The Murders at Sugar Valley Narrows

 

Located in Clinton County, Cherry Run, a tributary of Fishing Creek, is situated in a rugged, narrow valley between the small rural communities of Tylersville and Lamar. During the 19th century, Lamar was known as Washington Furnace. Established sometime between 1800 and 1815, this furnace was built by prominent ironmaster John Dunlop, who recognized the value of water transportation; the ironworks at Washington Furnace were the first in the region to use boats to transport ore to the smelting site.

After Dunlop's death in 1816, ownership of the furnace changed hands several times, though most of the iron produced here was transported to Bellefonte for metalworking. The Washington Furnace Railroad, which was established prior to the Civil War, once ran along Cherry Run, and was used to transport ore from Lamar Township to the furnace, thereby eliminating the need for water transportation. Unfortunately, the quality of local ore left a lot to be desired and operations ceased permanently not long after the war. Yet the tiny village erected near the site carried the name Washington Furnace until the end of the 19th century.

Today, a small clearing exists where Cherry Run intersects Narrow Road, where the long-forgotten railroad once ran. In 1887, this 40-acre parcel of land was owned by John Colby (also known as Culvey, Culby or Kolbe) of Sugar Valley, and near this spot once stood the small, two-room log home of his 34-year-old stepson, Isaiah, who eked out a humble existence as a farmer. Isaiah had been born to Anna Fritz previous to her marriage to John Colby. Also living in the log cabin was Isaiah's 20-year-old wife, Nora Jodun Colby, who, like her husband, had also been adopted by the Colbys as a child. Isaiah and Nora had two children, but because their cabin was so small, the oldest child had to move in with John and Anna to make room for the new baby after Nora gave birth to a daughter in 1886.

 
A Mother's Gruesome Discovery

On Monday, August 8, 1887, Isaiah intended to harvest his oat crop. John Colby had promised to come over and assist him, but complained of being ill. Instead, John's 13-year-old nephew, Charles, took his place. Early on Monday morning, Charles and Mrs. Anna Colby left their home in Sugar Valley and reached Cherry Run at around nine o'clock that morning. When they neared the cabin, a ghastly sight met their gaze: On the grass about 120 feet from the cabin lay the bodies of Isaiah and Nora Colby. Isaiah had a bullet hole under the left eye, while Nora's body was nearly nude, her clothing having been torn from her body. A pail of water was found next to Nora's body, indicating that she had been bringing in water from the spring when she was attacked. The bodies had the appearance of having been dead for several hours. 

Inside the cabin, Anna found her infant grandchild on the floor, alive but hungry. After feeding the ravished infant, Anna and Charles rushed back to Sugar Valley and spread the alarm. Neighbors, as well as John Colby, followed them to the scene of the tragedy, where they covered the bodies with a cloth just as they had been found, careful not to disturb any possible evidence. They guarded the remains until Justice of the Peace Harter arrived from Clintondale. But then a complication arose; Squire Harter noted that while the Colby cabin was situated in Porter Township, the bodies were found just across the township line. A delay ensued as Logan Township's justice of the peace, C.W. Conser, was summoned to the scene.

Upon examining the bodies, it was apparent that Isaiah Colby had died from a gunshot wound to the face. Nora had received three injuries-- one in the shoulder, one in the breast, and one on the back of the head near the base of the skull. It was also evident that she had been sexually assaulted. But what was the motive behind the assailant's terrible actions?

The Colbys were poor and didn't possess much money, but it was known that Isaiah owned a silver watch and a double barreled rifle, both of which were missing from the home. In addition, his pocketbook was found near his body, open and empty. Was robbery or lust the motive? Had he come to the homestead along Cherry Run to ravage young Mrs. Colby, only to be confronted by Isaiah whom he then killed and robbed? Or did Nora become the object of his lust only after he had already stolen the watch and the rifle and killed her husband?

1862 map of Sugar Valley, showing the land owned by John Colby.

 

A Shocking Arrest

Because decomposition had already begun to set in and the nearest undertaker was miles away, the Colbys were buried in Tylersville following the inquest. The following morning, two men from Rebersburg named James Gramley and Harvey Corman announced that they were hot on the trail of a man whom they believed had murdered the Colbys. Described as five feet and five inches in height, with sandy hair and a thick mustache, this man was seen in the vicinity of Cherry Run on the morning of the murders, wearing a black derby hat and coat, and walking with a slight limp. When last seen, the suspect was walking north on the road to the county fairgrounds.

On August 15, a vagabond fitting Gramley and Corman's description was apprehended near Taylorsville, Union County, about eight miles from the Colby home. The suspect had stopped to rest on the porch of a family named Baker, much to Mrs. Baker's displeasure. When Mrs. Baker called for her husband, who was outside a short distance away, the stranger declared that he would cut his heart out if he tried to lay a finger on him. Mr. Baker was undaunted, however, and with the help of a neighbor, was easily able to subdue the man and drag him to the Lewisburg jail. This man was released when word came from Lock Haven that the real killer was already in custody.

That same day, the identity of the suspect who was locked up in Lock Haven sent shockwaves throughout Clinton County-- the man who was arrested on the morning of August 15 was none other than Isaiah's stepfather, John Colby.

According to Constable Clair of Mill Hall, who made the arrest, John and his 13-year-old nephew, Charles, were fishing near the cabin on Saturday evening, August 6, when John told the boy to go home, stating that he was going to get his hair cut by a barber named Moyer. On Monday, the day of the oat harvest, John complained of being ill and remained at home, but when he went with his wife to Cherry Run after the discovery of the crime, some neighbors believed that he had been acting a little strange during the inquest. John Colby emphatically denied the accusation that he had murdered his own step-children, and denied that he had gone fishing with Charlie on Saturday. His wife also insisted that John had been home on Saturday. John's nephew, however, clung to his story.

  
An Ominous Dream

Also that same day, August 15, Isaiah Colby's double-barreled rifle was found about a mile and a half from the scene of the crime. Oddly, this rifle might never have been found if not for a prophetic vision by a Clinton County commissioner. Commissioner Grugan had a dream in which he saw a man hiding the gun in the woods under a vine-covered tree. In the morning, Grugan scoured the wilderness and eventually located a tree closely resembling that which he had seen in his dream. Much to his astonishment, he not only found Colby's missing rifle, but discovered that the barrel was stained with blood, suggesting that the thief had the dead man's blood on his hands when the firearm was taken.

Two days later, on August 17, John Colby was released from custody by Judge Crawford, as there wasn't sufficient evidence to charge him with the murders. Five more suspects were arrested over the next few days, but none of these men were ever convicted. But on August 20, the seventh arrest in the Colby murder case would be made-- and this time, the suspect would pay for the double homicide with his life.

Dedicated in 1869, the Clinton County courthouse is still in use today.

 

The Arrest and Trial of Luther Shaffer

Luther J. Shaffer was a young man from a respectable Lock Haven family who had been jailed previously for minor offenses, and was believed by his family to be in the West. And then, a few days before his arrest, he appeared at his father's home in Lock Haven. When Shaffer's sisters informed him that he had been seen in the vicinity of Cherry Run and was suspected of being involved in the Colby murders, he decided to leave town and immediately headed to the sparsely-populated wilderness of Potter County. Unbeknownst to Shaffer, he was being trailed by two policemen-- Chief of Police Westbrook of Lock Haven and Chief of Police Vernes of Renovo. On Saturday, August 20, they arrested the 23-year-old suspect at the Smith lumber camp on the west branch of Pine Creek, about seven miles from Pike Mills, and returned him to Clinton County in handcuffs. When found, Shaffer had in his possession two watches, two revolvers, a razor and a large number of pornographic photographs.

Upon his return to Lock Haven, authorities brought to the jail a young woman from Sugar Valley, Susan Reese, to identify the man who had attacked and pointed a gun at her and her young brother only a few days before the Colbys were murdered. She immediately identified Shaffer, as did her younger brother. Additionally, several farmers from Sugar Valley who had been robbed on the dark, lonely road through the Narrows also identified Shaffer, as did Mr. Robb, a hotel keeper from Nittany Hall who recognized Shaffer as the customer who had beaten a man named Allison with the butt of a revolver.  

On September 9, Shaffer, along with three other men-- John Johnson, Essic Kline and James Kline-- were arraigned before Alderman John P. Harris and charged with the murders of Isaiah and Nora Colby. Like Shaffer, the other men were also highwaymen who waylaid travelers along the Sugar Valley Narrows road and were friends with Shaffer. While there was no hard evidence against any of the suspects, authorities were confident that at least one of the men had killed the Colbys. In late September, all four men were indicted by a grand jury, but granted separate trials.

The trial of Luther Shaffer for the murder of Nora Colby opened on Monday, December 5, 1887, with Judge Charles A. Mayer presiding. Representing Shaffer were attorneys Thaddeus T. Abrams and W.C. Hollahan. In his opening statement, District Attorney George A. Brown admitted that all of the evidence against Shaffer was purely circumstantial, but believed that there case was strong enough to warrant a conviction of first-degree murder. Brown also chose to try Shaffer for Nora's murder first, believing that if the defendant were acquitted, he could then be arraigned for the murder of Isaiah.

John Colby was the first witness called, followed by surveyor F.J. David, who explained maps and drawings of the Colby farm in order to set the scene for the jury. Also called to testify that day were Anna Colby and 14-year-old Charles Colby. Their testimony as to the position of Nora's body seemed to prove that the young housewife had been raped either after she was dead or as she lay dying; Nora had been killed by a blow to the base of the skull, but was found in the grass flat on her back, with her ripped clothing balled up under her like a pillow. The turning point of the trial came when the district attorney entered into evidence the silver watch belonging to Isaiah Colby, which Shaffer had sold to a jeweler in Renovo on his way to the lumber camp. 

This was all the members of the jury needed to make up their minds, and, on December 10, Luther Shaffer was convicted after a speedy deliberation. According to reports, Shaffer smiled sarcastically when the verdict was read, and expressed no emotion two days later when he was sentenced to be hanged after the judge overruled a defense motion for a new trial.

Judge Charles Augustus Mayer

 

First Execution in Lock Haven

At eleven o'clock on the morning of Wednesday, April 4, 1888, Luther Shaffer was taken from his cell at the county prison in Lock Haven, and, with steady footsteps, walked across the jailyard and ascended the steps to the gallows. As this was to be the first hanging in Clinton County, the gallows was brought from neighboring Lycoming County. Shaffer stepped forward to bid farewell to Sheriff Leahy and the two Catholic priests, Father Seubert and Father Sheridan, who had served as his spiritual advisors in his final days. The noose was adjusted and the trap was sprung with little fanfare. His neck did not snap, and Shaffer still displayed a weak pulse after ten minutes of hanging. After another eight minutes he was pronounced dead. He was buried at St. Mary's Cemetery on Hill Street, just above the Lock Haven University athletic fields.

As for the other three men implicated in the crime, John Johnson was ably defended by attorney W.H. Clough and was rewarded with a verdict of not guilty. The Klines were then discharged by order of the court and allowed to return home to Sugar Valley. The Colby farm remained abandoned after the murders. On June 1, 1889, one day after torrential rains caused the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam near Johnstown, a great flood visited Clinton County, wreaking havoc on Lock Haven and surrounding communities. The tiny stream known as Cherry Run was transformed into a wild, raging river, spilling over its banks and carrying away the cabin, outbuildings, fences and every other trace of the tragedy.  





Sources:

Lewisburg Chronicle, Aug. 11, 1887.
Harrisburg Telegraph, Aug. 16, 1887.
Harrisburg Patriot-News, Aug. 17, 1887.
Newport News, Aug. 20, 1887.
Millheim Journal, Aug. 25, 1887.
Lewisburg Journal, Aug. 31, 1887.
Wyoming Democrat, Sept. 16, 1887.
Philadelphia Times, Dec. 6, 1887.
Millheim Journal, Dec. 8, 1887.
Lancaster New Era, Dec. 10, 1887.
Centre Daily Times, April 13, 1979.
Past and Present of Clinton County. J. Milton Furey, 1892.