James Henderson Hargis

1862-1908

James Henderson Hargis was born 13 Oct 1862 in Breathitt County, Kentucky. He was the son of John Selden Hargis 1820-1882 and Emeline Brittain. James was one of eleven children, Sarah, Joana, Thomas, William, Alexander, James, Nancy, John, Louisa, Elbert and Benjamin Hargis. He married Louellen Day 1864-1929 on 27 Sep 1880 in Jackson, Breathitt County. They had four children I can name, Beacher, Kash , William and Floyd. James was a notorious Judge in Jackson, Breathitt County. He was the leader of the Hargis faction, involved in one of the largest Feuds in Kentucky history. There have been numerous books written about the feud involving Judge Hargis. I could not do the events justice by going into it all here. Others have already written about the feud in detail.  One book I would suggest that is still in print is Days of Darkness by John Ed Pearce, University Press 1994. The feud became so  violent and prolonged that it gained international press coverage and the county became known as Bloody Breathitt County. The history is very colorful and worth reading about. The judge was a very powerful figure and ran things with total disregard for the law.

Judge James Hargis and his brother Alex owned a store in Jackson, Kentucky. Judge James Henderson Hargis died after being shot by his son Henry Ward Beacher "Beach" Hargis in the Hargis Brothers Store on 6 Feb 1908. He is buried in the Hargis Family Cemetery in Jackson, Breathitt County, Kentucky.

New York Times 7 Feb 1908

New York Times 29 Apr 1929