Collection of three items: an original Financial Edition of the Dallas Daily Times Herald, April 6, 1935, with the headline, "Ray To Be Sentenced Monday," the beginning of the article in the right column reading, "Ray Hamilton, 22, ace badman, whose crime career started in West Dallas in petty thievery, will be sentenced Monday to die in the electric chair…for murdering a prison guard. Captured…in Fort Worth railroad yards by Sheriff Smoot Schmid and his deputies"; and two official statements from witnesses who interacted with Hamilton at the railroad yard and traveled with him in Texas and Oklahoma. The first, signed "Glenn E. Allen," is three pages, April 21, 1935, in part: "The first time I ever saw Raymond Hamilton was on Tuesday, April 2, 1935…in the Rock Island yards…Raymond Hamilton, and another man, Nolan Allred, came up…Hamilton had a suit case; I did not see any weapons…Hamilton, Allred and I went to a restaurant and ate breakfast. Hamilton paid…We ate after 7 in the morning, April 5 - Friday. After breakfast, all three of us went back and sat down under the viaduct…I never saw any weapons on Hamilton. I never saw any until the officers took them off of him…We just sat around while Allred was home on his second trip. About dark was saw Allred coming down the railroad. We got up to meet him. Then came the arrest. The remainder is well known." The second statement is signed "X Allred," two pages, April 21, 1935, in part: "I was sitting there talking to a negro when Raymond walked up…I had on a pair of overalls over my pants. He asked me what I would take for them, and I said I didn't want to sell them. He said he would give me a dollar for them. I sold them…Friday, April 5, we got up about 6 o'clock. We went to a restaurant and ate breakfast—Raymond paying…I didn't know who I was with when I was with Raymond. I saw Raymond's guns in St. Louis…I saw the guns in Fort Worth before officers got Raymond and maybe I saw them in El Reno." In overall very good to fine condition, with toning and edge chips and tears to the brittle newspaper. From the collection of Dallas County Sheriff 'Smoot' Schmid.
