February 11, 2008
Lyon College News Bureau
Blevins to talk about strange murder trial
at Mabee-Simpson Library on Feb. 27
A Stone County murder will be the topic of discussion at a library lecture this month.
Dr. Brooks Blevins, Lyon College assistant professor of history, will speak at noon Feb. 27 at the Mabee-Simpson Library.
Blevins’ lecture will be “The ‘Arkansas Ghost’ Trial: The Strange Story of the Murder of Connie Franklin.”
In December 1929, the nation turned its attention to a sensational murder mystery and trial in rural Stone County. For the people of one community, things would never be the same again.
“I came across this topic while working on my current book manuscript, “Arkansas, My Arkansaw,” Blevins said. “The lecture will focus on the so-called Connie Franklin murder trial, in which five Stone County men were charged with the murder of a drifter named Connie Franklin in 1929. About a week and a half before the trial, Connie Franklin showed up — or at least someone claiming to be Connie Franklin.
“The St. James community, where the alleged murder had taken place, split between those who said this man was the real Connie Franklin and those who claimed he was an imposter,” he continued. “And it only got stranger from there.”
Dr. Brooks Blevins