Hill Family in Springtown

Hill Family in Springtown. . The Allen C. Hill family moved to 160 acres about a mile southwest of Springtown in 1855 as early settlers of the community. Hill (1814-1873) was a farmer and stock raiser with wife Ladusky "Dusky" (1826-1873) and eight children. Although Allen produced a steady income, he was often in conflict with his neighbors and was reputed to be ill-tempered. He was killed in an 1863 gunfight at a Springtown saloon., Left to raise her children alone, Dusky Hill struggled to provide for her family. After the Civil War, much of the region was marked by lawlessness and hostility. The Hill home became a haven for criminals where reportedly the women were heavily armed and dangerous. Soon a theme of violence and revenge for their father's death permeated the family. The oldest son, Jack Hill, died in an 1879 gunfight at age nineteen. Daughter Nancy Hill was known for horse stealing and was an alleged accomplice to a murder at Tom Tarkington's dry goods store. Citizens formed a posse, hanging Nancy and shooting another outlaw., Crimes perpetrated by or attributed to the Hill family continued to provoke vigilante justice among some of the townspeople. A mob hanged sisters Martha and Kate after they robbed and killed a stagecoach driver. The Hill house was set on fire in August 1873, and after fleeing the house, Dusky and daughters Adeline and Eliza were pursued and shot by an angry mob. Dusky and her children were buried at Springtown Cemetery. Two children survived: Allen Hill Jr. and Belle, who were placed in the home of Rev. Pleasant Tackitt before another family took them in. Historical research, often many years after these events, has attempted to document and explain this violent period in local history.