Learn more about merges. I dont believe youre coming nowafter we needed your help all this time.. They knew this because they had all either witnessed or been the victim of a similar intentional violent act, and it was always at the hands of Ken Rex McElroy. This is not the story of a brutal man that terrorized his family and did bad things. Beside him was his wife, Trena. Still, the panel didnt return an indictment, giving rise to conspiracy theories about a law enforcement coverup, also a theme in No One Saw a Thing.. They had to look out for themselves. When you didnt know where he was, you didnt dare take the chance of not being on your guard.. A couple of times, he got out of the truck and fired his shotgun into the air - all this over a couple pieces of candy. Just a single name can cause a physical reaction when uttered out loud in a room filled with those in the know. People Projects Discussions Surnames They recounted his threats to kill anyone who tried to jail him. Ken Rex McElroy was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in St Joseph, Missouri. Who was Ken Rex McElroy? Her lawyer has said she did not want to speak with reporters. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Few residents seem to care. ''Sure, I want this thing solved. The townspeople resented the constant feeling of anxiety McElroys presence left them with. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. Contact Wagner & Lynch today to set up a free initial consultation! He forced the two women and the children into his truck and drove them back to the farmhouse. 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. 4. They were witnesses. Some of these things are simply assumed to be factual, Baird said. Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person. 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. Horton, Brown County, Kansas, USA. 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. You can always change this later in your Account settings. '', Mr. McElroy was widely regarded as an armed tough who stole livestock and anything else he could. The more McElroy got away with, the more it seemed as though he was exempt from the law. Sorry! They just went stone silent. 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]. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. However, he lived only to experience the next chapter in the saga of being a victim of Ken Rex McElroy. WebA collection of obituaries found in the British Newspaper Archives. Eventually, Sharon and McElroy had two children. It was widely reported that he was illiterate, but he did not let this hold him back from getting what he wanted in life. A shotgun in his hands, Ken Rex turned toward the truck as it approached. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. They worked as sharecroppers and moved often before settling in Skidmore. He would follow the bus route that took Trena to school in his pickup truck. Despite two grand jury investigations, no one has been charged in the killing. She ended up dropping the charges. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. From 12 to 60 people, by varying estimates, marched down the street. 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. 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. Ken Rex made bail and was out within a day or so, and went looking for Trena. It has a bar, and music on the weekend. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. He was very cunning, MacLean told Patch. So is Stratton. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. , 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. As a result, he was no stranger to the Nodaway County Sheriffs Dept. Its called the Outcast Cafe, and is big and clean and cheap. Mr. Dunbar was asked if he knew who did it. She took her complaint to at-the-time Nodaway County Sheriff Roger Cronk. I was in town to spend time with the Goslee family, who had put me up and supported my research for many years, and had received considerable grief for doing it, and to attend a barbecue put on my Dave Dunbar in Lamoni, Iowa. This account has been disabled. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. He stood silently at the back of the store, but his wife tore into Sumy in an argument laced with four-letter bombs, Monte said. 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. When she was fourteen, Trena got pregnant. Ken Rex McElroy (June 1, 1934 July 10, 1981) was a resident of Skidmore, Missouri. 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. Harry MacLean, author of "In Broad Daylight". Secretly, Skidmore was extremely thankful to him. . It was a misunderstanding, but one that made the Bowenkamps lives a living hell for months. It went beyond just hammering people and being mean-spirited. Debbie Ann McElroy, age 54 of Conway, Missouri, passed away Sunday, June 14, 2020 at her home in Conway.She was born July 5, 1965 in Skidmore, Mo. Kenneth M. McElroy, 60, of Butler passed away Tuesday at Butler Memorial Hospital. Debbie was born in the Skidmore area and attended school there. The couple then moved to Colorado. You dont have a town full of people who were hiding a guilty conscience, he said. Nearly 30 years of Bo survived, McElroy was arrestedbut he got out on bail, and began harassing the officer who arrested him, Richard Stratton. 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. Undaunted, Mr. McElroy hoisted himself into the truck and pulled out a cigarette. The plan was to discuss how they were going to protect themselves from McElroy for the next two weeks until the hearing. Farmers carried them to kill varmints, or for hunting displaying them in plain sight in rear window gun racks. Just a single name can cause a physical reaction when uttered out loud in a room filled with those in the know. You feel it when you drive into town. Later, she moved to Conway to be near her sister.She is survived by two sons, Wendell Cole and Bobby McElroy, both of Kansas City, Kansas; three grandchildren, Seleah, Malachi and Malik; her mother, Sharon Wilhoit of Helena, Mo. 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. How could it? What happened in Skidmore that day wasnt much different than the completely predictable result from shaking a carbonated beverage until the top finally blows. ''That was a really nice truck.''. Try again later. Scan this QR code to download the app now. That they had guns at the ready wasnt unusual. In the months before McElroy went to trial, the Bowenkamps and Sumy went to bed scared, woke up frightened and lived in terror with every breath. Many speculate that this traumatic injury was a cause of his volatility and aggression later in life. Skidmore is down from 450 (when I was there) to 325. 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. Trena had to go to hospital for the injuries she had suffered at the hands of McElroy. Place. Actually, I think those shooters saved lives in the end, she said. He quickly divorced Alice, then drove Trena to Kansas and married her to avoid conviction of statutory rape. The group outside the tavern had grown and began jeering as they saw the couple emerge from the tavern. . Over the course of his life, McElroy was accused of dozens of felonies, including assault, child molestation, statutory rape, arson, animal cruelty, hog and cattle rustling, and burglary. Last Names. Those who witnessed the killing didnt speak of it again, not because they were part of a conspiracy, MacLean believes, but because theyre stoic by nature. McElroy slumped forward onto the steering wheel. Hurt in a car wreck, or due to someone else's negligence? ''We follow new leads, but there aren't many,'' Mr. Baird said. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. I went to his gravesite a few years after he died , & took a piss on his grave, thats how much I thought of him", https://www.harrymaclean.com/blog/no-death-bed-confession/. 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. Its owned and run by newcomers. They know how everybody thinks.. WebJune 16th, 1934: Ken Rex McElroy is born to Mabel and Tony McElroy, the thirteenth out of fourteen children. Two people decided in the midst of that whole incident theyd had enough, MacLean said. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request. 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. (source: Inside Edition). He was struck by bullets from at least two Ken Rex McElroy was murdered on July 10, 1981, in one of the most bizarre cases authorities had ever encountered. They killed. The county prosecutor, David Baird, said there was not much more he could do. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. McElroy moved out of his family home to be with Alice, but this relationship was no different from his previous ones. No one called an ambulance. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. You dont take cases to trial to see what might happen, the former prosecutor said. Please reset your password. Once, he even got out and fired a shotgun up in the pine tree by their house. This leaves three Clement boys.). Fidelity wasnt a strong suit of Ken Rex, or of any interest to him at all for that matter. Sorry! In Broad Daylight (source: harrymaclean.com). ''And I wouldn't tell you if I did.'' This browser does not support getting your location. Heavy lids veiled cold, steel-blue eyes, making them look like half moons. The law wasnt going to help the people of Skidmore. By this point in his life Ken Rex had become a master of escaping punishment. Born in 1934 the fifteenth of sixteen children McElroy dropped out of school by the time he hit fifth grade and spent the McElroy pretty much got whatever he wanted, and women were no exception. For example, one of the owners of the D&G tavern would send her young children to the grocery store for paper towels, keeping the children innocently unaware they were telegraphing an urgent message for the Bowenkamps to call the police. 24 Jan 1957. He returned when Trenas parents were away, shot the family dog and burned down the house. You have chosen this person to be their own family member.
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