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Although billed as nonfiction, this book by novelist John Grisham fails to provide any citation for his claims. In fact, to date no one associated with the lynching has been identified.
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Masonic references in the writings of John Grisham
Innocent Man
The town's reputation for lawlessness changed dramatically in 1909, when the locals
finally got fed up with living in fear. A respected rancher named Gus Bobbitt was gunned
down by a professional killer hired by a rival landowner. The killer and three conspirators
were arrested, and an epidemic of hanging fever swept through the town. Led by the
Masons, the upstanding members of Ada, a lynch mob formed early on the morning of
April 19, 1909. Forty members marched solemnly out of the Masonic Hall on Twelfth at
Broadway in downtown Ada and arrived at the jail a few minutes later. They subdued the
sheriff, yanked the four thugs out of their cells, and dragged them across the street to a
livery stable that had been chosen for the occasion. Each of the four had his wrists and
ankles bound with baling wire, then each was ceremoniously hanged.
Early the next morning a photographer set up his camera in the barn and took some
pictures. One survived over the years, a faded black and white that clearly shows all four
men suspended by their ropes, motionless, almost peaceful, and quite dead. Years later,
the photo was reproduced on a postcard and handed out at the Chamber of Commerce office.
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The Innocent Man, John Grisham. New York : Bantam Del, 2007. pb. p. 98.
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