Levi Boone Helm: The "Kentucky Cannibal"
Early Life and Descent into Violence
Levi Boone Helm, commonly known as Boone Helm, was an American outlaw, gunfighter, robber, and suspected serial killer whose violent career unfolded across the western frontier during the nineteenth century. He was born on January 28, 1828, in Lincoln County, Kentucky, and spent much of his childhood in Monroe County, Missouri. Later writers called him the "Kentucky Cannibal" because he admitted consuming human flesh during desperate wilderness journeys.
Helm developed a reputation for drunkenness, cruelty, and unpredictable violence. In 1851, he married Lucinda Frances Browning in Monroe County. Their marriage quickly became abusive, and Lucinda obtained a divorce. Afterward, Helm decided to travel west during the California Gold Rush. That decision led to the first killing that can be connected to him by name.
The Murder of Littlebury Shoot
Helm asked his neighbor and relative, Littlebury Shoot, to accompany him west. Shoot initially agreed but later changed his mind. According to historical accounts, Helm confronted him at his home and demanded a final answer. When Shoot refused to go, Helm stabbed him in the chest with a large knife. Shoot reportedly died almost immediately.
The exact calendar date of Shoot's death has not survived in dependable records. The killing is generally placed in the early 1850s, after Helm's marriage had collapsed. Helm was captured, convicted of murder, and confined, but he behaved so strangely that he was transferred to a mental institution. He gained the trust of a guard, was allowed to take supervised walks outside, and eventually escaped into the woods.
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