This is a true story, and really proves why you should never give up on finding those ancestors.  Never know what might happen next.  This story just happened to GREG AND LINDA DYE and they were kind enough to share this with me.

About two weeks ago Greg  made a visit to Camden County and the Pleasant Grove Cemetery, where he made a great discovery.  His gg grandmother is buried there, "Sarah C. DYE and her daughter-in-law, Martha Dye, (Mrs. B. F. Dye).  He had received the information from a second cousin of his and had visited the site at least twice if not 3 times before.  The family mystery envolved his great grandfather Pilgrim Elijan DYE who was supposedly buried in Camden County, and he, along with Martha and Sarah were reburied for the creation of Lake of the Ozarks.  He was greatly disappointed that he could never find Pilgrim.

Well, this particularly Sunday  he swung by the cemetery.   He had his digital camera with him and wanted to retake pictures of Sarah and Martha's headstones for his files.  For whatever reason a stone just to the right of Sarah's and sticking out no more than 3 inches high caught his attention.  He bent down and pulled back the grass and he could see what appeared to be the top of possibly a P E and a D.  He couldn't believe it, that after all the trips here by them and other cousins, no one had paid any attention to the stone.  He went back to his truck, and all he was armed with was a pocketknife and a nutdriver, but dug around the face of the stone and sure enough, Pilgrim Elijah Dye was there.  He dug a little deeper and found a date.  This is what is on the stone:    P. E. Dye   D.  1897.  The stone is in the same row as Sarah and Martha, marth'as on the left and Sarah's in the middle.

Greg plans on returning and resetting this stone which has apparently sunk way into the ground, but his ancestor was there just as he had been told.  Greg also wonders if this was fate or just plain dumb luck, either way it was welcomed.

The picture is of the stone AFTER digging with the nutdriver and pocketknife.  Imagine what a shovel or something like that might do.  Greg and Linda Dye can be reached at    [email protected]

This article appeared in the News Leader on Thursday, May 15, 1997.    Photo and article By Lance Jay
 

            MYSTERY GRAVE STONES CALL OUT FOR ANSWERS
                            WHO WAS     PHEBE MARTIN??
 

                                              ***********************************************

     The thoughts of Mr. Willis Ezard, retired Superintendant of Conway Schools, took him back through time to the year 1928 on November 30.  Willis was a senior in high school at Linn Creek and since fur hunting; season
started at 12:01 December 1, he and his father, Elza, decided to go  possum hunting. They gathered up their guns, a lantern, and an ax and took off  through the woods, crossing Highway 5 about halfway between Lebanon and the old location of the town of Linn Creek. They  wanted to lie in their favorite hunting spot when the clock struck midnight and the hunting would be legal.
    Their hunt was successful and they had 5 or 6 possums tied to the ax,  that Poppa Elza carried over his shoulder when they decided they would head towards home. They had just crossed Highway 5 again and had gone about 50 yards from the highway when they saw a package of some sort. 'The package was wrapped in newspapers (the Kirksville News and the Kansas City Star) and was tied with binder twine.
    Poppa studied the package for a moment and said "Willis, you pick it up and cut the twine on the ax blade (on his shoulder) and we'll see what it is."
    Willis obliged and sawed away at the twine with the enthusiasm of an 18 year old anxious to find the answer to the mystery. In the process, the package slipped and fell open on the ground. A woman's arm, severed at the shoulder and gleaming whitely in the eerie glow of the lantern light, lay amidst the bloody newspapers. A scary sight indeed. Poppa Elza stared at it a moment, gave it a kick and hollered "let's go!"
    When they returned home, Momma Essie was asleep but Willis couldn't wait so he woke her up to tell her what they had seen.  The next morning Essie, with a neighbor lady, went to see for herself.    They had no phone, so they stoppcd a car on the highway, told the man what they had found and he drove on to Linn Creek to tell the sheriff.
    Glaring headlines on the front page of the December 2, 1928 issue of the Springfield newspaper stated "Murder Scented As Woman's Arm Found!" The crime officials in Jefferson City.discerned that the woman was of wealthy farnily as her hand showed no signs of manual labor ant her nails were well rnanicurcd. They also thought a farmer must have done the evil deed because the package was tied with binder twine, something that all farmers had in ready supply.
    The murder was never solved. Sounds like a subject for the TV show "Unsolved Mysteries," doesn' it?
    After this scary event, Willis' schoolmate, Basil Twitchel, wrote this poem:
 

         Willis Ezard, who lives on a farm,
         Went possum hunting and found an arrn;
         He went home and told what he saw,
         And the next day they notified the law.
         It was murder indeed, the experts said;
         The news picked it up - a young woman is dead.
         Willis is planning to teach in some school,
         A girl this soon is against his rule -
         But to do this later would be just fine,
         Maybe he can find his woman a piece at a time!

We do not like to find things like the following article in our family searching, but it is a part of history and we must look at it. My great great grandmother was Cynthia Ann Neely Scott and she was part of this murder that took place in Camden County.

LINN CREEK REVEILE
Dec 10,1885

HORRIBLE BUTCHERY

David Lyne and Mary Kirtz
Inhumanly Murdered

THE CRIME SPEEDILY AVENGED BY A BROTHER OF ONE OF THE VICTIMS

Last Friday morning occurred the most terrible tragedy ever enacted in Camden County.

For more than two years one Hiram (nicknamed Jack) Webster, residing near Gunter has been supposed to be insane, and has been a source of constant trouble to the authorities.

On Wednesday Dec. 3 Webster was arrested on complaint of Dr. Leonard Kirtz, charged with assaulting a minor son of Kertz. He was tried the following day before Squire Davis and acquitted. He spent the night at David Lynes four miles northeast of town. Miss Mary Kirtz, daughter of the Doctor, also remained at Lynes over night, and on the following morning Webster, Miss Kirtz and all the family except Mr. Lyne arose about 4 Oclock, and while getting breakfast Mrs. Lyne asked her son to cut fire wood. (Cynthia Scott -remarried after the death of G. G. Scott to David Lyne)  Webster accompanied the boy, who asked him to cut up a rail for stove wood. Webster agreed to do so, and the boy re-entered the house. After waiting some time the youth looked out at the south door of the house to see whether Webster had cut the wood, and about the same time Webster entered the west door with the ax in his hand. Before any suspicions were aroused he advanced toward the Kirtz girl, who was sitting by the fire, and struck her three violent blows upon the head with the ax.
Miss Kirtz dropped forward unconscious after the first blow, and made no sign to attract notice, but Mrs. Lynes daughter (Alice Scott) saw her mother and made an exclamation which drew the attention of her mother and brother. (this is Frank and Alice - called Allie, Scott)

They ran from the room calling upon Lyne to rise and save himself. It is supposed that in attempting to do so he was attacked by the maniac, (if such we should call him,) as cries were heard from within.

The family fled to the residence of George Vinson, a quarter of a mile distant, to summon assistance, but Vinson refused to accompany them to the house, and the boy proceeded to the house of M. L. Lyne, brother of Davids.  Lyne and Logan Cornwell started to the house where the tragedy was enacted and were joined ............vinson. Upon reaching the yard they saw Webster come from behind the house. I did it, dont shoot!, said the murderer, and ran toward the ax, which was between him and his pursuers. Lyne fired, but failed to check Websters approach to the ax. Just as he was trying to grasp
the murderous weapon Vinson discharged a another shot, which brought Webster to the earth, shot through the brain.

After entering the yard a terrible sight met the gaze of the men who had dispatched the monster. The ghastly corpse of David Lyne was lying on the front door which had been torn from its hinges. His head had been crushed by blows on either side, while horrible gashes in the right side, hip and arm served to further mutilate the body.

Just outside another door lay the apparently lifeless form of Miss Kirtz. While near by was the corpse of her assailant. Inside the house were..............traces of the crimes that had been committed, and evidences of a appearent struggle between Mr. Lyne and his murder.

Upon investigation it was found that the girl was living. S. J. David, a justice of the peace was summoned from Linn Creek, and an inquest was held, the verdict being in accordance with the facts just related. No arrest are likely to be made. Lynes funeral occurred on Sunday.  Websters body was removed by his brothers and was probably buried on the same day. Miss Kertz died the next day in the morning, probably of pros.........tion resulting from loss of blood and exposure. We have no
reliable information as to whether her brain was sufficiently affected to render her wounds necessarily fatal.

Mr. Lyne was born in Loudoun Co. Virginia May 30 1831. While a boy he removed to Ohio, and is said to have acquired considerable wealth. He had a large mercantile establishment and owned a river steamer.

Meeting with reverses, he removed to Missouri in 1871 Since which time he has been a quiet citizen and industrious ............member of society. Although poor, the friends were nearly as numerous as his acquaintances, and his
terrible fate excites universal sympathy.

Of his immediate family are a widow (Cynthia Scott) three sons and two daughters. He has an aged mother, three brothers and two sisters residing in Ohio, and one brotherM. L. in this county.

It is impossible to be a prevailing impression that Webster should have been restrained by the authorities as a dangerous character.

Such occurrence so horrify the communities in which they occur that it is difficult for anyone to form a strictly impartial opinion, but to be devoutly hoped that no such horror will ever again stain a page of Camden County history.
 
 
 

STATEMENT OF M. L. LYNE

Linn Creek, Mo., Dec. 10 1885

To Mr. Thodrick Lyne, Dear Mother, Brothrs, Sisters and Frinds, Nealeysville, Morgan County Ohio.

The above account clippd from to-days REVEILL, will partially account you with the horrible tragedy which has just been enacted in our mist.

Last Friday morning, between daylight and sunrise, Frank Scott, my brother David's step-son, came to my house and told me that a man namd Webster was at his stepfather's house, that he had attacked Mary Kertz with an ax and that
he had heard his Pa calling for help, after he left the house.

When I reachd the spot, I saw my dear brother lying dead in the yard. I sprang to the side of my dad and mangled brother. The noise of my approach arousd the vagabond, who came running from the other side of the house, where he had dragged the unconscious girl. It was a matter of life and death between us, and the ax with which his horrible deeds had been committed was six feet nearer to him than to me . .............and checked his approach, but he started toward the murdrous weapon again, and a man namd G. H. Vinson came to my rescue with a gun. I told him to kill Webster. He fired, but
partially missed his aim, turned the monster around, and gave me a chance to finish loading. By this time he stoppd as though drawing a weapon taking effect in the crown of his head, and bringing him to his legs, but I lost no time in reloading, and in th excitment of the moment drew to fire again, but Vinson caught my arm, and told me he was dead.