History of Frankie Silver

Frances “Frankie” Stewart Silver was executed in Morganton, North Carolina, for the gruesome murder of her husband, Charlie Silver, on July 12, 1833. She was found guilty of axing her husband, then cutting his body into pieces and burning them to hide evidence of her crime. For decades the truth behind the Frankie Silver murder case has remained a mystery and popular folklore in North Carolina. On December 1831, Charlie Silver was reported missing by his wife, Frankie, because he had not returned home after a Christmas party across the Toe River. However, after the search proved fruitless, Jack Collis, a local hunter, discovered human remains inside a fireplace at the Silver’s mountain cabin, located several miles from Kona in Mitchell County. In addition, more body remains were found throughout the property, including underneath the cabin’s floor.

After the discovery, Frankie Silver was arrested and charged with murder of her husband in January 1832. Later in March, Silver’s trial was held at the Burke County Courthouse. It lasted for only two days. Hardly any evidence was presented against Frankie, but the jury remained convinced that jealousy prompted her murderous action. The prosecutor alleged that Frankie believed her handsome Charlie was being unfaithful.

Some residents believed that Frankie was an abused wife and that Frankie murdered her hard-drinking husband to stop the abuse that threatened her and her little baby. Even Burgess Gaither, the clerk of court, remarked that there was strong evidence about Charlie’s alcoholism and abuse, and “that if his wife had admitted the killing and pleaded self-defense” then she more than likely would have been acquitted (Encyclopedia of N.C., p. 1036).

Regardless of the evidence, Frankie Silver never gave her testimony. In the early nineteenth century, based on centuries of English Common Law, accused felons were not allowed to testify in open court and a case for self-defense could not be argued.

The jury found Silver guilty of murder and she was sentenced to hang. Silver’s attorney filed several appeals while women from Burke County petitioned the governor to show mercy on her. It was not forthcoming and she was hanged on July 12, 1833.

According to historian Noel Yancey, Frankie Silver, who was described as a “bright eyed, pretty little woman,” is considered the first woman ever executed in North Carolina (Encyclopedia of N.C., p. 1036). Silver was only eighteen years old at the time of her death.