State v George (More About John Epps, Step-father to James R. Carter)

Paul Zimmerli pointed out some history about John Epps, husband to Charlotte Temple Evans Carter Epps who was James R. Carter's mother.   John Epps ran a barbershop and occasionally referred to himself as Dr. Epps.  He then became involved in a sordid series of events that culminated in his murder at the hands of F. W. George.  Yes, it was the wild, wild west...even in Des Moines, Iowa.  We sometimes forget.  

For the background on this, see my May blog post and Paul's comments:

http://turpintraces.blogspot.com/2013/05/james-r-carter-had-ties-to-lancaster.html?showComment=1371915690692#c7180199983403173208

Paul refers to The Northwestern Reporter: Volume 18 which is available through Google Books for free.  Google Books has been a great resource for me but I had not looked for court reports.  Here is a synopsis of the crime that is described in the report of State v George:

William Elijah Carter

From Paul Zimmerli, in reference to posts about James R. Carter and EADJ Carter:

Jesse Walker was a schoolteacher and justice of the peace in Owen County. His wife Leah Storm Beem Walker was the widow of Neely Beem of Jackson County. Together they had one child, Finley (1837-1865). 

How they wound up with EADJ Carter is another question. He shows up again as a 15-year-old in Iowa, the older brother of my ancestor William Elijah Carter. Hope that gives you a little more information you may use as steering markers.

See also: http://turpintraces.blogspot.com/2013/01/cousins-die-in-camp-at-cape-girardeau.html