Donald Paine Collection Regarding Tennessee v. Carl Still
This collection houses the materials that Donald Paine collected while researching Carl Still's murder of Gilbert May in Lonsdale in 1910 as well as the articles that he published on the subject. The research materials consist of derivative newspaper articles, trial transcripts and other trial records, photocopies of publications about the trial personnel, and census and other biographical records about Still, May, their families, and the Lonsdale neighborhood. Also included are Paine’s notes on the research materials as well as his correspondence with other researchers, photographs of the Still and May tombstones, and contemporary articles and other disseminated works.
Dates
- 1870-2009
Conditions Governing Access
Collections are stored offsite and must be requested in advance. See www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.
Conditions Governing Use
The UT Libraries claims only physical ownership of most material in the collections. Persons wishing to broadcast or publish this material must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants on www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.
Extent
1 Linear Feet
Abstract
This collection houses the materials that Donald Paine collected while researching Carl Still's murder of Gilbert May in Lonsdale in 1910 as well as the articles that he published on the subject.
Biographical/Historical Note
On May 3, 1910 Gilbert May was shot in the back while escorting Mamie Miles to Bible Study in Lonsdale, Tennessee. Shortly before dying, May said that his killer was Carl Still, who also had a crush on Miles. Still was convicted and sentenced to hang as a result of his first trial in 1910. In 1911 the Supreme Court decided that May’s dying declaration was misused during the first trial. Still was tried again in 1912 and was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Governor Rye pardoned him on December 22, 1917.
Donald Franklin Paine was born in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1939. He earned his B.A. (1961), M.A. (1963), and LL.B. (1963) from the University of Tennessee. Immediately after graduation, Paine served in the Army as a Captain in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. He was discharged in 1966 and returned to Tennessee, where he authored the Tennessee Law of Evidence (1974). Paine practiced law with Paine, Tarwater, and Bickers in addition to researching Tennessee's legal history. He was a Reporter to the Supreme Court Advisory Commission on Rules of Practice and Procedure, wrote a monthly column for the Tennessee Bar Journal, and lectured for the Tennessee Law Institute, the University of Tennessee College of Law, and the Tennessee Judicial Conference. Paine also served as President of the Knoxville Bar Association (1983) and of the Tennessee Bar Association (1986-1987). Paine died November 18, 2013.
Arrangement
This collection consists of a single box.
Acquisition Note
Donald Paine donated these materials to Special Collections on December 24, 2009.
Repository Details
Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository