(The following is an eye-witness account of events recalled and originally written by Harold Mullins. It has been edited, re-written and published with his permission. The reader will find a brief bio of Mr. Mullins under Personalities.)

The story of the “Feuding Fyffe Brothers” is not one which lingers over several decades. Unlike those of the 1880s and 90s in Eastern Kentucky - the Hatfields & McCoys in eastern Pike County, the Martin-Logan and Tolliver in Rowan County, the Underwood and the Holbrook-Stamper shoot-out near the junction of Carter, Rowan and Elliott Counties - only two men were killed. On April 2, 1932, Noah Fyffe and his youngest brother Alma Fyffe were shot and killed by their brother John Fyffe, accompanied by a fourth brother, Henry Fyffe. The facts behind this story, however, are intriguing.

The shootings occurred in my father’s blacksmith shop at Keaton. My father was William Henry “Will” Mullins. I was nine years old at the time and was one of several witnesses to the tragedy. While this feud was limited when compared to others, it had all the familiar characteristics... quarreling, fighting, drinking, revenge and, finally, killing.

James Marion Fyffe was the son of William “Billy” Fyffe and a nephew of my great-great-grandmother Rhoda Fyffe. Rhoda married Thomas Rose. The Fyffe and Rose families were among the first to settle in Keaton, at the head of Big Blaine Creek, having emigrated from Wilks County, North Carolina between 1823 and 1830.

Noah Fyffe was a deputy sheriff at the time of his death and was married to Maude Rose Terry.

Alma Fyffe was a notorious “hell raiser”, often going around Keaton in varying degrees of drunkenness, terrorizing the community and wreaking havoc wherever he went.

Once Alma came by my father’s house when my four older brothers were home. They were scared to death of him and, at the sight of Alma coming up the path to the house, they all ran inside where Ralph, the oldest, armed himself with a 12 gauge shotgun. Ralph waited until Alma was in range. He pulled the trigger but the gun failed to fire. Alma, thinking that no one was home, passed on by without realizing how close he came to being killed.

In the Spring of 1932, Alma was on one of his drunken binges. It was on Sunday, March 27. His antics were so disruptive that a close relative, William Henry Fyffe, who lived on the main road that led to Noisy Branch, called Noah, the deputy sheriff and Alma’s brother. Noah arrived and tried to persuade Alma to settle down and go home. Alma refused and Noah placed him under arrest and tried to handcuff Alma. Alma resisted at which point Noah yelled for my father, Will Mullins, to come and help him.

My Dad had been sitting on his porch witnessing the scuffle. He went to assist Noah and got into a scuffle with Alma, himself, before the two succeeded in securing Alma with the handcuffs, but not before Noah struck Alma with the butt of his pistol. Dad and Noah then took Alma to Paintsville and booked him into jail. Apparently willing to do his duty but not willing to leave his brother in jail, Noah signed Alma’s bail bond and took him back home.

It was this brief fracas which set the stage for the deaths six days later of the two brothers.

By 1932, James Marion “Jim Drum” Fyffe was 86 years old and drifting into senility. It was well known in the community that Drum Fyffe’s children were each vying for a piece of his estate. Among these were John, Henry, Bessie, Hattie and Alma. Alma held the position of the Prodigal Son...he was the youngest son and received most of his father’s attention. When Drum Fyffe received word that Noah had struck Alma and arrested him, Drum became emotionally overwrought and bitterly angry.

Drum called son John in and reportedly said, “Ride your mule and kill Noah and then breed your mule to Will Mullins! Then come on back home.” (The above incident was related to my father long after the killing. Henry Fyffe was visiting Dad and said that he (Henry) had overheard that conversation.)

Henry accompanied John on his assigned task. On their journey from Blaine to Keaton that day John related to Henry his plan to kill Noah “for the old man’s sake” but, also, to kill Alma “just to get him out of the way” of any future inheritance. Henry later stated that he went along with John because he feared for his own life if he didn’t. John and Henry picked up Alma along the way from Blaine to Keaton and the three rode past my father’s blacksmith shop which was across the creek from the main road. Dad had operated the blacksmith shop and a grist mill for many years. The shop was a 20 x 30 rough lumber boxed structure resembling a barn.

It was customary for people to visit the shop just to talk and gossip and pass the time of day. On April 2, Saturday, List Gillem, my brother Jess Mullins, Dad and Uncle Noah Fyffe were at the shop. Noah had taken his usual position leaning on the grind wheel frame in the southeast corner of the shop. He was dressed in a long coat and was armed with a .45. Jess and List were sitting on a long bench located on the east side of the shop. Dad was busy working at the anvil in the northwest corner of the building.

When the three Fyffe brothers had been seen riding by the shop and up the road, my brother Jess became alarmed and went to borrow a pistol from Dr. Asbill who lived nearby. He came back armed with the .32 revolver. My father warned Noah that his three brothers were up to mischief. Noah shrugged and said, “Naw, they’re just bluffing.” Dad persisted, “Noah, he means it this time.”

Meanwhile, Aunt Sarah Rigsby had become concerned about the developing situation, as had my mother. Mom called for her children - Maude, Mutt, Elwood and me - to accompany her to Aunt Sarah’s home. From there we were located about 25 yards from the scene and were at a right angle to the door, but could not see inside the shop.

At this time, John, Henry and Alma Fyffe returned and hitched their horses (John had not ridden Jim Drum’s mule) to the rail outside the nearby Enterprise Baptist Church. John crossed the foot log and came to the shop. He was followed by Henry and then by Alma. John remained standing outside the shop with his right hand in his front pocket only 10 feet away from Noah who remained leaning against the grindstone. However, before Alma joined John and Henry at the door to the shop, he stopped at Dr. Asbill’s and asked to borrow his pistol. Asbill told Alma that he had loaned it to Jess Mullins. Alma then came to the blacksmith shop entrance.

John and Henry began arguing with Noah about his striking Alma and arresting him. Noah attempted to tell the story but John refused to listen. My father spoke up and said, “I’ll explain what happened.” To which John Fyffe said, threateningly, “I believe you will!”

Alma then entered the shop, paused a moment to ask Noah why he struck him, and tackled Noah attempting to wrestle him to the ground. John shouted and began shooting at Noah. His first shot missed but his second shot struck Noah’s right arm, knocking his gun loose from his hand. This same slug passed through Noah’s arm, struck Alma in the shoulder and continued downward through his heart and lung and lodged in his spine.

Alma staggered and fell, gasping and bleeding, outside the shop door where we could see him from Aunt Sarah’s porch. John’s third shot struck Noah in the lower abdomen, knocking him down. But John Fyffe was not finished. A fourth shot rang out but this one struck Dad’s anvil and bounced off a nearby wall. Noah, meanwhile, was lying near the forge in the throes of death when John fired his fifth and final shot. This shot hit Noah’s chest ranging downward to the area of the heart.

Both Noah and Alma died at the scene.

(Post script) (John was indicted for the murders and released on bond posted by Jim Drum Fyffe. Nevertheless, the Mullins family remained alert as long as John was free. My Will Mullins, and his son Jess were still obvious targets of John’s vengeance, although neither were ever harmed. Jess Mullins, however, was briefly suspected of having fired the shot that killed Alma Fyffe. Fortunately, the bullet removed from Alma’s spine proved to be of a different caliber than that of Jess’s gun and Jess was cleared of all suspicion.

John Fyffe was tried and acquitted of the killing of his brother Noah after several trials were scheduled and then postponed. The acquittal caused some to be suspicious of the jury. Ironically, John was convicted in 1935 of killing Alma and sentenced to 12 years in prison. He served almost nine years of his term and was released during World War II. He moved to Columbus, Ohio, where he died August 7, 1947. His death was ruled a “homicide by persons unknown”, according to the formal investigation report.

Noah Fyffe’s son, Noah Elmo Fyffe, was living in Columbus at the time. He was nine years old when his father was killed and grew up with a bitter hatred of his uncle. He kept his father’s .45 pistol in case he ever encountered John. When Noah Elmo Fyffe heard of John’s death he reportedly went to the scene to “be sure the S.O.B. was really dead.”)