The book was printed by Quality Printers in Bristol, Virginia. It has a green leatherette paper cover, 5 ½ x 8½ inches, seventy-two glossy pages, bound with two staples in the spine. It is printed by offset press and features many black & white photographs of the lawmen, the bad guys, old courthouses, gallows, gravestones, descendants, and mountain ranges. The one I own was inscribed by the author when my father purchased it in Bristol, Virginia. The seven chapters are historical accounts of real crimes committed between 1892 and 1924. Alongside his own writing, Sturgill has curated some good essays and articles by other writers.
A chapter based on Luther F. Addington’s book, The Red Fox, tells the story of Dr. M. B. Taylor, known as the Red Fox. He was a student of Swedenborg, a “mystic, preacher, herb doctor, revenue officer, and assassin” (Sturgill, 67). Taylor healed people, Rasputin-style, travelled long distances impossibly fast, and preached at his own funeral in 1893. His hair and beard were red, and he tracked bootleggers like a fox.
The Federal government didn’t outlaw alcohol until 1920, but some towns and territories banned the drink as early as 1852 (Maine), and this was the case in parts of Kentucky and Virginia in the 1890s. Not content with healing, the doctor decided he wanted to be a federal agent, “since he was forever riding the mountain trails and mingling with the people, he had a good opportunity to spot moonshiners and bootleggers and he could arrest his share of them” (68). Ironically, despite the latitude given to lawmen, he still managed to cross the line. He decided to kill a man named Ira Mullins, preemptively, after hearing that Mullins wanted to kill him. It was not a fair fight because Mullins had previously been crippled by a bullet from yet another revenue man, not named.
On the day of his execution, Taylor “preached at his own funeral” from an upstairs window of the courthouse. For two hours he read from the Bible, pontificated, administered the sacrament to his wife and himself, and invited others to join in.
“No one did [join in]” (71).
I found the following photo and obituary for the author.
Roy L. Sturgill, Born: December 4, 1913, Died: October 5, 1993
Roy L. Sturgill October 5, 1993 By Gladys Stallard
Roy Lee Sturgill, 79, of 1168 Rhode Island Ave., Bristol, VA, died Tuesday, October 5, 1993, in Bristol Regional Medical Center. He was a native of Coeburn and had lived in Bristol for 45 years. He was a member of Shelby Masonic Lodge No. 162, National Association of Retired Federal Employees, the Historical Society of Southwest Virginia, The Wise County Historical Society and American Association of Retired Persons.
[. . .]
Roy Lee Sturgill always claimed Coeburn, Virginia, as his hometown, having been born there December 4, 1913, the son of King and Mary Sturgill. Due to the death of his mother in 1922, the young family of two boys and three girls became separated. Fifty-seven years later, in 1979, they all had a grand reunion.
At age 19, Roy met Barbara V. Mullins. They were soon married. He was a coal miner for ten years, then served a stint in the U.S. Navy. Later, he became a Railway Postal Clerk until passenger service was discontinued in 1969.
He was of the Methodist faith. He belonged to the National Association of Retired Federal Employees, the AARP, Shelby Masonic Lodge, No. 162, and was a Shriner.
Because of his extensive collection of railroad pictures and memorabilia, Roy Sturgill was persuaded by his son, Phillip to write his last book, Album of Steam Railroading. Phil typeset the book, and managed to get it completed, printed, and in the hands of his father before Roy died in the Bristol Regional Medical Center, Tuesday, October 5, 1993 . . . (Wise County Historical Society, Necrology)
I found a Roy E. Sturgill, Jr. on the internet and sent him an email asking if he knew anything about the author. He graciously replied:
Sorry Bill, I probably am [related to him], but I don’t know. All the Sturgills seem to come from the same place, out of the New River Valley in Virginia. Some headed to North Carolina and others to Kentucky. Some of the favorite family names are Roy and William. I am from Eastern Kentucky. My father, Roy Sr., was born and raised on Sturgill Branch in Eastern Kentucky. I also have a son, Roy III. Good luck with finding who you are looking for!
Finally, there is a story behind the missing part of the book on the lower right corner. My parents mailed some books to me while I was stationed at the Rota, Spain Naval Station in 1973. I loaned this one to a friend. He was a jet mechanic and kept the book in one of his toolboxes so he could read it at lunchtime. He said it was either hydraulic fluid or some type of solvent. At first it was a small stain, he said, but it began to spread as the day progressed. He cut it off, but didn’t get it all the first time, and had to cut off more. He managed to save the book.
(Bill Ectric)
