On May 21, 1902, the Daily News printed a threatening letter that had been received by Mrs. Bettie Belk of Plano.

Whitecaps (organized rural vigilante groups active in the midwest who sought to preserve the community status quo) promised violence to John Hutchins and his family if they didn’t leave by Wednesday, asserting they were “not fit to keep company with d–n dogs.”

Although reasons for the threat are not mentioned, John’s wife Mary was Mrs. Belk’s daughter, and they had been living with her since the 1900 U.S. census. By 1907, they were living in Indianapolis and by the 1920 census they had returned to Bowling Green.

– “Way Back When in Warren County” is compiled by researchers at the Warren County Public Library and appears twice weekly in the Bowling Green Daily News. For more information about the library, visit warrenpl.org.