The Cold Spring Murders

After doing the D.C. Stephenson blog I was inspired to do a few more very old cases so I spent the day yesterday researching several cases. I mention often that these sorts of cases are a bit harder to research sometimes because while they were famous cases of their day, the lack of accurate information is sometimes difficult to weed through. So often I have to pick and choose or feel like I spend a lot of my time explaining the discrepancies. This case is a prime example.

The Cold Spring Murders took place in what is now officially Indianapolis, Indiana in 1868. It is not that Indianapolis was not there, it is just that it has officially expanded. Just like the D.C Stephenson case, where the victim was said to live in Irvington, today that is simply a historical area within the city, so too is true in this case. I grew up in Indianapolis so I am unsure if it makes it easier or harder for me when I do these cases. You, as the general reader, likely do not care exactly where the crime took place but for me I try to picture that area, or at least how it was in the 1980's and 90's in my head.

This case became “sensational” by the standards at the time because it involved a woman but not a love affair. It is often said that Nancy Clem was the first woman charged with murder that did not in essence involve a “crime of passion” but I have to be fair in saying I am unsure that is exactly correct. That statement and the way it was said often indicate that she was the first woman ever, or at least in the United States and even still I am unsure that is correct. I would tend to believe maybe in Indiana or Indianapolis possibly but even still. Either way you look at it a woman, at least getting caught for murder in 1868, especially one that did not involve a lover was pretty rare. Many things also state that Nancy Clem went to trial five times in this case and that too adds to the sensationalism but my research indicates that while yes, she would have a fifth trial a few years later from another crime, when it came to the Cold Spring Murders she was only tried four times and two of those were not trials that involved only Nancy Clem.

On September 13, 1868 the bodies of Jacob Young and his wife, Nancy were found along the White River in what was called Cold Springs. For those who are wondering, this is on the north side of the river and just north of downtown Indianapolis. For those a little less familiar with Indianapolis I would estimate it is about two or three miles from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where the Indy 500 and the Brickyard 400 is held annually. Many of the initial accounts of the murder indicate that Jacob young was a respected and well liked business man, although I never find reference to what sort of business he had. Some of those initial accounts went down in history despite the fact that the investigation revealed that those accounts may not have been exactly accurate.

Just as we see today some details are elaborated on while others are not mentioned in the media in attempts to make the case seem a little more dramatic, so was the case in the 1800's. It was said that Jacob Young was nearly unrecognizable due to a shotgun blast to his head. When it came to his wife, Nancy, it was said that she suffered a gunshot (presumably from a pistol) to her stomach as well as it appeared that she had been beaten about the head with a rock. Some reports will tell you there had been an attempt to burn her body. Her body was destroyed by fire from just below her neck to her knee area. It is apparently true that her body was burnt in this area which caused significant damage to her body and exposing her intestines which made the murder scene that more gruesome. But, what some reports fail to leave out is that most believe that her body was not technically set on fire as if the perpetrator(s) were attempting to cover their tracks, but that she was shot in very close range and her clothing actually caught fire.

At first investigators thought this could have been a murder/suicide. They thought it possible that Jacob had murdered Nancy and then himself and had the perpetrators been a little more thoughtful that could have possibly been the end of the story. The investigation would reveal that not only was Jacob not exactly the complete, upstanding individual that he was thought to be since he was involved in what appeared to be several shady deals and money schemes, but the couple was also in significant debt. The problem was that a shotgun, the one used on Jacob, would be found at the murder scene but not close enough to either body for it to be possible that one of the victims had used the weapon.

Forensics of course were not what they are today by any stretch of the imagination and while how the perpetrators were caught in this case seems very amateur today, by 1868 standards it was a bit advanced. While I was not able to find out exactly how investigators were able to trace the shotgun found at the scene to William Abrams, they apparently did so. They also saw what they said was a shoe print that did not match the victims and seemed to belong to another woman. There was also talk about a print made by a horse with an unusual looking shoe. William Abrams would be arrested on September 15^th, two days after the bodies were discovered. A man by the name of Silas Hartman would be arrested on September 21^st and on October 7^th, Silas' sister, Nancy Clem, the wife of a prominent grocery store owner was arrested. All three (at least indicated)were indicted for murder on October 23, 1868. Times and dates of trials did not appear to really be readily available in this case. All three defendants were tried together and their first trial ended as a hung jury for all of them. A second trial was conducted and this time all three were convicted. Future President Benjamin Harrison, who was actually a neighbor to the Clem's, would be the assistant prosecutor in the first trial, the lead in the second and subsequent trials of Nancy Clem. Many believed his victory in the second trial was thought to be his “greatest courtroom victory.”

Abrams was given a life sentence but in 1878, after serving just ten years he was pardoned by the governor. He would die in 1910 in the Soldier and Sailors home in Lafayette Indiana. When it came to Silas Hartman the story gets a bit confusing. It was said that he would “later” confess to the crime, implicate Abrams but all but clear his sister, Nancy Clem. He was found dead in his jail cell. Most accounts say that he committed suicide but I found at least one source that claimed that Abrams and Hartman were sharing a cell at this time and that there were suspicions that Abrams actually murdered Hartman. Everything seems to indicate that Hartman was involved in the second trial and was convicted but I never saw anything that stated a sentence, nor have I been able to find out exactly when he died so I cannot absolutely confirm he was actually convicted.

As far as Clem most things do not indicate what sentence she was given but history seems to indicated that while she was convicted twice, that she was sentenced to death both times. Again, we have to remember that complete and accurate information is not always possible to find. Regardless of what her sentence may or may not have been Nancy Clem never saw the hangman's noose. I will say I question the fact that she was given the death sentence to begin with. To execute a woman in that day and age was unheard of and to know that Abrams was not sentenced to death it would seem odd to believe that Nancy Clem had been. However, as we go into the evidence, as well as how she was portrayed in court likely played a large part in things and maybe you will think differently.

Prosecutors would come to believe that Jacob Young, Nancy Clem and likely William Abrams were involved in what is described now as “get rich, quick schemes.” There was also talk of being basically “loan sharks” although neither of these phrases were used back then. It all involved borrowing large amounts of money that were to be paid back at huge interest rates and then borrowing more money to pay those off. Seeing as it appears that the Clem's at least had money, at least considered to be at the time, it is likely that she was the one giving out the money, but it seems that Jacob Young was her partner and the way the story it told it seems that he too was working with her to loan money and in the end Clem would basically give him his share. I will be honest and say that nothing really explained it completely this way but this is the way I understood all of the information put together. It was said that Clem owed Young about $22,000 and she feared that Young would tell her husband about their dealing, hence the motive for the killings.

It was said that prosecutors were able to determine that the day before the murders, believed to be September 12^th, the day before the bodies were discovered, Silas Hartman had rented a buggy. They alleged the unusual horse print found at the scene came from one of the horses that was with the buggy that Hartman rented. Between this and the shotgun being traced back to Abrams that is what it appears led them to the men. As far as what or how they determined Nancy Clem was involved is not completely clear. As I stated earlier, Hartman confessed at some point but allegedly did not implicate his sister. It appears they believed the woman's print at the scene belonged to her but how they determined this is unknown.

At any rate the prosecution believed that on September 12^th Clem had ridden with the Young's to the area in which they would be later found and Abrams, along with Hartman, either followed Jacob Young or knew where he was going and laid in wait for them. As they were riding it was said that Abrams shot Jacob Young in the head with the shotgun and then Nancy Clem shot Nancy Young with a .22 pistol that was never found or recovered. When they discovered Nancy Young was not dead from the gunshot wound her head was beaten with a rock.

The Indiana Supreme Court overturned Nancy Clem's conviction although I have no idea the reasons. She was taken to trial for a third time and once again she was convicted. Again, I have no information as to what she received as a sentence, but again, for reasons I could not find, the Indiana Supreme Court overturned the conviction. Now, while so many things state that she had a fifth trial, I found no evidence of this. I would suspect that if she was tried for a fifth time we would know this. The only outcomes could have been a hung jury, or she was found guilty or not guilty. Any one of those results would have been news especially if it was her fifth trial on the same crime. My research indicated that after the fourth trial and second reversal of her conviction the state dismissed the case.

Many have argued that her trials were less about her being involved in a scheme, but her standing as a business woman in that era. I have seen very few things from those who discuss how she was portrayed in court as being wrong, that they did not believe that she was involved in the schemes alleged. Rightfully I suppose they argued that prosecutors concentrated on her image that she was not a stay home, take care of her man type of woman more than showing her shady side. Since there was so little actually revealed as to what was said about her status or even her scheme in court and even these articles did not reveal anything new, I cannot agree, nor disagree with their assessments. One of the references I found said “evidence suggested” she was involved in the scams and owed Jacob Young money but did not reveal exactly what that evidence was.

A few years later Nancy Clem was convicted on charges of perjury and forgery unrelated to the Cold Spring Murders. Of course this case was less sensational than the murder trials had been but is a bit of a footnote to her story. It is also entirely possible that it was touted as a victory again to have at least gotten her behind bars and serve a sentence for at least something. But, were prosecutors waiting on her to do something again so they could pounce? Would they have gone as far as setting her up because their failure in the Cold Springs case had made them look bad? I am not saying that any of this happened but with such little information available, the era in which this took place, and the fact that law enforcement, prosecutors and states have always wanted to “get their man.”

I am unsure if Clem served a full four years or how much time she did serve. It was said that at the time of her death on June 8, 1897 at the age of sixty-five she was basically a medicine peddler. It has been suggested that she possibly died of stomach cancer. She is buried next to her son in the infamous Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis. The website Findagrave.com indicates that Jacob and Nancy Young are buried in a cemetery on the northwest side of Indianapolis named North Liberty. In fact the cemetery looks to be very close to where I was raised as a child. Pictures indicate that it currently sits behind a residential area but I truly cannot place it nor can I find its exact location. At any rate, both of the separate stones of Jacob and Nancy Young state “murdered at Cold Springs.”