Mount Airy area residents are used to tourists from across the nation visiting the region — if it’s not “The Andy Griffith Show” ties or the county’s status as home to many of the giants of the old time and blue grass world, it’s vineyards, hiking trails and river sports which keep tourists coming.
Just up the road, in Hillsville, Virginia, there’s another point one interest which draws visitors — a crime which happened more than a century ago.
The Carroll County Courthouse Shootout of 1912 left five people dead and captivated the nation’s attention for an entire month until the sinking of the Titanic finally knocked it off front page national news. More than 110 years later, the story of the tragedy continues to fascinate folks around the country.
The Carroll County Historical Society recently wrapped up its fifth, and perhaps final, season of presenting “Thunder in the Hills,” the story of the Allen family, 57 shots fired in the courthouse in 90 seconds, the ensuing execution of Floyd and Claude Allen, and the aftermath of everyone involved in that cold, fateful March day. All 12 weekend performances were sold out, which is no surprise to anyone who has followed the popular play. After all, it was written by native son Frank Levering and takes place in the very courthouse that was the scene of what is still today considered by many as the most egregious act of violence in a courtroom in United States history.
This year’s month-long run of shows brought visitors to Carroll County from 116 different locations and 13 different states, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia and locations all across North Carolina and Virginia.
“We went through the checks and wrote down where they were from, and those locations were just from the checks. And if you look at most of them, they are people who would have had to come to at least spend the night because many of them are at least a couple of hours away,” said Shelby Inscore-Puckett of the Carroll County Historical Society. “We had one woman who came all the way from Dallas, Texas.”
The visitor from Texas was a judge from the Dallas area who caught a plane in Dallas that morning, flew to Charlotte, rented a car, and came to the play. She then drove back to Charlotte and flew to Dallas.
“She came in and was just a whirlwind of energy. She was originally from West Virginia and her grandfather had taught her the song about the Ballad of Sidna Allen, which is wrong. It should have been Floyd Allen, but she knew the word to every verse,” Inscore-Puckett said. “She entertained us that night. She stood there and sang for us and she was the most fun woman I have seen in a long time.”
While there is really no way to accurately measure the economic impact the play has had over the years through visitors, who purchase gas, food, lodging, and other items, “Thunder in the Hills” has at least made enough of an impression locally to be noticed statewide.
“They don’t have figures by weekend, but they have it by year. We have noticed Carroll County’s tourism dollars from the Virginia Economic Development bigwigs in Richmond show it has been growing steadily since the COVID pandemic,” said Nancy McDaniel. “It has been growing enough that we think we might have had something to do with it because when the Sidna Allen House is open it is packed full.”
That happened this year with little advertisement other than Facebook and a couple of newspaper articles. Tickets purchased for the play included the ability to tour the Allen House.
“And we had more than 200 people that went to the house with no advertisement, just the play. I think you have two groups. I think you have got those people who have a connection who heard about it because they grew up here, but I think we had a good number of people this time who moved to Carroll County,” Inscore-Puckett said. “We had a large Fancy Gap contingency and they are people who have just moved to the area and didn’t know anything about it, but wanted to know more.”
The play also brought in relatives of some of the central figures in the courthouse shooting, including a great-great grandson of Sidna Allen, a great grandchild of Nellie Wisler (Claude Allen’s girlfriend), and relatives of slain juror Augustus Fowler.
“And of course we have a good number of people who have been to the play every year,” Inscore-Puckett said. “It is a bit of a cult following.”
At the beginning of this year’s play cycle, the Carroll County Historical Society, Levering and other actors in the production made it known that this would most likely be the last run for the popular play. While that may still be the case, one would be wise not to bet the farm.
“It is my last run,” Inscore-Puckett said, “but it is amazing. We were just talking about it the other day. There actually were cast members who were talking about doing it again, and so it may have been false advertisement because when they started out this year they were done with it, they had aged out. And somehow that group gets together and they have the best time. If I were a betting woman, I am going to bet you they do it again because by the time that that play was over they were all talking about how much fun they had had, how much they enjoyed it, how much they had missed all the years of not doing it, all of that.”
While those wishing to see the play again may be out of luck going forward, there is still ample opportunity to get a local history fix. The Carroll County Historical Society will be offering Courthouse Tragedy Tours at the Historic Carroll County Courthouse, the historical society museum, and the J. Sidna Allen House on July 27-28 and Aug. 30-Sept. 1. No appointment is needed, but because of planned restoration work and limited volunteers, it is recommended to call 276-728-4113 or email carrollmuseum@yahoo.com to ensure availability.
Allen Worrell can be reached at (276) 779-4062 or on X@AWorrellTCN
Most Popular
Comments / 0