| The Archer Gang is said to have consisted of 16 men, including Thomas Archer, his sons Sam and
John, brother Martin, nephew Martin Jr., cousin Sam Marley, nephew Kinder
Smith, and in-laws John Lynch and Sam (or Anderson) Bunch. The Archers lived in Lost River Twp, Martin County, and terrorized citizens of Martin, Orange and Dubois Counties for years. Many crimes were attributed to the Archers, but there was no proven connection. They stole cattle, hogs, timber and robbed unsuspecting travelers. Though related, they fought among themselves, which in the end proved their undoing. The wife of John B. Archer offered information in 1886 regarding the disappearance of Anderson Bunch in July, 1882. This information led to the immediate arrest of three of the gang. Public sentiment against them was so strong that the three were broken out of jail and lynched on the Martin County courthouse lawn March 10, 1886. Sam Archer, also implicated in the Bunch murder was arrested later, found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging. Some 5,000 - 6,000 people gathered to witness the execution of Sam Archer's sentence July 9, 1886. Sam, John and Tom archer were buried in "a small cemetery behind the French Lick Hotel with twin cedars as markers". Sam's widow, Jane (Wolfington) Archer was buried there in 1914. Their names are now engraved on a single marker. See Wolfington - Jackman Cemetery The follwing collection of newspaper articles is but a portion of published material about the Archer Gang. With the exception of "The Lynch Letter" these are copies of the original stories, not transcripts. |