Hellraisers Journal: Fellow Worker Joe Hill on Trial for His Life in Salt Lake City, Utah

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Quote Joe Hill, General Strike, Workers Awaken, LRSB p6, Oct 1919—————

Hellraisers Journal – Saturday June 13, 1914
Salt Lake City, Utah – Joe Hill on Trial for Murder on Circumstantial Evidence

State of Utah vs. Joseph Hillstrom

Joe Hill, Joseph Hillstrom on day of arrest, SL Tb 1, Jan 15, 1914
Joe Hill on Day of Arrest

Joe Hill, famous I. W. W. songwriter, went on trial June 10th in Salt Lake City, Utah. Fellow Worker Joe Hill is on trial for his life, having been charged with the murder of J. G. Morrison who was shot and killed, along with his son, during the robbery of his grocery store on the night of January 10, 1914. Joe Hill was arrested three days later. He pleaded “Not Guilty” on January 22nd to the charge of murder in the case of J. G. Morrison. Hill has been in the Salt Lake County Jail since his arrest.

District Attorney E. O. Leatherwood admits that all of the evidence against Joe Hill is circumstantial, but states that he will prove Hill’s guilt through a chain of circumstantial facts: 1). that a tall man in the company of a short man were seen near the store just before the murder of Morrison, 2). that Hill was that tall man, 3). that Morrison’s son fired at the men and wounded Hill, who then shouted that he had been shot, 4). that Hill was treated shortly thereafter for a gunshot wound, 5). that Hill was carrying a gun of the same type used in the murder while at the doctor’s office.

Joe has strenuously denied any involvement in this brutal double murder. He states that he was shot by a friend during an argument over a woman known to both of them. He states that he is confident that he will be acquitted. Others are not so sure, pointing out that Fellow Worker Joe Hill has already been found guilty of being a member of the Industrial Workers of the World.

From The Voice of the People of May 21, 1914:

JOE HILL’S TROUBLE

The following letter is published at the request of Fellow-worker Ed. Rowan, Secretary L. U. 69:                                                     

SALT LAKE CITY. May 2. 1914.

Voice of the People, New Orleans, La.:

Gentlemen–On January 10th, 1914, J. G. Morrison, ex-policeman, was shot at 9:31 p. m. in his grocery store by two masked men, in Salt Lake City, Utah. His son was also shot, but is supposed to have wounded one of the men first. Another son claims to have heard the shots and reached the store just as the masked men were running away.

Four days later at the house of his friends, seven miles front Salt Lake City, Joe Hill was arrested on information of a Dr. Bird, who drove him to Eselius’ home about 11:30 p. m. the night of the murder. Hill stated to the doctor who attended him that he had been shot at the house of a friend because the friend thought he had insulted his wife and that he did not want anything said as he knew the friend did not mean it.

Another son of the dead man claims to have identified Hill. Yet as the men were masked I don’t think much of the identification. We are defending him, but he states that he does not wish to involve his girl friend and will not state who shot him nor her name.

The main thing the State has against Hill is that he is an I. W. W. and therefore sure to be guilty. Hill tried to keep the I. W. W. out of it and denied it, but the papers fastened it on him. For this reason he is entitled to be helped and not allowed to hang for being an I. W. W. Every man is presumed to be innocent till proved guilty. It should not he necessary for him to prove his innocence, and it would not be if he was not an I. W. W.

Scott and MacDougall, per Scott.
(Attorneys for Joe Hill)

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Hellraisers Journal: From The Salt Lake Tribune: “Wounded Man Held as Slayer of Grocer”-Joe Hill/Joseph Hillstrom Arrested

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Quote, Workingmen Unite, Joe Hill, Cry for Justice, p707, 1921—————

Hellraisers Journal – Thursday January 15, 1914
Salt Lake City, Utah – Joe Hill Arrested in Connection with Murder of Grocer and Son

From The Salt Lake Tribune of Jan 14, 1914:

Joe Hill Hillstrom Held for Murder, SL Tb p1, Jan 14, 1914

At an early hour this morning Sergeant Ben Siegfus expressed the belief that Joseph Hill, arrested for the murder of the two Morrisons, is Frank Z. Wilson, a former inmate of the state prison. The description of Hill corresponds closely with that of Wilson. The police have been searching for Wilson ever since the murders.

—————

Suffering from a wound believed to have been inflicted by John Arling Morrison, 17 years old, just before the boy fell dead, a victim of a murderer’s bullet, Joseph Hill, a musician, was brought to the county jail at 2 o’clock, charged with the murder of John G. Morrison and John A. Morrison, his son, in their grocery store in Salt [Lake City] last Saturday night.

Hill was arrested at 11:30 o’clock last night [January 13th] at the home of a family named Eselius on West Seventeenth South street, in Murray, by Marshal Fred Peters and Deputy Marshals Edwin Larson and Joseph Van Newland. They were told of his presence at this home by Drs. F. M. McHugh and A. A. Bird, who had been called to the Eselius home to treat the wounded man. Hill had been lying suffering from his wound at the Eselius home since last Saturday night.

Walked to Murray.

The wounded man walked into the residence of Dr. F. M. McHugh, 4002 South State street, in the outskirts of Murray, at 11:30 o’clock Saturday night [January 10th]. He was suffering from a wound to the left side. A bullet had entered the side pierced the left lung and emerged through the back. The man had apparently lost a great deal of blood and was in a weakened condition. He appeared to the doctor to have been walking a long distance.

The doctor took the man into his house and dressed the wound. Hill told the doctor that he had quarreled with a friend in Murray over a woman and that in the quarrel the friend shot him.

Later in the night Dr. McHugh saw Dr. A. A. Bird, also of Murray, driving by on State street, and called him in. At Hill’s request Dr. Bird drove the man to the Eselius home. Hill had previously known the Eselius family and they apparently believed Hill’s story of the shooting and gave him shelter. At the hour that Hill was treated by Dr. McHugh, the doctor had not heard of the shooting [of the Morrisons]. His suspicions were aroused later on hearing of the account of the murders in Salt Lake, and he then notified the Murray officers.

Maintained Silence.

Since his arrest Hill has maintained a sullen silence. When the officers entered the Eselius home, Hill made a feint as if to draw a gun and was quickly covered by the arresting officers. Hill then made no resistance. He has obeyed the commands of the officers quietly, but has refused to answer any questions.

After he had been brought to the county jail early this morning Hill was examined by Dr. W. N. Pugh, who said that while the wound was a serious one, there was a strong probability that he would recover from it. He said that his silence and apparently dazed condition might have been at least partially induced by opiates given him by the doctors to ease his pain.

The police are elated over the capture of Hill, whom they feel certain is one of the men wanted for the murder of the Morrisons. As soon as Hill’s condition warrants, an effort will be made by the officers to induce him to make a confession and give the name of the accomplice.

Linked about the wounded sufferer at the city jail hospital is already woven a strong chain of circumstantial evidence, even though Merlin Morrison, the only eyewitness to the tragedy, may be unable to make a positive identification of the man.

In a general way Hill’s description corresponds to that of one of the two scarlet-masked men who dashed into the Morrison store on Saturday night and shot to death the proprietor of the store and his brave son. Both Morrison and his son were killed with bullets fired from a .38-caliber automatic pistol.

From the blood-stained coat of Hill at midnight that same night Dr. McHugh took a .38-caliber automatic pistol.

[…..]

[Emphasis added.]

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WE NEVER FORGET: The Love Songs of Joe Hill

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Organize! Oh, toilers, come organize your might;
Then we’ll sing one song of the workers’ commonwealth,
Full of beauty, full of love and health.
-Joe Hill

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hilda Erickson
Hilda Erickson

There are three love songs written by Joe Hill that have survived to make their way into our Rebel Songwriter’s musical legacy. Two were found in his room when it was searched soon after his arrest in January of 1914. These two songs were subsequently published in The Salt Lake Tribune of June 21, 1914. The third was found years later in Stockholm, Sweden, during a search of the Joe Hill file of the Archives of the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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