John Bell was killed in a duel in May 1856 in Dallas County, Alabama, and his son as well, John, Jr. (Selma is Dallas County.) He was killed in a duel over a slave; he was defending an enslaved man. I have a probate file on the Bell, the Alabama Supreme Court opinion on the case, and a grave marker. The grave marker reads "No Murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." Unsurprisingly, Bell was incredibly wealthy, and so was the accuser. Honor culture (which I'm not a fan of usually) will be a big part of the case
More later ....
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