Madison County AlArchives News.....Policeman Murdered - Negro Hung by a Mob October 7, 1883 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/al/alfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Kenneth Stacy klstacyfamily@aol.com January 22, 2008, 9:17 pm The Huntsville Weekly Democrat October 7, 1883 Policeman Murdered ----------------------- Negro Hung by a Mob ----------------------- On Monday last our community was startled by the news that Wm. J. Street, one of the most fearless and faithful policemen Huntsville ever had, had been murdered. It is difficult to get the exact facts. As near as we can get the, they are as follows: Two negro men (whose names we have been unable to learn) said to be from Birmingham, were guilty of some violation of law in a negro house of bad repute in the suburb s of Huntsville, known as Pin Hook. Complaint was made and Policeman Street went to arrest the offenders. He went in the front door and arrested one of them, and had him outside of the front door, when the other negro, who had gone out of the back door, came around to the front, and struck Street on the back of his head with the edge of an axe, laying open his skull with an awful gash. One of the negroes seized Street’s pistol, and both negroes ran down the railroad towards Decatur. Street died in about half an hour. So soon as the murder became known, 20 or 30 armed men went in pursuit of the negroes, and came up with them about five miles from town. We understand that Alderman Stegall and Policeman Hutchens were the first to get up with then, that they arrested one, who had Street’s pistol, and the other escaped into a brier thicket, next to County Treasurer Wynn’s farm. He was hunted Monday evening, and Sheriff Cooper with a posse hunted for him nearly all day Tuesday, without getting any knowledge of his whereabouts. The captured negro was brought to town by J. R. Stegall and Geo. B. Gill, who protected him from threatened violence, and lodged him in the county jail, Monday afternoon. Monday night, some men assembled at the jail to administer lynch law, but refrained from doing so, on account of protests of law-abiding citizens. But last night between 10 and 11 o’clock, information reached Hon. Wm. Richardson, Judge of the County and Probate Courts, that there was a purpose of a party of men, coming on the Meridianville Pike to take the negro in the jail and hang him. Immediately, Judge R. sent for Mayor Mastin to get together the policemen and go with him to meet the party on the Pike, and prevent them form executing their purpose. In the meantime, Judge R. went to the jail, to warn the jailor. Arriving there, a negro told him that men were already in the jail yard. Judge R. knocked at the gate. Some one inside asked who was there. He replied: “It is none of your business. Let me in.” A voice inside replied: “Is that Judge Richarson?” “Yes.” “Well, you can’t come in; if you do we’ll hurt you.” Judge R. then left, saying “I’ll try to see if I can’t get some means to get in,” or words to that effect. He left to go to the Mayor and Police, and had reached the corner occupied by Wind as a hide store; when he saw; a small party of men pass along the street quietly, not dreaming that they had the negro in custody. Shortly afterward, to his great surprise, he was told that the negro was hanging to a limb of a tree in the Court House yard. It was a fact, and done so quietly, that occupants of stores on the Public Square, in which lights still burnt, were not aware of it. The negro’s body hung there all night, was viewed by hundreds of people, white men and negro men, women and children and was taken down and buried this morning. We learn from Mr. S. M. Weaver that he was acting as jailor and about 10 o’clock, having dropped to sleep, he was aroused by men (he thinks there were perhaps, 50 in the jail and yard) demanding the jail keys. He refused to give them, and they proceeded to the cell of aforesaid negro prisoner and began to batter at the door. He then, to save injury to the jail, told them the keys were on the mantelpiece. They took them, opened the cell, seized and carried off the prisoner. He says, he thought there were, at least, a hundred men outside the jail yard. Since writing the above, we learn that the negro hung was named Wes. Brown, and the one who escaped Charlie Adams. Mayor Mastin offers $100 reward for his capture and delivery to the Sheriff of Madison county. Judge Richardson telegraphed to Gov. O’Neal, and obtained an offer of $300 reward additional. The killing of poor Street was a diabolical murder, but it did not justify a resort to mob law. The prisoner was in safe custody, and ought to have been left to the administration of the law in the legal Courts. Wilful murderers always deserve death, but the best interests of society demand that death should be inflicted under the verdicts of juries and judgements of the courts established to maintain the peace and dignity of the State and to protect society against lawlessness. Our sentiments in strongest condemnation of mob law have been too frequently and publicly expressed for repetition now. No country can be safe for good law abiding citizens, peaceful, prosperous and happy, where mob law prevails. We are glad to believe that a majority of out best citizens are outspoken in condemnation of it in the present instance. Sheriff Cooper had been in the saddle nearly two days and was at home resting, and Deputy Joe Cooper was at the bedside of his very ill child. – They did not suspect or expect a mob. A negro woman, named Emeline charged with giving the murderous axe to Charlie Adams, was in the jail and threats were made to hang her, but the mob refrained from this disgraceful act. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/al/madison/newspapers/policema1572gnw.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/alfiles/ File size: 6.1 Kb