and SAM RICHARD SHOCKLEY
After writing the Biography of Sam Richard Shockley I still had many documents, photos and articles I hadn’t used. I received requests for more information, not only about Sam Richard, but also about his parents and close family members. I decided to put this info, for anyone who is interested, on this blog. It’s no story, it is just loose information. You are free to copy this info for private use, please use it with respect towards the memory of Sam Richard Shockley and his next of kin.
BEARDEN PEDIGREE
Grace Meese 1644-1677 X John Ashton 1644-1677
Mary Catherine Ashton 1665-1750 X John Whalen Eskew 1664-1694
Mary Margaret Eskew 1683-1751 X James O’Connor 1676-1725
Margaret O’Connor 1708-1780 X Minor Winn 1705-1778
Lettice Catharine Winn 1723-1797 X John Bearden 1717-1792
Richard Daniel Bearden 1760-1861 X Sarah Bennet 1765-1857
Jacob Newton Bearden 1793-1867 X Winifred Ann Flanagan Smith 1792-1880
James Jasper Bearden 1830-1870 X Mary Josephine Rainey born 1840
Annyer Eugenia Bearden 1868-1916 X Richard Samuel Shockley 1861-1932
Samuel Richard Shockley 1909-1948
RAINEY PEDIGREE
Aaron Rainey born 1780 Ireland died South Carolina X Isabella Rainey born Ireland died 1780 South Carolina.
Jonas M Rainey 1816-1864 X Lousa Hunter born 1816
Mary Josephine Rainey born 1840
JAMES JASPER BEARDEN AND HIS FAMILY
SHOCKLEY PEDIGREE
Lady Eleanor le Strange born 1347 X Eduard de Acton 1346-1396
Walter de Acton I 1365-1420 X Mary Stapleton 1378-1395
William Acton 1390-1443 X Mary Sprencheaux 1395-1415
Thomas Acton 1415-1480 X Joane Downton 1420-1477
Sir John Acton 1437-1494 X Lady Benedicta Bennet Knight* 1455-1539
Thomas Acton 1467-1538 X Elizabeth Dryland 1467-1570
Sir William Dryland Acton 1497-1567 X Cecillia Cresset 1497-1575
Frances Acton born 1527-1574 X William Churchman 1550-1605
Sicilye Churchman 1575-1652 X Adam Higgins 1568-1629
Alice Adam Sicilye Higgins 1602-1674 X Walter John Shockley ** 1605-1632
Richard Shockley 1628-1679 X Henrietta Tobias from Prussia Germania born 1633
Richard Shockley 1650-1716 X Ann Boyden 1654-1735
William Shockley 1684-1733 X Sarah Davis 1684-1750
Richard Esau Shockley 1733-1798 X Elizabeth Meredith Adkins 1734-1795
Isaiah Josiah Shockley 1765-1857 X Ruth Ann Young 1770-1848
Isaiah Josiah Shockley 1806-1845 X Polly born 1804
Lunsford Bryant Shockley 1833-1912 X Martha E Anderson 1836-1869
Richard Samuel Shockley 1861-1932 X Annyer Eugenia Bearden 1870-1916
Samuel Richard Shockley 1909-1948.
*When Lady Benedicta Bennet Mytton Knight was born in 1455, in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, her father, Roger Adam Knight, was 35 and her mother, Jane Mytton, was 25. She had at least 2 sons and 3 daughters with Sir John Acton. She died in 1539, in Morville, Shropshire, England, United Kingdom, at the age of 84.
RICHARD SHOCKLEY AND ELIZABETH ADKINS
THE SHOCKLEY ORIGIN
According to the Parkersburg News, West Virginia, July 16th1972, the surname Shockley is definitely Scandinavian in origin. The Liber Vitae, parts of which were written as early as the 9thcentury, had a great influence on English surnames. The Book of Life recorded the names of persons who entitled to eternal salvation and was written in elegant gold and silver letters. There was a place in Northumberland in 1264 called Schaekelerdesnoke, which shows the Scandinavian influence in England. Shockley is believed to have been derived from one of these ancient place names. The name probably comes from the Old Swedish Shakli and Shokull. Other spellings of the name include Shakeley and Shocker. The name of Shakle is found in Aberdeen in the 14thcentury, and a John le Shokere appeared on the rolls in Sussex in 1296. In Lancashire, there is a town by the name Shaokerley, where the name may have come from. There is also a place near the Welsh Border, in Cheshire County, called Shocklach. The shield on the coat of arms is silver with a red chevron between three banded sheaves of gold and a gold star on the chevron.
Richard Samuel Shockley 1861-1932 X Norma Josephine Bearden born 1867 Tennessee, died 1887. First wife. Second wife: Annyer Eugenia Bearden born 1870, died 1916 Mc Curtain OK, was her sister.
John Shockley born 1580 England, died in Shopshire England in 1625 – wife unknown.
Walter John Shockley born 1605 England, died England 1632, his wife Alice Adam Sicilye Higgings born 1602 in Shropshire England, died 1674 in Shropshire England
Richard Shockley* I born 1628 in Kent England, died 1679 Marion in Maryland USA, his wife Henriette Tobias born 1633 in Prussia Germany, died in Maryland USA
Richard Shockley* II born 1650 Yorkshire England, died 1716 Marion Maryland USA, his wife Ann Boyden born 1654 in Boston USA, died 1735 in Maryland USA
William Shockley born 1684 in Maryland USA,died 1733 in Delaware USA, his wife Sarah Davis born 1684 in Maryland USA, died 1750 in Maryland USA
Richard Esau Shockley born 1733 in Maryland USA, died in 1798 Grayson Virginia USA, his wife Elizabeth M Adkins born 1742 in Virginia USA, died 1797 in Virginia USA
Isaiah Josiah Shockley I born 1765 in Pittsylvania Virginia USA, died 1857 Van Buren Tennessee USA , his wife Ruth A Young born in North Carolina USA, died in Tennessee USA
Isaiah Josiah Shockley II born 1806 Tennessee USA died 1845 in Missouri USA, his wife Polly Unknown born 1804 Tennessee USA died Unknown
Lunsford Bryant Shockley born 1833 Missouri Gasconade USA, died 1912 Sulphur Murray Oklahoma USA, and his wife Martha E Anderson born 1836 Tennessee USA, died 1869 Unknown
The Shockley ancestors originally immigrated from England in the mid 1600 when Richard Shockley* came over as an indentured servant. He had to work off his passage by working three years for his sponsor. The family originally settled in Virginia then moved on to Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, then Oklahoma.
SAM RICHARD SHOCKLEY – GRANITE STATE REFORMATORY OKLAHOMA 1928
Mrs. Clara Wilbanks Waters became the new director of the OSR [for young men till 23 yrs. ] in 1927 after the death of her husband Dr. George A. Waters in 1926. Mrs. Waters was known for her cruel method of punishment. It was not uncommon for the young men in prison to be dressed in women’s clothing and then displayed for visitors to shame and ridicule. Despite her unusual punishments, Mrs. Waters focused on educational and religious programs for the young prisoners.
Mrs. Waters was Warden during the prison breakout at Granite State Reformatory on February 17, 1935. OSR prison guards were overwhelmed when 31 inmates attempted to escape. Mrs. Waters was fired as Warden, in part because an investigation was held following reports of cruelty to the young inmates.
Sam Richard Shockley was arrested in 1928 for stealing chickens, car tires and accessories in Garvin County. He was convicted and sent to Granite, Oklahoma State Reformatory for 2 years.
Sam was severely beaten in the OSR by a fellow inmate, suffered brain damage and numerous scars on his head and neck.
Sam violently resisted to avoid being raped, as often happened in the OSR with rather feeble-minded boys, and suffered serious injuries in the process. Mrs. Waters took no responsibility for this event; there are no documents proving that the abuser was punished. Sam was simply sent home early when he had more or less recovered in July 1929.
His brother Patrick said that’s when the real problems with his younger brother actually began. It was no longer possible to have a reasonable conversation with him. Sam was not being treated further, the family could not pay those medical expenses, and the OSR was not taking any responsibilities. *
.
LEAVENWORTH KANSAS DOCUMENTS
Transfer from Leavenworth to Alcatraz – August 10, 1938
ALCATRAZ DOCUMENTS
HOSPITAL
ALCATRAZ HOSPITAL. Sam Richard spent long periods in a stripped-down cell [Strip-Cell] where the mentally disturbed were locked up for observation, for long or short period of time.
Malloy Kuykendall 434-AZ, was respected by the inmates. For several years he worked as an orderly in the Alcatraz prison Hospital. He was a friend of Sam Richard Shockley. Sam Richard was regularly locked in the “Bug” cage or Strip Cell for 30 days, because the staff did not know what to do with Sam’s craziness. Malloy Kuykendall took care of Sam, and they became friends. Hugh Archer Grant 444-AZ was also at the hospital, but as a recurring patient, and he testified about the harsh and cruel treatment of insane people like Sam, in the December 1946 Alcatraz Trial. Malloy Kuykendall’s nickname was Red, because of his red hair….
Evaluation of Sam Richard Shockley ‘s mental functioning by Dr. Alden. [United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Alcatraz Trail December 1946. Pub. Date 1947.no 11,511 – excerpt]
EVALUATION OF SAM RICHARD SHOCKLEY MENTAL FUNCTIONING BY DR. ALDEN. [United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Alcatraz Trail, December 1946. Pub. Date 1947.no 11,511 – excerpt] Attorney: W.A Sullivan.
The finding of the jury as to the sanity of the defendant Shockley is supported by the evidence. The court submitted the question of the sanity of Shockley to the jury under proper instruction (T.2142) The jury by its verdict found defendant Shockley to be sane at the time of the slaying of guard Miller. On October 28, 1946, at the request of counsel for defendant Shockley, the court appointed Dr John Alden to conduct a mental examination of Shockley.
Dr Alden visited Shockley at Alcatraz on November 5th, 1946. Shockley was in his presence a little over an hour, and that was the only occasion upon which he visited Shockley. He rendered a report to the court to which he testified on the trail when called as a witness by the defendant Shockley. In his report to the court, he stated:
The next question concerns the subjects of legal sanity: In my opinion, at the time of my examination on November 5th, 1946, Sam Richard Shockley was able to understand the nature and consequence of his action, was capable of understanding the nature of the charges against him, was able to confer with his attorney, and was capable of preparing his defense (T1300).
Dr. Alden further testified at the trail as follows:
Q: When you made that statement in your report, did you refer to Shockley’s mental condition, mental state and condition at the time of May 2nd break?
A: No. I was referring only to his condition at the time of my examination on November 5th.
Q: Did you form an opinion as to his mental condition at the time of the May 2nd break?
A: No, I did not have any information concerning or following that time, and I had no reason, no evidence on which to form such opinion. (T1300)
Q: And he was in a competent mental condition to prepare and present his defense to the court?
A: Yes.
Q: You also believed that he knew the difference between right and wrong, did you?
A: Well, I didn’t use that phrase, because it is a legal term, and I was trying to stick as closely as possible to the medical facts.
Q: You never made any physical examination of the man at all?
A: No.
Q: You never gave him a test of any kind?
A: No special tests, no.
Sam’s mental health was a problem while he awaited execution. A medical examination by Chief Medical Officer D.G. Schmidt at San Quentin concluded that Sam Shockley had a Borderline defective, inadequate, psycho neurotic, psychopathic, inferior personality, but knew reasonably well the difference between right and wrong and thus should be able to be executed, despite his mental instability. [letter to director Clinton Duffy. January 28, 1946]
A few months later, two psychiatrists, Dr. L.B Pilsburg and H.W Rogers, Head of Psychiatry Guidance Center, examined Sam Shockley again. They concluded that, in their opinion, “Sam did not know and understand the nature and character of his crimes, and that he did not fully understand the punishment imposed on him”. They found that he was mentally unstable and because of that unstable mentality, it was a big question whether he was legally sane. [March 24, 1947]
The possibility that Sam Richard Shockley might escape execution in the gas chamber by being declared mentally disturbed was of great concern to Federal Authorities, the BOP and US Attorney Frank Hennessey. Frank Hennessy therefore wrote an urgent letter to the Attorney General, questioning the “right” of San Quentin officials to conduct investigative examinations on the mental health and stability of Sam Richard Shockley. Because Sam was a federal prisoner, he demanded that further psychiatric examinations be authorized by the Attorney General, and that the persons authorized to do so, be selected by the Attorney General. [Letter F. Hennessey, May 23, 1947]
On June 1947 Dr George Johnson and Dr Justin Fuller a federal medical Officer, examined Sam Richard and concluded he was attempting to simulate insanity. In July, three San Quentin psychiatrists conducted that Sam understood the nature of the proceeding against him. And that he knew that an execution day had been scheduled, and so he was therefore sane. [July 8th 1947]
On July 8, 1947, Dr Johnston submitted the result of his examination to the Director of the BOP, James V Bennett, stating that he regarded Sam as sane, and found no indication that he had been insane in the past. [Granite Oklahoma State Reformatory, Warden C Waters, 1928] **
James Bennett refused to give clemency, Sam Richard Shockley was not on the schedule for clemency, because he had been involved in an escape attempt before in 1941, and also because Sam had been one of the first to be freed from his cell by Joseph Cretzer in the Outbreak attempt from May 2nd, 1946. According to Bennett, this was clear evidence that Sam had been completely involved. This was apparently reason enough to refuse clemency and have Sam executed…. [The failed Outbreak of May 21, 1941] **
FBI report (excerpt) May 14, 1946. File nr 70-761. Th.P Boyd jr.
HAROLD STITES AND WILLIAM A MILLER – May 1946
The FBI, the Alcatraz Administration, the BOP Bureau of Prisons and the Alcatraz staff were all almost immediately ready to place the blame for the death of the two Alcatraz Officers on Joseph Cretzer, Barney Coy, Marvin Hubbard, Miran Thomson, Sam Richard Shockley and Clarence Carnes. Also, in the December 1946 Alcatraz trial, an attempt was made to deposit the responsibility for the death of Officer Harold Stites with these inmates.
Similarly, the blame for the death of Officer W.A Miller, who according to Warden Johnston and colleagues of Miller had been severely assaulted, kicked and beaten, was placed on the afore-mentioned inmates without any criticism and investigation. An Officer acting as a witness reported that Officer Miller was spitting blood and was crying when they found him. He died very shortly thereafter.
Coroner’s report W.A Miller: In which it was noted that Officer W.A Miller, who was brought in at 9 PM, and died the next day at 6.30 AM, had not suffered any severe beatings. He only had a gunshot wound low in the shoulder. This gunshot wound would not have had to be fatal if received timely medical care. This was not the case and Miller suffered bleeding and went into shock. His pleural cavity was filled with blood, resulting in lung collapse and oxygen deprivation. If the hospital’s medical staff had evaluated the injuries more seriously, and hadn’t kept Miller waiting for treatment, because they thought his injuries would have allowed it, Miller would have survived. A crucial mistake with major consequences: The death penalty of Sam Richard Shockley and Miran Thompson. [Witness Statement: Dr. Jeanne Miller, deputy coroner of the University of California Hospital, San Francisco]
In the Coroner report of Harold Sites, a witness statement is also immediately made [without any investigation] about the guilt. Stated: “This officer was murdered by: Coy, Hubbard, Cretzer and the other inmates”. The truth was that officer Harold Stites had been shot dead by one of his own people.
Capt. Phillip Bergen later stated: “We knew who killed Stites, and we thanked our lucky stars that he [guard on the roof] didn’t have his rifle leveled when we went through that same damm place that Stites got killed a few seconds later, he coulda got us too.”
Never was there any further investigation into this person [who shot Harold Sites]. His guilt was hushed and covered up. Even his name is never mentioned in the Alcatraz history books. The blame for the death of Mr Sites was also placed on the shoulders of the afore-mentioned inmates. With little success, the evidence was too weak to be weighted in the December 1946 Alcatraz trail.
Court Order for Sam Richard Shockley’s Death Sentence. June 1948
POPULATION LIST ALCATRAZ D BLOCK on May 2nd 1946
The D-Block prisoners still had privileges such as reading and recreation yard.
Sam Richard Shockley { 462-A } was on one of the upper tiers, [Cell 26 – 2nd tier], though he had no reading or special privileges.
Segregation and Isolation were the cells on the bottom tier or flats. The convicts in “Isolation” are all A status on the List of May 1946, and these are the closed front cells.
A-Privileges Forfeited. B-Second Grade. C-Third Grade. D-Restricted.
Harmon Metz Waley AZ-248 was also in the D block at the time of the Rebellion [see J. Quillen Inside Alcatraz pag 191] He is not mentioned on the list. Rufus Franklin AZ-335 was in an Isolation cell but is otherwise listed.
SEGREGATION
259 C Burton Phillips
373 C Alfred Minntole
529 A Robert Walker
574 C Louis Fleish
594 C Robert Stroud
704 A Dorsey Willard McMahan
ISOLATION
244 A Henri Young
218 A Robert Raymond
427 A Carl Hood
625 A Clifford Owens
689 A Edwin Wade Sharpe
696 A Willie James Westley
SOLITAIRY
158 A James Grove
286 A Richard Neumer
335 A Rufus Franklin
462 A SAM RICHARD SHOCKLEY
477 A William Dainard
508 A Harry Mahony
544 A Howard Butler
549 A Joseph Lynch
586 A Jim Quillen
589 A Jack Pepper
611 A Laurence Declous
621 A Willis Coulter
629 A Russel Brown
610 A Charles Carrollo
These were the men [in the list] who shared the D block with Sam Richard when the uprising started. The D block was totally sealed off from the rest of the prison and was like a prison within a prison. In fact, it was so closed off from the rest that no sounds from the cell house could be heard in the D block. Also in the D block were the infamous cells called “the Hole,” where Sam was often locked up. Contacts between residents of D block and the main Cell block were strictly prohibited.
ALCATRAZ: THE FAILED OUTBREAK of MAY 21, 1941
In many books about Alcatraz and in articles on the Internet, it is repeated that Sam Richard Shockley was complicit in the May 21, 1941 escape attempt from the Mat shop, Alcatraz’s industrial area. David Ward noted in his book, Alcatraz The Gangster Years: “there are no official documents to be found officially accusing Sam Richard Shockley of complicity.”
Yet this event was used by the U.S Attorney in the Alcatraz trail of December 1946 to force the demand for the death penalty on Sam Shockley. This was because the U.S Attorney Frank Hennessy reasoned that Sam Richard Shockley and Joseph Paul Cretzer had plotted to break out before. **
After Joseph Cretzer and Lloyd Barkdoll went to the captain and said “we give up”, Cretzer, Barkdoll and Kyle were marched up the hill to D block isolation. Another inmate, Sam Shockley, was also taken to isolation, despite his loud protest that he had not been involved. Barkdoll and other inmates who had been “hostages” complained that Shockley was getting a Bum Rap. Madigan was asked if he remembered seeing Shockley tied up and after some reflection the captain allowed that perhaps he did remember seeing Shockley as a hostage.
So, Shockley was released from D block and returned to his cell. No disciplinary report, record or notice of any kind was placed in Shockley’s Alcatraz file to indicate that he had participated in any way in the Model Shop Break.
Yet Warden Johnston briefed the press that evening, and again the next day, he too identified Shockley as one of the principals in this escape. Johnston’s statements forever connected Shockley with the escape. Every book written about Alcatraz escapes has identified Shockley as one of the participants in the 1941 break. [Quote: David Ward – The Gangster Years].
Along with Cretzer, Kyle and Barkdoll, Sam Shockley [ AZ-462 ] is thrown into D block isolation following the ill-fated escape. Barkdoll ask to see captain Madigan. “What the hell you got Shockley locked up for? He was tied up with the others, don’t you remember? We used your knife to cut him loose.” ” Yeah”, Madigan scratches his big red head, I do remember him being tied but, in that case, who was the fourth convict?
None of the hostages taken in the abortive escape can remember the fourth convict involved and none of the cons are talking. Back in his cell, Floyd Hamilton [ AZ-523 ] has a complacent smile on his face. [Quote: On the Rock by Alvin Karpis]
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED 1939 – 1946
Five days after the January 12th 1939 outbreak, James V Bennett the director of the BOP wrote to Warden James Johnston that there were many lessons to be learned from this event, and added a long list of recommendations that he felt needed to be improved as far as security was concerned. Many recommendations were ultimately ignored or forgotten by Warden Johnston.
The FBI, already not on good terms with the BOP, saw the 1939 Escape Attempt as strong evidence that security was not up to standards and Warden Johnston’s management left much to be desired.
J. Edgar Hoover, the director of the FBI had an investigation conducted by the San Francisco Field Office on January 4th 1939, and then produced a report which showed that there was a long list of defects in the security of Alcatraz. The report recommended a frequent check of bars, cells and windows because in the last outbreak the bars of the cells and windows had been sawed through for over a month, and this had not been noticed by any custodial guard.
There was also an investigation by the FBI through interviews with several Officers. Some reported that they had stopped reporting calamities and malfunctions in the security system because their findings, comments and suggestions were taken by Deputy Warden Ed Miller and Warden James Johnston as personal criticism in their modus operandi. For example, the failure to install Tool Proof steel bars in the D block had long been criticized.
During questioning by the FBI, one of the Officers gave the agents a memo he had filed with Warden Johnston on January 9, 1939: Pointing out the structural defects that made D block the least secure unite in the prison and recommending that, “At least two panels of grill screen be placed on and attached to the bars of both gun galleries, to protect the officer stationed there and prevent inmates from acquiring gas grenades, gas mask and night sticks”.
If this memo had been followed and executed, the May 1946 outbreak would never have happened, because Barney Coy could not have slipped through the bars. It would have been impossible to break out in such a manner. Lives would have been spared. It was reported back in 1939, and in 1946 the situation was still the same. With all consequences.
After May 1946, several changes were finally made. Heavy wire mesh screening was placed over the gun gallery, bars, and the crossbars were applied to the gun gallery, so that a bar spreader could not separate the bars. Heavy steel plates were installed over the entire west end gun gallery from floor to ceiling in the D block.
If Warden Johnson had been more serious about keeping security up to date and not regularly ignoring the recommendations and comments of his staff, as well the FBI, a bloodbath could have been avoided. The life of the mentally retarded Sam Richard Shockley would have been spared. Now he had to be sacrificed to smooth over the mistakes of a 72-year-old geriatric man, who had been unfit to properly run an institution like Alcatraz for several years.
PAOLI DOCUMENTS 1938
SAN QUENTIN DOCUMENTS, 1947 – 1948
October 9, 1947
A rumor was spread, that Sam Shockley and Miran Thompson had made or were
making attempts to escape from San Quentin. Whether Miran Thompson tried to break out or not, and Warden Duffy of San Quentin made the story more sensational by involving Sam, is not clear. An examination of Sam’s cell was negative. This is the document indicating that Sam Shockley was mixed-up with another prisoner.
LETTERS WRITTEN BY SAM’S FAMILY
NEWS PAPER CLIPPINGS
LUNSFORD BRYANT SHOCKLEY 1833 – 1912 [Grandfather of Sam Richard Shockley]
Siblings: Richard born Tennessee 1826, James born Virginia 1830, Polly born Virginia 1830, Elizabeth born 1831 – died 1907, Samuel born Missouri 1836, John born Arkansas 1838, and William born Missouri 1842
Lunsford Bryant Shockley X Martha E Anderson 1st wife
Mary A born Missouri 1857 – died 1923, Martha Isabella born Missouri 1859 – died unknown, and Richard Samuel born Missouri 1861 – died 1932 [Father of Sam Richard Shockley]
Lunsford Bryant Shockley X Rebecca Ann Welsh, born Texas or Missouri born 1849 – died 1900, 2nd wife
Caledonia born Texas born 1866 – died 1949, William Isaiah born Texas 1870 – died 1929, Thomas Lee born Kansas 1872 – died 1964, Ruth Ellen born Texas 1877 – died unknown, Levica Jennie born Texas 1877 – died 1939, Anna Maud born Texas 1880 – died 1971, Delbert Wilson born 1883 – died 1960, Wesley born 1886 – died unknown, Bessie born 1886 – died 1972
FAMILY PICTURES
*Although Sam was not really close to his siblings, he and Patrick got along well. His brother Patrick and his niece Anna Lee were the only family members with whom Sam corresponded in prison. Sam and Patrick had not seen each other since Sam entered prison in 1938. Patrick had always hoped to visit his brother, but authorities denied him visitation rights.
Betty Moore, Sam Richard’s ex-wife, and his daughter Aster Mae Shockley.
Betty Mae Moore Mc Daniel. Birthdate May 22, 1923. Jerome Idaho. Died Dec. 4, 2001. Deschuttes Oregon. Aster Mae Shockley Birthdate Aug. 7, 1937 Idaho, Died Sep. 26, 1937. Idaho.
Death of Aster Mae Shockley
Paralytic ileus [adynamic ileus is a motility disorder of the intestine resulting from the acute failure of peristalsis. Bowel failure is caused by gastrointestinal inflammation by virus. Betty had another child [boy] when she was sixteen, with Woody McDaniel, who died the same way.
FAMILY STORIES
Richard Samuel Shockley and his wives.
Richard Shockley’s first wife was Norma Josephine Bearden, or ‘Jossie’, born 1868. Annie’s two-year-older sister. She was the mother of Bryant Lunsford Shockley. It is not known what she died of. But there is a family story about it. Patrick Shockley said that his father was first married to someone who, in his eyes had committed adultery [Jossie]. So, one day he took her for a ride in the carriage. He let the mules go faster and faster until they ran into rocky terrain and the carriage fell into a ravine. He came back without her and there was nothing to prove… After the first wife Jossie died, Richard went with two guns to her parental home and took her sister Annie with him to take care of his child. Grandfather Shockley tended to tell long stories. Normally my mother knew when he was fooling her, but she wasn’t sure. It was probably something his father told him, because it would have happened before my grandfather was born. Probably something to scare my grandfather with when he was young. [story told by a granddaughter of Patrick E Shockley]
Annyer Eugenia Bearden 2nd wife of Richard Shockley died of fever on 1916 and his 3rd wife Sally Barton, mother of Richard Samuel Shockley jr, died of Malarial fever on 1920.
Rattlesnakes.
Sam Richard loved to tell stories to his prison friends, his imagination was great. He said that on his wanderings he did sleep in rattlesnake dens. He said he had no fear of them biting him because they knew, he said, that he was one of them. Not only that, but he also told his friends that he was from another century and had ended up here by accident, or that he was born on another planet. He claimed that Romney R Ritchey, the Alcatraz Surgeon – Psychiatrist, was trying to kill him by medicines.
The disappearance of Ruth Shockley’s husband.
Ruth’s Shockley’s first husband’s name was Walter Chandler. He was murdered in 1938 by the Shockley family for turning in Sam to the authorities, was told in family stories. In any case, after the arrest of Sam Richard, he suddenly disappeared and no one has seen him again either. Whether he was actually murdered is not certain. Ruth married Lysh Tunnell shortly thereafter.
The Death of Bryant Lunsford Shockley.
Bryant Shockley was the half-brother of Sam, Frank and Patrick. Bryant was shot in the back by a posse, for something his father Richard Samuel did. His father and other male members of the family hung the sheriff for killing Bryant. Bryant was killed for horse stealing, but it was actually his father who stole the horse. It is not known if this story is the truth, but it is known that Bryant died young due to a non-natural cause. [1888-1911]
Evalina Oglesby, widow of Bryant Lunsford Shockley.
Eva or Effie Oglesby was married to Bryant Lunsford Shockley in 1908, and Van Vera Shockley born 1911 died 1953, was his son. The couple had also 2 daughters, Edna May born 1909 died 1915, and Lizzy May born 1911 died 1911. Van Shockley was just as bad as the other Shockley’s though. He spent time in Folsom prison. Van’s son James Bryant Shockley married Cora Shockley [the daughter of Patrick Shockley]. Patrick Shockley was married with the daughter of Jack Wyatt, Bonnie Elizabeth. Van Shockley, stepson of Jack Wyatt, was always known as a Shockley, not a Wyatt. Weston however, took the name Wyatt of his stepfather. Weston Wyatt [Strickland] married Anna Lee, the eldest daughter of Patrick Shockley and May Kiker
Bryant Lunsford Shockley
Bryant Lunsford Shockley was shot and killed by a local sheriff in 1911. Eva was left with 3 children, and she got pregnant by another man, called Strickland. Jack Wyatt married her and raised Weston, the son of Strickland as his own. He did not believe in education, and didn’t allow his stepsons to go to school. The girls were allowed to go to school until they learned to read and write. Jack Wyatt put his children in the fields picking cotton from the age of 3. And he took all the money the children earned. Jack Wyatt never owned property, nor could he read or write. They lived in a wagon when Weston was born, and constantly moved around to keep from paying rent once they found a place to live. Weston was 12 years old when he left home. He was tired of giving Jack all the money he earned. Jack considered himself a horse trader. In in other words, he didn’t work. Children of Effie and Jack were: Francis Fay, Laura Reth, Bonnie Elizabeth and Augusta Jaqueline.
The PAOLI Bank robbery [1938]
Anna Lee Shockley was 7 years old, and walking downtown in Hayworth, Oklahoma, during school lunch break and saw her Aunt Ruth in a car with whom she found out to be Uncle Sam. Hayworth at that time was about a block long, and there were very, very few cars in that part of the country. They wanted to give Anna Lee a ride home, but she was never supposed to go with other people unless her father gave her permission, so she refused. She didn’t know if Aunt Ruth & Uncle Sam actually stopped at her house first, but they did go to Uncle Frank’s home, and that is where the posse arrested Uncle Sam. His partner Johnson was at Patrick Shockley house when Sam Richard was arrested. Patrick asked his wife Bonny Elizabeth to put some things in a nap sack and snuck Johnson into the woods. He was caught a few days later, up in a tree.
Patrick Erwin Shockley.
Pat Shockley was sentenced to Leavenworth Kansas, somewhere between 1936 – 1938 for making liquor [moon shining] and man slaughter. Anna Lee, his daughter was about 8 years old in that time and her father was in prison. Patrick and May Kiker were divorced, but Pat kept the daughter out of this marriage. When Patrick went to prison, May came to his house and took her daughter home. When Patrick got out of prison, 9 months later, he came with friends and a gun at May’s door, to get his daughter back. May, who was a feisty woman, got her rifle and told Anna Lee she didn’t have to go with him. Seeing that her mother and father were going to shoot it out if she didn’t want to make a choice, Anna Lee said she wanted to go with her father Patrick. A horrible drama for an 8-year-old child.
The Gravestone of Aster Mae.
This is what Sam’s family has always told, the cause why Sam ended up at Alcatraz, and was eventually executed at San Quentin in 1948;
When Sam was married to 13-year-old Betty Moore in October 1936, Betty was pregnant within one month and had a baby daughter named Aster, when she was just two months 14. Aster Mae only lived for 6 weeks. Sam was unable to properly cope with her death and to support Betty in her loss, and Betty was unable to be by Sam’s side. The last of the money was spent on a grave, but there was no money for a headstone. Sam wanted a beautiful stone for his little daughter. Apparently, things went entirely wrong between Betty and Sam, and Sam left her in January 1938. He wanted nothing more to do with her. But he was determined to put a beautiful stone on his daughter’s grave. He met an Indian Native man with a criminal record, who did know a solution and persuaded him to join in a bank robbery in Paoli Oklahoma. The bank robbery went completely wrong, the haul was just over $900. No one was killed or injured in this foolish action. The stone has been placed, probably Sam managed to give money to one of his brothers before he disappeared forever into prison.
Before the execution.
Anna Lee Shockley visited Sam Richard on Alcatraz, before the escape attempt in May 1946. She lived in Richmond California at that time. Patrick Shockley and Anna Lee visited Sam Richard the day before the execution, in San Quentin. His sister Myrtle Shockley Schell travelled from Oklahoma and stayed in Richmond, California, with May Kiker Rosebrook, the ex-wife of Patrick and the mother of Anna Lee, to visit Sam Richard in San Quentin. Those were the only family visits Sam ever received. When Patrick Shockley visited Sam Richard, the day before the execution in San Quentin, he lived in Boonville, California.
GRAVESTONES
IDABEL POLLARD CEMETERY – THE SHOCKLEY FAMILY GRAVESTONES
Pollard Road E 2220. Cemetery N 4680, near the Quachita National Forrest.
GPS 33.7955060 Latitude – -94.7211080 Longitude Idabel – Haworth Mc Curtain county OK
From the main highway, about 53 feet West you can see the 5 Shockley grave stones. South of the Shockley graves is the cemetery road which runs East & West. There are 5 grave stones in a row. Starting at the South, going North: the first one, Sam Richard Shockley, the next, Sally Barton Shockley, then father Richard Samuel Shockley, mother Anna Bearden Shockley and the last one on the North side Baby Shockley.
DOCUMENTS December 3, 1948. After the execution of Sam Richard Shockley.
ALCATRAZ TRAIL PICTURES
VARIOUS DOCUMENTS AND PICTURES
Census 1910 May 6. Arkansas, Little River, Township of Caney. Family Richard Samuel Shockley. Father Richard 48 yrs., mother Anna 38 yrs., daughter Myrtle 11 yrs., daughter Anna Belle 5 yrs., sons Frank 9 yrs., Patrick 2 yrs., and Samuel 15 months [3-12].
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Unfortunately, it was not possible to place most of the census documents of the families Shockley, Bearden, Oglesby and Wyatt in here [1900-1945]. If you want them, please contact me.
I’m still looking for: A photo from a newspaper article March 1938, Ada, Pontotoc County, [The Paoli Bank Robbery] Sam R. Shockley dressed in coverall, badly beaten up by the police [or FBI]. Portraits of Sam R. Shockley as a baby or young child. Pictures of Betty Mae Moore, Sam’s ex-wife, and a pictures of Richard S. Shockley, Sam’s father, and his wife(s). Pictures of the siblings of Sam Richard Shockley.
Contact: linda.texel@planet.nl
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/166/704/1475755/
Alcatraz, The Gangster Years – by David Ward and Gene Kassebaum – ISBN 978-0-520-26596-7
Michael Esslinger: Alcatraz, A definitive History of – ISBN 0970461402
Inside Alcatraz, my time on the Rock – by Jim Quillen. Arrow Books – ISBN 978178475066
https://www.mykeeper.com/profile/SamuelRichardShockley/
https://billiongraves.nl/headstone/Sam-Shockley/99998031
Sam Shockley Biography
https://samshockley.blogspot.com
Spotify Podcast by Hannah Partsch
THE SHOCKLEY FAMILY 