Dunklin County Sheriff, Raymond Scott
Raymond Scott was born on March 7, 1911 in Calties, Texas. According to the 1920 census he was living in Miller, Illinois in the Lake Milligan Precinct. The family moved to Kennett, Missouri sometime between 1920 and 1930 and lived at 504 Washington St. One of his first jobs in Kennett was as a cutter in a local shirt factory. In 1937 he married his wife, Dixie Edwards, and lived with her mother. He worked as a gas station attendant where he put in nearly 60 hours of work in each week. In 1956 he was elected sheriff of Dunklin County a job he would have for twenty years until he retired in 1977. He and Dixie lived 18 years on the second floor of the county jail. Scott became known as a no nonsense type of lawman. At 5'8" and about 150 pounds, he may not have been the most physically intimidating man in Dunklin County, but over the years several people found out that he could handle himself. During his tenure as sheriff he shot and killed at least five men, three of which were prisoners that tried to escape, the other two were in clear acts of self-defense. Scott managed to keep organized crime out of Dunklin County, unlike neighboring Pemiscot County sheriff, Clyde Orton. Scott died on February 16, 1994 in Kennett, Missouri.
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