Bald Knobbers:: Chronicles of Vigilante Justice

by Vincent S. Anderson

At the close of the nineteenth century in the Ozark Plateau, lawlessness ruled. Lawmakers, in bed with moonshiners and bootleggers, fueled local crime and turned a blind eye to egregious wrongdoing. In response, a vigilante force emerged from the Ozark hills: the Bald Knobbers. They formed their own laws and alliances; local ministers donned the Knobber mask and brought justice" to the hills, lynching suspected bootleggers. As community support and interest grew, reporters wrote curious articles about Knobber exploits. Join Vincent S. Anderson as he uncovers these peculiar reports including trials, lovers' spats ending in coldblooded murder and Ozark vigilante history that inspired a folk legend."

Genres: History

192 pages, Paperback

First published July 28, 2013

Reviews

[Gareld Butler · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author did a good job of creating a cohesive story about the Bald Knobbers era in the southwest Missouri Ozarks. It was interesting to know what caused the group to be organized, why they eventually became as dangerous as the criminals they originally tried to drive out of the area, and what happened when the movement was finally shutdown my either hanging or locking up the leaders. The book benefited from the author growing up in the area and putting a local spin on the selection and organization of the newspaper articles making up this book.
At times I found the book a bit hard to read since the newspaper reporters and the people interviewed by those reporters wrote and spoke in the language and vernacular of the time and area but I felt that just made the stories seem that much more authentic. I also got confused a few times when an article would be followed by another article originally write a year or two earlier when the language indicated actions that were happening at that present time. I had to work to follow the timeline.

[Bill reilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Bald Knobbers were founded in the 1880s by N.N. Kinney, a massive individual of 6-6 and 290 pounds. The former Union army captain formed the vigilante crew to clean up lawless rural Missouri. He complained of a "Mormon-like" neighbor keeping six wives. Read Under the Banner of Heaven for more on the practice of polygamy.
Murder and theft were punished by the Mafia-type group who took an oath similar to omerta, with a rope and gun as symbols of loyalty. Secret handshakes were used by members and masks worn to hide each member's identity.
Frank and Tubal Taylor were the first to feel the wrath of the avenging Bald Knobbers. After robbing a store and leaving the husband and wife to die from gunshots, the brother's were jailed. Captain Kinney and his crew removed the pair and they were executed via a good strong rope strung over a large tree branch.
The owner of a hotel discovered his wife in the arms of another and a duel was arranged with her a lover. Instead of a deadly outcome, a court case on adultery was held. Justice in the nineteenth century was quite entertaining.
Meanwhile, he who lives by the sword shall die by the sword, and for Captain Kinney, it would be by a .36 caliber Colt revolver. His flock continued to punish sinners. One man was whipped for "misbehaving" in church. This event led to a family massacre at the man's cabin. As usual, the road to hell was led by good intentions. Religious zealotry never ends well.
The book is scattered in form and includes much of the Missouri vernacular of the day. I prefer a more linear style of storytelling.

[Makayla Roe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having been doing research on this topic since the re-master of Fire in the Hole at Silver Dollar City, I will say that researching the Bald Knobbers has helped me overcome my childhood fear of the original ride. The amount of detail in Anderson's book gave an amount of clarity to lesser known members of the Bald Knobbers that I did not know about, which I enjoyed. Having this amount of detail to a part of history that is not well-known and long lost to time is a joy to research. While I've heard conflicting recounts of some parts, the amount of newspaper articles and quotes offer a sense of what witnesses and members of the faction had to say about their cicumstances. This also offers an air of authenticity, giving this look into the past the badge of being a part of old west folktales that we associate with other big names of the time. All in all, I enjoyed this book wholeheartedly. I'm proud to say that I have this book sitting on my bookshelf, and I intend to bring it out again in the future when recounting the story of the Bald Knobbers to friends.

[Mike Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting history of southern Missouri post Civil War. Interesting that 500 Knobbers could show up for a lynching in a county with a population of 5,000. The point being that everyone on the Ozarks had to choose a side

[Rita Arnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm fairly new to the Ozarks and wanted to learn more about the Bald Knobbers. This book gives a good description of the Bald Knobbers and their era of vigilante justice.

[GV · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book a lot. Lots of stories, reports and letters that give a real flavor of the times and places of the bald knobbers. Sometimes it was a little tricky figuring out where the author's narration ended and the original articles began. But overall that was not a big deal. I really appreciate the work of this historian in organizing all of these articles into a cohesive, understandable book. With the many facets of bald knobberism, this was no mean undertaking.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned a lot about this group that has always held my interest since the first time I saw them re-acted at the Shepard of the Hills play at Branson, MO. This book told the history and demise using newspaper articles from the time. Would be a good read for anyone interested in Missouri or Ozark history or in secret organizations.