonging to the coupe
owned by Ex-Senator J. M. Parsons, Independence, VA, which was stolen from in
front of his home on the night of last October 9. The chassis and frame of this car was later
found in the woods near Douglas’ home in Surry county.” The article goes on to say that no charges
have been filed regarding the theft of these two automobiles since these
crimes would be tried in Federal court or in the court of Virginia. Among other items found were “about 200
pounds of dynamite, stolen from a construction company near Independence,
VA.” At Brooks’ home they found a
complete set of Alleghany Co jail keys, a pair of handcuffs, a Sam Brown belt
and holster, a uniform cap, two badges, a Coleman gasoline lantern, a Remington
typewriter, a South Bend pocket watch, a Waltham pocket watch, and one set of
pipe dies. Also, Douglas drew officers
a map showing the location of the cash register stolen from the Cash &
Carry store in Sparta. On March 15, the newspaper reported that
Holbrook was released due to lack of evidence. However, Douglas and Brooks were being held
in the Forsyth Co, NC, jail under $10,000 bond. Nearly two months later on May 7, the
Spring term of Alleghany Superior Court opened. On May 10, the paper reported that “a
record breaking crowd filled the town to overflowing and crowded the
courthouse beyond capacity” in anticipation of the trial. On May 17, the newspaper announced that
Ransom Brooks, “ringleader of the outlaw band”, and Ves Douglas, “another
member of the Bull Head Mountain gang” were found guilty of multiple
crimes. The Alleghany Times included
an article printed in the May 11 issue of the Greensboro Daily News, home
city of Lieutenant Croom. The article
says that “Ransom Brooks, the confessed ringleader, whose activities earned
for him the picturesque sobriquet ‘Bull of Bullhead mountain’, pleaded guilty
in all cases called against him and drew from 6 to 9 years in state prison at
hard labor.” Ves Douglas received one
year of labor on the roads. The article continues, saying, “Brooks
is as picturesque a mountain character as his nickname might suggest.... He was charged with automobile larceny in
several cases, carrying a concealed weapon, highway robbery with firearms and
impersonating a state patrolman. He
pleaded guilty in all cases, as did co-defendant, Douglas.” The article goes on to say, “Testifying in
his own case, Ransom Brooks admitted, Croom said, that he had hijacked many a
Virginia rum-runner on the border roads of Alleghany county. Brooks testified that once, while running
100 gallons of liquor into Virginia, he himself had been hijacked by
boot-leggers from the Old Dominion state.
His repetition of the treatment accorded him in that instance was
carried on for vengeance.” “In this respect his work was
accomplished by the aid of a state highway patrolman’s uniform, which he
unhesitatingly donned, and powerful car equipped with a siren. ‘Brooks lay in wait only for Virginia
cars,’ Lieutenant Croom remarked.
‘Once he chased a group in a Virginia car all the way to the Sparta
courthouse before he found that the car did not contain liquor but was
occupied by a sister of Solicitor Higgins, the postmaster at Independence,
VA, and several others.” Documents at the Alleghany courthouse
list the charges against Ransom Brooks, in Minute Docket H, pages 299, 300,
303, and 328. According to the
records, “the defendant withdraws his plea of ‘not guilty’ and tenders a plea
of ‘guilty’” to Larceny and Receiving.
He also pleaded guilty to Highway Robbery, Carrying a Concealed
Weapon, Attempt to Rob, and Representing an Officer. He was found guilty on all of these
charges. “It is the judgment of the
court that the defendant Ransom Brooks, in this case be imprisoned, at hard
labor in the State prison at Raleigh for a term of not less than six nor more
than nine years.” Ransom was admitted into Central Prison
in Raleigh on 5/12/1934. The inmate
admission book listed him as 6’-3/4” tall, 171 pounds, with blue eyes and
black hair. His occupation was given
as “mechanic”. The photo below was
taken while he was in prison. After less than four months in prison,
Ransom was again making news. The
September 6, 1934 edition of The Beaufort News, p1, reported on the death of
prison guard Ernest Hux at Caledonia prison farm in Halifax Co. He was accidently shot by another guard who
was shooting at five escaping convicts.
The convicts had overpowered Hux and placed him in the coupe of prison
director Edgar L. Shearon who was also forced into the car. The brief article states that all five were
captured before leaving the prison property.
Three of the convicts were in for murder, and two were from Yadkin
Co. Ransom Brooks of Alleghany Co was
in for robbery. This photo was taken during a family
visit while he was in prison. Ransom
is standing in the center beside his wife.
His son is at the far right. One would think that his escape attempt
would have increased his time in prison, but apparently it didn’t. Five years and two months after he was
admitted, he was released on 7/29/1939.
In June 1940, he and his wife had their fourth child, a son Jimmy. Unfortunately Ransom’s time in prison
didn’t convince him to change his ways and turn his life around in a more
positive direction. An article in
North Wilkesboro’s The Journal-Patriot, p4, on May 1, 1941 lists prison
sentences handed out in U.S. court.
“Homer D. Blackwelder Jr and Howard Lee Blackwelder received a year
and day at Chillicothe, and Ransom Brooks received two terms of 18 months
each at Atlanta. All were close
associates of Biles in hauling liquor from the mountain counties to
Cabarrus. One of Brooks’ terms was for
a charge transferred from the court of Wilkes.” John William Biles of Cabarrus Co was
described as the ring leader in a conspiracy case involving the
transportation of “white liquor” and he received a two year sentence for his
role. Ransom Brooks was eventually released
from prison in Atlanta, and he returned home to Alleghany Co. He died at the old Davis Hospital in
Statesville on January 19, 1947.
According to his death certificate, the cause of death was pneumonia
due to alcoholism. He was buried at
Woodruff Primitive Baptist Church in the same cemetery where his parents and
grandparents were also buried. Comments? jason@webjmd.com |