{"id":102300,"date":"2025-03-25T12:04:04","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T16:04:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=102300"},"modified":"2025-05-06T09:56:24","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T13:56:24","slug":"genealogy-surprise-murder-in-my-family-tree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/genealogy-surprise-murder-in-my-family-tree.html","title":{"rendered":"Genealogy Surprise: Murder in My Family Tree"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/em><\/strong> James Pylant describes how, while researching a previous story, he was surprised to find that one of his relatives was the accused killer\u2019s wife! James is an editor at GenealogyMagazine.com and author for JacobusBooks.com, is an award-winning historical true-crime writer, and authorized celebrity biographer.<\/em><\/p>\n

In my earlier story \u201cTainted Tonic<\/a>,\u201d I wrote about merchant Lester Groover\u2019s indictment for the 1906 murder of Lizzie Hooks, who swallowed a fatal dose from a poisoned medicine bottle. The accused man was found not guilty.<\/p>\n

Lester Groover lived in Chattooga County, in northwestern Georgia, where he had married Emily Hammond in 1901. My great-grandmother\u2019s maiden name was the similarly spelled Hammons, and her roots were also in the Peach State \u2013 but in the north-central county of Hall. Hammond is a relatively common last name; it ranked 481 among the top 1,000 surnames<\/a> in the 2010 federal census.<\/p>\n

Still, I found an unexpected twist while researching this story: my great-grandmother and Lester Groover\u2019s wife were not-so distantly related \u2013 second cousins once removed, to be exact.<\/p>\n

Emily Hammond<\/a> was born on 7 October 1883 to Valentine and Josephine (Mills) Hammond. The \u201cmuch admired and loved\u201d Emily Hammond and the \u201cprosperous merchant\u201d Lester Groover\u2019s 1901 newspaper wedding announcement called Valentine Hammond \u201cone of the best farmers of this section.\u201d (1)<\/p>\n

Emily\u2019s father was drawn into her husband\u2019s saga when detectives testified that they witnessed Valentine mailing a package just days before Lizzie Hooks received a similar package containing the fatal tonic. The following newspaper article reports:<\/p>\n

G. L. Groover of Chelsea, Ga., and [Valentine] Hammond, father-in-law of Groover, have been indicted on the charge of poisoning to death Mrs. R. E. Hooks of the same place.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

(Note: this article misreported Emily\u2019s father\u2019s name as \u201cJ. H.\u201d instead of Valentine.)<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Savannah Tribune (Savannah, Georgia), 1 June 1907, page 8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Valentine\u2019s indictment did not result in a conviction, with newspapers making no more mention of it. He lived another 28 years, dying on 22 March 1935<\/a> in Chattooga County.<\/p>\n

Born on Valentine\u2019s Day in 1862, Valentine<\/a> was the son of Joseph and Nancy Caroline (Hendrix) Hammond, who were married in 1848 in Hall County. (2) Family tradition says that Joseph was killed in 1864<\/a> after deserting the Confederate States Army by Gatewood\u2019s Raiders<\/a>, a marauding gang who claimed he was hanged for horse theft.<\/p>\n

Calamity struck the Hammond family more than once.<\/p>\n

In 1910, Valentine\u2019s first cousin, Georgia (Hammond) Beard, was listed in the federal census in Turkeytown, Alabama, as a 46-year-old widow<\/a> supporting five children between ages 6 and 17 by farming. However, the husband of the \u201cwidowed\u201d Mrs. Beard was very much alive \u2013 behind bars in another state. Her husband\u2019s imprisonment was a highly publicized story.<\/p>\n

Georgia was born in December 1862 in Hall County, Georgia, to William O. \u201cBill\u201d Hammond (3) and Adaline Kemp<\/a>. At 17, she married 18-year-old Jonathan M. Beard<\/a> in Hall County on 8 January 1880. There, Jonathan farmed and later worked as a machine operator. The couple\u2019s 20th wedding anniversary came in 1900<\/a>, and their eighth child was born in December 1903. But something went awry after their last child\u2019s birth.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Georgia), 3 August 1904, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The next day, another Georgia newspaper elaborated, stating that Beard committed the crime \u201cbecause his wife had left him and her father would not consent for the baby child to be returned to Beard.\u201d The same article gave an account of the shooting.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Brunswick Daily News (Brunswick, Georgia), 4 August 1904, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

William Hammond died of his wounds received in the shooting.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, Georgia), 9 August 1904, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Officials began to doubt the sanity of the accused killer, Jonathan Beard.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, Georgia), 8 September 1904, page 7<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Georgia law<\/a> mandates:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen insanity plea is filed, court must cause issue on that plea to be tried by special jury. If found true, court shall order defendant to insane asylum to remain until discharged by law.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Jonathan Beard\u2019s insanity trial began in Gainesville, Georgia, on 25 January 1905. Defense attorney W. B. Sloan found witnesses who would testify to Beard\u2019s mental state, as this next article reports:<\/p>\n

\u201cBeard has had an unbalanced mind since childhood, and that it runs in the family; that he had spells of dementia at times, when he would not be accountable for his actions.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"An<\/a>
Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, Georgia), 25 January 1905, page 4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jonathan Beard claimed to have regained his sanity after two years and six months of confinement at the Georgia State Sanitarium in Milledgeville. That\u2019s when he learned that he had killed his father-in-law, saying his mind was in \u201cutter darkness\u201d and he had no memory of the tragedy. Recovering from insanity caused his return to Hall County to face the murder charge.<\/p>\n

At his murder trial, Jonathan explained that his father-in-law, Bill Hammond, had kidnapped one of the Beard children and twice caused Jonathan to separate from his wife. He also made the startling claim that Bill had attempted a murder-for-hire scheme to kill him \u2013 and that the would-be assassin was Jonathan\u2019s 20-year-old son, Oliver Beard! Jonathan said Oliver, whom he called \u201cweak-minded,\u201d told him about the plot. (4)<\/p>\n

This newspaper account tells the results of the January 1908 murder trial.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Georgia), 30 January 1908, page 10<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jonathan was incarcerated on 12 February 1908. According to Beard\u2019s prison record, he died on 23 October 1913. (5) A brief newspaper death notice provided the final chapter in Jonathan Beard\u2019s story. It stated that he \u201cdied at a private sanitarium,\u201d marking the end of a life marred by tragedy.<\/p>\n

Georgia (Hammond) Beard returned to her native state, where she died<\/a> on 3 May 1922 at age 59 from Bright\u2019s disease and heart trouble.<\/p>\n

Explore over 330 years of newspapers and historical records in GenealogyBank. Discover your family story! Start a 7-Day Free Trial<\/a><\/p>\n

Note on the header image: Sherlock Holmes investigates a mystery.
\nIllustration credit: https:\/\/depositphotos.com\/home.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Related Article:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n