Executed
Sam Smith
Sam Smith was a Black man held at the jail in Dallas, Texas. According to a Houston Telegraph account reprinted in the Pawtucket Gazette and Chronicle, he was one of three Black men taken from the jail on July 31, 1860. The account says the military escorted the men to the place of hanging, where a large crowd had gathered. It reports that he was hanged, with death caused by dislocation of the cervical vertebrae.
Cause of death, as reported: Executed by the state
Reported by: Houston Telegraph, as reprinted in the Pawtucket Gazette and Chronicle (reporters).