Black Jack Ketchum

My great grandfather was a Methodist preacher and planted churches in the New Mexico territory before it became a state.

I was thrilled to visit Clayton, New Mexico, to hear stories I remembered from my grandmother.

One of the most memorable is that my grandfather, James Graham Harshaw, officiated at the last hanging in New Mexico. There hadn't been a hanging for a while and the rope wasn't calibrated properly. The result was that, instead of breaking his neck, Black Jack Ketchum lost his head.

My great grandfather is the second on the left who is wearing a long topcoat. The bearded man on the right is the sheriff, who didn't believe Ketchum was guilty and so wouldn't take part.Read more