2022-11 Raynors HCA Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/18/2022
Music Sheet, "Battle of Cincinnati" 8pp., published by Archer & Hawes, 1884, 8p., VG. The cover illustration shows the army fighting the riotous citizens On December 24, 1883, a young white German named William Berner and his accomplice, Joe Palmer, a man of mixed African descent, robbed and murdered their employer, William Kirk, a livery stable owner in the West End of the city. The murderers dumped Kirk's body near the Mill Creek in the Northside district. After a prolonged trial, on March 26, 1884, the jury returned a manslaughter verdict despite the testimony of seven different people to whom Berner had admitted his premeditation and execution of the murder. The judge, who gave a sentence of 20 years in prison, called the verdict "a damned outrage". The next day, the newspapers called for a public meeting to condemn the verdict. Tried separately, Palmer was convicted and hanged. The Hamilton County Sheriff Morton Hawkins was also expecting trouble. He had thirteen deputies helping him guard the jail.[4] The rioters managed to break into the jail through the sheriff's apartment, but left when they were shown that Berner was not present. More rioters then arrived. The sheriff had the alarms rung, which had the unhelpful effect of drawing, yet more people to the scene. The mob, now 10,000 strong, pelted the jail with bricks and stones. They overcame resistance by the guards and police reinforcements and managed to break in again. They were driven out by reinforcements from the militia armory who entered the building through a tunnel from the courthouse. After one of the attackers was shot dead the violence escalated. Rioters attempted to set the jail on fire using stolen kerosene. By the time the situation became temporarily under control late on Friday night, five people had died, including one police officer,[15] and many more were wounded. In the course of the riots, 56 people died and over 300 were wounded.
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