Samuel J. Bush

Samuel J. Bush was a Black man held in the county jail in Decatur, Illinois. According to The Evening World, about twenty-five men forced their way through the jail's doors in the early morning of June 3, 1893, while the deputy sheriff and a special officer refused them entry and said they did not have the keys. The men took him from his cell and hanged him from a telegraph pole on a downtown street in front of a crowd, and the paper reports that he asked for time to pray and told them he was innocent. Governor Altgeld condemned the killing and offered rewards for the arrest and conviction of those who took part. A 1898 account in The Illinois Record disputes the deputy's later claim that he did all he could to stop the mob, saying he refused to hand over the keys.

Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched (disputed; neglect alleged). A mob broke into the Decatur jail and hanged him; deputies said they did not have the keys, a letter from Black citizens says officers ignored warnings that a mob was forming, and a 1898 account says Deputy Midkiff refused to hand over the keys and disputes his claim that he did all he could to stop the mob.

Reported by: Alexandria Gazette (reporters); Philadelphia Times (reporters); Goldsboro Weekly Argus (reporters); Governor Altgeld; Letter from colored citizens of Macon County, published in The Illinois Record (advocates); Wilson B. Woodford, writing in The Illinois Record, drawing on the Decatur Daily Review (advocates); The Citizen (reporters); Wichita Daily Eagle (reporters); Saratoga Sun (reporters); Pawtucket Tribune (reporters); the Decatur coroner (medical examiner or coroner).

Sources (22)

• June 3, 1893 Equal Justice Initiative, A History of Racial Injustice calendar, June 3, 1893
• The Jersey City News, June 3, 1893, page 1 The Jersey City News, June 3, 1893
• The Evening World, June 3, 1893, page 1 The Evening World, June 3, 1893
• The Herald, June 4, 1893, page 4 The Herald, June 4, 1893
• The Indianapolis Journal, June 4, 1893, page 4 The Indianapolis Journal, June 4, 1893
• The Wichita Daily Eagle, June 4, 1893, page 2 The Wichita Daily Eagle, June 4, 1893
• The Helena Independent, June 4, 1893, page 8 The Helena Independent, June 4, 1893
• Omaha Daily Bee, June 4, 1893, page 2 Omaha Daily Bee, June 4, 1893
• The Salt Lake Herald, June 4, 1893, page 1 The Salt Lake Herald, June 4, 1893
• Alexandria Gazette, June 5, 1893, page 2 Alexandria Gazette, June 5, 1893
• Pawtucket Tribune, June 5, 1893, page 1 Pawtucket Tribune, June 5, 1893
• Goldsboro Weekly Argus, June 8, 1893, page 2 Goldsboro Weekly Argus, June 8, 1893
• Canton Weekly Register, June 8, 1893, page 12 Canton Weekly Register, June 8, 1893
• Canton Weekly Register, June 8, 1893, page 9 Canton Weekly Register, June 8, 1893
• Audubon County Republican, June 8, 1893, page 1 Audubon County Republican, June 8, 1893
• The Manitowoc Pilot, June 8, 1893, page 2 The Manitowoc Pilot, June 8, 1893
• The Citizen, June 10, 1893, page 3 The Citizen, June 10, 1893
• The Freeman, June 10, 1893, page 5 The Freeman, June 10, 1893
• Custer Weekly Chronicle, June 10, 1893, page 2 Custer Weekly Chronicle, June 10, 1893
• The Saratoga Sun, June 15, 1893, page 2 The Saratoga Sun, June 15, 1893
• The Illinois Record, September 24, 1898, page 1 The Illinois Record, September 24, 1898
• The Illinois Record, October 15, 1898, page 1 The Illinois Record, October 15, 1898