A "Cobb-Sasser Family Lineage Website" Page

Stories About "The Bill & Martha(Smith) Bailey Family" "THE BAILEYS" as per Grover Brit Smith, Sr. grand-nephew of Martha and son of Gerrard &Lucy(Wagers)Smith grandson of Milton &Louisa(Riley)Smith great-grandson of Theophilous &Susan(Sibert)Smith

Grover's grandfather, Milton Smith,
was a brother to Martha (Smith) Bailey.

THE NIGHT THAT STARTED IT ALL -by Grover Smith Grover had been told this story by several people in his family, as well as by Cecil Bailey, son of John Bailey.

On February 14, 1915, Beve and Jim Bailey, Letch and Perry White, Levi Lee and Jim Byerly were out running around on their horses and drinking. They all lived within 5 to 6 miles of each other and were all well acquainted. They were at the mouth of White's Branch in Clay Co., KY, and they were getting pretty well drunk. Jim Byerly and Levi Lee got into an argument over trying to trade horses. Letch and Perry White took sides with Jim Byerly, and Beve and Jim took sides with Levi Lee. Letch White pulled his pistol and hit Beve Bailey in the side of the head with it knocking him down. Letch then shot Beve in the back. The bullet went clean through him just missing his heart. Beve tried to pull his pistol but dropped it on the bank of the creek. Jim Bailey pulled his 45 automatic and it jammed and would not fire. He reached down and got Beve's pistol and shot and killed Letch. Jim said he accidentally shot Perry White shooting at Letch. Jim said he didn't want to shoot Perry, because he was so drunk that he was holding onto his mule's neck so he could stand up. Letch and Perry White was buried in the same box in the White's Cemetery, which is located just above their home place, where the two brothers were born and raised on their father's, John C. White's, farm on Hwy. 11, Clay Co., KY. John L. Smith said that Letch and Perry White, Beve, John, and Jim Bailey were the best of friends before this happened. They ran around together and went to each others' homes often to visit. It was said a few years after Perry and Letch White were shot, that the Whites had a part in killing Levi Lee.

CECIL BAILEY'S STORY -by Grover Smith This info from Grover Smith, written in his own words, taken from his genealogy book.

In 1986 when I went to KY, I was told that John Bailey's son, Cecil Bailey, was living about six miles from Girdler, Ky. I went to KY in April 1987, and went to the Rest Haven Cemetery near Harlan, KY, to check on the Bailey Headstones for dates. I also went to the White's Cemetery in Clay Co., KY, to check on their headstones for dates. I was looking forward to meeting Cecil Bailey. Ted Jackson, a son of Eva Smith Jackson, and I went to see Cecil Bailey. He was a little reluctant to talk about the Baileys. He said he had been asked hundreds of questions about his people. But after we told him who we were he agreed to speak with us. Ted showed him a picture of the Bailey Brothers. There were six men in the picture and Cecil named 5 of them. Website Footnote/ Writing on building says: "Registered Distillery of J.C. Bailey ~ 8th District of KY - No. 106" They were John, Beve, Bill, Jim, and Matt Young, whom was Cecil's grandfather who raised him. Cecil told me that Jim Bailey was a jolly type man that laughed often and loud. Jim was about six foot and 3 inches and weighed 225 pounds. Cecil said his grandparents, Bill and Martha Bailey, died while he was in the Army during WWII, and he said Bill Bailey died about 1944 and Martha died about 1942. Cecil also told me that Denver shot John Bailey, Cecil's dad, when Denver was about 17 years old. Denver was shot and killed when he was 20 years old. Denver was born in about 1914 and died in 1934. Denvers sister Bertha, was born about 1916. Cecil told Ted and I what happened the night that John and Jim Bailey supposedly shot and killed each other. Cecil said that his grandmother, Martha Smith Bailey, told him that John and Jim had been arguing over some money that Jim owed John that day. They went out that night running around. Jim came home early and laid down on the couch and went to sleep. A few hours later John came home real drunk. He shot Jim three times while he lied there on the couch. Martha heard the shots and came running, she opened the door just in time to see Denver reach above the fireplace mantle and get a 38 pistol and shoot John one time through the heart, March 29, 1931. Bill and Martha Bailey told the law that their sons shot each other.