News Clippings

Newspaper Articles on the McCann Family

 

 

Jim Falls News, Sep 26, 1869

        Dan McCann was pounced upon by a drunken Indian last week. Fortunately, Dan was not hurt, but he was badly scared.

 

Daily Independent, Chippewa Falls, Aug 13, 1900

        Drowned at Jim's Falls, Ruth McCann, seven years old, daughter of Henry McCann, loses her life in the river. Fell from a wagon and carried under a log jam in the presence of a crew of workmen. Impossible to recover the body owing to a high surge of water in the river.
        Ruth McCann, aged seven years, daughter of Mr. Henry McCann, a well to do farmer, who lives on the Chippewa river, near Jim's Falls, was drowned about 1:00 Friday afternoon. Two wagons have been anchored off Mr. McCann's place for the last ten days, and notwithstanding his instructions to the men to keep the children off the boats, they managed in some way to get on them Friday afternoon. They were about three feet apart and the little girl, in attempting to step from one to the other, lost her balance and fell in the river. She came to the surface and floated about 25 rods on the surface and might have been saved, but there was not a man on the wagon who could swim or who seemed to have the courage to save her.
        A splash from Little Falls dam the night before had brought down large quantities of logs and they jammed at this point, so that when the litle girl went under the logs, it was impossible to recover the body and with the high water it is not believed that it ever will be recovered. Mr. McCann came to the city yesterday and said to the Independent that he would pay any person who finds the body to take care of it.

 

Eau Claire Leader, Jan 6, 1903

        A crew of men with Henry McCann as foreman, started clearing away the forests on the lowlands above Jim Falls, extending 12 miles or almost up to Brunet Falls. Probably 500 acres will be cut off which will take many weeks preparing the site where the great dam will be built. Then will come the dam building and the canal.

 

Peter McCann Will Run for Sheriff
Daily Independent Chippewa Falls, April 12, 1912

        Peter McCann has decided to be a candidate on Democratic ticket. It may be that another McCann will hold down the office of sheriff of Chippewa County the coming two years. Peter McCann present undersheriff and a brother of Sheriff Henry McCann has been urged to make the run for the Democratic nomination and and has decided to do so. Mr. McCann is well known throughout the County and has certainly received mighty fine instruction as to the duties of the office to which he aspires. He is under-sheriff and has seen his brother, the sheriff give Chippewa County the best administration of the office that it has ever had. Not only are the duties of that important position promptly and properly executed but the jail and grounds are all kept in the best of condition clean and neat in every way. If Peter McCann is nominated and elected he will have to go some to improve on what his brother has done but with his instruction and experience he ought to be just as good, and a Sheriff as good as Henry McCann is good enough for Chippewa County or any other county.

 

Evening Indpendent, Sep 6, 1916

        Jims Falls on the Boom. Next week the old McCann dwelling and barn will be moved back on the hill to be safe from the flowage. The crew will be domiciled at the Jims Falls hotel.

 

Investigated Shooting Affray
Iron River Pioneer, Bayfield Co., WI, Thursday October 8, 1925

        Gruesome picture presents itself when District Attorney and Sheriff visit scene of shooting.

        District Attorney John W. Bernard, and Sheriff John McDonald made a personal investigation last week of the cabin on Bony Lake, in the town of Barnes, where the shooting affray occurred a few days previous, resulting in the death of Mrs. Ward and the serious wounding of Jordan McCann. They found the little kitchen where the shooting occurred was blood-bespattered, though the furniture in the room was in perfect order. The investigation disclosed that four shots had been fired from the rifle during the affray, for four empty shells were found, and after the last shot was fired the weapon was pumped again for there was a loaded shell in the chamber.
        Mrs. Ward and McCann were taken to a Superior Hospital right after the shooting, and their statements concerning the tragedy did not agree. Mrs. Ward claiming that the shooting was accidental while McCann contends that when he entered the house he found Mrs. Ward with the rifle in her hand apparently determined to carry out her oft repeated threat to kill herself. He said that he grappled with her in an effort to take the rifle away from her, and that the gun went off and the shot shattered his arm, and that he then fell to the floor in a faint and was unable to say whether any more shots had been fired after that, for he did not regain consciousness for several hours thereafter.
        Mrs. Ward survivied until Friday when she passed away, and it is understood that she stuck to her version of the shooting until the last. District Attorney Bernard has requested the District Atterney of Douglas County to conduct an examination of McCann, though he admits that apparently there is nothing in sight upon which to base a criminal action. Mrs. Ward, as she was known, was really Mrs. Harry Roe, wife of a former resident of this city, now of Drummond. Roe and his wife were estranged, and an action for divorce was started by Mr. Roe. The case was to be tried at this October tern of Circuit Court for Bayfield County.

        On Tuesday afternoon McCann was question by District Attorney Robert E. Kennedy, of Douglas County, at the request of District Attorney Bernard, of Bayfield County, and the statement McCann made has been placed in the hands of the Bayfield County prosecutor. Mr. Bernard was in town yesterday morning on his way home from Superior and when interviewed by a representative of this paper he said that the written statement which McCann made differed widely from the published reports concerning it. McCann, in his statement, did not say that he deliberating shot Mrs. Roe after wresting the rifle from her hands. How that report got in circulation was through a statement made by a nurse at the hospital to the effect that McCann had told her that. McCann is being guarded and has recoved from his injuries to such an extent that he will be removed to a jail in a few days, so it is reported.

 

McCann Found Not Guilty
Iron River Pioneer, Bayfield Co., WI, Thursday May 20, 1926

        Jury out three hours and returned a verdict exonerating local man charged with murder.

        Jordan McCann is a free man. The jury on Thursday afternoon brought in a verdict of not guilty after being out about three hours.
        McCann was charged with second degree murder in connection with the death of Mrs. Etta Ward Roe and the prosecution pinned its case largely upon statements which McCann made while in the hospital suffering from the effects of a serious wound which he received during the affray in which Mrs. Roe received a mortal wound. Upon the trial the defense contended that McCann was in such a delirious condition when interviewed at the hospital that he did not know what he was talking about, and that therefore his statements were not to be relied upon as disclosing the truth concerning the shooting affray.
        The shooting took place in a cabin in the town of Barnes last September. Mrs. Roe contended that the shooting was accidental, and stuck by that statement until death sealed her lips.

 

Rabbit Nearly Causes Upset, Feb. 4, 1927
Neil McCann of Eagleton Kills Big Jackrabbit With His Automobile

        Neil McCann of Eagleton, son of Peter McCann, killed a large jackrabbit with his automobile, three miles East of Jim Falls, while he was returning about noon from Jim Falls to Eagleton by way of Popple Lake road. He was following the snow ruts and this western jackrabbit jumped from a snowbank at the side of the road into a rut ahead. McCann slowed up his automobile to let the jack get out of the rut and the jack failed to do it. McCann ran over it with the front wheel of his Overland car. Mr. McCann got out and pulled the rabbit from the rut and supposed it was dead. He put the jack in the tonneau by the front seat. Then he started on toward Eagle Point. After going a distance, the jackrabbit appeared to come to life and made one big flop and being under McCann's legs, it caused him to lose his balance, as the rabbit flopped around under him. He lost control of his automobile and it ran into the ditch but did not do any damage. He jumped out of his car ready to give the jackrabbit a tussle and discovered the jackrabbit had made it's last kick and was dead.
        When he got home the jackrabbit was weighed and it weighed 14 pounds. It was skinned out and the family had a great feast. This happened on Thursday January 27, a cold day and it was supposed that the jackrabbit was affected by cold, so that when it got into the snow rut, it was unable to get out in time to avoid being crushed by the automobile. This jack was one of the small colony of jackrabbits that are reported to be inhabiting Eagle Prairie. Joseph Kelley says that there are a few jacks on the prairie. Mr. Kelley says he saw thousands of them lying dead in the road on his trip to the coast last summer.

 

Eagleton, Chippewa County, WI
$200 for Stock Including Taxes Back in 1906

        "Read 'em and weep"! In April 1906, Peter McCann started in the tavern business, and purchased the following merchandise from the previous owner, for which he paid $200. Five gallons blackberry brandy, four gallons port wine, 12 gallons brandy, 800 cigars assorted brands, three gallons gin, one case of beer, 25 gallons sour mash whiskey, two gallons alcohol, one half gallon whiskey, 3 barrels of beer, ten cases of soft drinks, four cases of pop, six bottles of bitters, and ten bottles of seltzer.
        Herb McCann, son of Peter, has been operating the tavern since 1939 and has entirely remodeled the premises. It is known as the Indian Bar. Herb, in rummaging through an old trunk discovered the bill of sale for the merchandise described above. He is an active member of the Tavern League of Chippewa County.

 

 

The McCann Family

My Elusive Ancestors

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