March 1, 1892: Amos Miller

Today we learn about a lynching in Missouri through the pages of The Leavenworth Times (Leavenworth, Kansas) dated March 4, 1892:

HANGED BY A MOB.

AMOS MILLER TAKEN FROM JAIL AND LYNCHED.

THE DEXTER TRAGEDY AVENGED

Swift Vengeance for the Murder of Marshal Sprinkle—Only Four Men Overpowered the Sheriff, but Fifty Did the Hanging—The Body Cut Down by the Coroner—Done Very

DEXTER, Mo., March 3.—Amos Miller is dead. After dangling ten hours at the end of a rope, the body of the man who murdered City Marshal Sprinkle, and who caused the death of four men, including himself, is now in the hands of his relatives ready for burial. The last act in the bloody tragedy which opened with the murder of two men and the suicide of Miller's desperado friend last Saturday, has been brought to a close.

At 10:30 Tuesday night four disguised and heavily armed men went to the jail at Bloomfield, the county seat, and knocked at Sheriff Barham's door. When the sheriff opened the door and asked "Who's there?" he found himself looking into the muzzle of four Winchesters. He was ordered to give up keys to the cell in which Amos Miller was confined. He argued and pleaded with the men, telling them he could not give up the man, but the only reply he received was a threat of instant death if he did not immediately comply with their demand. He told the men where the key could be found. They secured it, and then forced the sheriff to lead the way to Miller's cell and unlock the door. This done, the murderer was taken out, a rope thrown around his neck, and then the quartet with their prisoner hurried out of town. Just outside the city limits a mob awaited them. They proceeded to a tree three-quarters of a mile from Bloomfield. The other end of the rope was thrown over a limb and the soul of Miller sent into the unknown world. The mob did its work so quietly that no one knew anything about it until the sheriff gave the alarm. Only one person besides Barham saw the party and he says that fully fifty men were in the mob. The sheriff was taken completely by surprise, as he was expecting guards to come to the jail to protect the prisoner. Miller's body was left hanging until 9 o'clock yesterday morning, when the coroner cut it down, held an inquest and delivered it to Miller's friends. The officials are investigating, and if members of the mob are apprehended it will go hard with them.

Thank you for joining me and as always, I hope I leave you with something to ponder.