John Chinnick

Revision as of 12:44, 10 January 2014 (view source)

Revision as of 22:11, 10 January 2014 (view source)

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Fanning the Embers: One identity worth mentioning among the occupants of. this section, is [[John Chinnick]], whose saloon -- and also his ranch home, located in the neighborhood of the baseball park -- were acknowledged "hangouts" for all the desperadoes who happened this way. John himself was never misjudged by his fellow citizens. They knew him for just what he was, but in his daily contact with the world he was in many respects a decent sort and always ready and willing to join in public movements. And in those days inquiry into one's antecedents or private business was discouraged.

+

The main reliance of the toughs was on John Chinnick, who kept a joint -- next to the Jordan store -- where they hung out, and a feed trough for them at his ranch, out beyond where the ball park was. John ranked as a citizen. He was one of the earliest to come, one of the townsite company, and was to that extent, one of the founders of the town. The new gang took to him, however, and he to them and this association so lowered his standing in the community.

+

C.N. Strevell: Another real tough, but who didn't advertise it, was John Chinnick. It had been rumored that Chinnick and his gang (robbed Cahn, which is widely claimed to have been done by Big Nose George Parrott). Not long after the robbery, a "posse" called at Chinnick's house in the evening and knock brought John to the door. The sheriff said, "Better come with us John." He replied, "Wait till I get my hat." A pistol shot was heard and it was found that John had shot himself, preferring death in this manner to the western custom of lynching.

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:"The leader of this faction was John Chinnick, one of the first settlers in the town. He was not a bad sort in some ways, and quite civic minded, but his saloon and cabin had always been the rendezvous of any shady characters who drifted up or down the Yellowstone - including Big Nose George Parrott. When he was informed on Monday morning (July 23rd?) that he had been banished from town, he first agreed to go, but later showed signs of being unwilling to leave quietly. About noon he apparently had a scuffle*** with his wife over a revolver and in the tussle he received a fatal wound in the abdomen. This caused a death a month later. With their leader in a critical condition, the rough element heeded the warning and left."

+

Recollections of Old Milestown: Chinnick was one of the first to be told by "the committee" to leave. He was due to depart Monday evening and just to show that he was a good fellow he spent Monday forenoon around town, going the round of the different resorts, discussing the situation with an entire absence of rancor, but at the same time with an air of bravado that clearly indicated that he did not intend to comply with the ultimatum. In the forenoon he was in his shirt-sleeves so that all might see that he was unarmed, and to this fact he more than once called attention during the forenoon as evidence that he was a peaceable citizen. At noon he went home to dinner. His home was on the western outskirts of the town in a belt of timber; wholly apart from other houses and quite capable of being made a fortified position, and it was to this ultimate condition that events pointed -- as the gang had all congregated at the Chinnick ranch and report was that they were well supplied with arms and ammunition and intended to make a fight. At that time I resided at the corner of Third and Pleasant streets, distant about a quarter of a mile from the Chinnick home, which was clearly in view, the intervening space being open. Naturally I was interested in what might be going on in the camp of the enemy and during the noon hour of that fateful Monday I was watching the place through a field glass. As I looked I observed a sudden commotion among the many who had been lounging about and shortly a messenger was seen to leave the ranch for town. On his return, which was speedy, he brought a doctor. After a stay of half an hour the doctor returned to town, the bearer of the startling news that John Chinnick had been accidentally but fatally shot. He had intended coming up town again in the afternoon, this time packing his gun. His wife endeavored to dissuade him from doing so and a scuffle for the possession of the weapon ensued, during which it was discharged, the bullet entering Chinnick's abdomen, inflicting a wound that proved fatal after a lapse of four weeks. Just what would have happened in Milestown that night had the shot gone harmless, is hard to guess. Chinnick was a nervy and reckless man. He had a considerable following and had made up his mind that he would not be driven out of town like a yellow dog. On the other hand, the committee was composed of men of nerve and determination. A clash even more, a battle was imminent, and it certainly would have been fought but for the accidental shot that put Chinnick hors du combat and scattered his following. This rabble needed his nerve and reckless assurance to keep them in line and when his personality was removed they had no stomach for the fray. They scattered in all directions under the friendly cover of that Monday night and the next day the current of our communal life resumed its accustomed peaceful flow. This event marked the crest of the wave of lawlessness that had been slowly gathering since the incoming of the railroad two years before, encouraged by the lax conditions under which we had existed in the earlier days. The lynching and the subsequent lineup against the undesirables, established the conviction that there was an authority that could and would punish drastically and the community felt safer.

.* The family was that of ??? Campbell, a Northern Pacific official.

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* He grabbed a spoke from a government wagon wheel.

* Rigney was unconscious when taken to jail.

−

* The jailer's name was Conley.

+

* The jailer's name was Jim Conley.

* The mob was quiet and non-violent.

* Lynching occurred on the eastern end of Main street where the railroad crossed a coulee on a tressle.

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* Implied that almost three weeks passed between the lynching and Chinnick's shooting.

* John owned vs leased vs just managed the Cosmopolitan

+

Cosmopolitan fire: order of destruction: 3 small buildings (Merritt's lunch counter, Brown's tobacco store, Bishop's Side-Board Saloon); Flick's gambling hall (owned by Charles Bishop, made of pine logs that gave out such heat that the rest of the block was a goner); Basinski & Bros stationery and general store; W. E. Savage & Co. drug store (a 2 story frame) adjoining the First National Bank, which was brick and stopped the fire. Loss estimated to be as high as $100,000, insurance covered about $50,000, mostly by Phoenix, Liverpool, London and Globe, and Aetna companies. Cosmopolitan (NE corner of Main & Sixth, one of the best in the territory, $8000) Owned by H. E. Wolf, leased by John Chinnick. Performers lost all their wardrobes. Three attempts had been made to burn it down and had been discovered in time to prevent them. The next building was owned by Bishop, rented by Flick, not insured. Basinski Bros. lost $40,000 due to large inventory, only partially insured. The Savage drug store (Dr. Read a partner) was well insured, loss not heavy. Fire dept was quickly on hand but powerless.

Revision as of 22:11, 10 January 2014

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@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 Fanning the Embers: One identity worth mentioning among the occupants of. this section, is [[John Chinnick]], whose saloon -- and also his ranch home, located in the neighborhood of the baseball park -- were acknowledged "hangouts" for all the desperadoes who happened this way. John himself was never misjudged by his fellow citizens. They knew him for just what he was, but in his daily contact with the world he was in many respects a decent sort and always ready and willing to join in public movements. And in those days inquiry into one's antecedents or private business was discouraged.
+The main reliance of the toughs was on John Chinnick, who kept a joint -- next to the Jordan store -- where they hung out, and a feed trough for them at his ranch, out beyond where the ball park was. John ranked as a citizen. He was one of the earliest to come, one of the townsite company, and was to that extent, one of the founders of the town. The new gang took to him, however, and he to them and this association so lowered his standing in the community.
 C.N. Strevell: Another real tough, but who didn't advertise it, was John Chinnick. It had been rumored that Chinnick and his gang (robbed Cahn, which is widely claimed to have been done by Big Nose George Parrott). Not long after the robbery, a "posse" called at Chinnick's house in the evening and knock brought John to the door. The sheriff said, "Better come with us John." He replied, "Wait till I get my hat." A pistol shot was heard and it was found that John had shot himself, preferring death in this manner to the western custom of lynching.
@@ Line 27: / Line 30: @@
 :"The leader of this faction was John Chinnick, one of the first settlers in the town. He was not a bad sort in some ways, and quite civic minded, but his saloon and cabin had always been the rendezvous of any shady characters who drifted up or down the Yellowstone - including Big Nose George Parrott. When he was informed on Monday morning (July 23rd?) that he had been banished from town, he first agreed to go, but later showed signs of being unwilling to leave quietly. About noon he apparently had a scuffle*** with his wife over a revolver and in the tussle he received a fatal wound in the abdomen. This caused a death a month later. With their leader in a critical condition, the rough element heeded the warning and left."
+Recollections of Old Milestown: Chinnick was one of the first to be told by "the committee" to leave. He was due to depart Monday evening and just to show that he was a good fellow he spent Monday forenoon around town, going the round of the different resorts, discussing the situation with an entire absence of rancor, but at the same time with an air of bravado that clearly indicated that he did not intend to comply with the ultimatum. In the forenoon he was in his shirt-sleeves so that all might see that he was unarmed, and to this fact he more than once called attention during the forenoon as evidence that he was a peaceable citizen. At noon he went home to dinner. His home was on the western outskirts of the town in a belt of timber; wholly apart from other houses and quite capable of being made a fortified position, and it was to this ultimate condition that events pointed -- as the gang had all congregated at the Chinnick ranch and report was that they were well supplied with arms and ammunition and intended to make a fight. At that time I resided at the corner of Third and Pleasant streets, distant about a quarter of a mile from the Chinnick home, which was clearly in view, the intervening space being open. Naturally I was interested in what might be going on in the camp of the enemy and during the noon hour of that fateful Monday I was watching the place through a field glass. As I looked I observed a sudden commotion among the many who had been lounging about and shortly a messenger was seen to leave the ranch for town. On his return, which was speedy, he brought a doctor. After a stay of half an hour the doctor returned to town, the bearer of the startling news that John Chinnick had been accidentally but fatally shot. He had intended coming up town again in the afternoon, this time packing his gun. His wife endeavored to dissuade him from doing so and a scuffle for the possession of the weapon ensued, during which it was discharged, the bullet entering Chinnick's abdomen, inflicting a wound that proved fatal after a lapse of four weeks. Just what would have happened in Milestown that night had the shot gone harmless, is hard to guess. Chinnick was a nervy and reckless man. He had a considerable following and had made up his mind that he would not be driven out of town like a yellow dog. On the other hand, the committee was composed of men of nerve and determination. A clash even more, a battle was imminent, and it certainly would have been fought but for the accidental shot that put Chinnick hors du combat and scattered his following. This rabble needed his nerve and reckless assurance to keep them in line and when his personality was removed they had no stomach for the fray. They scattered in all directions under the friendly cover of that Monday night and the next day the current of our communal life resumed its accustomed peaceful flow. This event marked the crest of the wave of lawlessness that had been slowly gathering since the incoming of the railroad two years before, encouraged by the lax conditions under which we had existed in the earlier days. The lynching and the subsequent lineup against the undesirables, established the conviction that there was an authority that could and would punish drastically and the community felt safer.
 .* The family was that of ??? Campbell, a Northern Pacific official.
@@ Line 75: / Line 80: @@
 * He grabbed a spoke from a government wagon wheel.
 * Rigney was unconscious when taken to jail.
-* The jailer's name was Conley.
+* The jailer's name was Jim Conley.
 * The mob was quiet and non-violent.
 * Lynching occurred on the eastern end of Main street where the railroad crossed a coulee on a tressle.
@@ Line 97: / Line 102: @@
 * Implied that almost three weeks passed between the lynching and Chinnick's shooting.
 * John owned vs leased vs just managed the Cosmopolitan
+Cosmopolitan fire: order of destruction: 3 small buildings (Merritt's lunch counter, Brown's tobacco store, Bishop's Side-Board Saloon); Flick's gambling hall (owned by Charles Bishop, made of pine logs that gave out such heat that the rest of the block was a goner); Basinski & Bros stationery and general store; W. E. Savage & Co. drug store (a 2 story frame) adjoining the First National Bank, which was brick and stopped the fire. Loss estimated to be as high as $100,000, insurance covered about $50,000, mostly by Phoenix, Liverpool, London and Globe, and Aetna companies. Cosmopolitan (NE corner of Main & Sixth, one of the best in the territory, $8000) Owned by H. E. Wolf, leased by John Chinnick. Performers lost all their wardrobes. Three attempts had been made to burn it down and had been discovered in time to prevent them. The next building was owned by Bishop, rented by Flick, not insured. Basinski Bros. lost $40,000 due to large inventory, only partially insured. The Savage drug store (Dr. Read a partner) was well insured, loss not heavy. Fire dept was quickly on hand but powerless.