James Butler

James Butler was held in the Greenfield jail in Dade County, Missouri, on the night of July 1, 1881, when a mob came for him. According to the accounts published in the Huntsville Gazette and The Iola Register, the mob bound Sheriff Whitesides at his house and took the jail keys. They broke into the jail, took James Butler into the courtyard and hanged him from a tree until he died. The papers say he was one of three men taken that night.

Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched

Reported by: news reports.

Sources (2)

• Huntsville Gazette, July 9, 1881, page 1 Huntsville Gazette, July 9, 1881
• The Iola Register, July 15, 1881, page 6 The Iola Register, July 15, 1881