List of people executed in Tennessee (pre-1972)

Last updated January 16, 2026

The following is a list of people executed by the U.S. state of Tennessee before 1972, when capital punishment was briefly abolished by the Supreme Court's ruling in Furman v. Georgia . For execution after the restoration of capital punishment by the Supreme Court's ruling in Gregg v. Georgia (1976), see List of people executed in Tennessee.

Pre-Furman


Name	Race	Age	Sex	Date of execution	County	Crime	Victim(s)	Governor
Julius Morgan	Black	21/22	M	July 13, 1916	Dyer	Rape	Laura Sullivan, 20, white^[a]	Thomas Clarke Rye
J. D. Williams	Black		M	July 8, 1918	Giles	Rape	Female, white
Eddie Alsup	Black	17	M	July 8, 1918	Giles	Rape	Female, white
Frank Ewing	Black	21		May 31, 1919	Davidson	Rape	Anna Ferguson, white	Albert H. Roberts
Winfred Walker	Black	17		January 8, 1920	Jefferson	Rape	Frances Rankin, 11, white
Lorenzo Young	Black	25		September 3, 1920	Shelby	Murder	John G. Brinkley, 35, white (policeman)
Cyrenas J. Jackson	Black	18	M	August 3, 1921	Hamilton	Murder-Rape-Robbery	Abraham A. Baron, 21, white	Alfred A. Taylor
Taylor Neal	Black	19	M	August 3, 1921	Hamilton	Murder-Rape-Robbery	Abraham A. Baron, 21, white
Hamp Gholson	Black		M	August 17, 1921	Shelby	Murder-Robbery	Isaac Levy, white
Chesley Graham	Black		M		Hardin	Murder-Robbery	Harry Allen, white
Will Allen	Black		M		Hardin	Murder-Robbery	Harry Allen, white
John Green	White	28	M	February 17, 1922	Washington	Murder	Robert L. Houston, 42, white^[b]
Asbury Fields	White	47	M	February 18, 1922	Bradley	Murder	J. R. Pierce, white
Charles Petree	White	21	M	March 1, 1922	Anderson	Murder-Robbery	George Lewis, white
Tom Christmas	White	26	M
Otto Stevens	White	29	M
John McClure	White	26	M
Maurice Mays	Black	31	M	March 15, 1922	Knox	Murder-Attempted rape-Burglary	Bertie Zena Lindsey, 27, white
Granville Bunch	White	38	M	April 11, 1922	Anderson
William Dwight			M	July 25, 1922	Hamilton	Murder-Robbery
Austin Harris			M	August 15, 1922		Murder	Ellis Robinson, black
James McElroy	White		M	August 15, 1922		Murder	Edward L. Bennecker, 32, white
Ben Burchfield	White	44	M	January 14, 1925	Sullivan	Murder	Five people, white^[c]	Austin Peay
Robert Tate	White	26	M	November 5, 1925		Murder-Robbery
Charles Barr	Black	23	M	August 20, 1926	Shelby	Murder-Robbery	W. Obe Spencer, 27, white^[d]
John F. Webb			M	May 20, 1927	Shelby	Rape-Kidnapping	Lucille Dutton, white
John H. Wallace		21	M	May 25, 1927	Rutherford	Murder-Robbery-Burglary	Everett Hedgecoth, 25, white
Herman E. Coggin	White	28	M	November 10, 1927	Davidson	Rape	Female, 10, white	Henry Hollis Horton
Ben Fowler	Black	35	M	January 25, 1928	Scott	Murder	Dr. Wylie W. Foust, white^[e]
Will Terrell	Black	22	M	June 19, 1929	Davidson	Rape	Emma Porter, 51, white
Henry Brown	Black	37	M	August 22, 1929	Davidson	Rape-Robbery-Burglary	Female, white
John Jones	Black	20	M	February 14, 1930		Murder
Carey Gunn	Black	20	M	March 14, 1930		Rape	Female, 15, white
Theodore J. Harris	Black	23	M	January 22, 1931	Knox	Murder-Robbery	Dr. Barclay Joshua Jones, 61, white^[f]
John T. Shaw	Black		M	July 3, 1931
Oscar Bevins	Black		M	September 7, 1933				Hill McAlister
Andrew Wilcoxson	Black		M	September 7, 1933
Willie Jones	Black		M	October 30, 1933
Jim Allen	Black		M	January 5, 1934
Joe Emmory	Black		M	February 5, 1934
James Swann	Black		M
Louis Fain	Black		M
Jasper Graham	Black	29	M	April 4, 1934		Rape-Robbery
Frank Mays	Black	30	M			Rape-Robbery
Percy Smith	Black	20	M			Rape
James Pillow	Black		M	September 1, 1934
John Deal	Black		M	September 1, 1934
Bill Lee	White	24	M	January 21, 1936
Walter Kennedy	White	22	M	January 21, 1936
Louis Willis	Black	27	M	January 28, 1936		Murder	Edward Lowry, 70, white (trusty)
Ernest Womack	Black		M	April 1, 1936
Earnest K. Harris	Black	19	M	May 22, 1936	Davidson ^[g]	Rape	Lillian Gibson, 14, white
Curley Ballard	Black	56	M	August 11, 1936	Sullivan	Murder	Willie Green, 17, black
James Smith	Black	27	M		Lincoln	Murder-Robbery	Hugh Matlock, 56, white
James Clark	Black	23	M		Shelbyville	Murder-Robbery-Burglary	Richard Thomas Sheehan, 27, white
Elmer Barrett	Black		M	November 13, 1936
James Turner	Black		M	March 5, 1937				Gordon Browning
James Taylor	Black		M	March 15, 1937
Anderson Berry	Black		M	March 17, 1937
Tom Franklin	Black		M	March 18, 1937
Gus McCoig	White		M	April 3, 1937
Roy Wilburn Eatmon	White		M	April 16, 1937
William Farmer	White		M	April 30, 1937
Howard Dunn	White		M	April 30, 1937
Jimmie L. Parrish	Black		M	August 9, 1937
Fred Ritchie	White		M	August 10, 1937
Gus McKinney	Black		M	April 15, 1938
Arthur Mosby	Black		M	July 25, 1938
White Tollett	White		M	January 11, 1939
Ernest Stanley	Black		M	January 19, 1939				Prentice Cooper
Frank Murray	Black		M	March 28, 1939
Hyman Johnson	Black		M	March 28, 1939
Hubert Harris	Black		M	April 4, 1939
James O. Martin	White		M	April 10, 1939
Joseph McKay	Black		M
James W. Smith			M
Willie Williams	Black
Harley Evans	White		M	August 28, 1939
Clyde Wills	White	27	M	January 10, 1940
A.C. Mobley	Black		M	March 15, 1940
James Goodin	Black		M	September 4, 1940
William Henry	Black		M	September 4, 1940
Van Gilmore	Black		M	April 18, 1941
Walter Reed	Black		M	July 18, 1941
Willie L. Porter	Black		M	July 24, 1941
Carl Cole	Black		M	July 24, 1941
Lawrence West	Black		M	July 30, 1941
Roy Walden	White	38	M	February 13, 1942	Knox	Rape	Nancy Ruth Sorrell, 8, white
Ernest Dixon	White	24	M	February 14, 1942	Knox	Rape-Robbery	Susan Leper, 22, white
John Dockery	White	20	M	February 14, 1942	Knox	Rape-Robbery	Susan Leper, 22, white
Clarence May	White		M	March 20, 1942		Murder
John Goode	Black		M	March 20, 1942		Murder
William Headen	White		M	March 30, 1943
Robert Cannon	White		M	March 30, 1943
James Tucker	White		M	July 15, 1943
Marshall Spigner	White		M	July 15, 1943
Robert Hall	Black		M	December 15, 1943
George Hambrick	Black		M	December 15, 1943
Billy Dixon	Black		M	July 16, 1945				Jim Nance McCord
Thomas Walker	Black		M	March 1, 1946
Johnnie Outlaw	Black		M	March 1, 1946
George Douglas	Black		M	July 5, 1946
John H. Luffman	White	46	M	August 30, 1946	Stewart	Murder-Rape	Grady Cherry and Ruphine Cherry, 28 and 21, white^[h]
Alvin Hicks	White	24	M	August 30, 1946	Stewart	Murder-Rape	Grady Cherry and Ruphine Cherry, 28 and 21, white^[h]
Albert Dubois	White	37	M	April 11, 1947
John Hodge Jr.	Black	28	M	June 19, 1947
Fred Jackson	Black	18	M	August 11, 1947
James Sandusky	White	20	M	April 22, 1948
John Kelley	White	21	M	April 22, 1948
Thomas H. Taylor	Black	33	M	August 31, 1948	Davidson	Rape	Female, 19, white^[i]
James M. Scribner	Black	23	M
William C. Turner	Black	21	M
Barney Thompson	Black		M	February 17, 1949	Bradley	Murder	Maggie Ashmore, black	Gordon Browning
Edward Watson	Black		M	June 10, 1949
Paul Lacey	Black		M	November 25, 1949
Clyde Steele	Black	20	M	January 24, 1950	Knox	Rape	Annie Kennedy, 58, white
Samuel L. Voss	Black	29	M	April 15, 1955	Davidson	Murder-Robbery	Louis Hutchinson, 54, white^[j]	Frank G. Clement
Harry Kirkendall	Black	33	M	August 1, 1955	Wilson	Murder-Robbery	Edward Martin Collier, 62, white
Charlie Sullins	White	38	M	August 1, 1955	Wilson	Murder-Robbery	Edward Martin Collier, 62, white
Robert Crenshaw	Black	42	M	September 15, 1955	Davidson	Rape	Female, white^[k]
Jimmy Allen	Black	36	M	March 15, 1957	Davidson	Murder	Jeanette Patricia Allen, 19 months, black (stepdaughter)^[l]
Billy T. Gibbs	White	25	M	May 6, 1957	Coffee	Murder	Vassie Bratcher, 42, white^[m]
Thomas Rutledge	White	33	M	June 15, 1959	Warren	Murder-Rape	Treva Joyce Raper, 12, white (cousin)	Buford Ellington
William Tines	Black	37	M	November 7, 1960	Roane	Rape	Bertha Riggs, 45, white	Buford Ellington

Notes

↑ Confessed to previously attacking a white woman in Arkansas. He escaped from prison while serving a 2-year sentence for this crime.
↑ Previously convicted of murdering policeman Walter McPeak (28, white) in 1910 and served 12 years of a 20-year sentence.
↑ His 39-year-old wife Deline Burchfield, his 12-year-old stepson Charles Burchfield, his 50-year-old uncle James W. Smith, his 40-year-old aunt Mary Ella Smith, and his 2-year-old niece Ruby G. Smith.
↑ Serial killer, also murdered Duncan Walker (19, white) and Ruth McElwaine Tucker (20, white), the latter whom he also raped.
↑ Also murdered sheriff's deputy John Wesley West (53, white).
↑ Also murdered Lucy M. Jones (33, white) and George Edward Lane (13, white).
↑ Change of venue from Bedford.
↑ Hicks was previously convicted in 1941 of the attempted rape of a white schoolgirl and served one year in prison. Luffman was also convicted of raping his 18-year-old daughter.
↑ Also gang raped two other white women.
↑ Also murdered James B. Cox (46, white).
↑ Previously convicted of attempted rape.
↑ Suspected serial killer, also suspected of murdering his wife Annie Mosley Allen, his 9-year-old son Jimmy Allen Jr., and his 3-year-old stepson Reginald Allen.
↑ Also convicted of murdering Henry Bratcher (45, white), Lily May Bratcher (10, white), and Charlotte Ann Bratcher (1, white) and sentenced to a total of 218 years in prison for these crimes.

References

TN Executions. Tennessee Department of Correction. Retrieved on 2023-10-25.

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[1] Confessed to previously attacking a white woman in Arkansas. He escaped from prison while serving a 2-year sentence for this crime.

[2] Previously convicted of murdering policeman Walter McPeak (28, white) in 1910 and served 12 years of a 20-year sentence.

[3] His 39-year-old wife Deline Burchfield, his 12-year-old stepson Charles Burchfield, his 50-year-old uncle James W. Smith, his 40-year-old aunt Mary Ella Smith, and his 2-year-old niece Ruby G. Smith.

[4] Serial killer, also murdered Duncan Walker (19, white) and Ruth McElwaine Tucker (20, white), the latter whom he also raped.

[5] Also murdered sheriff's deputy John Wesley West (53, white).

[6] Also murdered Lucy M. Jones (33, white) and George Edward Lane (13, white).

[7] Change of venue from Bedford.

[8] Hicks was previously convicted in 1941 of the attempted rape of a white schoolgirl and served one year in prison. Luffman was also convicted of raping his 18-year-old daughter.

[9] Also gang raped two other white women.

[10] Also murdered James B. Cox (46, white).

[11] Previously convicted of attempted rape.

[12] Suspected serial killer, also suspected of murdering his wife Annie Mosley Allen, his 9-year-old son Jimmy Allen Jr., and his 3-year-old stepson Reginald Allen.

[13] Also convicted of murdering Henry Bratcher (45, white), Lily May Bratcher (10, white), and Charlotte Ann Bratcher (1, white) and sentenced to a total of 218 years in prison for these crimes.

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v t e Capital punishment in the United States
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People executed by state	Federal government Military Alabama (pre-1972) Arizona (pre-1972) Arkansas (pre-1972) California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida (pre-1972) Georgia (pre-1972) Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky (pre-1972) Louisiana (pre-1972) Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi (pre-1972) Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina (pre-1972) North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma (pre-1972) Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina (pre-1972) South Dakota Tennessee (pre-1972) Texas 2020–present Utah Vermont Virginia (pre-1972) Washington (pre-1972) West Virginia Wyoming Washington, D.C.
People executed by year	1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965–1972 1976–1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Scheduled executions
Issues and ethics	Botched executions Death-qualified jury Debate Dual sovereignty doctrine Execution drug shortage Exonerations Juveniles Last meal Participation of medical professionals Race and capital punishment White defendants executed for killing a black victim Wrongful executions
Other	Death row inmates Death row inmates who have exhausted their appeals Death Penalty Information Center Most recent executions by state National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Supreme Court decisions on capital punishment Women executed since 1976 Women on death row

List of people executed in Tennessee (pre-1972)

Contents

Pre-Furman

See also

Notes

References