Appalachian Outlaw Otto Wood
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Appalachian Outlaw: Otto Wood #ottowood #appalachianhistory #appalachia #appalachianoutlaws #outlaws #gunslinger
Click the JOIN or THANKS button to support this channel
Donate to support this channel
Paypal @drjdphillips
Venmo @theappalachianstoryteller
Cash App $appalachianstory
Make sure to LIKE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE Also follow me on facebook. / theappalachianstoryteller
Got a story you want us to tell? Email theappalachianstoryteller@gmail.com
Video from The Appalachian Storyteller
Story written by The Appalachian Storyteller
Photos from paid subscription to Newspapers.com
Note: This Video Represents History. The video has been uploaded for educational purposes and commentary and critique on the topic.
You can support this channel by clicking the JOIN button or the THANKS button. Liking, Sharing, and Commenting also helps a bunch! Thanks Everyone!
Lot of things I'm not cut out for, and I guess outlaw isn't one of them either. So far, JD, I would've failed at that AND farming! We're gonna have to find me something to do.
This fella was "born to run"
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller Otto was at my grandmaw's house here in Wilkesboro the night before being shot. He had asked her mama to fix him some chicken and dumplings and had given her enough money to buy new shoes for all the kids. Since he never came back they got to eat the dumplings and grandma said that was the first real meal they had in weeks. I heard that story so many times growing up. She said they all loved him. He was the Robin Hood of this town. He was always buying things for the people of Wilkes that needed it.
THE WRIGHT AND TEMPLETON GANG
IS THE MOST INTERESTING OUTLAW GROUP AROUND
EASTERN TENNESSEE AND WESTERN
VIRGINIA
They had over 25 kills
I don’t know any OUTLAWS this late in time that ended 1902
Moonshine is making a bottle called Wright and Templeton Shine even but i just think you would do amazing JD if you ask about them GEMINI
Can tell you a lot but
There’s a book you are the only person i know who could do an amazing job you
I live in Salisbury N.C. and you can still hear a story or two about Otto and his wild life to this very day.
That’s awesome
Hey neighbor, right down the road from you in Mooresville, NC..!!
👋🏽 neighbor lol..I'm from Salisbury.. And still here. And thank you for confirming why I thought this story sounded so familiar from the beginning.
I couldn't help but chuckle at this one, what an escape artist!!!
Otto was a legend!
I remember the story my history teacher in Princeton West Virginia tell us the story of Otto Wood and Jesse James back in the early 50's. Her name was Thelma Oxley and she taught school in Mercer County. She really owned the house that Jesse James slept in and now is of Historic Registered Houses. She was old back then and didn't weigh 100 pounds soaking wet. But she sure swung a mean paddle. She was a great story teller. But when she said she slept with Jesse James somehow I didn't doubt her word.
Thanks JD for another great one.
“Sure could swing a mean paddle” I love it!
What a good story. I believe I had a grin on my face for just about the entire video.
Awesome
Otto was a criminal and caused a lot of harm. But I couldn't help but think that he was a genius. Thoroughly enjoyed the story
Exactly my thoughts as I researched and wrote this story. Spot on observation
2 videos in the same weekend this is a treat
Ahh you noticed! A rare double feature weekend
Agreed we all are spoiled.
True enough! Lol
Doc Watson sang a song about Otto Wood. That's how I first heard the story. My family has a 400 year history in NC & VA, these videos help keep our shared stories alive. Good work!
I tried to get permission to use that song for this video - but alas- it didn’t happen
How do I contact you with other stories for video ideas? I have several that you may be interested in.
@@brenttucker4073 love to hear them, email me at theappalachianstoryteller@gmail.com
It's too bad Otto could not turn his life around after having so many chances to do so. He knew how to work the system when he was younger. Great story, JD. Thank you.
in his case a disability was his greatest asset
Thank you for another great story.
Thanks James! Always look forward to your comments brother, have a good'n
Great rendition of the Otto Wood story. My father was 23 years old in 1930 when Otto Wood was shot dead in Salsbury NC. Dad worked at at the Yadkin Hotel a block away from the shootout and heard the shots. He didn't bother to explore. I live a block from the house that was then Wright's Funeral home where an estimated 10,000 stood in line for 8 blocks to see Otto laid out. I light of his ability to escape from jails, prisons, and guards, it is surprising that he isn't remembered as much as Bonnie and Clyde and others. This vid seems to be well researched and based on local recollections, the most accurate. Thanks for putting this excellent rendition together.
Thanks so much for sharing this
You are an excellent narrator! Love learning these stories!
Thank you Karen
I second that !!! ❤
Wow ! What a story ! Thanks for drawing the listeners right into the storyline. Much love from the Heart of Dixie, Alabama !
Thank you Suzy! Greetings from the mountains of East Tennessee
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller if it ain’t too personal a question what part?
Me too Suzy. Walker Co.
@@pam190 Hey neighbor ! Fayette Co. here.
Your story telling reminds me when we all set around the fireplace. My grandma would tell her stories of family and others around.
May God bless everyone 🙏 ❤
Thanks so much! I appreciate that
What a tale! My goodness!
What a life he led
Man oh man! Otto was one tough character. Thanks for another great story.❤
He certainly was! Thank you.
The club foot part...i identify with it✊🏾
What a crazy life wow for a boy , not like boys today
Id say he lived life to the fullest
What a character!!
I love this guy story it’s one of the all-time best to me
Excellent story! I can’t believe I’ve not heard of him before today. What a life!
He was born to run
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller I reckon many were in those days. Makes me think of my grandmother’s life. She did some amazing things from driving at 13 (she was really 11. She lied about her age to get a job.) to go to work, to driving race cars in her early 20’s, to being security and having brawls with men twice her size, to chasing off a gang of men outside her house with an empty double barrel shotgun. I wish I had been more responsible listening to her stories and those of my other grandparents and their brothers and sisters. What I have listed is nothing.
Seemed that generation just had an adventure streak. None of them didn’t have a story about skipping school and hopping trains to go wherever to waste a day or running off in their teens to try to make a life, and of course many of them had run-ins with the law or just became brawlers in bars across states. I would often dream of living their adventures. Alas, I was born a few decades too late it seems for I can’t surely say any of my adventures could come close to anything they’d told me about their lives.
@@StMiBll wow thanks for sharing her story
I can't help but admire that guy. He was hell on wheels.
heck yeah, Otto was a legend!
I've watched a few of the stories on the Appalacha mountain folk and outlaws, you make a person feel the stories and live them. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!
Thanks for the kind words. Appreciate you watching!
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller keep making great stories, and I will continue to watch!
A good Story teller doesn’t just describe places things or event’s. They Guide the Imagination in way that bring’s you into the story, almost like a memory being relived. Thank You .
YES! This is most certainly the way I try to write the story. To let you witness it from the characters own eyes and make you feel you are riding shotgun with him along for the ride, seeing things in real time
Wow what a life of crime from such a mischievous little boy! Great story JD. I just love all the photos! This story had me at the edge of my seat wondering what Otto was going to do next! Thanks again
What an amazing life he led as a small buy
Great story Donnie as always. Love the story of these people. My great great great grandmother was a McCoy. Her and Great great great grandfather came to Western North Carolina in the early 1800’s and settled on the French Broad River. There wasn’t a any towns or counties. Now it’s Madison county and the city Marshall. Just a old Marines history.
Thanks so much Scott, btw, I notice you always call me Donnie and I chuckle because Donnie and I are friends and subscribed to each others channels. Im assuming you are as well. My name is JD, but ill call me anything except "late for supper"
What a character! As onery as he was you still find yourself rooting him on...
exactly! he was a lovable outlaw
Bedankt
Thank you so much my friend! I appreciate your kindness, generosity like this is was keeps this channel going! Thank you so much!
Salisbury NC, oh my!!!!! My mom & step dad lived there and she made come up there before I joined the Air Force, what a cute little town it was. Love hearing the history, Thanks JD for another true tale from our past.
Thank you Pinky , have a great day
Amazing! What a crazy life this man led. Mind blowing!
Right?! he lived more in 32 years than most ever do in a 100
Wow! What a piece a History just laid down right in front of us. Thank you JD.
Thanks so much Richard! Have a blessed day my friend!
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller I will, thank you. You do the same,🇺🇸
I can't believe I've never heard this story! Thanks for bringing these forgotten tales back from oblivion. It'd be a crime if they were lost forever.
Otto was quite the character and lived a heck of a life
And it's said today's kids grow up too fast....😂 Great story!!!❤
This kid was born to run
This channel is amazing well done sir, I am from Scotland but recently have been obsessed with frontier folk stories haha
Thanks so much my friend, many of us Appalachians can trace our ancestry to Scotland so there is a strong connection between the two. Im so happy you are here! Greetings from the mountains of East Tennessee
Good story...I am a relative of Otto. My mother is a Wood from Wilkes Co. N.C.. we have one of the Original typed manuscripts from Otto's biography that he contributed to one of the times he was in jail.
That’s awesome, I bought a reprint of his manuscript when I was researching and writing this story, I ran across an original printing of his book, for about 500 dollars on eBay, but I couldn’t afford that. Really neat you have one, it’s worth a lot of money
Wow how did I miss this one. Might be my fav yet. Amazing
I love this story!
Hi JD! He sure learned early how to gamble, steal and hoodwink people. But never did he learn a lesson not to do wrong. I would not want to be in his shoes at the pearly gates.
Have a blessed day!
Thank you Willow! Well said my friend
Love these stories. My family helped to settle parts of those beautiful mountains. In Feels like I am still drawn to all that is Appalachian. In my generational hostory I suppose. We are spread all over now. Good Mornin from Cali!
Morning from the mountains of East Tennessee
Otto said he couldn't catch a break! He didn't need a break - he was a bad seed! And he said the car with keys in it was a sign of God! The warped mentality! I love these stories!
Ok I just had to laugh my ass off at the kid/man in and out of jail and escaping all the time! This was great! Now he was a really bad boy and the law finally caught up to him! I honestly don't know if he's a hero or a scoundrel gees! What a life he lead! That was great JD! Thank you
Thank you Andrea!
This is a FANTASTIC show today.
Thanks so much, lots and lots of work went into this story
He sure did some traveling for a young boy I love hearing your stories You have a knack for it also a pleasant voice
Can you imagine the thrill he had of seeing the world for the first time aboard a train ?
This video made my day. Thank you for all your work. Love your stories and videos. Hello from Naples Florida
Glad you like them! greetings from the mountains of East Tennessee
A kid today wouldn’t even come close to living thru what he did , even though later he got criminal but most didn’t have much of a choice … it was staying alive loved the story JD thnx
Otto lived a life better than 99% of humans. He was a legend
There’s quite a few young men in Wilkes right now that would give Otto a run for his money and it’s not a good thing
Thanks!
Dang it man, you have made my day, thank you so much ❤️!!
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller you from Appalachia?
Mountains of East Tennessee
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller Tennessee! Beautiful! Right on brother…. Jealousy setting in!!
I live in Greensboro NC, this was AMAZING!!! Thank you for sharing
Thanks so much my friend!
What a short life! Thanks JD!
a short life packed with excitement for sure
Another great story, told by a true storyteller. All the work you put into these videos make the stories that much better. Otto was a raw old bird. Thanks
Thanks so much my friend, have a great day
Enjoy watching your videos. You were born to tell these stories.
Thank you so much!
So glad you released this the same year we lost our main actor for the famous Otto Wood play in NC. RIP Wes, the story you were passionate to potray will stay popular forever
Are they still doing the play?
@TheAppalachianStoryteller OH yeah, he passed the torch a few years ago to a great actor, he just held it for a good 30 years beforehand. Every year in North Wilkesboro along with our Tom Dooley production, we are keeping our county plays going strong
I really enjoy your stories. Thanks.
Thank you my friend
That was a very captivating story... hard to imagine such a young boy to be traveling on his own, but seems it wasn't that uncommon back then.
Thanks JD 😎👍
As I was writing this, I did my best to become Otto when he was a child and see the lure and adventure of the railroad and the outside world, and give a voice to the story as he experienced it, thru his eyes.
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller You did an excellent job 👍
@@KathysTube thank you
Excellent job with this story. You really take us into that world.
I do my best !
Interesting/informative/entertaining. Like those striped uniforms.
Thanks for tuning in my friend
Man I'm so glad I found your channel. Being from wilkes I've heard of Otto Wood but didn't know the full story. You tell it wonderfully.
Thank you so much, glad to have you here!
wow.. what a great story.. Your an amazing story teller.. thats a real gift
Thank you ❤️
I have only came across this channel and i love it, u bring the stories to life in the way u tell them. I live in northern ireland. Keep doing wot ur doing
Welcome Lorraine! So glad to have you hear and appreciate your kind words. Greetings from the mountains of East Tennessee! I do my best to become the characters in these stories as I write them, to tell the story as they lived it, thru their own eyes and transport the listener squarely in the middle of the action.
That was the best story yet!! Can't wait for the next one!! The true meaning of a rolling stone.
He was born to run!
That goomer was slicker than snot on a doorknob! I'm here ta told ya. He had some gumption too.
he was born to run
I Liked that hadn't heard it before even been from southern WV...& I actually lived in Salisbury N.C. about half a year back in "01... Thanx for another great video, U sure are a great Story Teller 4 sure!
Thank ye kindly for the positive words my friend.
😂😂..This guy Otto Wood..lmbo..even as a kid he had that Rebel Spirit..this had me cracking up ! "Me ? I ain't never been a quitter.." Hound dogs chasing the rabbit but that rabbit is too doggone fast..😂😂 This is one of the best...thank you. I really needed that laugh. Don't care what he did, I love this boy's spirit . 👍🏽👍🏽 Sad how he ended up though..still fighting to the end. RIP Otto.
Otto was born to run, that's why I put the wild horses at the beginning of the video. Some were born to run
What a pleasant surprise! Two goodins within two days, it don't get much better! Preciate ya, JD, keep 'em coming friend, and God Bless!
yes sir, a rare double feature this weekend! Thanks for your support Scott!
Love the story, as always!! Your storytelling skills are off the charts!! Thank you!
aww, thank you so much for your kindness Libby, have a blessed day my friend
Another great story.
Thanks for listening, preciate you!
love your stuff mate & love hearing all about appalachia,best wishes from scotland.
Thank you friend, greetings from the mountains of East Tennessee
I loved this one! I love the way you tell the stories! Thanks for another great one!
Thanks so much! It was fascinating to write this story from Ottos perspective and imagine that I was in his shoes 200 years ago
After watching about ten installments of The Appalachian Storyteller, I think I like this one the best. Although an inveterate criminal, Otto Wood strikes me as a likable character who lacked the violent streak of so many of the other figures chronicled in these tales. I suspect that Wood also had a sense of humor that drove him to escape after escape in order to humiliate the system. He was the Ernest T. Bass of his era😂I'd be tempted to add that Otto deserves our sympathy for being saddled with a club foot and a missing hand, but I don't get the impression that he let those shortcomings dictate the course of his life. He just preferred an adventurous life on the move and opportunistic criminal enterprise presented as the best means to subsidizing it. Thanks for all of the great stories, JD.
Great summary of Otto!
One hell of a good story JD,good morning from Northwestern Illinois...
As always y'all stay safe out there 🙏
Thank you big iron, have a blessed day my friend
Otto Wood is one of my grandfather's names. I had no idea my Grandpa was a criminal!
😯
Love your storytelling! I listen to other stories about the Appalachian Mountains people, but you have the perfect storytelling voice! I feel like you’re an old soul, as you have a way of making people FEEL the emotions of the story as if it were YOU that had lived it. Well done my friend, well done!
Thank you so much my friend. Really appreciate your kind words and glad to have you here.
Great story Brother, thank you for it!
Thanks so much my friend, hope you had a great weekend
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller hope your's was good also! Take care, God bless.
Love the stories, love the videos even more, ain't nothing like home in Almost Heaven West Virginia, deep in a Appalachian Mountain holler.
Amen, thank you so much
Love your stories born and raised in MD in my older years I live in Hagerstown it is still known as Hub City because of all the rail lines
Thank you my friend! Glad to have you here
What a story, amazing 😊
Thank you Betty! Have a blessed day my friend
What a Wonderful story I loved it this is one of your best stories ..you have a blessed voice from our Lord ❤❤🙏🙏
Thank you so much ❤
Daaammnn, this is the first video I've seen from this channel and I was hooked after the first sentence. You gotta true storytelling gift there. I felt like I was right there beside otto the whole time. Subbed.
Welcome my friend
Once again, thank you. My heritage is from Appalachia good or bad. Yall do a great job, most excellent.
Thank you so much, have a blessed day my friend
So wild to know this person was around the areas I grew up, Greensboro and Winston NC, I had no idea about this guy before this. Thank you for the video.
He was born to run
that he was even with his condition he kept one step ahead@@TheAppalachianStoryteller
Thank you sir. God bless you and your family..🙏❤🙏❤🙏
Same to you my friend!
I enjoy your narrations/videos so much, thank you for the history lessons
Thank you ❤️
Otto was doomed to that destiny from the very begining. Great story.
❤️
Great story JD i hadn’t heard this one before GOD BLESS my friend Amen 🙏
Thank you brother
Otto was a fireman on the railroad, not a firefighter. The fireman was the one who shoveled the coal and watched the water in the boiler.
Thanks so much
This would make an amazing movie. 💜
I think so too!
What an incredible story and sir you tell it so well really enjoyed thanks for sharing
Thanks so much Steve, appreciate the kind words my friend. Have a good 'n
Interesting story! We certainly have some crazies out there.
isn't this an amazing story?
Great story and video! Thanks!
Thanks so much my friend, preciate your support!
Very entertaining!!! And fascinating story!!!!❤
Thank you Debra!
Cool video. Great story.
Thanks so much!
That story was so fun! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Another Great Story
Thanks so much my friend!
I've been wandering where you've been.
Another great story and told very well
Make sure you click the bell for notifications, I release news stories every week- 2 in the last 24 hours
I thoroughly enjoy your stories, photos and narration! I also notice you respond to all the comments which is commendable.
Thank you so much Florence!
You have such great stories and I love the way you present them. Between the in-depth fact gathering/checking, the way you present them and the narration they draw you in as if you were actually there. Kudos and keep up the awesome stories, they give me a sense of being a part of my heritage and history. I often feel like I was born 150 years to,late for my spirit.
Thank you for that- I really try hard to make the listener feel like they know the character personally and that they are right there with them in the thick of the action.
Awesome brother
Thanks so much, Preciate you watching and supporting the channel
I love your story's I like this video. Love Hatfield an my coys
Thankyou!!! Enjoy your stories!!!
Thanks so much Brother
I love your stories. I have a genealogy project that took on a life of its own. I have been able to link many of the people in your stories to my project.
❤️
Love your videos. These stories are wonderful.
Thank you Janet! glad to have you here my friend
I love these stories, and you are an awesome narrator
Thanks Jeff, appreciate the kind words my friend!
Oh boy!!!!!! Exciting 🤣 Runnin always ends 😮
I would have liked to have bought Otto a drink
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller Wild Turkey 101 🦃
THIS is something I absolutely love and vibe with.
Assuming the stories are all true. I love being informationed (yes, I know. Please don't waste a comment on the word) about a time period, or a people, or something I know NOTHING about...I could absorb this for hours. Good show!!
It’s all 💯 true
@@TheAppalachianStoryteller please know. I was not questioning the integrity of what it is you do. It was just assuming on my part with zero knowledge one way or the other.