Editor’s Note: This is the second in a two-part series on Anton Woode’s life. Multiple spellings of Anton Woode’s name are found throughout newspapers, including Antone Woode, Antone Wood, and Anton Wood.
When Anton Woode walked through the penitentiary gates at the young age of 11, the judicial system had no procedure for dealing with young criminals and by default treated them the same whether they were 11 or 31.
While Anton was growing up in prison, a Denver judge, Benjamin Barr Lindsey, was laying the foundation for the youth judicial system that we now have today. Lindsey devoted his entire career to advocating for young criminals and instituting new laws to help them succeed.
In 1899, Colorado passed the school law, mandating education for children, ages 7-16 years old, in an attempt to get them off the street. Later that year, Illinois instituted the first juvenile court system.
On March 7, 1903, “An Act Concerning Delinquent Children” was passed by the Colorado General Assembly, creating a separate docket and record for juveniles, as well as making their parents legally responsible for their child’s behavior. In 1945, a full-fledged juvenile court system was established due to the efforts of Lindsey and others.
Despite growing up in a harsh prison environment, Anton became somewhat of a success story of a boy who served hard time. Minus the 1900 prison break and a few write-ups for sleeping in late, Anton was a model prisoner.
And it seemed that he learned from his experiences.
In 1903, Anton once again found himself amid a prison break; however, this time, he decided to stay in the walls.
“Although he had every opportunity to leave with the prisoners Monday, he did not attempt to do so, on the contrary, performed signal service in giving the alarm,” according to an article in the Canon City Record dated June 25, 1903. This act granted him a recommendation from the board of penitentiary commissioners to Gov. Peabody for clemency.
Despite the recommendation, Anton would serve two more years before he was granted parole. On Sept. 5, 1905, after serving 12 years, four months, and 28 days, Anton was released into the care of Elbert Hubbard to work at the Roycrofters in East Aurora, N.Y. An aspiring artist, they hoped that the pairing would set Anton up for a successful career. Wanting to start anew and leave behind the stigma that followed him as the “Boy Murderer,” he changed his name to Charles Howard after his arrival in New York at the Roycrofters.
However, a new life would not come easy to Anton as he struggled to adjust to life outside of the penitentiary. Shortly after his arrival at the Roycrofters, Anton wrote about his displeasure with life there and asked to be sent to work for the Salvation Army. The Daily Journal goes on to state that one could not really blame him as, “To the man with any spirit and ambition, the Roycroft workshop is not much better than the penitentiary, as the artisans of the Fra’s factories are supposed to work for their board and clothes.”
Reporters seemed obsessed with the young man’s parole and reports of his inability to secure a good job or make it as an artist in New York were often mentioned in newspapers across the state.
Mrs. Reynolds, a Denver socialite who supplied the funds to move him to New York, however, was not surprised at the struggles Anton had with securing a job. In a Denver Post interview, she stated, “I am satisfied that in the end, he will justify every effort that was made for his release. He may get along slowly, but remember, he is as to the great world, but an infant. He has been shut out from the world within the walls of the penitentiary, nearly all his life, and being thrust into the world for the first time, he must like an infant, first learn to walk and then understand, the language and the ways of the world, before he can do anything that is really satisfactory to his enemies, or to his friends for that matter.”
Anton continued to advocate for himself and was eventually rewarded for his efforts. On Oct. 24, 1905, his request to be released from the Roycrofters and join a soap company as a traveling salesman was granted.
In a letter to Woode, Cleghorn writes, “I am disposed to allow you perfect freedom in the choice of occupation you wish to pursue. You will be altogether responsible for your future and must carve out a destiny by your own exertions.”
In response to the Warden’s letter, Woode was quoted as saying, “ I will show them I am not a degenerate, by any means. I’ll be a man and make something out of myself, and I will not die poor either. I will never be dishonest, but there is no show here with Mr. Hubbard to do well financially. I am getting a late start in life, and I want to make up lost time.”
And it would seem that Anton did end up making something out of himself.
On June 10, 1906 newspaper article was published announcing the marriage of Anton Woode to Miss Mabel Estella Terry, a Judge’s daughter from Newburg.
“Anton Woode is now the husband of one of the most cultured and well-educated young women of New York state, whose respect and affection he won by his manly straightforward and honest endeavor to live a life above reproach.”
On Oct. 16, 1906, Anton Woode was granted a full pardon by Gov. McDonald. This announcement is the last his name appeared in the papers and most presume he went on to live a happy, crime-free life.
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Back In Time: After serving his time, what became of Anton Woode, the ‘Boy Murderer,’ may surprise you - Canon City Daily Record
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