"Ken McCutchan is a life-long resident of Vanderburgh County, Indiana, descended from pioneer families that entered the area in the early 1800s. He is veteran of WWII, having served with Army Corps of Engineers in both North Africa and Europe. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English Composition and Modern Language from the University of Evansville, a certificate in French Language and Culture from the Sorbonne in Paris, and an Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree from the University of Southern Indiana. His other books include: The Adventures of Isaac Knight, From then Til Now, Saundersville, An English Settlement, At The Bend in the River, and Dearest Lizzie. Mr. McCutchan's books may be purchased at Willard Library in Evansville, IN.

Sam Mason and the end of the Mason Gang.    - History

by Kenneth McCutchan

Sam Mason was an ornery cuss. Born of a respectable Virginia family, he grew up to make a quite a name for himself as a brave soldier in the Revolutionary War.

It wasn't until after he opened a tavern his reputation began to slip. His first misdeed was stealing a horse. Horse stealing was a capital offense in those days. With the law hot on his heels, he fled to Tennessee. After rustling cattle there and burglarizing people's houses, he moved to Kentucky and stayed in Henderson for awhile.

It was in Henderson he began to gather around his notorious gang of criminals, including a counterfeitor named Duff.

The band eventually holded up on Diamong Island on the Ohio River, but when the law got too hot on their trail they moved to Cave-in-Rock on the Illinois side.

That was the place their nefarious gang began to thrive. Mason put a large sign on the river bank that read "Liquor Vault and House of Entertainment," and an era of unprecedented river piracy, robbery, and murder was launched.

Nobody could ever guess how many lives of innocent travelers ended in murder, because Mason believed in the adage. "Dead men tell no tales."

This terrible business continued for several years until Mason became such a notorious criminal that a reward of $1,000 was posted for his capture, dead or alive.

At this point two of his followers decided the time had come to cash in.

One night they slipped up behind Mason and did him in. With rosy visions of receiving the $1,000 reward, they cut off Mason's head, wrapped it in blue clay and took it to the authorities.

But they were recognized. So instead of $1,000 they were rewarded with ropes aound their necks, and that was just about the end of the Mason Gang.