National Park Service LogoU.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park ServiceNational Park Service
National Park Service: U.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park Service Arrowhead
 
 
Making America's Best Idea Even Better
Fort Smith National Historic Siteearly 20th century postcards of Fort Smith
view map
text size:largestlargernormal
printer friendly
Fort Smith National Historic Site
September 20, 1894 Execution
noose
John Pointer, age 21, was executed on the Fort Smith gallows on September 20, 1894.  In December of 1891, Pointer, a native of Arkansas, was traveling from Texas to Eureka Springs in the company of William Bolding and Ed Vandever. On Christmas night, the group camped in the Choctaw Nation. The next morning the bodies of Bolding and Vandever were found in a creek, each killed by blows from an axe. Deputy marshals arrested Pointer as he tried to dispose of the wagon and team in McAlester, Choctaw Nation. Found guilty by a Fort Smith jury, Pointer appealed his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. The original verdict was upheld.
Interior of jail cell with box for prisoners to visit with their lawyers  

Did You Know?
The conditions at the federal jail at Fort Smith were so horrible that it received the nickname "Hell on the Border." Up to 50 men were crowded into one large cell with limited ventilation and poor sanitary conditions.

Disclaimer Accessibility Privacy Policy FOIA Notices USA.gov

Last Updated: June 19, 2007 at 12:09 EST