818. Elderly Bluff Springs Woman Kills Young Suitor 1928

On January 19, 1928, the Escambia County Sheriff's Office was called to Bluff Springs in the northern part of the county in reference to a fatal shooting. Sheriff Mose Penton and his deputies responded and confronted Mrs. Nancy A. Medlock (1856-1947). She is believed to be the daughter of Nathaniel S. (1811-) and Frances Medlock (1818-) and the wife of Elijah Nickles.

Since a fatality was involved, Nancy was arrested and escorted to the Escambia County Jail for questioning and investigation. The 72-woman said that she was forced to shoot Robert Franklin Comalander (aka Cumberlander) (1898-1928) in self-defense and to protect her honor! She stated that he had appeared with two friends earlier and she could tell he was intoxicated. He wanted her to have a drink with him and she consistently told him no. He forced his way into the house but she told him his friends wanted him outside. When he turned to look out the door at them she pushed him through it and he fell outside. Apparently, his friends began arguing with him, most likely trying to get him to leave. She armed herself with a single barrel shotgun and when he returned he had a knife and threatening bodily harm before forcing his way into the house where the two grappled for the gun.

Suddenly, a nearby neighbor heard a blast and came running to Nancy's house to investigate. He found Robert laying on the bed in a pool of blood. He picked Robert up and put him in his car and rushed him to the Bluff Springs hospital where he died two hours later. Sheriff Penton attempted to contact Robert's two companions but they had taken off as soon as they heard the shotgun blast. By the end of the evening, Penton was convinced he would have to arraign Nancy for the charge of murder before Judge Robert Stout.

Penton was familiar with Robert because three years earlier in 1925 he was involved in an automobile accident in West Pensacola that left one victim Mrs. Zeb Nichols dead. As the sheriff looked deeper into his background he found he was born in 1902, the son of John Franklin (1866-1925) and Margaret Lucreia Smith (1865-1942), who were married in 1888 in Marengo County, Alabama. Robert's grandfather was Benjamin Franklin Comalander (1844-1879) who became a Confederate veteran after enlisting on April 15, 1864 as a private in Company "B" of the 8th Alabama Cavalry. His parents and seven siblings were living in Bashi, Clarke County, Alabama in 1900 but they moved to Horse Creek in Marengo County ten years later. During this time his father was supporting the family, his lifelong vocation. In 1918, the family was in McDavid when Robert registered for the WWI draft. By this time, his brother, Wesley Dove had already chosen to enlist in the US Army and after basic training was assigned to the 101st Infantry Regiment. While overseas Wesley contracted spinal meningitis. Due to the severity of his condition he was returned home aboard the SS Finland sailing out of the St. Nazaire port on January 31, 1919 and arriving at Hoboken, NJ on February 14, 1919. He would receive his honorable discharge on Aril 14, 1919. By 1920, Robert had moved with his family to Canoe in Escambia County, Alabama just east of Atmore as they took up farming there.

By January 22, Mrs. Nancy A. Medlock had been released by the court with a ruling of justifiable homicide. Undisputed testimony had been received by County Judge Robert Stout that showed that when the young man was shot and killed he was in the process of forcing his attentions on the victim and holding a knife in his hand while threatening her.

In the meantime, Robert was buried although the gravesites of he and his family are unknown.