1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,040 Hey y'all, before I start this episode, I have an exciting announcement. 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:10,160 On Halloween night, Appalachian Ghost Tours will be going back to the Mayberry Mansion 3 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:13,440 for another paranormal investigation. 4 00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:20,880 Then on November 1st, we will be hosting another paranormal investigation at the Price Mansion 5 00:00:20,880 --> 00:00:22,920 in Scarborough, West Virginia. 6 00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:25,280 We would love to see you at both events. 7 00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:29,960 Event info will be in the show notes. 8 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:36,320 Mountain State Mysteries contains adult content that may not be suitable for all audiences. 9 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:39,040 Listener discretion is advised. 10 00:00:39,040 --> 00:01:05,040 I'm your host Mark, and this is Mountain State Mysteries. 11 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:24,760 The case I have for you today happened on a day that was supposed to be full of love. 12 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:30,080 Instead, it ended with three people being murdered in a mansion on a hill. 13 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:37,080 This is the case of David Henderson, Jeanette K. Henderson, and Martha Lane Barber, better 14 00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:41,600 known as the Murderer at the Mayberry Mansion. 15 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:47,200 All of the mansions that were built in the early 20th century by wealthy coal barons 16 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:52,840 who made their fortunes from southern West Virginia, none of them compared to the mansion 17 00:01:52,840 --> 00:01:57,600 on Powerhouse Hill that was built by James L. Wood Jones. 18 00:01:57,600 --> 00:02:04,320 James died at the age of 58 of a heart attack on November 25, 1932. 19 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:09,680 He was one of the region's most powerful coal barons and the only one who spent most 20 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:12,880 of his life living and working in the coal fields. 21 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:19,080 James was the son of Mercer and McDowell County Coal Field Pioneer Jerkin Jones. 22 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:25,040 The McDowell County Coal Pioneer had the town Jerkin Jones named in his honor. 23 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:31,400 James went to school at Roanoke College in Columbia University where he earned his degree 24 00:02:31,400 --> 00:02:33,760 as a mining engineer. 25 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:39,560 As vice president and general manager of the Pocahontas Fuel Company, he was among West 26 00:02:39,560 --> 00:02:41,400 Virginia's wealthiest men. 27 00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:47,560 While the home he built on Powerhouse Hill is spectacular, his philanthropy was even 28 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:49,060 more impressive. 29 00:02:49,060 --> 00:02:55,880 During his lifetime, he paid for a college education for hundreds, maybe even thousands, 30 00:02:55,880 --> 00:03:01,120 of people from the coal fields who received the money with the singular requirement of 31 00:03:01,120 --> 00:03:03,720 never disclosing who the money came from. 32 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:09,320 He established and provided financial support for dental and tonsil clinics in McDowell 33 00:03:09,320 --> 00:03:14,760 County, built the gym and swimming pool, built at Elkhorn High School, and switched back 34 00:03:14,760 --> 00:03:21,280 and spent 25 years on the county commission working to bring good roads to the county. 35 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:26,000 He shared the home with his wife Edith and their children, Nancy and Jimmy. 36 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:31,960 It's spacious like many mentions in the coal fields, but there are two features that most 37 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:33,200 didn't have. 38 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:39,240 There are 66 stained glass windows that were imported from Scotland and the wood in the 39 00:03:39,240 --> 00:03:42,720 grand room was imported from Brazil. 40 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:50,200 When James died, he was near the fireplace, playing cards with physician Dr. I.C. Peters 41 00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:54,160 when he suffered his fatal heart attack. 42 00:03:54,160 --> 00:03:59,920 After his death, the mansion had some use, but was eventually abandoned and ultimately 43 00:03:59,920 --> 00:04:06,840 sold at the sheriff's sale in the early 1950s for $15,000. 44 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:11,360 The mansion soon became the Jones Mansion on Powerhouse Hill. 45 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:17,600 Judy McDaniel said, quote, when daddy bought it, my mother had no control in the way it 46 00:04:17,600 --> 00:04:19,640 was decorated, end quote. 47 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:25,960 Her father, Dale Henderson, owned the old Henderson market in Mayberry and her mother, 48 00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:32,320 Grace Henderson, took care of the house, quote, she went along with what daddy said, end quote. 49 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:38,200 After Judy's father died, Grace kept the mansion and lived there with her husband, Paul Haines. 50 00:04:38,200 --> 00:04:43,000 Grace Haines knew the history of the home and was always eager to share the story of 51 00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:44,800 James L. Wood Jones. 52 00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:49,680 It was Grace who saw that the house was going to be sold at the sheriff's sale and she 53 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:53,080 went with her husband to make the winning bid. 54 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:59,240 After Grace passed away, her son David Henderson and his wife, Jeanette, moved into the mansion. 55 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:04,400 After her father died, Jeanette Henderson brought her mother Martha E. Barber to live 56 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:12,200 with them, sadly, on February 14, 1998, the state police made the gruesome discovery that 57 00:05:12,200 --> 00:05:16,720 David, Jeanette, and her mother had been shot and killed. 58 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:25,400 Within days, the state police arrested Stanford Tony Allen of Barlow Hollow for the murder. 59 00:05:25,400 --> 00:05:31,360 Tony provided claims that were described as outrageous and bizarre in trying to explain 60 00:05:31,360 --> 00:05:34,280 who killed David, Jeanette, and Martha. 61 00:05:34,280 --> 00:05:37,920 His claims were that the drug cartel had murdered the three. 62 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:44,800 Tony basically shocked McDowell County prosecutor, Sid Bale, when he claimed to be working as 63 00:05:44,800 --> 00:05:50,080 a federal informant for an assistant U.S. attorney investigation. 64 00:05:50,080 --> 00:05:56,480 Tony said that Jeanette was a bookkeeper for the cartel and she asked him to visit on the 65 00:05:56,480 --> 00:05:58,000 night of the murders. 66 00:05:58,000 --> 00:06:05,200 There was never any mention of Mr. Allen working as a federal informant, said Bale. 67 00:06:05,200 --> 00:06:12,280 I'm sure we would have heard something from them if there was any truth to it. 68 00:06:12,280 --> 00:06:18,560 Tony, whose taped testimony was heard in the court proceedings, didn't sway away the 69 00:06:18,560 --> 00:06:25,320 jury from those claims, finding him guilty and later sentencing him to three life terms 70 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:28,880 with no possibility of parole. 71 00:06:28,880 --> 00:06:35,240 He was sentenced to life without mercy on all three counts, said Bale. 72 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:40,960 In a report by the Bluefield Daily Telegraph, we are very thankful for this jury. 73 00:06:40,960 --> 00:06:44,320 I'm really happy for the family of the victims. 74 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:47,920 This is what they've hoped for. 75 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:53,280 On February 14, 1998, Tony went to Powerhouse Hill. 76 00:06:53,280 --> 00:06:59,560 He entered the home and killed David Henderson, a night custodial worker at the Cole Motors 77 00:06:59,560 --> 00:07:00,560 Company. 78 00:07:00,560 --> 00:07:05,840 Jeanette Henderson, who had recently taken a leave of absence from her longtime position 79 00:07:05,840 --> 00:07:11,600 at Kroger in Bluefield, West Virginia, along with Martha, the widow of well-known area 80 00:07:11,600 --> 00:07:15,520 Southern Baptist member Reverend Dallas Barber Sr. 81 00:07:15,520 --> 00:07:18,680 According to West Virginia State Police Trooper B.K. 82 00:07:18,680 --> 00:07:26,680 Cochran, the trio was expected to have a family dinner on February 15 in Richlands. 83 00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:32,320 When they didn't show up, the family called and only got the entering machine. 84 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:38,040 Cochran said, after that, they called McDowell Control to get them to check it out. 85 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:43,600 The volunteer firemen entered the home, saw where there was forced entry, noticed bullet 86 00:07:43,600 --> 00:07:49,800 holes and blood in the house and immediately called us. 87 00:07:49,800 --> 00:07:54,880 What they found was a gruesome crime scene, with photos shown during the trial that appeared 88 00:07:54,880 --> 00:07:58,960 to leave many jurors visibly disturbed. 89 00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:06,560 Circuit Court Judge Booker T. Stevens described the crime as horrific and said, something 90 00:08:06,560 --> 00:08:11,480 he had never seen in his lifetime in McDowell County. 91 00:08:11,480 --> 00:08:18,400 Some clues led authorities to Tony, who had lived in a mobile home in nearby Barlow Hollow 92 00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:20,480 for around five years. 93 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:27,040 Police found a pair of 9mm weapons on his property, along with a purchase receipt from 94 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:28,800 a Bluefield hardware store. 95 00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:35,640 A Vietnam veteran, Tony was arrested in Richmond after being transported from Bluefield Regional 96 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:39,240 Medical Center to a VA hospital. 97 00:08:39,240 --> 00:08:44,680 Records reveal that he confessed to the crime on the ride back to Welch. 98 00:08:44,680 --> 00:08:50,200 Although the defense claimed the confession was coerced with a gun held to his head, 99 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:53,200 police officers called the claim ridiculous. 100 00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:59,920 Ronald D. Hason said to Cochran during the trial, quote, how many times did you call 101 00:08:59,920 --> 00:09:01,600 him a murderer? 102 00:09:01,600 --> 00:09:02,600 End quote. 103 00:09:02,600 --> 00:09:08,000 Tony was arranged on March 2nd and remained in McDowell County Jail. 104 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:15,000 He repeatedly claimed his innocence to all, including bail on more than one occasion, quote, 105 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:16,000 bail. 106 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:20,120 I've told you from day one, I didn't do it. 107 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:23,560 And I'm telling you today, I didn't do it. 108 00:09:23,560 --> 00:09:30,960 Tony said, Tony remained behind bars on a $750,000 bond for more than 18 months before 109 00:09:30,960 --> 00:09:32,880 the trial could even begin. 110 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:37,040 He originally pled not guilty in October of 1998. 111 00:09:37,040 --> 00:09:45,520 While a pair of trial dates, February 1st, 1999, and June 14th, 1999, were changed due 112 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:53,560 to a request for a continuance, a third continuance was requested in September of 1999. 113 00:09:53,560 --> 00:09:59,040 But Tony denied it, quote, I want the trial to go forward, end quote. 114 00:09:59,040 --> 00:10:06,480 Tony said, quote, I've been waiting 19 months to get this trial started, end quote. 115 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:13,640 What followed was an intense few days of testimony representing both sides, with claims from 116 00:10:13,640 --> 00:10:20,280 everything from a drug cartel to the supernatural and marijuana found in the mansion. 117 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:27,160 Defense attorneys argued that Tony wasn't the killer because no fingerprints, footprints, 118 00:10:27,160 --> 00:10:30,000 or witnesses connected him to the crime. 119 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:37,960 Trooper GA Bishop described the scene in vivid detail, saying a bloody footprint in a military 120 00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,920 boot was discovered by state police in the house. 121 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:48,560 Bishop later testified that no military boots were found at Tony's home and no items from 122 00:10:48,560 --> 00:10:52,160 the mobile home contained gunshot residue. 123 00:10:52,160 --> 00:10:58,200 He said less than 15 grams of marijuana was discovered in the mansion, quote, David Henderson 124 00:10:58,200 --> 00:11:04,280 was laying on the second floor, and we saw a bloody military style footprint, end quote. 125 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:07,920 He said, quote, there was a great deal of blood there. 126 00:11:07,920 --> 00:11:11,680 There was nine millimeter cases laying everywhere. 127 00:11:11,680 --> 00:11:16,920 There were also rounds that had not been fired laying around the bodies, end quote. 128 00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:22,120 Sergeant Mark Neal with the West Virginia State Police testified that most of the fingerprints 129 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:27,560 in the mansion belong to the victims, with no fingerprints matching Tony's. 130 00:11:27,560 --> 00:11:35,680 However, Howard R. Myers, also of the West Virginia State Police testified that the DNA 131 00:11:35,680 --> 00:11:41,440 samples of Martha's blood were found on the nine millimeter firearm. 132 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:47,880 He said that only one in 124 billion people would have a matching DNA profile. 133 00:11:47,880 --> 00:11:53,880 The defense continued claiming there was not enough evidence to convict Tony and had their 134 00:11:53,880 --> 00:12:00,800 request dismissal of the case denied, quote, I submit to you, there were two people in 135 00:12:00,800 --> 00:12:02,880 the house at night, end quote. 136 00:12:02,880 --> 00:12:08,600 He also said, quote, there has to be two shooters in the house because no one person could do 137 00:12:08,600 --> 00:12:11,440 all of these mass killings. 138 00:12:11,440 --> 00:12:13,320 It's just not possible. 139 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:16,680 This was execution style murders, end quote. 140 00:12:16,680 --> 00:12:21,400 Tony's taped confession on the trip back to Welch was played during the trial. 141 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:25,400 He said, quote, I was on crack cocaine. 142 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:28,920 I was going to try to leave and she didn't want me to leave. 143 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:30,440 I pulled my gun out. 144 00:12:30,440 --> 00:12:31,800 I shot her. 145 00:12:31,800 --> 00:12:35,920 That cocaine that crack is a bad drug. 146 00:12:35,920 --> 00:12:38,800 It's a bad drug, end quote. 147 00:12:38,800 --> 00:12:44,400 He later denied murdering the family, telling the court that he confessed because he was 148 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:48,440 scared, quote, I was scared. 149 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:50,320 I was scared. 150 00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:53,400 The drug dealers, they would try to kill me. 151 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:58,200 They are going to kill me no matter what, end quote. 152 00:12:58,200 --> 00:13:04,240 Tony testified during the trial that a firearm was sitting on his coffee table on February 153 00:13:04,240 --> 00:13:07,240 13 when he went to sleep. 154 00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:13,860 When he woke up, the gun was sitting next to his kitchen table, quote, did some phantom 155 00:13:13,860 --> 00:13:20,280 come in your trailer when you went to sleep, steal your gun, go up there and murder them. 156 00:13:20,280 --> 00:13:23,800 And bring your gun back, end quote. 157 00:13:23,800 --> 00:13:28,640 Bell asked, quote, is that your only explanation, end quote. 158 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:34,400 Tony's uncle, Chester Springs, testified at the trial that he was staying at Tony's 159 00:13:34,400 --> 00:13:41,240 house the night of the murders and was awakened by Tony around 3am to 4am. 160 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:46,320 The defense asked if he could have dreamed the incident after telling the court this, 161 00:13:46,320 --> 00:13:52,360 quote, when I was in the kitchen, end quote, he said, quote, have you ever smelled the 162 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:54,200 scent of fresh blood? 163 00:13:54,200 --> 00:13:59,520 He told me he had just whacked some people and pointed out Powerhouse Hill. 164 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:05,760 Tony continued his claims that he was an informant for the Justice Department saying 165 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:09,680 he had contacted the organization through an operator. 166 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:15,120 Bell asked for some kind of proof of this, quote, do you have anything to validate your 167 00:14:15,120 --> 00:14:19,920 wild claims that you were working for the US government, end quote. 168 00:14:19,920 --> 00:14:25,840 Bell asked, quote, Mr. Allen, you've told the jury that you've been in contact with 169 00:14:25,840 --> 00:14:29,640 the US Attorney's Office and the Justice Department. 170 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:32,320 How did you contact the Justice Department? 171 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:36,980 Do you have any records showing you were in contact with them? 172 00:14:36,980 --> 00:14:40,160 Do you have any records, end quote. 173 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:46,400 The jury took less than two hours from deliberations, with Tony showing no emotion while the guilty 174 00:14:46,400 --> 00:14:48,080 verdict was read. 175 00:14:48,080 --> 00:14:53,760 Tony was sent to prison to serve the rest of his life behind bars. 176 00:14:53,760 --> 00:14:59,240 Tony passed away on March 9, 2020. 177 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:04,960 In the late fall of 1998, before the trial, Judy McDaniel was distraught over the loss 178 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:10,280 of her brother, she decided to sell the mansion and most of its furnishings. 179 00:15:10,280 --> 00:15:16,920 The auction drew a few hundred people to Powerhouse Hill and the bidding was robust. 180 00:15:16,920 --> 00:15:22,080 Billy Cherry, the chairman of the board of the First National Bank of Keystone, bought 181 00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:25,440 the mansion for $160,000. 182 00:15:25,440 --> 00:15:30,680 Cherry built a deck around the pool Jones had built on the grounds and tried to open 183 00:15:30,680 --> 00:15:36,560 it as bed and breakfast called the Blair House in memory of her late mother. 184 00:15:36,560 --> 00:15:39,920 It closed on September 1, 1999. 185 00:15:39,920 --> 00:15:47,640 Cherry was convicted on various fraud charges in October of 2001 and died in prison on December 186 00:15:47,640 --> 00:15:52,680 29, 2006. 187 00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:58,800 Today the mansion lives on as a beautiful property on Powerhouse Hill. 188 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:04,480 You can rent it on Airbnb through the property manager, the West Virginia Way. 189 00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:09,520 You can also visit the mansion with Appalachian Ghost Tours on Halloween 9. 190 00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:14,440 For more information, check out the Appalachian Ghost Tours Facebook page. 191 00:16:14,440 --> 00:16:22,120 We will be off next week, but we will return on November 1 with a new episode. 192 00:16:22,120 --> 00:16:27,200 If you find yourself enjoying Mountain State Mysteries, take a second to follow, rate, 193 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:31,040 and download it on your favorite podcast platform. 194 00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:35,520 It helps others find good West Virginia True Crime podcasts. 195 00:16:35,520 --> 00:16:43,160 Don't forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, all at Mountain State Mysteries. 196 00:16:43,160 --> 00:16:58,000 For the show notes, check out our website, MountainStateMysteriesPodcast.com.