Preview
Identifier
KF 223 .E5 1888
Creation Date
1888
Description
The Life of Tom Ellis: Chronological and Biographical, Startling and Romantic; the Duel and Trial, Ellis' Great Speech; Last Letter to the World, etc. Birmingham, Ala.: Mills & Co., 1888.
Tom Ellis, a newspaper editor and publisher of The Hornet, was in a romantic relationship with a beautiful divorcee known as Clara Ross. One night, Ellis arrived at Clara's home to find she had a male visitor. Ellis and Ross argued. Ellis took out a revolver and fired at Ross twice, killing her. After his arrest, Ellis made a statement to the press, confessing to the murder. His defense successfully argued insanity at his trial. Ellis was found not guilty and sent to the Alabama Insane Asylum. He was released about five months later. Years later, he was involved in an incident in which he shot a detective named Scarbrough, seriously injuring him. A friend of Scarbrough, Detective Sullivan, later shot and killed Ellis in a duel when they encountered each other in a saloon.