The Great Hanging - Gainesville, TX - Citizen Memorials on Waymarking.com

Located in Georgia Davis Bass Memorial Park, are two large granite monuments describing the incident in which 40 men were hanged, and two others shot trying to escape, when a Citizens Court condemned them. One monument names all those killed and the circumstances, and the other monument tells the story. It reads:

"Cooke County Texas 1861 - 1862
After Abraham Lincoln was elected president, slate states, led by South Carolina, began to secede from the Union. Texas was the seventh state to do so, following a convention in January 1861 held in defiance of Governor Sam Houston's wishes and a statewide referendum on February 23. Cooke County, having relatively few slaveholders and slaves, was one of the eight counties in North Texas where a majority of voters opposed secession.

"The Confederate Conscription Act of April 1862 required all men ages 18 to 35 to register for service. The law, which threatened to take men away from the defense of their homes, was extremely unpopular in North Texas and was widely evaded. Individuals spoke publicly against it, and a petition of protest intended for the Confederate Congress was circulated. Anxious to avoid conscription, many men joined an underground "Peace Party" that opposed the draft and hoped for the defeat of the Confederacy.

"In a dramatic exhibition of vigilante action during the Civil War, authorities in Cooke County in October 1862 arrested about 150 men who allegedly belonged to the "Peace Party", thought by some to be conspiring to reestablish Union control in Texas. Curious residents, families of prisoners, militiamen and volunteers crowded into the square, where many called for hanging all the prisoners. Then a church bell rang, calling a town meeting. Chaired by William C. Young, it proceeded to create a "Citizen's Court" and to pass resolutions legitimizing its actions.

"With Daniel Montague presiding and Young interrogating, the court met in a store on the square and convicted seven prisoners of conspiracy to commit treason. They were promptly hanged from a giant elm at the site of this park. Two others were shot and killed when they tried to escape. Dissension among the jurors led to an agreement that any further convictions would require a two-thirds vote. By that standard, all of the accused were acquitted, to be released a week later. But a mob demanded and the jury surrendered fourteen men to be lynched.

"The jurors scattered on Monday, October 13, planning to reconvene the next Saturday and release all remaining prisoners. However, during the week, James A. Dickson, member of a prominent family, and Young were shot and killed from ambush on Hickory Creek north of Gainesville. Fear swept the countryside. Hysterical demonstrators in Gainesville urged the hanging of all prisoners. When the court reconvened on the 18th, it sent nineteen men to the gallows tree.

"This Park and Exhibit serve to remind us of the tragedy of war and violence, and emphasizing those who lost their lives here."

Website with more information on either the memorial or the person(s) it is dedicated to: [Web Link] Location: Georgia Davis Bass Memorial Park

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