Thomas Egan
Thomas Egan was an Irish-born farmer in Dakota Territory, and people who knew him described him as a man of few words. He was hanged in Sioux Falls on July 13, 1882, while held in custody, and he maintained his innocence to the end. Decades later, a written confession by his stepdaughter, Catherine Van Horn, was brought forward naming her as the killer, and his great-grandson, the journalist John Egan, spent nearly a decade researching the case and wrote a book about him. John Egan's work helped bring about a 1993 plaque at the site of the hanging declaring Thomas Egan innocent.
Cause of death, as reported: Executed by the state. He maintained his innocence to the end, and his great-grandson says a later written confession by his stepdaughter, Catherine Van Horn, named her as the killer.