A Question for Orvus Howk
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In reply to:
Re: Frank Dalton and his 1947 Confederate Veteran's Pension
philip kromer 7/22/04
Dear Orvus Howk:
On page 30 of "Jesse James Was One of His Names" ( 1975 ) we find the following statement:
" . . . Missouri-born Jesse Robert ( Dingus ) James, alias Joseph L. Hines, was recuperating from a broken leg on a Nebraska ranch in April, 1882."
If this statement is true, then it is unlikely that the "Missouri Jesse" and Jessie ( Jesse ) Evans ( of Lincoln County War fame ) were the same person, for the following reason. Jessie Evans had been tried and convicted for the July 3, 1880 murder of George Bingham, and in April 1882 was still in the Huntsville State Prison ( Walker County, Texas ) serving out his sentence for that crime. Jessie Evans did escape from the Huntsville State Prison, but his escape didn't occur until May 23, 1882. Obviously, if Evans' prison escape didn't occur until May 23, 1882, he couldn't be living on a Nebraska ranch in April 1882.
There are only 2 ways that these seemingly different men could actually have been the same person:1) The man known as "Jessie Evans" in the Lincoln County War was actually the Missouri Jesse ( who was merely using the name "Jessie Evans" as an alias ), and, also, the man serving time in the Huntsville State Prison wasn't actually the Missouri Jesse ( alias "Jessie Evans" ), but rather a "stand-in" for the Missouri Jesse who, of course, was also using the name "Jessie Evans." In this case, Howk's statement could still be accurate, since the "real" ( so to speak ) Jessie Evans ( actually the Missouri Jesse, alias Jessie Evans ) could be in Nebraska in April 1882, while simultaneously the "stand-in Jessie Evans" ( real name unknown ) could be serving time in Huntsville State Prison until his escape on May 23, 1882.
In this way, the Missouri Jesse ( alias "Joseph L. Hines ) and Jessie Evans ( alias "Joe Hines" ) could have been the same person, without the facts of history being contradicted. But if the "Jessie Evans" who was serving time in the Huntsville State Prison until May 23, 1882 "wasn't" merely a "stand-in" for the Missouri Jesse, then I don't see how it could be possible for the Missouri Jesse and Jessie Evans ( alias "Joe Hines" ) to have been the same person.2)It also would have been possible for these 2 men to have been the same person, simply if Howk was wrong about the Missouri Jesse being in Nebraska in April 1882. If the Missouri Jesse wasn't actually in Nebraska until sometime after May 23, 1882, then in that case, obviously, it would have been possible for the Missouri Jesse ( alias "Jessie Evans," and later alias "Joseph L. Hines" ) to have been the same person who was living in Florida under the name "Joe Hines" ( and who admitted to William V. Morrison in 1948 that he was the "Jessie Evans" who had participated in the Lincoln County War ).
However, regardless of the above arguments, it is believed by most researchers that Jessie ( Jesse ) Evans was born in 1853 - - this obviously doesn't jibe with the Missouri Jesse's traditional birthdate of Sept. 5, 1847. This disrepancy in the birthdates, alone, is a strong argument "against" the idea that the Missouri Jesse and Jessie Evans were really the same person. Howk may have fraudulently stated that the Missouri Jesse used "Joseph L. Hines" as an alias, when in reality it was only the real Jessie Evans who used the alias "Joe Hines" or "Joseph L. Hines." Hopefully, further research will be able to clarify the truth on all these issues.
William Vincent Morrison ( Nov. 26, 1906 - Aug. 30, 1977 ) - SSN 488-01-3148 ( Missouri ) - Last Residence: El Paso, El Paso County, TX 79914. Morrison was married to Ruth Lucille Shield ( Jan. 25, 1926 - Nov. 20, 1994 ). Morrison moved with his family to El Paso, TX, in the summer of 1950. William V. Morrison's writings:
1) "Billy the Kid, Petition for Pardon" ( filed on Nov. 15, 1950 )( El Paso, Texas, 1953 - 2 parts in 3 )( microfilm copies of this are available in the Library of Congress, and at Western New Mexico University, Silver City, New Mexico ).
2) "Alias Billy the Kid" ( Albuquerque, NM: Univ. of New Mexico Press, 1955 - 136 pages ) - by Charles Leland Sonnichsen and William V. Morrison.
Sincerely, and Lots of Love - -
P. K. K.
More Replies:
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Correction to Post #829
philip kromer 7/23/04