 |
| Laurel Cemetery today. |
I am an avid genealogist. The past is very important to me. I spend a lot of time in cemeteries photographing tombstones to upload on website the FindAGrave.
I enjoy recognizing long dead people by putting memorials to them online. However, every once and a while something grabs me about a specific grave. It could be the name, or the dates or a ceramic photo. In those cases, I feel compelled to dig a little deeper. That's what this series of blogs is about: The tales behind those graves. Some of my subjects will be heroes. Some will be villains. Some will be victims. And some will linger in between like most of us. However, don't be surprised if the tales are inherently tragic. These are grave tales. They all end in death.
Lately, I have become obsessed with Laurel Cemetery. Located in Northeast Baltimore on Belair Road, just south of Cliftmont Avenue, it was one of two large African-American cemeteries in Baltimore. Now it is a shopping center and parking lot. The developers didn't move the bodies. Only three hundred of the estimated seven thousand people buried in the cemetery were moved to some remote farmland in Frederick County. What happened to Laurel Cemetery was a crime and an injustice, but I will deal with that in another blog. Now I only want to tell the story of one inhabitant: Isaac Winder. This is a grave tale without an actual grave anymore....
 |
| Isaac Winder |
Isaac Winter was not the most honorable and praise worthy person buried in Laurel Cemetery, but he was definitely one of the most newsworthy. For a brief period, he was a frequent fixture on the front pages of newspapers for murdering Frederick Rinehart, a toll keeper on Dulaney Valley road, and escaping from prison after he was condemned to death. It's been a long time since I told a story of crime and punishment. I am telling Isaac's story because it took some interesting twists and turns and does a good job of illustrating attitudes at the time concerning race, justice and capital punishment.
Let's start with the crime:
Baltimore County Union (Baltimore County, Maryland), 23 December 1905, Sat:
A COLD-BLOODED MURDER
-----
A Toll Gatekeeper Brutally Assaulted in
His Home -- Robbery Thought To
Have Been the Object.
-----
Frederick T. Rinehart, aged about 64 years, keeper of the toll-gate on the Dulaney Valley turnpike, about two miles northeast of Towson, was brutally murdered in his home about 11.30 o'clock on Thursday night, December 21st, by some person or persons unknown.
Mr. John C. Smith, who rents the Long Quarter Farm and lives within 200 yards of the gate house, passed through the gate at 15 minutes to 11 o'clock, Mr. Rinehart having come out and unlocked the gate for him. They exchanged a few friendly words and Mr. Smith passed on. About three-quarters of an hour later, as related by Mrs. Rinehart, her husband, who slept in a room down stairs, was again called out and in a few minutes Mrs. Rinehart heard several shots. She rushed down stairs and found her husband lying on the floor in the small shop beside the gate. He was unable to speak and died in a few minutes.
Mrs. Rinehart, who says she did not hear a vehicle leaving the gate, screamed for help, but her cries were not heard by anyone. she then sent one of her children to Mr. Smith's house and he responded to the alarm as speedily as possible.
Patrolman German, of Towson, was notified and went to the house. He found Mr. Rinehart's body lying on the floor of the small room with a revolver beside it, two of the chambers being empty. A small amount of money in notes and silver was also found on the floor. On every hand there were evidences of a struggle, the windows and chairs being smashed and everything in the utmost disorder.
The theory is that one or more men walked to the gate with the intention of robbing the keeper, first calling him out upon the pretense of opening the gate. Once outside they commenced an assault upon him, when he backed into the house, secured his pistol and opened fire upon his assailants. They returned it, one of the shots passing through Mr. Rinehart's body, with the result stated.
Justice Herbert was notified early on Friday morning and summoned a jury of inquest. After viewing the body they adjourned until Tuesday, December 2?th. In the meantime, the body was taken in charge by John Burns' Sons and brought to their establishment in Towson where it was prepared for burial.
Mr. Rinehart, who was born in Germany, was brought to this country by his parents when a child. He spent some years in Baltimore and when he grew older lived in Harford County until the Civil War broke out, when he enlisted in the artillery and was a pensioner for injuries sustained in that service. He was twice married, a son and daughter by the first marriage surviving him. His second wife and two children, aged about 10 and 12 years, also survive him.
Mr. Rinehart had been in charge of the gate on the Dulaney Valley pike seven years. He was a trusted employee of the company and the directors speak in the highest terms of him, he being always faithful in his duties and prompt and reliable in his dealings.
Mr. Rinehart was indeed faithful in his duties. He fought rather than simply surrender the money and paid with his life. However, the person or persons unknown were quickly identified.
Here's a quick story from the following day:
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 24 Dec 1905, Sun:
Isaac Winder and William Charles Winder, colored, uncle and nephew, charged with killing Mr. Frederick T. Rinehart, tollgate keeper, near Towson, each accused the other of firing the fatal shot.
The murder was committed on December 21st. By the Christmas Eve, the two suspects were arrested -- an uncle and nephew -- and pointing their fingers at each other. The following story showed how essential the confessions were. Racial tensions were high in Towson and vigilante justice was feared....
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 25 Dec 1905, Mon:
ADMITS HE IS MURDERER
-----
Isaac Winder Tells Of Killing Of
Tollkeeper Rinehart.
-----
PUBLIC FEELING DIES DOWN
-----
Recall Of Grand Jury Causes Great
Satisfaction -- Victim Is Buried
At Towson
The murderer of Mr. Frederick T. Rinehart, the aged keeper of the toll gate on the Dulaney's Valley pike, who was killed Thursday night and buried yesterday, has confessed.
He is Isaac Winder, the older of the two negroes charged with the crime. The confession was made to Captain Schleigh, of the Northern district, yesterday morning. At first Winder stuck to the declaration he made Saturday evening to Marshal Farnan, that his nephew, William Winder, did the shooting, while he struck Mr. Rinehart with a club. Later he admitted that he "shot the old man."
Feeling against the negroes in Towson and Baltimore county, which was running high until they were caught, was considerably allayed yesterday by reason of the decision of Judges Burke and Duncan to reconvene the grand jury January 2 to investigate the charge. There was no more talk of lynching, and it is believed that since the murderer has confessed the people will be satisfied to let the courts handle the case....
Wow. It's hard to believe people in Towson were openly talking about lynching the suspects. Somehow, I don't think that would have been a fear if the suspects had been white. The story continued about the arrest of the suspects, but I believe that information is better expressed in the following story:
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 27 Dec 1905, Wed:
NEGROES HELD FOR TRIAL
-----
Coroner's Jury Finds That They
Murdered Mr. Rinehart
-----
BRIEF INQUEST AT TOWSON
-----
Testimony Limited To What Was
Necessary To Hold The Prisoners
Now In The City Jail.
"That Frederick T. Rinehart on the twenty-first day of December, 1905, about the hour of 11.20 P.M., at his home on the Dulaney's Valley turnpike, in Baltimore county, was killed by means of a pistol shot fired by Isaac Winder, colored, and William Winder, colored, and further that the said killing was a willful, deliberate and felonious murder, and that the said Isaac Winder and William Winder be held upon the charge of murder for the action of the Circuit Court for Baltimore County.
This was the verdict of the jury of inquest summoned by Justice Joseph R. Herbert at the Courthouse at Towson yesterday morning to inquire into the death of Mr. Rinehart. The jury was out only 10 minutes.
The inquest attracted several hundred persons, who displayed the keenest interest in the statements of the witnesses. State's Attorney Robert H. Bussey, of Baltimore County, did not go into the case further than necessary to show that the murder had been committed by the two negroes.
Mr. Schmidt First On Scene.
The first witness was Mr. John C. Schmidt, across whose farm, which is near the scene of the murder, the trail of blood left by Isaac Winder led.
"I saw Mr. Rinehart at 10.45 o'clock the night of the murder," said Mr. Schmidt. "I was on my way home from a church entertainment. About 2 o'clock that night I was awakened by Mr. Rinehart's son William, a boy of 9 or 10 years, who told me that his father had been killed. I called my colored man, Abe Hall, and together we hurried to the tollhouse.
"I found Mr. Rinehart lying on a couch, and the only wounds I noticed then were scratches and cuts on one of his wrists. A chair was broken, the room looked as if there had been a scuffle in it and all of the glass and the cross sash in the lower window were broken out. The window looked as if it had been smashed from the outside and a person on the outside could easily have struck Mr. Rinehart as he lay on the couch. Abe Hall found a club near the house. Monday I sawed a stump of a limb from a walnut tree standing about 400 yards from the house. The club fits the stump exactly.
"I was told by some of the persons who had congregated that there was a blood trail and I followed it until it was lost. Ben Edwards, colored, who also joined in the trail said he could tell who committed the murder. He then said he'd bet it was the two Winders."
Edwards Suspected Winders.
Ben Edwards is a little baldheaded negro farmer more than 60 years old. He declared that he had made up his mind to shoot William Winder if he ever came to his house. His nephew, Charles Woodland, ran with the two Winders, but the old negro testified that his nephew was at home on the night of the murder.
 |
| William Winder |
It was said, however, by a number of persons after the inquest, that Charles Woodland was seen in Towson the night of the murder and the morning following, but that he was not with the two Winders.
The testimony showed that there was not a third party with the Winders when they left the saloon of James Shea, on the York road, about two hours before the murder.
Edwards, who was one of the last to testify, could hardly wait until his time came. Once when a question as to his age was asked a witness who was unable to answer it, Ben, hidden behind a group of taller men, yelled it to the State's Attorney. He gradually worked his way through the crowd toward the witness stand, and when a witness stepped down Ben offered a few explanations. he was then put on the stand.
He made a prolix and explicit statement of the trail of blood and claimed the honor of having been the first to point the finger of accusation at the accused. He bid high for the $50 reward offered by Capt. John Ridgely of Hampton for the arrest of the murderers.
"I said Ike and William Winder as soon as I looked at the way the house was smashed and the blood trail," he said with oratorial effect. "They stole the gun they killed Mr. Rinehart with from John Cromwell last summer; they stole a man's dinner along the road and filled that pail up with stones and went to Baltimore and bragged about it; they have been committing all these robberies out this way, and I made up my mind that if William Winder ever came to my house I'd shoot him on sight. I knew they did it and I said so.
"It was me who put the police on the right track. I said, 'You go to the little bit up yonder and you'll get them or find out where they have gone.' I knew it was them right away."
"Are they working men?" asked Mr. Bussey.
"Working nothing; they don't do anything. They're just good for nothing and didn't do anything but steal. That's the reason I intended to shoot Ike.
"I was coming to town with four skunk hides when I heard of the murder. My nephew, Charles Woodland, was at home with me playing cards that night. He ran with the Winders some, but he wasn't with them that night."
"You're Geared Wrong."
James Turner, colored, who keeps a team at Mediary's Hotel, where the detectives and police stopped Saturday morning to change horses, told of seeing the two Winders handcuffed to the officers.
"Ike said to me, 'I know you, don't I?' and I said I guessed he did, but I didn't know him any more. 'You're geared wrong,' I said. 'I don't recognize you.'
"I saw Charles Woodland later and I said: 'Charles, your friends have got themselves into an awful scrape.' He asked me what and I told him that they had killed Mr. Rinehart. He hung his head and said he was sorry. I said it was no use being sorry because they had been pretty bad and I hoped he hadn't been with them."
Patrolman German, of the Baltimore county force, displayed the club which was found near the tollhouse and the stump of the broken limb from which the club had been broken. He also had two bullets, which he took from the woodwork in the tollhouse, and an empty bottle, which had contained gin and which was found near the scene of the murder.
How Detectives Traced Accused.
Detective Kratz, of Baltimore headquarters, testified that he and Detective Pohler had gone to the home of the Winders, near Western Run, about six miles from Cockeysville, the morning after the murder and learned that the two negroes had gone to Baltimore. They returned and went to 2211 Hunter alley and found that Round Sergeant House and Sergeant Freedenburg had been there about 20 before and had arrested William Winder. They then went to headquarters, where William had been taken. Detective Kratz continued:
"Winder admitted that he had been to Towson Thursday, but said he had stayed home all day Friday. Later he admitted having a gun Thursday night and we asked him where it was. He replied that he threw it into Jones' falls Friday, and we asked him how he could when he had stayed in the house all day Friday. Then he opened up and said the revolver was at the home of Mollie Johnson, colored, on Belmont avenue.
"We got the pistol and William identified it. Mollie Johnson's husband told us that he had bought the pistol from Ike Winder last summer and that recently he sold it back to him for 50 cents.
"Saturday morning we took William to Western Run as a guide and met Round Sergeant House and other officers with Ike in their custody.
"William also identified the bottle which was found near the house. William said his uncle hit Mr. Rinehart through the window and then shot him, and that he only hit him with a club. Ike said he hit the old man and that William did the shooting. William said they went there to rob him."
Chief A. T. Street, of the Baltimore county force, testified that William told him that he hit Rinehart and that his uncle shot him.
Captain Schleigh, of the Northern district, was on the stand but a moment. He testified that William had admitted to him Sunday morning that he shot Mr. Rinehart.
James W. Cromwell, colored, identified the pistol with which Mr. Rinehart was shot as belonging to him. He said that his house was robbed last July of a pistol, a pair of hair cutters and $4.50, and he had always suspected the Winders. He recognized the pistol by a rust mark on it.
Detective Pohler testified to the same facts as Detective Kratz.
Sergeant House's Work.
Round Sergeant House, to whose resourcefulness the speedy arrest of the murderers was largely due, told the story of the arrests.
"We were notified Friday morning to search the hospitals for a man who had been shot within 12 or 15 hours," he said, "and at the Maryland General Hospital I learned that Isaac Winder, colored, 2211 Hunter alley, had a bullet wound in the abdomen dressed in the morning. Sergeant Freedenburg and I went to Hunter alley and found William Winder. He admitted being at Towson Thursday night and we took him along. He was taken to headquarters. With Sergeant McClelland and Patrolman McGuire we then went to Western Run looking for Isaac. We searched several huts and about 2 o'clock in the morning found him buried in the hay in the loft above a stable."
Prisoners In City Jail.
Justice Herbert committed both of the accused for the action of the Baltimore county authorities. Chief Streett and Patrolman German took the two men from Northern Police Station, where they have been incarcerated, to the Baltimore City Jail.
State's Attorney Bussey said the next move in the case will be the action of the grand jury, which will meet at Towson Tuesday, January 2.
With the evidence, and the confessions of the suspects, there can be little doubt of their guilt. What is shocking was the speed of justice at the time.
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 16 January 1906, Tue:
DEATH THE PENALTY
-----
Isaac Purviance Found Guilty Of
Murder Of Mr. Rinehart
-----
TRIED BY JUDGE AT TOWSON
-----
William Winder, Nephew Of Convicted
Man, Must Answer For Same Crime
------
Justice Moves Swiftly.
-----
Isaac Purviance, alias Winder, colored, charged with killing Mr. Frederick T. Rinehart, the aged tollgate keeper, on December 21, was found guilty of murder in the first degree at Towson yesterday and sentenced to be hanged.
William Charles Winder, a nephew of the convicted man, will be tried for the same crime within a few days.
Isaac was tried before Judges Burke, Duncan and Van Bibber, while William prayed a jury trial.
The trial was brisk and brief, the accused being the only witness for the defense. He said he was under the influence of liquor when the murder was committed.
The defense was that Mr. Rinehart was not killed until after he had shot Isaac in the stomach.
-----
After bringing his trial to a close with the damaging confession on the stand that he, not his nephew, fired the shot which killed Frederick T. Rinehart, the old toll keeper on the Dulaney's Valley pike, December 21, Isaac Purviance, alias Winder, was found guilty of murder in the first degree and sentenced to be hanged.
From 10 A.M. until 4.30 o'clock in the afternoon, without intermission for luncheon, the courtroom in Towson, where the trial was held, was jammed with the largest crowd that it has ever held. So intense was the interest that many persons, unable to get even near enough to the doors to hear a word of the testimony, remained on the stairs and in the corridors to catch the rumors that floated out to them.
Although the clever work of the police had fixed the crime jointly upon Isaac Winder, as he was known, and his nephew William Charles Winder, the statements of the two negroes at different times were so conflicting that there was much curiosity as to which of them was more to blame. Both would have been tried together had not Isaac asked for a trial by Judge and William for a jury trial. The trial of William will be not be held for a few days.
Judge N. Charles Burke presided and had as associates Judge Frank I. Duncan and Judge George I. Van Bibber.
No Delays In Trial.
From start to finish the trial was brisk. With the question in the hands of the judges, the lawyers did not enter into discussions which usually characterize a jury trial, and at the close neither side made an argument. State's Attorney Robert H. Bussey prosecuted the case and the attorneys appointed to look after the defense were Z. Howard Isaacs and W. Gill Smith.
The witnesses were called in rapid succession and accumulative evidence was not allowed to clog the progress of the trial. Scarcely one-half of the numerous witnesses for the State were called to the stand, as it was regarded as not worth while to have them repeat what already had been testified. The only witness called for the defense was the prisoner. A confession which he made on December 23 to Round Sergeant House and Capt. Schleigh, as well as the confession to Marshal Farnan and a stenographic report of a confession made to Mr. Bussey, had all been admitted as evidence by the court, when Purviance himself was called.
It was evident that in putting the prisoner on the stand the defense was playing its last card. Although the prisoner admitted the killing, he pinned all his hopes upon the explanation that Rinehart, the old tollgate keeper, had fired at him and his nephew first, and that he returned fire only after he himself had been shot in the stomach.
After the verdict of guilty in the first degree had been announced, Purviance was asked if he had anything to say why sentence should not be passed upon him. With his eyes fixed upon Judge Burke and his fingers twitching nervously, he replied:
"I don't think I got justice. I was not doing anything but making a noise. He shot me first. I was not taking aim at him, but fired as I turned to run away. I did not want to kill him."
In the indictment he was arraigned first for murder, with William charged with assault; and, second, for assault, with William charged with murder. On the assault charge he was found not guilty.
Isaac Tells Of The Murder.
William was the owner of the pistol with which the crime was committed, and testimony was introduced which showed that he was in possession of the pistol both before and after the crime. According to some of the policemen, he confessed that he did the shooting.
None of the police or lawyers think that either of the negroes has told the true story of the deed, and the circumstances of Mr. Rinehart's death will never be known. Isaac said that he was so drunk the night of the occurrence that his comrade had to lead him to the car, and that he slept so soundly that it was not until the next day that he began to feel the pain of the bullet wound.
Of sandy complexion, small physique and meek expression, Isaac is not a bad-looking negro. When he took the stand he spoke without hesitation, and in a tone of indifference as to the importance of the statement. He told how he had returned to the city from his old home, near the scene of the murder, and had met William, who persuaded him to go back in the country again. He admitted that he tried to borrow a pistol, but, failing in this, he contented himself with the fact that William was carrying his. They rode in a trolley car to Towson, he said, and walked from that point out the Dulaneys Valley pike. Fearing dogs, he broke off a limb of a young walnut tree. This he gave to William. After giving him the stick he said that William did not need both a stick and a pistol.
"I can bluff it better with a pistol," is the argument he used with William to get the pistol.
Blames Whiskey For The Deed.
"Whisky made a fool of me," he said. "All that day and the two or three days before I had been drinking. Before we got the car in Baltimore I had had a good many drinks, and then I bought a few more in Towson. I carried a pint bottle of whisky in my pocket.
"We were near the old tollgate, and I was taking a drink from the bottle when William and I began to talk loud. The old man came to the door and told us to go away. I did not go fast enough for him. He began to fire at us. Suddenly I felt a sting in my stomach. 'The old ----- has shot me,' I said to William. As we ran away I turned around and fired. I did not think I had killed him. I did not hear of his death till the police told me afterward. Going down the road I drank all the whisky that was in the bottle, and William had to pull me along to Towson, about a mile."
This differed greatly from the inferences which Dr. R.C. Massenberger drew from his autopsy. To make it clear which course the bullet took, the Doctor said Mr. Isaac, one of the attorneys for the defense, pose as Mr. Rinehart. There was intense silence while the two gave a rehearsal of the tragic scene. Mr. Isaac turned his back as if retreating, and Dr. Massenberger with his index finger pointed as a pistol, went through the motion of firing the shot. Although the wound through both lungs and the pulmonary artery was one so severe that the injured man could have lived only a few seconds, he declared that it was not out of the question that Mr. Rinehart had fired his pistol after being shot. He said that he had tried with a pistol and had been able to fire two shots in two seconds. Both attorneys for the defense emphasized the contention that Mr. Rinehart had fired before being hit.
Mrs. Rinehart Saw Husband Die.
The evidence of Patrolman German, of the county force, who examined the house after the tragedy, showed that three bullets had been fired from a point inside the room, as they were embedded in the walls on three different sides of the room. This was regarded as refuting the statement of the prisoner that he had fired only from the road.
The first witness was Mrs. Rinehart, the widow of the murdered man. She told of hearing the shots fired and going downstairs in time to see her husband breathe his last.
Mr. John C. Smith, who next took the stand, told of tracking the footsteps and blood spots, which led him to the conclusion that the murderer had escaped to Baltimore. "Abe" Hill, colored, next testified to having found the club, which Purviance later identified himself.
Mr. John Phipps, Edward S. Peerce and Patrolman German told of trailing the footprints.
Mrs. Annie Shar, whose husband keeps a roadhouse on the York road, near Towson, told of the visit of the two negroes.
"They bought half a pint of whisky and half a pint of gin," she said, "and before I could call my husband they ran away without paying me."
Mr. and Mrs. K.C. Kidd, who keep a grocery, said that the two negroes bought a pie, cigarettes and cakes from their store early on the evening of the murder. Mrs. Kidd said she was frightened by the manner of the negroes, because a robbery had been committed down the road the night before. All that night, she said, she did not take off her clothing for fear that they were coming back to the house.
Fugitive Hid In Hayloft.
The policemen of the Baltimore force told of running down the negroes and getting the confessions.
Marshal Farnan testified that he first received word of the tragedy in a letter from Phoenix, which said that two negroes had killed Mr. Rinehart and that one of them had been wounded by a pistol shot. The Marshal said that he notified all of the police stations in the city to have the patrolmen call at every doctor's office and hospital to learn if any negro had applied for treatment from a bullet wound.
In the afternoon word came to him that Patrolman Thomas Burns had learned that Isaac Winder had been treated at the Maryland General Hospital for a bullet wound in the stomach. Round Sergeant House and Patrolman McGuire testified to arresting William Winder and learning that Isaac had gone to his former home, near Phoenix. Round Sergeant House told of going with Sergeant Freedenberg, Sergeant McClellan and Patrolman McGuire to the small cottage kept by "Uncle Josh," and there learned that Isaac had been turned away by "Uncle Josh," who learned of the crime and feared to harbor the alleged criminal. There, he said, he got information that Isaac was hiding in the hayloft near by. Armed with pitchforks they rooted the negro out of his place of hiding.
On the way back to the city in a wagon Purviance broke down and made a confession. Each of the police reiterated that the negro had been warned that his statement would be used in court, and all declared that his confession was made voluntarily. After the confession had been made the policemen met Detectives Pohler and Hammersla, who had William in their custody. Face to face each then accused the other. While the evidence concerning the confession was being taken all the witnesses were kept out of the courtroom except the one on the stand, but the versions given by them varied only in the most trifling details.
The last bit of evidence offered by the State was the reading of a stenographic statement of a confession made to State's Attorney Bussey by Purviance in the presence of his nephew, William. In all his different statements Purviance offered as explanation that Mr. Rinehart fired the first shot. Mr. Bussey obtained at the same time a statement from William, which will be used against him at the time of his trail.
Wow. Talk about speedy justice -- if that's the right term. The crime was committed on December 21, 1905. The first defendant was found guilty and sentenced to death on January 16, 1906, less than a month later! I know that the authorities were acting quickly to prevent the suspects from being lynched, but rushing them to legal execution doesn't seem like much of a favor. Well, not for Isaac anyway. The speed of the trial might have saved the nephew William Winder.* William was convicted of 2nd degree murder in Belair on 2 February 1906 and sentenced to eighteen years in prison. Had a lynch mob broken into the jail while the two men awaited trial, no doubt both of them would have been killed.
With such a speedy trial, it shouldn't be surprising that Isaac Winder's execution would proceed just as quickly.
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 1 March 1906, Thu:
Winder To Die March 30.
Sheriff Elliot has received from Governor Warfield the death warrant of Isaac Winder, colored, convicted of the murder of Frederick T. Rinehart on December 21 last, directing his execution on March 30 at or before 2 o'clock P. M. Sheriff Elliott will not read the death warrant to Winder until he can have an interview with the County Commissioners.
No surprise. He was scheduled to die just over three months after his victim. However, Isaac Winder might have confessed but he was not prepared to go gentle into that good night....
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 7 March 1906, Wed:
WINDER SLIPPERY
-----
Police Nearly Had Their Hands On
Escaped Murderer, They Believe
-----
WAS SEEN NEAR CORBETT
-----
Negro Answering To Description
Was Chased, But Got Away.
-----
FEELING HOT AGAINST HIM
-----
Some Farmers Have Declared They Will
Shoot Fugitive On Sight -- Railroad
Detectives Make Plans To Watch Their
Lines -- Searchers Spend Night On Scene.
-----
Although it is believed county and city police almost had their hands on Isaac Winder, the murderer of Mr. Frederick Rinehart, who escaped from the Towson Jail Monday night, the negro late last night had succeeded in eluding them.
It is now believed he is hiding in the vicinity of Cockeysville or has gotten away from that section. He may have jumped on a passing freight on the Northern Central railroad and gotten out of the State.
Winder was seen at noon and again late in the afternoon on Glenwood, the place of Mr. Francis E. Sparks, about three-quarters of a mile east of Corbett Station. He spoke to two negroes -- "Bade" Hoyle and Joe Lee -- who claim to know him, and told them he was tired and had been running a long distance. The negro, according to Hoyle and Lee, was apparently almost exhausted and lolled about the place for over an hour resting. Beyond the statement that he was tired and had been running, Winder said but little and left in the afternoon.
Meantime Mr. Sparks, who had learned of the presence of Winder, telephoned the fact to Baltimore county police headquarters. Soon afterward Chief Streett, of the county, with a force of about a dozen men, half of whom were county policemen, were upon the scene and made a thorough search of the property and the surrounding country, but the negro had left no trace of his presence.
HOT CHASE FOR NEGRO.
Later in the afternoon it was reported that Winder was seen on the property of Mrs. Daniel Moore, who lives between Jacksonville and Sunnybrook. While engaged in the search Patrolmen German and Hutchins espied a negro emerging from an outhouse and immediately went in pursuit.
As soon as he saw that he was being pursued the negro, who answered the description of the fugitive murderer in many details, took to his heels, with the officers after him. During the chase, which continued more than half a mile, Patrolman Hutchins fired four shots, which had no apparent effect on the fleeing negro, who finally outran his pursuers and escaped. The officers continued their search in the vicinity for some time.
Still later it was reported that Winder was hiding in the woods on the place of Mr. George Royston, a short distance from Phoenix. Chief Streett at once dispatched a number of officers to the scene, who surrounded the woods and searched the place thoroughly, but to no avail.
The search continued along the York turnpike, at Cockeysville, Matthews' old mill to Bosley's church, thence to Quaker Bottom, without success. Long after dark the party disbanded, a number of the searchers returning to their homes, while a half a dozen or more of the officers remained on the scene.
STOPPED ON WHITRIDGE FARM.
Winder had made a quick trip from Towson, for about midnight he reached the house of John Howard, colored, who lives on Dr. William Whitridge's farm at Jessup Crossing, Northern Central Railroad, about eight miles northwest of Towson. The house is on a hillside and is an out-of-the-way place. He aroused the family, and Lizzie Howard answered and then called her husband. Howard asked who was knocking. "Winder," was the response.
"What Winder?" "Ike Winder."
When asked what he wanted he said he needed some bread, but, neither Howard nor his wife opened the house for him nor gave him anything.
Winder, Howard said, was accompanied by a black man, and they left his house and went up the hill to Jessup Methodist Episcopal Church, near the York turnpike.
Constable Edward W. Cole, of Priceville, in Quaker Bottom, made a diligent search in that section, where a number of negro families live, and visited the Howard house.
While hunting in the barn on Dr. Whitridge's farm, he climbed to the top of some fodder, where he heard a man, and made ready to shoot if the quarry resisted, but later, a white man employed on the farm, made his appearance.
Constable Cole and Mr. John W. Hoffman searched the house of Winder's brother Robert, at Cockeysville, but found no clue.
FEELING IS INTENSE.
The feeling among the residents in the neighborhood where the search led the party was intense against the escaped negro and not a few of the farmers have expressed their intention of shooting the negro on sight. All the stables, barns and outhouses were tightly barred by the residents, who feared lest Winder would seek refuge there, while many heads of households declared their intention of remaining awake throughout the night and on the alert for the murderer....
I'll stop the story there, but it continued quite a bit. Prior to his successful escape, Isaac Winder had tried unsuccessfully two other times. His escape led to a great deal of turmoil in the community. A sizeable reward was offered for his capture.
The hunt for Isaac Winder was not just local news. It was covered in newspapers all around the country. Here's a story from California:
The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, CA), 10 March 1906, Sat:
HUNTING NEGRO WITH HOUNDS
-----
EXCITING CHASE TO THE BANKS
OF THE GUNPOWDER
-----
Murderer Isaac Winder Escapes from
Towson Jail and is Besieged in a Mill
-- Driven Thence He Pours a Volley
Into Officers and Escapes to River.
-----
Baltimore (Md.) March 9. [Exclusive Dispatch] Isaac Winder, a negro murderer who escaped from the Towson Jail, has been run into the Gunpowder River, on the banks of which a mob and a Sheriff's posse with bloodhounds are halted by the uncertainty whether Winder has been drowned or has escaped.
The chase involved a siege in an old mill, a pistol duel with officers and many other exciting episodes.
This afternoon, Deputy Sheriff Shanklin was informed that Winder had been seen near Cockeysville, and on the outskirts of that town the officer and his posse saw the negro flee into an abandoned mill. Believing that their quarry could not escape, three of the deputies were stationed around the mill, and Shanklin went to the village, where he telephoned to Baltimore for help.
Fifty policemen were at once sent out on a special train, and Shanklin returned to help his men hold the murderer at bay. Winder, who has displayed great cunning, ran at top speed out of the tumbledown back door of the mill, and as the posse raced after him around the old ruin, turned and deliberately poured into them a volley that made them take to cover.
While the officers were dodging behind trees, Winder again took to his heels, and was soon hidden in the dense woods and underbrush. Fearing an ambush, the officers proceeded warily.
That story certainly brings to mind some of the worst images associated with our nation's segregationist past. I would have hated to have been an African-American man wandering alone in that vicinity at that time. Below is a "capsule" of a much longer and detailed story about Winder's capture after eluding authorities for fifteen days.
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 21 March 1906, Wed:
MURDERER'S FORTNIGHT OF FREEDOM OVER
-----
The two weeks' search for Isaac Winder, three days of which he says he spent in Baltimore, ended at 3.45 P. M. yesterday on Mr. Jefferson Shanklin's farm, near Loch Raven, Baltimore county, where Police Marshal Abraham T. Streett, with his pistol drawn, came upon the condemned murderer while he was making a small fire in the woods. Winder was not armed and made no resistance.
Although it is stated that Chief Streett is undoubtedly entitled to the reward of $500 offered by the County Commissioners, he says he will not accept it.
Winder was locked up in the Towson Jail, with a guard over him; the death warrant will be read today and the death watch set, and the hanging, it is expected, will take place March 30, as originally scheduled.
The murderer says the statements regarding his escape and his movements afterward, as told from day to day in The Sun, are correct. He read The Sun during his period of freedom.
Winder declares he was in Baltimore Thursday, Friday and Saturday of last week, and was in a saloon near Belair market. He met several policemen, he says, and among them, he thinks, was one of the men who first arrested him.
Towson was quiet late last night and there is no talk of lynching.
In many quarters sympathy was expressed for Winder, though a criminal, because of the remarkable fight he made for freedom.
 |
| Abram T. Streett |
The Baltimore Sun was obviously happy about the endorsement Winder gave them. And they were correct about Winder finding some sympathy, as the next story reveals.
The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 25 March 1906, Sun:
GETS MANY WINDER LETTERS
-----
But Governor Is Not Convinced By
The Writers' Arguments.
Letters continue to pour in on Governor Warfield asking him to commute the sentence of Isaac Winder to imprisonment.
These letters have had but little effect on the Governor, as the writers almost unanimously argue that Winder's act was not a premeditated one and they contend that he should not have been convicted of murder in the first degree. The writers in these communications generally refer to Winder as "poor Ikey."
The Governor said yesterday he was not at all vexed by the receipt of so many letters, but that the argument used by the senders did not appeal to him. The murder was the result of an attempt to rob the victim, he said, and in such cases the verdict is always murder in the first degree. He said his position and the power to pardon are often not understood by many people. He has not gone behind the findings of the Court in granting executive clemency, and unless there is some new testimony discovered or an application for commutation is endorsed by the Court he is loth to act.
If these persons who want the commutation will appeal to the Court which convicted Winder, he said, there would be some ground for him to act on. It is a safe prediction that Winder will be hanged.
As to reprieving him that he might make spiritual preparation, the Governor said, his first inclination was to set the date for the execution much earlier, but he afterward decided to give the prisoner the usual time allowed condemned men. If Winder broke out of jail and preferred to spend 15 days of the time dodging about in the woods, the Governor said, Winder was responsible for the loss of time.
Nevertheless, Winder is hopeful. He practically lives on the idea that there is still a chance for his life. He does not want to hang. In fact, he declares he would rather be shot or be killed in almost any other way than on the gallows.
Still, he has been told that his chances are few, and as the time grows shorter he becomes more restless. He ate little or nothing yesterday, but Warden Hook says his loss of appetite is probably due to the fact that he is now getting regular food, which is something of a shock to his system after the hardships of the chase.
Two ministers came to see him. One was his spiritual adviser J. R. Amis, and the second was a visitor from Annapolis, Rev. P. W. Drew. The ministers prayed with the murderer and talked with him for some time. Chief Streett also called upon Winder, but friends and distant relatives have been cut off the visiting list.
Warden Hook has been busy answering requests to see Winder. Many visitors have called to look at the jail within the last few days, and all seemed extremely pleased with the institution. The pleasant remarks, however, developed into a sort of overture for a request to feast the curiosity. All such requests are turned down immediately, and, strange to relate, the majority of those who were refused admittance to murderer's row were white women.
Isaac Winder indeed seemed to capture the imagination and sympathy of some people of all races. I am particularly curious about the nature of the conversation between Winder and Streett. I hope it was sympathetic rather than hostile.... However, the Governor was not swayed and Winder faced the gallows on March 30th. The Baltimore Sun did a very long and detailed story about the execution. I am not including it precisely because it is too long and detailed.
Isaac Winder did not want to hang. He fought it. Hard. It took eight men to subdue him and bring him to the gallows. In the final seconds, although his hands had been secured, he managed to get one between the rope and his neck. That did not save his life. I will spare you the gruesome details and go with a much shorter account.
The Buffalo Enquirer (Buffalo, New York), 30 March 1906, Fri:
WILDEST DISORDER
-----
HANGING OF NEGRO DELAYED
BECAUSE OF CROWD OF EXCITED
PEOPLE AT TOWSON, MARYLAND.
-----
Baltimore, Md., March 30. -- At 10:30 o'clock this morning the wildest disorder prevailed at Towson, the seat of Baltimore County, where the authorities are endeavoring to hang Isaac Winder, negro murderer and jail breaker.
The people in their excitement have torn down the barricade erected about the jail yard, and the police are unable to cope with them. Trees and housetops alike are filled with masses of excited humanity.
The crowd is so dense it is impossible for the Sheriff to execute the negro. He cannot even be got to the scaffold.
Sheriff Elliott expected to carry out the law within the next hour, but it looked hopeless. This city may be asked for police aid, or the Governor may have to call out the militia to keep the mad crowd back.
Winder murdered an aged tollgate keeper named Rinehart a few weeks ago. He broke jail soon after his arrest, and successfully eluded his pursuers for eight days. He was finally captured and locked in the Baltimore City Jail until last night, when he was removed to Towson.
How the Job Was Done.
Baltimore, Md., March 30 -- Isaac Winder, the negro murderer, was hanged at Towson at 11:40 o'clock this morning.
The condemned man struggled and fought desperately for ten minutes until he was beaten into submission by Sheriff Elliott, Chief of Police Streett, Deputy Sheriff Anderson and two assistants and placed over the trap and finally launched into eternity. It was the most exciting scene ever witnessed at a hanging in Maryland.
Regardless of your opinion concerning the death penalty, I suspect you will find the gleeful tone of that story repulsive. The hanging of Isaac Winder was a sad spectacle. In a particularly tasteless act, Rev. J. R. Amis, Winder's spiritual advisor, applied for an entertainment license in order to charge people ten cents a head to view Winder's corpse. Amis argued that the money was needed to cover Winder's funeral expenses, but the license was thankfully denied. Amis was soon fielding offers from publishers for Winder's autobiography. However, he later complained that a white man beat him to the book.... (I could find no copy of the book.)
Winder's body was removed from the Towson Jail to Laurel Cemetery where he was laid to rest. There's no telling where he is anymore, but he's still there under one of the stores or the parking lot.
May he rest in peace.
Remember, there is a story behind every grave. You never know what you're missing when you walk past one....
*I could find no further reference to William Winder in the newspapers after his trial.
Grave Tales:
My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble. Chapel Street is the tale of a young man battling a demonic entity that has driven members of his family to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting.
Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
Let's stay in touch:The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3
Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
Follow me on Facebook: Sean Paul Murphy
Follow me on Instagram: Sean Paul Murphy
Subscribe on YouTube: Sean Paul Murphy
Very good read. I have heard the rumors for 50 years about Laurel Cemetary. In recent years having researched a bit more and finding out about the dirty deals by the city and crooked lawyers that led to the current condition.
ReplyDeleteThanks. What happened was shameful and illegal. I plan to write a longer blog about the death of the cemetery in the future. I still have research to do.
Delete