Woodruff
Sam Woodruff was held in the jail at Golden, Colorado, in late December 1879. About one o'clock on the morning of Sunday, December 28, a mob of masked men took him from the jail and hanged him, and the American Citizen reported that he was hanged from a bridge. Newspaper accounts differ on the size of the mob, giving between about ten and 150 men. The American Citizen reported that Sam Woodruff declared his innocence to the end. A coroner's jury found that he was taken by force and violence and hanged by people it could not identify.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A mob of about 150 masked men took Woodruff from the Golden jail and hanged him, and he declared his innocence to the end, according to the newspaper accounts.
Reported by: coroner's jury (medical examiner or coroner); The Louisiana Democrat (reporters); Golden jail accounts in the Colorado press (reporters).
Sources (13)
- Daily Republican, December 29, 1879, page 1
- Evening Star, December 29, 1879, page 1
- The Silver State, December 30, 1879, page 2
- The Cheyenne Daily Leader, December 31, 1879, page 4
- Sacramento Daily Record-Union, January 1, 1880, page 16
- Independent Statesman, January 1, 1880, page 1
- Vermont Phœnix, January 2, 1880, page 3
- Narragansett Herald, January 3, 1880, page 4
- The Louisiana Democrat, January 7, 1880, page 2
- The Lamoille News, January 7, 1880, page 4
- Mineral Point Tribune, January 8, 1880, page 2
- American Citizen, January 10, 1880, page 1
- The Abbeville Press And Banner, January 14, 1880, page 4