Kenny Wagner
Encyclopedia
William Kenneth Wagner (February 18, 1903 in Scott County, VA - March 9, 1958) more commonly known as Kenny (Kinnie) Wagner was a bootlegger
in the U.S. state
of Mississippi
, who murdered several people, including two sheriff's deputies. He escaped from jails numerous times, but ultimately died in prison on March 9, 1958.
His most notable escape was his last attempt and involved a clever trick that was not discovered until Wagner was outside the prison walls. He had been made a trustee
whose job it was to tend the dogs
at the prison. He quickly realized the dogs were the means by which the prison guards would use to track him if he were to escape again. He therefore trained the dogs not to track him by whipping them if they followed his scent.
He remained at large in Wahalak, Mississippi
, for several years afterward under the alias "Big Jim," and was subsequently placed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
list. He was re-captured after a jealous rival informed law enforcement officials of his residence at the house of a female friend.
There are several folksongs and ballads about Kinnie Wagner's many adventures. There are several books written about the Mississippi outlaw. And he had even been covered in comics and pulp magazines.
The East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia stories about Kinnie Wagner propose a far different picture of the gunslinger. Even the local newspaper The Kingsport Times News in Kingsport, Tennessee
maps out the events that led to Wagner's initial crime, intended arrest, and eventual capture much differently than their Mississippi counterparts.
Rum-running
Rum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, who murdered several people, including two sheriff's deputies. He escaped from jails numerous times, but ultimately died in prison on March 9, 1958.
His most notable escape was his last attempt and involved a clever trick that was not discovered until Wagner was outside the prison walls. He had been made a trustee
Trustee
Trustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
whose job it was to tend the dogs
Police dog
A police dog, often referred to as a "K-9 dog" in some areas , is a dog that is trained specifically to assist police and other law-enforcement personnel in their work...
at the prison. He quickly realized the dogs were the means by which the prison guards would use to track him if he were to escape again. He therefore trained the dogs not to track him by whipping them if they followed his scent.
He remained at large in Wahalak, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, for several years afterward under the alias "Big Jim," and was subsequently placed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, and William Kinsey Hutchinson, International News Service Editor-in-Chief, who were discussing ways to promote capture of the...
list. He was re-captured after a jealous rival informed law enforcement officials of his residence at the house of a female friend.
There are several folksongs and ballads about Kinnie Wagner's many adventures. There are several books written about the Mississippi outlaw. And he had even been covered in comics and pulp magazines.
The East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia stories about Kinnie Wagner propose a far different picture of the gunslinger. Even the local newspaper The Kingsport Times News in Kingsport, Tennessee
Kingsport, Tennessee
Kingsport is a city located mainly in Sullivan County with some western portions in Hawkins County in the US state of Tennessee. The majority of the city lies in Sullivan County...
maps out the events that led to Wagner's initial crime, intended arrest, and eventual capture much differently than their Mississippi counterparts.
Further reading
- Gentry, Claude. The Guns of Kinnie Wagner. Magnolia (1969) ASIN B0007F29ZM
- Sweterlitsch, Richard Carl. Kinnie Wagner: A Popular Legendary Hero and His "Constituency" Indiana University Press (1976)ASIN: B000JWZ54U