John Taliferro
John Taliferro was held in a local jail in 1874 when a band of about 75 to 100 mounted men, some partly disguised, arrived around midnight with a wagon. According to the reprinted account, they overpowered the jailer, took the keys, and removed him from his cell. He was hanged from a small tree, and a coroner's jury found he died at the hands of an organized band of men it could not identify. The account says that before he was killed he was given fifteen minutes to pray and that he maintained his innocence to the end.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A coroner's jury found he died at the hands of an organized band of men unknown to the jury, after a mob took him from the jail.
Reported by: Coroner's jury, as reported by the Martinsburg Independent (medical examiner or coroner).