1900 Census - Missouri State Penitentiary Ephraim Bennett is last in image |
From that page, there's a link that says: "Are you looking for a pardon record? If so, the Archives has a name index available here. Submit a research request if you find a record you are interested in." So, I searched for Bennett & didn't find Ephraim... but I DID find his brother, William H Bennett (abt 1840-1897) which shows him being pardoned in 1892! I didn't even know he was incarcerated! I've already sent off my 'research request'. I'm eager to learn more about why these two brothers were locked up & why one was then pardoned.
(NOTE: I have now received the records and, while Ephraim Bennett is the brother of my ancestor, William H Bennett is NOT. He is about 20 years too young! I messed up & jumped to a conclusion. Just because a name matches doesn't mean it's the same person!!!)
I told my brother about this and he mentioned he'd watched a show about the Missouri State Penitentiary. It is now a museum you can tour! There's a great website here which describes it as "the bloodiest 47 acres in America." I'm off to read all about it!
Do we share common ancestors? I'd love to talk! Please write me at drleeds@sbcglobal.net
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