A Time Line Of Events Relating To The Molly Maguires in The Anthracite Region of Pennsylvania, including the murders, trials, and executions, and some of the laws and events that may have inspired those events.
- An Attempt To Understand The Molly Maguire Drama
- The Molly Maguire Park & Statue in Mahanoy City
- Ten Bizarre Facts From The Molly Maguire Saga
"In spite of hazardous conditions that regularly led to death tolls in the hundreds, the mining industry fiercely resisted unionization. In 1874–1875, after Pennsylvanian coal-miners went on strike, the Molly Maguires allegedly began sabotaging mining equipment and facilities – detonating bombs along rail lines, roads and bridges so that mine owners couldn’t bring in replacement workers. The ruling class called it terrorism, others called it resistance. Industrial leader Franklin B. Gowen called in the notorious Pinkerton Detective Agency, who hired an Irish American to infiltrate the miners. Over the course of two years, James McParlan – under the alias James McKenna – befriended the Irish community, all the while gathering the evidence that would eventually hang twenty men .They were convicted on the evidence of an agent provocateur, supplemented by the confessions of several informers who turned state’s evidence to save their own necks. Defense witnesses were blacklisted, evicted from their homes, cut off at the company store and in some cases imprisoned. Catholics were barred from the Jury, while many of the selected jurors were so anti-Irish that they pre-determined a guilty verdict. Most of the prosecuting attorneys worked for the railroads and mining companies. And Franklin B. Gowen himself appeared as the star prosecutor at several trials – his courtroom speeches rushed into print as popular pamphlets. " https://www.girardvilleirishparade.com/the-day-of-the-rope
1862 -63 Draft Riots and Dissension
The Archibald Draft Riot "The angriest voices in the coal fields were Irish immigrants who largely opposed the Federal government’s handling of the Civil War." [Gen Charles Albright, when prosecuting the Molly Maguires 5 years later, appeared in court wearing his Civil War uniform, complete with sword and scabbard]
1862, January 15-Franklin Benjamin Gowen was sworn in as District Attorney of Schuylkill county
1862, May 5 —miners strike in Cass Township at Heilner Breaker over cuts in hours—Gowen sent for sheriff
1862, July - John Kehoe spit on an American flag during a political meeting Langdon denounced Kehoe's actions.
1862 July 14 - F.W.S. Langdon, breaker boss, murdered. Kehoe reportedly entered a bar later with blood stains on his shirt.
1863 - The Draft Rescue - a crowd of miners stopped a Harrisburg train loaded with conscripts and permitted those unwilling to be drafted to return home.
1863 Nov 5 - George K Smith, suspected of furnishing information for the draft, murdered in his home.
1863 - " Federal Government accepted bogus affidavits that Cass Twp had fulfilled its quota of voluntary enlistments. Cass Twp was heavily populated with Irish immigrants and a democratic stronghold did not escape the notice of those who believed a secret society controlled both groups" - Aurand, Harold, and William Gudelunas. “THE MYTHICAL QUALITIES OF MOLLY MAGUIRE.”
October,
1864-68 - A Lot Of Unsolved Murders Of Mine Superintendents, Mine Owners Permitted To Create Their Own Police Forces For The First Time
During this period, there were 17 murders in Schuylkill County, 11 of them mine bosses, who had either fired a worker or had a disagreement with a worker—six mines dynamited, mine buildings burned
1864—James Shields and James O’Hanlon, both Union army with the 48th PA Volunteer Regiment, were in a saloon in Cass Township, and got into a fight with John Stinson, who called O’Hanlon “a bloody English bastard”—Hugh Curran stabbed Shields to death—DA Gowen ordered the arrest of Curran and Stinson but no witnesses could be found; O’Hanlon was the only prosecution witness
1864, Oct 17 Alexander Rae, Mining Superintendent, shot "upon the public road in Centralia"
1865, Feb 27 - New state legislation allows the mining companies to form private police forces with broad authority to make arrests and enforce the law. [Referred to as Pennsylvania Cossacks, Or "Yellow Dogs"]
1865 July 10,—murder of William Williams, a bar owner in New Philadelphia, .” brother of a foreman at the Tamaqua Steam Mill, who had fired three “drunken” employees (Lewis, p.37)
1865 August 16, Cass Township mine boss disappeared after firing three workers
1865 August 22,—mine superintendent in Schuylkill County was shot “on a public highway in broad daylight” after firing four Irish workers
1865, Aug 25 David Muhr esq, a colliery superintendent was shot "upon the public highway in broad daylight"
1866 January 10 —Henry H. Dunne, shot outside Pottsville, was a manager for a large mine—an active Republican, he had demanded that all draft laws be enforced during the war
1866-boss of Glen Carbon Coal Co. shot to death a mile from his home after a dispute at work with three Irish miners—eyes shot out, allegedly because of an old Irish superstition that the last thing a dying man sees is imprinted on his retina (Lewis, p. 39)
1866, Jan 10 - Henry Dunne Esq, superintendent of "one of the largest coal-mining companies in the schyulkill region was murdered in cold blood upon the public highway within to miles of Pottsville."
1867 The Workingmen's Benevolent Association [first labor union] was formed
1867, Jan 10 - Henry Dunne, Superintendent of the New York & Schuylkill Coal Companies, murdered
1867, Feb 11 - A "body of men" fired shots into the home of John C. Northall, Tuscora coal operator. He was not home at the time, but neighbors intervened, and the assailants fled, "leaving behind the body of one of their number" [Jack Donahue].
1867, March 15 - William H. Littlehales waylaid and shot near Glen Carbon
1867, March 30 - The Miners Journal published a list of 50 murders committed in Schuylkill County between Jan 1863 and March 1867. Most of the victims were "more or less prominent me" and more than one half of the murders were unsolved.
1868, October Mine superintendent Alexander Rae is shot and beaten to death
"In Carbon County, which adjoins Schuylkill, frequent murders of the same kind have been commited during the last ten or 15 years, including George K. Smith esq, F.W.S. Langdon Esq, & Graham Powell Esq, all of whom were colliery superintendents of connected with large mining operations."
1869 -72 The Anthracite Board Of Trade Is Formed
1864—James Shields and James O’Hanlon, both Union army with the 48th PA Volunteer Regiment, were in a saloon in Cass Township, and got into a fight with John Stinson, who called O’Hanlon “a bloody English bastard”—Hugh Curran stabbed Shields to death—DA Gowen ordered the arrest of Curran and Stinson but no witnesses could be found; O’Hanlon was the only prosecution witness
1864, Oct 17 Alexander Rae, Mining Superintendent, shot "upon the public road in Centralia"
1865, Feb 27 - New state legislation allows the mining companies to form private police forces with broad authority to make arrests and enforce the law. [Referred to as Pennsylvania Cossacks, Or "Yellow Dogs"]
1865 July 10,—murder of William Williams, a bar owner in New Philadelphia, .” brother of a foreman at the Tamaqua Steam Mill, who had fired three “drunken” employees (Lewis, p.37)
1865 August 16, Cass Township mine boss disappeared after firing three workers
1865 August 22,—mine superintendent in Schuylkill County was shot “on a public highway in broad daylight” after firing four Irish workers
1865, Aug 25 David Muhr esq, a colliery superintendent was shot "upon the public highway in broad daylight"
1866 January 10 —Henry H. Dunne, shot outside Pottsville, was a manager for a large mine—an active Republican, he had demanded that all draft laws be enforced during the war
1866-boss of Glen Carbon Coal Co. shot to death a mile from his home after a dispute at work with three Irish miners—eyes shot out, allegedly because of an old Irish superstition that the last thing a dying man sees is imprinted on his retina (Lewis, p. 39)
1866, Jan 10 - Henry Dunne Esq, superintendent of "one of the largest coal-mining companies in the schyulkill region was murdered in cold blood upon the public highway within to miles of Pottsville."
1867 The Workingmen's Benevolent Association [first labor union] was formed
1867, Jan 10 - Henry Dunne, Superintendent of the New York & Schuylkill Coal Companies, murdered
1867, Feb 11 - A "body of men" fired shots into the home of John C. Northall, Tuscora coal operator. He was not home at the time, but neighbors intervened, and the assailants fled, "leaving behind the body of one of their number" [Jack Donahue].
1867, March 15 - William H. Littlehales waylaid and shot near Glen Carbon
1867, March 30 - The Miners Journal published a list of 50 murders committed in Schuylkill County between Jan 1863 and March 1867. Most of the victims were "more or less prominent me" and more than one half of the murders were unsolved.
1868, October Mine superintendent Alexander Rae is shot and beaten to death
"In Carbon County, which adjoins Schuylkill, frequent murders of the same kind have been commited during the last ten or 15 years, including George K. Smith esq, F.W.S. Langdon Esq, & Graham Powell Esq, all of whom were colliery superintendents of connected with large mining operations."
1869, March 15 - William H. Littlehales Esq, superintendent of the Glen Carbon Coal company was killed upon the public road while returning to Pottsville.
September 1, An association of mine operators is formed called The Anthracite Board of Trade.
September 6, The Avondale Mine disaster. 111 workers, mostly welsh, were killed. Later investigation showed it was caused by a design flaw in the mine shaft, but early on, the Molly Maguires were blamed. Read more about the disaster at Wynning History
1871 - Gowen, President of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Co was called before a legislative committee to defend the actions of his company during the 1871 strike. Rather than defend the railroad, Gowen attacked the labor union [The Workingman's Benevolent Association] as being controlled by criminal elements.
1871, Dec 2 - Morgan Powell, boss at the Leigh Coal and Navigation Co, murdered.
June 28, 1872—John Siney calls a mass meeting in Frackville—on July 1, 55 gondolas filled with coal were pushed down a ravine
September 1, An association of mine operators is formed called The Anthracite Board of Trade.
September 6, The Avondale Mine disaster. 111 workers, mostly welsh, were killed. Later investigation showed it was caused by a design flaw in the mine shaft, but early on, the Molly Maguires were blamed. Read more about the disaster at Wynning History
1871 - Gowen, President of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Co was called before a legislative committee to defend the actions of his company during the 1871 strike. Rather than defend the railroad, Gowen attacked the labor union [The Workingman's Benevolent Association] as being controlled by criminal elements.
1871, Dec 2 - Morgan Powell, boss at the Leigh Coal and Navigation Co, murdered.
June 28, 1872—John Siney calls a mass meeting in Frackville—on July 1, 55 gondolas filled with coal were pushed down a ravine
James McParland immigrated from Ireland in 1867, at age 24
Here in America, he worked for the Pinkerton Detective Agency. As a true Irish immigrant, he was able to go undercover and work his way into the Molly Maguire organization with little difficulty.
1873 - A Pinkerton Detective Goes Undercover
1873 - A Pinkerton agent checking the honesty of the Reading Railroad conductors, reported overhearing a conversation where the "Molly Maguires" were mentioned. When the information was relayed to Gowen, he hired the detective agency to investigate [this is one of 4 different versions of how the Pinkerton's came to be involved. I have no idea which version is accurate]October - A Pinkerton detective by the name of James McParlan (a/k/a "James McKenna") arrives in Port Clinton to launch an undercover operation that will eventually lead to numerous arrests and convictions of Mollies.
The Long Strike
From The Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Schuylkill County
1874 Jan 10 McKenna [Detective McParlan] went to Shenandoah, where he made his headquarters
1874, January - Father McDermott, a local priest, denounced the Mollies in Mount Carmel, and two of his parishioners, Edward O’Toole and Joseph Lafferty, were beaten up in broad day light for defending him
April 14, Undercover Pinkerton Agent James McParlan was initiated to the Ancient Order of Hiberians, a fraternal organization of Catholic Irish that still exists today.. All Molly Maguires "proudly wore the AOH banner", it was later asserted that the Molly Maguires were a secret branch of the AOH organization. See a list of AOH members complied by the Pinkerton Detective here.
August 11, 1874—Gomer James, a Modoc [a known German gang], killed Edward Cosgrove in a fight—though James was acquitted an a trial, Lawler allegedly put out a hit on him
August 13, Two supporters of a priest opposed to the Mollies were killed by unknown assailants
October, 1874: Bishop Wood of PA stated “The Molly Maguires is a society rendered infamous by its treachery and deeds of blood—the terror of every neighborhood in which it existed . . . the disgrace of Irishmen . . . the scandal of the Catholic Church . . .” (quoted Lewis, p. 10)
1874, Oct 13 - Chief Burgess of Mahanoy City, George Major, murdered "during a disturbance at a fire."
1874 , Nov - Three additional Pinkerton detectives, McCowan, Cummings, and "W.R.H." entered the coal fields and infiltrated the union. Cummings and McCowan succeeded in having themselves elected officers of their local branches. "Certainly these men were in a better position to manufacture evidence to frame labor leaders than McParlan who operated outside of the union.
December 4 Mine operators reduce wages by 10 to 20%, and the "Long Strike" began. "The Long Strike of 1875 was the first important open coal dispute in the anthracite coal region of Pennsylvania."
December 18, —mine watchman, Frederick Hesser, coroner in Shamokin, was murdered at work
March, 1875—Edward Coyle, a union leader and AOH chief, was killed at the Plank Colliery, which belonged to The Reading—a mine boss, Patrick Vary, fired into a group of strikers—vigilantes roamed the patches. Random violence as the strike gets worse—Gowen sent armed guards on all freight and passenger trains, hired scabs
June Governor John Hartranft ordered 1,800 members of the state militia to the coal region to help put an end to the Long Strike.
June - Kehoe, according to the McParlan report, "summoned a convention of the officers of the order" at Michael Clark's hotel in Mahanoy City. After opening in prayer, the group decided to murder William M. Thomas, and two brothers of George Major [murdered the previous Oct] This was to protect Dougherty, a Molly Maguire who had been tried and aquitted for the murder of George Majors. These men did not believe Dougherty was innocent, and were out for revenge. [Dougherty is believed to really have been innocent in this case] McParlan was at this meeting, and was able to warn Thomas and the Majors. The Majors were never injured, Thomas was shot but survived.
June 28, 1875 "Bully Bill" Thomas was shot and left for dead. He survived.
1875, July 3 - "One thousand comprised a motley crew of them who stopped work at several mines.... the gang nearly derailed a night passenger train... a Mount Caramel breaker went up in smoke that same night"
July 5 - two contactors shot at Oakdale
July 5, 1875—murder of Benjamin Yost, a cop in Tamaqua---a German and a Mason, he was the brother-in-law of Dan Shepp, the richest man in Tamaqua—Shepp was a great friend to Kerrigan, who later became a rat—in March, 1875, Yost had arrested and beaten in jail Thomas Duffy, who vowed revenge, supported by Alex Campbell and Kerrigan—Lewis claims a deal was worked out with James Roarity, the bodymaster from Coaldale, to have him get rid of Yost if the Shenandoah men killed John P. Jones, the general superintendent of the Lehigh and Wilkes-Barre Coal Co., who had fired and blacklisted Hugh McGehan, who then volunteered, along with James Boyle and John Carroll and Kerrigan—they shot Yost as he extinguished a street light---a key murder, for which they were later convicted
July 13, 1875—McParlan wrote a 44-page report from his room at Cooney’s in Shenandoah—asks to be relieved of his assignment
August 14, 1875—a miner Billy B. Love (alias) kills Squire Thomas Gwyther, an aged Welsh Justice of the Peace—Love flees and was never seen again
September 1 - Thomas Sanger, mine foreman, and William Uren [reputed to be a friend of Sangers who was acting as a body guard of sorts] were murdered.
September 3, 1875 Mine superintendent John P. Jones, accused of blacklisting striking miners, and having received a "coffin notice" , was shot in the back while walking along a pipeline in Carbon County.
October, 1875—series of retributions—breaker owned by Dan Shepp burned, vigilantes take over Shenandoah to terrorize everyone while searching for the mollies—almost capture Tom Hurley—marauding mobs, one of them Welshmen, led by a friend of Gomer Jones, who shot up Muff Lawler’s saloon The Herald editorialized :”There is a band of outlaws with the above name [Molly Maguires] infesting Schuylkill County, who if justice were meted out to them, would be hanging higher than Haman . . .when these foreigners come to this country and undertake to tamper with our free institutions . . .then it is time for an uprising on the part of the people . . .for the purpose of exterminating these brutal and ignorant scoundrels.” (quoted in Lewis, p. 184)
1875, John Kehoe reportedly managed to swing the votes of normally Democratic Irish Catholics, convincing them to vote for Hartranft instead of Pershing. That same Pershing was later the Presidential Judge that presided over Kehoe's trial. However, many argue that Kehoe did not have that much political sway - Pershing actually won the vote in Schuylkill County, by more than 1,300 votes.
December 10 - A group of masked men break into a home in Wiggans Patch and murder Charles O'Donnell who was suspected in the murders of Sanger and Uren. Charles McAllister , also a suspect, was wounded. McAllister's wife was also killed in the attack. News of the murders cause McParlan to tender his resignation, but he later reconsiders and continues his undercover work.
"The worst of the violence against mining interests came later in the 1870s when
Gowen crushed out the WBA in his efforts to create a Reading Railroad monopoly over Schuylkill County coal." - Wynning History
"There has never, since the middle ages, existed a tyranny like this on the face of God’s earth. There has never been, in the most despotic government in the world, such a tyranny, before which the poor laboring man has to crouch like a whipped spaniel before the lash, and dare not say that his soul is his own … I say there is an association which votes in secret, at night, that men’s lives shall be taken, and that they shall be shot before their wives, murdered in cold blood, for daring to work against the order." - Frank Gowen, who not only hired the Pinkerton Detectives, but then also served as special prosecutors in some of the Molly Maguire Trials
“The Molly Maguire trials were a surrender of state sovereignty. A private corporation initiated the investigation through a private detective agency. A private police force arrested the alleged defenders, and private attorneys for the coal companies prosecuted them. The state provided only the courtroom and the gallows.” - Carbon County Pennsylvania judge, John P. Lavelle
January 18, 1876—first trial, Commonwealth v Michael J. Doyle for the murder of James Jones—a lawyer from the Lehigh Valley Railroad Co was “loaned” to the prosecution—McParlan is designated by Kehoe to go around the hard coal country, raising funds for Kelly’s defense—still sent daily reports . Mary Ann Kerrigan is now worried about what her husband, Powderkeg, might do—as Doyle’s trial progresses, a number of witnesses identify both Doyle and Kerrigan—as Kerrigan is afraid for his life, after accounts from a jailer that Kerrigan was trying to fix witnesses, McParlan visits Dan Shepp and admits his real identity—at 5 a.m. the next morning, Kerrigan made the first of his many confessions to Shepp, always claiming to be an innocent bystander
February 1, 1876 Michael Doyle was convicted of first-degree murder
February 5, 1876 Krrigan makes a 210-page confession, especially mentioning Alex Doyle as “the biggest villain in the whole gang; he was cognizant of the murder of Yost, and for the purpose of having Jones Killed, he supplied Carroll with the men to kill Yost.” (quoted in Lewis, p. 220) Gowen ordered 17 murder warrants issued, and on February 5, 1876, all of the leaders are arrested—Alex Campbell, Joames Roarity, Hugh McGehan, James Boyle, James Carroll and Thomas Duffy are charged with the murder of Yost—later the next day, warrants issued for Tom Munley, Thomas Hurley, Jimmy Doyle, Charles McAlister and Friday O’Donnell for the Sanger and Uren murders—Hurley and McAlister were captured, but Doyle fled and Hurley went to the Colorado gold fields, where he cut his throat in 1880, rather than submit to a warrant to return to Schuylkill County
February 16 McParlan learns The Mollies suspect him of being an informant
March 7 McParlan boarded a train for Philadelphia, after learning that Jack Kehoe planned to have him killed.
March 26 Edward Kelly was tried and convicted for the murder of John P. Jones.
May 6, James McParlan enters a courtroom, revealing his true identity as an undercover operative for the first time
August 8 - The trial of Jack Kehoe and eight others for the attempted murder of William Thomas began.
August 12 - All 9 Defendants were found guilty.
Thomas Hurley commits suicide rather than be tried as a Molly. " Hurley had gone to Colorado, where he was working as a miner under the name of McCabe. He had left Pennsylvania hurriedly, after an attempt to kill a saloon-keeper named James Ryle, and burn his house. Some years later Sheriff Glares of Gunnison County, Colorado, arrested him for having stabbed a young man named Clines in a fight. He was arrested as "McCabe," but on information from the East, the sheriff was able to identify him as Hurley Taking him aside, the sheriff said, "Your time has come, Tom Hurley! McParland is on his way here to take you back to Pennsylvania." "Who is McParland?" demanded Hurley. "You used to know him as James McKenna." No sooner had he heard the name than he slipped his hand under a mattress and pulling out a razor, cut his throat from ear to ear. As he dropped dying to the floor, he said, " Mac will never get me alive."
“At the time of their conviction, it was a very dangerous thing to be called a Molly Maguire—about as bad as it is for a dog to be called mad in the streets. ... what if these men had no part in the Smith murder at all, but were hounded down by a mob spirit ... simply because they were believed to have belonged to the Molly Maguire Order?” - The Boston Pilot, 1879
On June 22, 1877, the largest mass execution in Pennsylvania history took place when 10 alleged "Molly Maguires" were hanged for murder: 4 at the Carbon County Prison in Mauch Chunk, and 6 in the prison at Pottsville. Ten more would be hanged at Mauch Chunk, Pottsville, Bloomsburg, and Sunbury over the next two years.
1877 - More Trials, And The Hangings Begin - "Black Thursday" or "The Day Of The Rope"
January - Jack Kehoe was convicted for first-degree of mine foreman Frank Langdon in 1862February - Patrick Hester, Peter McHugh, and Patrick Tully were tried for the murder of Alexander Rea. All were convicted and sentenced to death. Read Hughes Argument For The Commonwealth here.
June 21 The Day Of The Rope, Or "Black Thursday. Six hanged in Pottsville, and four in Mauch Chunk (now known as Jim Thorpe). Andrew Lanahan also hanged for murder on the same day at Wilkes-Barre, giving Pennsylvania 11 executions overall for its day of the rope; Lanahan’s was not one of the Molly Maguire cases but owing to his own Irish heritage there was never-proven conjecture that his crime was “inspired” by Maguireism. Accordingly, one can find different sources claiming either 10 or 11 Mollies hanged on this occasion. Ten additional "Molly Maguires" were hanged by Pennsylvania during the next 18 months."
- Hung In Mauch Chunk Alec Campbell, John “Yellow Jack” Donahue, Michael Doyle and Edward Kelly
- Hung In Pottsville: James Boyle, James Carroll, Thomas Duffy, Hugh McGeehan, Thomas Munley and James Roarity. The men were hung in groups of two.
- Hung in Wilkes Barre: Andrew Lanahan for the murder of Capt. John Reilly
“..day of deliverance from as awful a despotism of banded murderers as the world has ever seen in any age.”
- The Philadelphia Public Ledger, referring to the day 10 convicted Molly Maguires were executed in Pennsylvania.
Three weeks after the Day of the Rope, deep wage cuts for railroad workers triggered the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, which soon gave the Reading Railroad company its second bloody association in as many months: the Reading Railroad Massacre.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Great-Railroad-Strike-of-1877
1878 - More Hangings
March 25 Patrick Hester, Peter McHugh and Patrick Tully are hanged in Bloomsburg. ‘I would never have been convicted, never, never in the world, if I had been tried alone, and all the world knows that.’ - Patrick Hester, AOH delegate for Northumberland County executed as a “Molly Maguire,” March 25, 1878March 28 Thomas Fischer was hanged in Mauch Chunk. “My life has been taken away by a combination of men and not for crime. The only thing they could prove against me, in justice, was that I was a County Delegate of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and that I never denied.” Thomas Fisher, AOH delegate for Carbon County executed as a “Molly Maguire,” March 28, 1878
June 13 Dennis Donnelly was hanged at Pottsville
December 18 Jack Kehoe was hanged at Pottsville “The newspapers and the people are down on me, because they say I’m a Molly; and to say that in Schuylkill county of a man is about as good as signing his death warrant. … with my last breath I shall say that I’m an innocent man, unjustly condemned. As for being a Molly Maguire, that I am not, and never was, and I know nothing about any such society. I was a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians; but that was all.” - John Kehoe, AOH delegate for Schuylkill County executed as a “Molly Maguire,” December 18, 1878
January 14, James McDonnell & Charles Sharp were hanged in Mauch Chunk. A reprieve from the Governor arrived at the jailhouse door while the men were hanging.
1879 - The Last Of The Hangings
- January 16 Martin Bergin was hanged in Pottsville
- James McDonnell was hanged
- Peter McManus was hanged in Northumberland
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Sterling Market, Dickinson City
"Bombings were common, but they were not random, unexplained events. They occurred with their greatest intensity over the decade between 1926 and 1936, in the context of a precipitous drop in anthracite output, deep depression, and internecine conflict within the UWMA. "
- 1889 - Frank Gowen Died. Ruled a suicide, conspiracy theories stating it was a murder abound.
- 1911 - Pinkerton James McPartlan recounts his infiltration of the Molly Maguires in various newspapers.
- 1970 - Molly Maguires Movie released. Starring Sean Connery, filmed in Eckley Minders Village
- 1979 - Keho was pardoned, 100 years after he was hung . "Black Jack" Kehoe was posthumously pardoned in January 1979 by then PA Governor Milton Shapp, 100 years from the date of his hanging.
- 1999 - Benjamin Yosts Unmarked Grave reveals it's exact location, and at the same time, a photo of the slain police officer is discovered. "Yost was buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery in an unmarked grave. Cemetery records reveal: "Yost, B. Franklin, assassination while on duty as police officer, July 6, 1875. Buried August 7, 1875, Lot 218, section 8, aged 34 years, 1 month, 13 days." Over time, the grave's exact location became obscured and forgotten. Then, in 1999, nearly 125 years after Yost's murder, the grave revealed itself through subsidence, presumably due to the coffin's rotting wood." Years ago they didn't use burial vaults, only a wooden coffin," said Charles Bailey of Odd Fellows." Over the years, the wood disintegrates and eventually collapses. When that happens, the dirt above the coffin sinks and forms a depression that you can see in the ground. It has to be filled in. "Historians placed a permanent marker on the site. Even more, they conducted a re-enactment of the funeral procession from the train station to the cemetery, complete with period-correct, horse-drawn hearse. Local police departments took part in the event. In an eerie development at the same general time, Yost revealed himself in another way, too. By strange coincidence, an Allentown area man who purchased a box lot of paperwork at a Sheppton public auction discovered a portrait of Yost inside the box. It's the only photo of Yost known to exist. A copy was turned over to the Tamaqua Historical Society and Tamaqua Borough. The photo hangs in town hall as a reminder of a cop's ultimate sacrifice in an era that will never be forgotten." https://www.tnonline.com/20150706/turning-point-murder/
- 2006, March 13 - the State Senate resolved that there had been a lack of due process in the 1876/1878 trials of several members of the Molly Maguires.
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Illustration, Joseph Becker
Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, February 6, 1875
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Murder of Mr. Sanger Expiated.
The Sixteenth Mollie Executed Since the Exposure of Their Damning Crimes - Justice is Slow But Sure.
POTTSVILLE, June 11. - To-day, at 10 a.m., Dennis Donnelly was hung for the murder of Thomas Sanger, of Raven Run. Yesterday his wife was admitted to his cell to see him and to-day was again admitted for the last time. The meeting was necessarily a sad one. The wife threw herself into the wretched husband's arms and wept wildly for some moments. Donnelly, though little given to exhibiting emotion, broke down also.The shedding of a few tears seemed to have a rather favorable effect upon him. as many minutes had not passed before he had
REGAINED HIS USUAL SPIRITS
and was making an effort to dry his wife's tears and bring a smile to her face. the poor woman seconded the effort as best she could, but every few moments would lose her self control and weep as if her heart would break. Donnelly after the first burst of emotion remainded steady. He laughed and chatted cheerfully and discussed any topic likely to detract the attention of his wife from the thoughts ever uppermost in her mind. When notified that the hour of parting had arrived, Mrs. Donnelly could scarcely be induced to leave the cell. Taking a last look at her husband, she at length hastily sought the corridor and with unsteady steps sought the open air. Yesterday afternoon the scaffold was placed in position. It forms a third of the scaffold used on the 21st of this month one year ago, and occupied the same locality in the jail yard. Last evening Bishop Shanahan administered the rites of confirmation.
HIS LAST HOURS
Donnelly rose at six o'clock this morning, appearing perfectly unmoved by the thought that it was his last morning on earth. He ate a hearty breadfast. His first visitors were Fathers Gallagher and Brennan, his spiritual advisers, who celebrated high mass in his cell. At 9:30 a.m. he received his counsel, who bade him farewell and expressed a hope to meet him hereafter.
HE THANKS HIS COUNSEL
Donnelly said: "Gentlemen, I thank you for what you have done for me, and if I can do anything for you in the future I will." This was the only approach to speech he made at any time. At 10:20 Sheriff Motz summoned the prisoner to the final scene, and the procession formed, with the Sheriff and Warden King in front, followed by Donnelly and Father Gallagher, and then Father Brennan, the attending physicians and the Sheriff's jury.
AT THE SCAFFOLD
The prisoner mounted the scaffold with a firm step, holding a crucifix in front of him in his right hand, supported by the left hand grasping the wrist. A small rosary attached to the crucifix, shook slightly, as he stood holding it. This was the only sign of nervousness he displayed. He continued praying fervently, until the last moment. The Shefiff asked him if he had anything to say why sentence should not be carried out now. He answered: "I have nothing to say." The Sheriff and jail wardens shook hands with him, and said-"Good bye, Dennis." The prisoner's hands and feet were then manacled, and a band strapped tightly about the chest. The priests then bade him faewell.
THE END - A HORRIBLE SPECTACLE
The Sheriff drew the white cap over Donnelly's head, adjusted the noose, and, at 10:26, the drop fell. The doomed man struggled convulsiverly and presented a horrible spectacle. He drew himself up repeatedly, his shoulders worked, and his chest rose and fell, while the breath escaped from his lungs with a hissing, gasping sound that was almost a cry. This was repeated half a dozen times, and most fearful convulsions continued for about three minutes, gradually becoming less intense, and it was not until the expiration of eight minutes that the struggles finally ceased. At seven minutes after he dropped his pulse beat 142; at eight minutes 160; at nine, no pulse; at nine and a quarter the pulse beat again, 92 pulsations; at nine and at nine and a half it disappeared and at ten minutes the physicians pronounced him dead. The body was then given to the undertaker, who placed it in an ice box and delivered it to Donnelly's wife and brother, who will bury it this afternoon at Raven Run.
THOMAS SANGER - DONNELLY'S VICTIM
Thomas Sanger, the mining boss for whose murder Dennis Donnelly was executed yesterday, was born in the parish of Glemoe, Cornwall, England, and came to this county about twenty-three years ago. He seems to have been of a roving disposition and is spoken by all who who knew him as a good citizen and liked by many who worked under him. He first worked at Beaver Meadows, in the employ of Mr. William F. Carter; he then went to Stockton, Luzerne county, but soon getting restless he took a trip to the copper mines of Lake Superior. Not liking the appearance of the mine he returned and worked at Locust Gap and afterward at Dark Corner. He next started for California where he remained seventeen months, when, taking another restless fit, he came back, worked at Girardville for a while, took a trip to New Jersey, where he married and settled down, and till about three years previous previous to his assassination he was employed by Messrs. Heaton & Co. as inside superintendent. He was connected with the Masonic and Odd Fellows' Lodge at the time of his death. He left a wife and six children.
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The Times, Philadelphia, Tuesday Morning, October 17, 1876
Avenging Justice
A Great Day In Pershing's Court
He Gives Twenty Mollies, Including Two Women, the Severest Penalty the Law will Permit and Regrets his Power is Limited.
Special Correspondence of THE TIMES.
POTTSVILLE, October 16.
This has been a terrible day of retribution for the Mollie Maguires and their abettors. The court had given notice last week that this morning they would pass sentence on all the Mollies who had been tried and convicted of crimes and had not yet received the judgement of the Court on the verdicts against them. An immense crowd had gathered in and around the court house, some anxious to see and hear, others, relatives of the prisoners, to lend the poor men the sympathy and support of their presence. The judges before whom the prisoners had been tried remain in consultation some time after the regular hour for opening the court had arrived.
A CROWDED DOCK
In the meantime sixteen convicted Mollies and four persons convicted of perjury in trying to establish alibis for the Mollies were brought into court. The prisoners' dock was too small to hold all these, so that twelve of them were assigned to seats in the box in which the juries had sat who convited them. Nearly all the prisoners were married, and the presence in court of weeping mothers, wives and children added not a little to solemnity of the scene. When the judges had taken their seats they announced that they were not quite ready to pass sentences on the prisoners, and directed the usual routine business of the court to proceed until they should be ready to take up the important matter which had drawn so large a crowd. After about half an hour's delay Judge Pershing called upon Thomas Donahoe to come before the Court.
SENTENCHING THE PRISONERS
Donahoe had been convicted of aiding John Gibbons, who had committed a deadly assault on William Thomas, to escape, and the Judge, in passing the sentence of the law upon him of two years' imprisonment, took occasion to regret that so short a sentence was all that he could inflict. The next prisoner to be called was Edward Monaghan, who had been constable for a number of years of the borough of Shenandoah City, and as a member of the Mollie Maguire division of that place had taken part in the conspiracy which resulted in an assault on William M. Thomas, in which Thomas received four pistol-shot wounds, from which he miraculously recovered. Judge Pershing told the prisoner that had not Providence been more kind to him than he had been to himself he would be now receiving the sentence for murder in the first degree. As it was, the Court felt bound to give him the full penalty of the law, wo wit: Seven years' imprisonment at hard labor.
A BOY AND TWO WOMEN
The next prisoners called were Bernard J. Boyle, Kate Boyle and Bridget Hyland. These parties were all convicted of perjury; the two Boyles were neither of them twenty years old, and they had undertaken to established a false alibi for James Boyle, on of the murderers of Police Officer Yost. The Court told them that their age was the only consideration which had led them to impose less then the maximum sentence of seven years' imprisonment, but in view of that fact they left Bernard off with three years and Kate with two years and a half. Bridget Hyland had sworn to a false alibi for Thomas Munley, one of the Sanger and Uren murders. She is a married woman, and no relative of the person whom she sought to shield. She will have two years and a half in prison to think over and regret her foolish attempt.
JACK KEHOE AND HIS GANG
Judge Walker then called upon John Kehoe, John Morris, Dennis F. Canning, Christopher Donnelly, John Gibbons and Michael O'Brian to come before the court for sentence on their conviction of an assault and battery with intent to kill William M. Thomas. After addressing a few earnest remarks to the prisoners, the Judge condemned each to undergo an imprisonment of seven years. Judge Green now called on James Duffy to receive sentence on conviction for perjury, committed in the trial of the Yost murderers. This prisoner is a very old man and the Judge thought one year a sufficient punishment for him.
A SECOND SEVEN-YEARS' TERM
Kehoe, Donnelly, Canning, Michael O'Brian, were again called before the Court, and together with Frank O'Neal and Patrick Dolan, Sr., were sentenced by Judge Green for conspiring to kill William and Jesse Major. Kehoe and Canning each got seven years, to be computed from the expiration of the sentence passed on them by Judge Walker. O'Brian, O'Neal and Donnelly each got five years, to be computed in the like manner, and Dolan, in consideration of his age and having told the truth from the witness-stand, got off with one year. Donnelly, O'Neal and O'Brian received a further sentence of two years upon the indictment charging them with being accessories after the fact to the murder of Gomer James.
In all the sentences were included solitary confinement and hard labor, and they are all to be carried out in the prison here. This disposed of all the convicted Mollies but John J. Slattery, Francis McHugh, Patrick Butler, Charles Mulhern and Michael Dooling. Of these, the first four have turned State's evidence, and are to be used in the Mollie trials still pending. District Attorney Kaercher desired that the sentencing of these should lay over for the present, and Michael Dooling was not sentenced because he is to be a witness for some of the Mollies awaiting trial at Mauch Chunk.
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