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Submitted: 1/20/14 • Approved: 7/30/20 • Last Updated: 8/2/20 • R2610-G2610-S3
Phillip - October 12, 1827 in Fayette County, Georgia
George - September 15, 1854 in Fayette County, Georgia
Father and son died on September 19, 1876
Two members of this family were victims of the Sutton-Taylor Feud. Dr. Brassell married Mary Ann Brassell, also of Georgia, and all the children were born in Georgia. He served as a member of the Constitutional Convention in 1866 and on the Georgia legislature in 1868, 1869, and 1870. Hoping for an improvement in the Doctor's health the family moved to Texas in 1870 and settled near Shiloh, a small community near Yorktown. This placed them in the center of the feuding Sutton-Taylor families. On September 18 Dr. Brassell had made a disposition of his property, gave money to his wife to defray funeral expenses and picked out the site where he would be laid to rest. He was suffering from tuberculosis and knew he had only a short time to live. Around 10:00 on the 19th the household was aroused by someone hollering, "Hello." Thinking at first it was a neighbor they soon realizing it was not when the same voice yelled, "Surround the house boys." A man referred to by the others as "Mr. Sheriff" entered the house and told the Brassell family to not be alarmed and that they were looking for someone who might be in the house. Then the family was ordered to dress and leave the house whereupon "Mr. Sheriff searched the house. Dr. Brassell's son George told the family that three of the men were Bill Meador, Jake Ryan, and Joe Siterlee and that he knew all of them. The group asked for directions to a Mr. Ainsworth's place and it was pointed out to them. The posse then placed Dr. Brassel, George and the other two sons, Sylvanus and Theodore, under arrest and left. Not long after Mrs. Brassell heard gunfire and Dr. Brassell and George had been murdered while the other two sons managed to jump into the brush and hide out. Theodore managed to reach Mr. Ainsworth's home and inform them of what happened. They were joined by another neighbor and all returned to the Brassell home where Mary Ann learned she was a widow. She went looking for her men. It took two hours to find her son and 35 yards away was her husband. The posse were all members of the Sutton gang, but there was never determined a reason for the double killing. A few theories were developed, but the most plausible one was that it was a mistake and the killings were to cover up identities. Seven members of the gang were indicted. Five were freed on technicalities, one was murdered to keep him quiet, and Dave Augustine was the only person ever convicted and he was pardoned before he ever got to jail.
Excerpted from Tombstone by Tombstone Volume One
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Contributed on 1/20/14 by tomtodd
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Record #: 2610