<title type="main">Joseph Shawhan et al. to Thomas E. Bramlette Edition created from new transcripts of this manuscript. Initial upload of this work's facsimile images and metadata to FromThePage for editing Kentucky Historical Society Digital Collections Administrator of the CWGK Migration transcription project on FromThePage Kentucky Historical Society Digital Collections Kentucky Historical Society Digital Collections made 4 edits between June 21, 2025 and June 21, 2025. Dynamic TEI export from FromThePage (version 22.10)

This image and transcription is publicly accessible. The image appears courtesy of the repository named in the Source Description. The transcription and annotation were undertaken by Kentucky Historical Society staff, volunteers, and interns. If referencing this document title, accession number, and permanent URL.

 November 11, 2025 Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives Office of the Governor, Thomas E. Bramlette: Governor's official correspondence file, petitions for pardons, remissions, and respites 1863-1867 KYR-0001-004-0472 BR9-243 to BR9-244

Cynthiana, Harrison County, Kentucky Cynthiana, Harrison County, Kentucky 1864-01-08 Petition English Version 1 of page "4": Changes to page transcript. Version 1 of page "3": Changes to page transcript. Version 0 of page "4": Empty transcript -- probably initial upload of page facsimile. Version 1 of page "2": Changes to page transcript. Version 0 of page "3": Empty transcript -- probably initial upload of page facsimile. Version 0 of page "2": Empty transcript -- probably initial upload of page facsimile. Version 1 of page "1": Changes to page transcript. Version 0 of page "1": Empty transcript -- probably initial upload of page facsimile.
1

To His Excellency Thomas E Bramlett, Govenor of the Commonwealth of Ky;

The undersigned Citizens of Harrison County, state that Garrett Whitson, was tried & found guilty of the murder of John Spikard, and has been sentenced to be hanged on the 9th day of Febuary, 1864. The Killed man, was but recently before his death out of the Penetentiary, and maintained the worst possible Character befor he went & while there- The crime for which the deceased was sent to the penetentiary was, that he went into a melon patch, of one of his neighbors, and was stealing the mellons and when the owners of the melons, (being a man and his wife) came on him & asked him to desist, he instantly shot them both, but fortunately, the shots did not prove fatel to either: Showing him to be a man of the most vicious & blood thirsty Character. The proof develop these facts That Whitson went to the house of Mr Albright, in Company with some other persons, and told Albrights wife and daughter, both of whom are notorious prostitutes; that Albright was out some distance from the house very drunk and started with them to assist in bringing him home, When they had proceded some distance, until they came up to a main road, they met with Andrew Whitson with a shot gun, & John Spikard with a rifle; Spikard said why have you brought my Cousin sis and her daughter out here this time of night, (it was then about dusk) She remarked that she was hunting for Mr Albright her husband, that Garrett Whitson had said her husband was lying near a log on the road side, Spikard said that Whitson was a liar; Whitson said he must not repeat what he had said, Spikard with his loaded rifle in his hand, did repeat it, whereupon Whitson snatched the shot gun from his brother Andrew Whitson, and instantly fired & killed Spikard. The only witnesses to prove any thing about the matter were the two Cousins of Spikard, Elizabeth Albright & Mary Francis Albright, and James Ashbrook, the two women are notorious harlots, and Ashbrook is a man whose character for veracity is utterly worthless, Whitson has a large family of small children, is entirely destitute of procuring means, and is without relations who take an intrest in him, sufficient to make them exert themselves for his pardon, or otherwise aid him in his perilous situation, and we who are strangers to him, but acquainted with the

2

general character of the witnesses, upon whose testimony he was found guilty, do not believe that any human being ought to suffer the death penalty upon the sole.

an exclusive evidence of such persons, as the witnesses for the prosecution against this poor man; we therefore ask your Exellency to pardon him, He is a Consumptive & is now a mere shadow, from the effect of his disease, and protracted confinement in our County Jail, befor & since his trial, and if appearances are true to themselves, he cannot last, if pardoned, more than six or eight months. Cynthiana Ky Jan 8th 1864

Joseph Shawhan Samuel Kelly J. W. McIntosh John McKee J, J, Parish Wm H. Roberts M. Kimbray G W Buzzard Chas R Rumhough A. H. Wheeler Henry Linba Benjn Moore P. Wherritt Pollard McKenney John Marsh H Rawland Lewis Clay W G. Kennard Edward Q, Cason J T Berry Saml F. January G H Perrin G. B. Kinman R. L. Thompson James Gray L S Jameson D. Ammerman B. M. Swinford C J. Pocudenle D. Woodruff J W Hosner Judd Heay Joseph Lail John L. Freewhair Jno Redman W,, Sparks J A. Gosett James Snell C. L. Lail Samuel Reneker Abreham Reneker Thomas Wm Gibbes Joseph Cosby John T. Henry John H. Houston G. W. Carter Thomas Wornall John Elkins

3

Martin Smith T A Taylor C C Yarnall Wm Wiglesworth A. M. Crow C. S. McMillin J H Waits N Y Wilson Thomas Jenkins R Waits John Jameson John N Shawhan Samuel Levergill George Goodnight B. W Talbott Wm T Turner John A Craigmuggle Wm B Gossett T. A. Clifford Robert Reneker William Smith Geo W McLord John A Nichols Robert Scot George Goodnight George Hager Jas A Henshall Thomas Yarnel James Sullivan Thomas Sullivan

4

Carter Page Patrick Mahaney V B King C Hutcherson F Doud J. Reneker Jr B G W Taylor E H Burns P Renneker Mikel Fargo

Martin Smith