Editor’s Note: Western North Carolina is rich with untold stories—many resting quietly in local cemeteries. In this Tombstone Tales series, we explore the lives of people from our region’s past whose legacies, whether widely known or nearly forgotten, helped shape the place we call home.
BLOWING ROCK, N.C. (828newsNOW.com) — In a quiet cemetery in Blowing Rock, a gray stone bearing the name Lewis Trexler stands as a reminder of one of the town’s most shocking killings. The monument’s carved symbols tell the story of a death that stunned the mountain community and sparked widespread outrage.
According to newspaper accounts published in July 1912, Trexler was killed during an altercation that began over a small unpaid account totaling less than seventy-five cents. The dispute unfolded in a local poolroom, where Trexler confronted Alonzo Hartley, who was playing billiards, and asked him to settle the debt.
Witnesses said words were exchanged, with Hartley dismissing the amount as trivial. The argument escalated and Hartley drew a loaded billiard cue and struck Trexler on the right side of the head above the ear. Trexler fell to the floor. Instead of stopping, Hartley jumped on him, beating his face and dragging him across the room. When bystanders intervened, Hartley allegedly stomped Trexler’s face with the heel of his shoe.
Trexler died from his injuries within three hours.
Regional newspapers described the town of Blowing Rock as “greatly enraged,” with some residents openly calling for Hartley to be lynched. Law enforcement moved swiftly, transferring Hartley to Boone, where he was jailed to await the next term of criminal court.
Trexler’s death carried added weight because of his standing in the community. The former chief of police in Blowing Rock had been married just over a year and was survived by his wife and their young child.
The legal proceedings advanced quickly. In September 1912, just months after the killing, Hartley pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Court records show he was sentenced to 10 years state prison, bringing a formal conclusion to a case that had deeply shaken the mountain town.
Today, Trexler’s grave offers a quiet reflection on the violence that shattered Blowing Rock in the summer of 1912. Carved into the stone is a dove in flight above open gates, framed by an arch, a classic Christian symbol representing the soul’s passage into heaven. Beneath it are the words, “God defends the right.”
The inscription reads as both faith and protest. Trexler’s life ended not by illness or age, but by a sudden, brutal act over a debt measured in coins. A reminder of how quickly ordinary moments can turn tragic, and how even the smallest disputes can leave lasting scars.
-
Tombstone Tales: A uniquely Appalachian Monument in Haywood County
A 1936 burial reflects a Western North Carolina tradition of handmade memorials.
-
Tombstone Tales: Mystery beneath Biltmore Stone Cutters Monument
At Asheville’s Riverside Cemetery, a Biltmore-linked stonecutters memorial reveals a deeper story of labor, loss and unanswered questions.
-
Tombstone Tales: ‘Mayor of Shiloh’ buried in Asheville
Linwood Crump, known as “the Mayor of Shiloh,” left such an impact on his neighborhood that the community center he served at was renamed to honor him.
-
Tombstone Tales: Lewis Trexler, killed over seventy-five cents
A former Blowing Rock police chief was beaten to death in 1888 over a minor debt. More than a century later, his grave tells a story of injustice, outrage and a life cut short.
-
Tombstone Tales: Flat Rock’s Slaves and Freedmen Memorial
Beneath a quiet stand of trees near Flat Rock’s oldest Episcopal church, a granite cross rises above a hillside of small white markers. It is one of the few memorials dedicated to enslaved and freed African Americans in Western North Carolina.
