Mobsters, Madams & Murder in Steubenville, Ohio: The Story of Little Chicago

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PART I

1900 TO 1920:

PRE-PROHIBITION ERA

CHAPTER 1

MURDER AT THE PARK HOUSE RESORT

The 1800s were a prosperous time in Steubenville’s history, as industries flourished and river traffic was heavy along the banks of the Ohio. Captains of the vessels doing trade from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati and Chicago needed somewhere along the line to pull into port and allow their crews to relax and have fun. Steubenville’s Water Street provided all a sailor could ask for. Known as the red-light or tenderloin district, Water Street was lined with resorts and houses of ill fame. The two major resorts were Park House and Ohio Valley House.

Park House, owned by William May Horner, was a saloon, parlor, rooming house and whorehouse in one. It did a booming business and changed hands many times over the years, often due to the owners’ brushes with the law. The dark-haired, debonair Horner was no stranger to the law, having been arrested numerous times over the years for public drunkenness. In 1887, he was fined for selling intoxicating liquor to a minor. Later the same year, he was charged with interfering with city fireman Frank Weaver while Weaver was trying to put out a house fire. He was fined thirty-two dollars by Mayor Henry Opperman for the offense.

On April 12, 1900, while loud patrons filled the first-floor saloon and parlor with their drinking and gambling, William Horner and his beautiful wife, Barbara, were upstairs in their living quarters. Barbara, known as Maude to the girls, had allegedly been bedridden with mumps for the past few days. The couple had recently been indicted by the grand jury for operating a house of ill fame and faced time in the Canton workhouse. Horner had been in the workhouse previously. Once, he’d even fled across the river to West Virginia to avoid prosecution.

Steubenville, Ohio, taken from across the Ohio River in Brooke County, West Virginia. In the foreground is Water Street, the infamous red-light district. Postcard from the collection of Susan Guy. Printed by the Hugh C. Leighton Company of Portland, Maine.

William May Horner, the Park House resort owner who killed his wife. From the Steubenville Herald, March 1900. Used with permission.

A few minutes past 11:00 p.m., bartender Big Jack MacDonald thought he heard a shot come from upstairs. A few minutes later, he heard three taps on the floorboards overhead. That had been a prearranged signal between Jack and Mrs. Horner in case she needed anything. As he headed into the parlor, he saw Mrs. Horner with both hands clutching her neck, staggering to the bottom of the staircase. Jack caught her as she fainted and noticed the gunshot wound under her right earlobe. My God, she’s been shot! he exclaimed. He laid her on the parlor floor in front of the horrified patrons and then ran outside to find help. Twenty-four-year-old Stella Gibson, one of the three prostitutes working in the parlor, noticed Maude Horner’s eyes rolling as she lay bleeding on the floor. While everyone else fled in terror, Stella’s eyes welled up as she knelt and cradled Maude’s head in her hands. The sweet aroma of lilacs, Maude’s signature perfume, enveloped Stella as she whispered, Can I do anything for you, Maude, to make you more comfortable?

I’ll do something for you if you don’t get out of here! a menacing voice warned. Stella glanced up and saw a glassy-eyed Will Horner, wearing nothing but his blue underclothes, glaring at her wildly. He had a revolver leveled at her head. She screamed, raised her hands in front of her face and jumped up. Running through the parlor toward the kitchen, she looked back to see Horner kneel by his wife’s head. She saw him talking to the still body, but the only thing Stella heard was Maude.

Still somewhat unfamiliar with the layout of Park House, Stella reached the cellar door and descended the steps. She hid there for what seemed like an eternity. Heavy footsteps started down into the cellar. They stopped and then retreated. A few minutes later, she could hear what sounded like something being dragged across the floor. Stella scurried from the cellar after hearing a few moments of silence from above. She dashed out the back door, climbing over the back fence and continued running until she saw Officer Ed Zimmerman. He had arrived about 11:10 p.m. after being alerted by the bartender. Ed! Ed! she yelled, recognizing the familiar patrolman. Will Horner shot Maude, Stella continued, gasping for breath. She’s lying in the parlor. He’s still in there! With the shaken woman clinging to his coattails, Zimmerman tried to get inside through the front door, but it was locked. Walking around the building, he tried to find an open door. Stella led him to the back fence where she had previously made her escape. They climbed over it and entered through the rear hall door, which was still half open. As they crept through the bar toward the parlor, Zimmerman could see Mrs. Horner’s body on the floor. He unlocked the barroom doors, and stepped outside, blowing his whistle to summon assistance. Coroner George Campbell had just arrived on the train from Mingo. Upon hearing the whistle from the C&P station next door, he came running.

Zimmerman enlightened the coroner about the murder. Campbell stepped inside Park House to examine the body, noting that Mrs. Horner’s robe had been pulled up to her waist and her left stocking pulled down. He also noticed a number of bruises on her face and other parts of her body. It looked like she had suffered many beatings in the past. Some of the bruises were old ones. Stella told both men that Mrs. Horner’s body had been moved from where she had originally fallen. Maude always kept money in her stocking, she added.

Officer Zimmerman telephoned for Dr. Elliott and more officers. While they waited, Zimmerman sat on the arm of the sofa, conversing with the coroner. Suddenly, the parlor curtain opened, and William Horner appeared, a strong odor of liquor emanating from him. He was now clad in a t-shirt and trousers with his right hand tucked into the waistband. Zimmerman leaped from the couch and tried to grab his wrists. Horner pulled a revolver out of the waistband and shoved the barrel against Zimmerman’s face, cutting the officer’s nose in the process. Coroner Campbell sprang into action, grabbing at the gun. They wrestled for control of the weapon, and Campbell won, but not before Horner shoved him through a large plate-glass window. Zimmerman tackled Horner and slapped the handcuffs on him. I’m in for it anyhow, and I’d a shot you, too, Horner told him.

Billy, I’m sorry this had to happen, Zimmerman mumbled, having known Horner for years. Horner hung his head and didn’t reply. As the officer began tossing his club back and forth from hand to hand, Horner piped up, You son of a bitch, you better not hit me with that thing! He seemed perfectly sober as he was led outside to be transported to the lockup. Once they arrived at the jail, however, the barefoot Horner struggled with officers. He struck jailer John Banks in the face as he was being searched. After putting him in a cell, police continued their investigation. It was learned that Horner had gone to Tonner’s Hardware Store the day before the shooting and purchased a revolver. He’d told the owner that he expected to be going to the workhouse in a few days. Scratching his head, Mr. Tonner said, Well, what do you need with a gun then? An odd expression had come over Horner’s face, according to Tonner, who said, He remained silent as he completed his purchase and left the store.

Word spread around Steubenville and Jefferson County about the murder of Barbara Horner, and opinions formed quickly. It was widely known that Will Horner had a tremendous jealous streak when it came to his lovely wife.

On April 15, 1900, Easter Sunday, a crowd of family and friends gathered at Union Cemetery to pay their final respects to the woman whose life had ended so tragically. A three-foot cross, made entirely of Easter lilies, stood out among the massive mound of flowers. It was her children’s final gift to their mother. William Horner was not allowed to leave jail for the funeral.

Barbara Maude Horner, wife of William M. Horner. From the Steubenville Herald, March 1900. Used with permission.

On April 20, a special grand jury convened to hear the evidence gathered in the murder case. Mrs. Horner’s eldest daughter from a previous marriage, Margaret, testified that Will Horner had shot at her mother once before. The incident happened a few years earlier when the family lived at the Ohio Valley House, another well-known resort of ill fame that Horner used to own. It came to light that the victim had suffered many beatings at the hands of her second husband but never told anyone. This confirmed the coroner’s theory. Margaret explained that many nights, her mother was locked out of the Park House after being beaten, and she spent those nights at the C&P train station next door.

The raven-haired beauty had been married to Will Horner for twelve years. Much of that time she was unhappy, but she loved him so much that she never complained. It was surmised that he killed her to keep her from going to the workhouse and then was going to turn the gun on himself. Apparently, he couldn’t go through with the second half of his plan.

The grand jury indicted Horner, and the trial was set for June 25, 1900. Over eighty citizens of Jefferson County were interviewed for the jury. It was the longest attempt to seat a jury in Steubenville’s history. Many people knew the couple or at least knew of them and had already made up their minds as to the defendant’s guilt. On June 27, a jury of twelve was finally seated, and the first-degree murder trial of William Horner began. Defense attorneys Henry Gregg and John M. Cook asked that the jury be taken immediately to Park House to view the scene of the crime. This was done at the defendant’s request, and he was taken along, escorted by the sheriff and a deputy. It was the first time that Horner had been to Park House since the fateful night, but he showed no outward signs of nervousness. He roamed about freely and then sat at the bar, leisurely smoking a cigar.

The trial lasted for four days, and numerous witnesses testified for the prosecution, among them Officers Ed Zimmerman and Lafayette Mercer and hotel owner Moses Fleetwood Walker. Walker, famous for being the first black player in major league baseball, had been walking by the Park House just as the fatal shot was fired. Fifty-six witnesses testified for the defense, most of them neighbors of Horner’s father, who testified that they always saw Will and Barbara Horner together and they seemed happy. The case was handed over to the jury on Saturday at 2:35 p.m. It took less than six hours to come to a unanimous agreement. The courthouse bell rang at 8:00 p.m. to alert the waiting crowd in the streets that the verdict was in. At 8:08, the verdict of guilty of murder in the first degree, with a recommendation of life with mercy, was announced. The crowded courthouse and the city streets erupted in a thunderous roar. Margaret Horner, the defendant’s mother, collapsed as the verdict was read. Mr. and Mrs. John Doerr, the parents of Barbara Horner, quietly left the courtroom, while Augustus Horner, a noted Civil War veteran, tearfully hugged his son. An emotionless Horner was escorted back to his jail cell to await the long trip to his new home at the Ohio State Penitentiary.

While the citizens of Steubenville were glad that a murderer was off the streets, those who knew William Horner before he got into the illicit activities associated with liquor remembered what an intelligent man he used to be. He had once worked at La Belle Iron Works and had been a master at his job, but the effects of alcohol led him astray. He’d even invented a new kind of bolt needed for a piece of equipment at the Iron Works. The patent for that bolt made him a wealthy man. Friends and well-wishers hoped he would find a good job in the prison and stay out of trouble.

On July 12, 1900, when Horner was told he’d be leaving for Columbus the next morning, he asked the jailer to send for a barber. He had his hair cut short and shaved off his mustache. The handsome thirty-four-year-old man looked like an innocent boy after the barber had finished.

The last visit between Horner and his family was emotional for everyone in the room. His wall of pent-up emotions finally crumbled as he hugged and kissed his children. The whimpering offspring clung to his neck, not wanting to let go. Their paternal grandparents had to pull the children away, as they, too, said their tearful good-byes.

The sheriff chose to take his prisoner to the penitentiary on the 3:00 a.m. train. The train station was empty at that time of the morning, so they got underway to Columbus without any hoopla.

While serving his life sentence at Ohio’s maximum-security prison, Horner was a model inmate. Numerous attempts at a new trial were squashed. In April 1910, the warden gave him a trustee job running the prison’s pump station.

In 1915, his youngest daughter, Barbara, who had been asleep at the time of the murder, petitioned the judge, stating that her father was very ill and needed to be home. Horner had convinced the girl that he didn’t murder her mother, and she believed him. The judge agreed to her petition, and Horner was released after serving fifteen years in prison. Soon after his release, he married Mildred Nixon Phillips and resided in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, for years. Three of his children with first wife, Barbara, had married three of Mildred’s children. His second wife returned to Steubenville and divorced Horner in 1932, while he was still living in Mt. Vernon. He died of lung cancer in Steubenville in 1937, and is buried in Union Cemetery with his family and his wife, Barbara. William M. Horner’s name is prominently displayed on a monument, with no dates. His first wife’s grave has no marker.

The monument at Union Cemetery in Steubenville, Ohio, marking the final resting place of William Horner and some of his children. Photo by Susan Guy.

CHAPTER 2

MURDER FOR LOVE