The Shootout at Poplar Grove

The Shootout at Poplar Grove. Kennewick's Halloween Murders. , In the lore of Kennewick history, the Halloween 1906 shootout, that left four dead, remains a great mystery. The events that led up to the shootout began the night before Halloween, when two Kennewick stores were burglarized. , Town Marshal Mike Glover sent for Sheriff Alex McNeill, who arrived by rail from Prosser on Halloween Day. Kennewick Deputy Joe Holzhey and Stag Saloon proprietor, Harry Roseman, met up with Glover and McNeill. The four headed east toward a grove of poplar trees south of the Northern Pacific Railroad bridge that was used by transients as a “hobo jungle”. , They encountered two armed men, one of whom said, “Good evening gentlemen, you’re looking for trouble and you’ll get it,” and began firing his rifle at the approaching armed lawmen. Holzhey dropped at the first shot and Glover fell next, both mortally wounded. McNeill, although wounded, continued firing, killing one of the two men, Jake Lake. , A posse quickly formed and rushed to the scene. By dusk, some 200 men were armed and waiting when a contingent from the penitentiary at Walla Walla arrived with a pack of bloodhounds to search for the second fugitive who had fled. A member of the posse, Forrest Perry, in the dark was mistaken for the fugitive and was shot dead by one of the posse. , The other robber quickly surrendered and turned out to be a teenager known as Robert “Kid” Barker. Barker admitted shooting at Sheriff McNeill, but denied killing Glover and Holzhey. He was taken to the county jail in Prosser to stand trial. Before he could be tried, however, Barker and four others overpowered a guard and escaped into the cold in January 1907. Despite a dedicated search and while the three others were caught, Kid Barker fled and was never heard from again. The mystery remains to this day., Photographs Courtesy of the East Benton County Historical Society. Displays remastered in 2018 by Historic Downtown Kennewick Partnership, paid for with a grant by Benton County Preservation Commission. Printed by Espirt Graphic Communication, Inc.