In the quiet farming community of Pamplico, South Carolina, a horrific series of events unfolded on January 15, 1921, culminating in the death of Leonard Smiley Bigham III and four of his family members. Bigham, a 43-year-old male, was found deceased in the woods near the family home, a day after the bodies of his mother, Mary Madora “Dora” Smith Bigham, his sister, Marjorie Ann Bigham Black McCracken, and Marjorie's two young sons, Leo and John Mack, were discovered inside the residence.
Initially, it was speculated that Smiley Bigham was the perpetrator who had fled after committing the murders. However, the discovery of his body shifted the focus of the investigation.
Suspicion soon fell upon Edmund D. Bigham, the brother of Smiley. Affidavits presented by an attorney cast a strong light of guilt in his direction, leading to his arrest. The motive for the slayings was believed to be a contentious family dispute over inheritance and land deeds. Investigators determined that a. 38 caliber pistol owned by Edmund was the weapon used to shoot all five victims. The initial narrative, reportedly from Edmund, claimed that his mother, Dora, before succumbing to her two gunshot wounds, had implicated his brother Smiley in the brutal acts.
Edmund Bigham's legal journey was a long and convoluted one. He faced trial three separate times for the murders. After multiple trials and appeals, which included a period spent on death row, he ultimately pleaded guilty to the murder of his brother, Smiley Bigham. In 1927, he received a life sentence. Despite his guilty plea, Edmund maintained for years that his brother was the one who had killed their family before taking his own life. After serving 39 years in prison, Edmund Bigham, the sole survivor of the immediate family living at the home, was paroled. The case of the Bigham family murders remains a dark and complex chapter in the history of Florence County.
