William J McAnally, Chief

Beggs Police Department

At 10:40 A.M. on Wednesday May 18, 1927, Chief McAnally was talking to a local merchant in front of the Farmers National Bank in Beggs, when three men walked past them, got into a car and drove off. The merchant recognized one of the men as Matt Kimes, notorious leader of a gang of bank robbers. The merchant advised the Chief who quickly stepped into the bank and found it had been robbed by the three men. The Chief stepped back outside and fired twice at the fleeing vehicle. The Chief was unaware that the Kimes gang was robbing two banks in Beggs that morning. Two more carloads of gang members were just leaving the First National Bank down the street. Seeing the Chief firing at their comrades in the other car, the two cars pulled up in front of Chief McAnally and opened fire on him with automatic shotguns. With 96 pellets of Number Four shot in his body, Chief McAnally died within twenty minutes. His wife, four sons and two daughters survived him.