Herb Farmer Shoots Newton County Deputy

Herb "Deafy" Farmer was a mobster whose farmhouse south of Joplin near Redings Mill served as a "safe house" for gangsters from the mid-1920s to the early 1930s. He was a particularly close associate of the Barkers, whom he'd known when both the Farmer and Barker families lived at Webb City in the early 1900s. In June of 1934, Farmer was implicated as a go-between in the plot to free gangster Frank "Jelly" Nash, leading to the so-called Kansas City Massacre at Union Station.

While out on bond awaiting disposition of that case, Farmer got into trouble a little closer to home. The Oriole Terrace Nightclub was located between Redings Mill and Joplin, just up the road from Farmer's home, and on Thursday night, September 13, 1934, Farmer; his wife, Esther; and a sidekick named Herb Carter went there to do some drinking.

Shortly after midnight, in the wee hours of Friday, September 14, Carter and the Farmers got into a dispute with another customer, Herbert Keller (I guess everybody was named Herb back in those days), and Carter struck Keller. Newton County deputy Clem Bumgarner, who was stationed at the notorious nightspot to keep order, intervened to break up the scuffle and then called for backup.

An hour or so later, an all-out fist fight broke out between Carter and Keller. By this time, another deputy, E. M. Kimbrough had arrived, and he helped Bumgarner break up the brawl. They ejected Carter and Keller from the club, and they tried to get the Farmers to leave as well. Herb Farmer proved obstinate and exchanged some heated words with Kimbrough. Bumgarner explained to Farmer that Kimbrough was also a deputy sheriff, but Farmer was unfazed. "I don't care who he is," he declaimed.

Herb Farmer from the Kansas City Journal

The deputies managed to get Farmer outside, and Bumgarner bolted the door to keep him and the other two Herbs from reentering. However, Farmer's wife had been left inside.

Farmer went to his car, got a revolver, and returned to the club. He was denied entrance, but he broke the door down, stepped inside, and almost immediately started shooting at Kimbrough, who was in a booth across the dance floor. Farmer emptied his weapon, striking the deputy six times, as about forty patrons scrambled for safety or looked on in horror.

Kimbrough collapsed to the floor, while Farmer grabbed Esther and hurried outside, where Carter awaited. All three jumped into Farmer's car and sped away. Officers went to the Farmer place a mile or two south of the club, but the fugitives were not there. A search was undertaken, but it turned up no sign of Farmer and his companions.

Meanwhile, Kimbrough was rushed to St. John's Hospital in Joplin, where it was thought at first that his wounds might prove fatal. However, he began to show marked improvement a few days later, and he was released in mid-October after spending about five weeks in the hospital.

Sometime in the fall of 1934, Herb Farmer and his wife surrendered to federal authorities to face the charges against them related to their role in setting up the attempt to free Frank Nash, which led to the Kansas City Massacre. They were both convicted for their part in the conspiracy, and Farmer served two years at Alcatraz. After his release, he returned to Joplin, sold the farm, and moved into town, where he died in 1948 and was buried in Forest Park Cemetery.

Esther later married Harvey Bailey, self-proclaimed King of the Bank Robbers. Both of them are also buried in Forest Park Cemetery.