Shaderick Howard hanged about 1862 for
the alleged theft of stock. Howard, before being hung begged some
one to shoot him, telling one man present that he would. give him $5.OO he
had in his purse to shoot him and not hang him. (Old man
Henry
Carter) replied, "Old man I would not shoot you for all the money
you ever saw." The Howards had been harboring a man named Pat Murphy
who if Shad Howard had been stealing this same Murphy had been eating
the stolen beef. Murphy had a long buck skin string that was used in tying
Howard's hands behind his back. Howard was placed on a small pony
with the noose around his neck and the pony led from under him. In the
fall the rope stretched and Howard's feet could have touched the ground but he
drew them up under him, the mob however, pulled him
higher where he died of strangulation and not from a broken neck
frothing at the mouth. The rope that he was hanged with was a grass rope
which was a rather rare thing in those days and
the man that owned the rope wanted it back so the body was taken down
and left on the ground among the wild hogs that then roamed
the country. Pat Murphy also retrieved his buck skin string with
the remark that he might want it again to tie the hands of
another ... thief behind him. Howard.’s son Ely
was informed and he took a wagon and with another man carried his
father’s body home.
Shaderick Howard was the first man tried for murder in Bell County and was
acquitted. Mrs. Howard. soon lost her mind after her husband was
hanged and later froze in death. At his death Shad Howard had a
little iron trunk that he gave his son Ely Howard had a little
homemade purse at the time he was killed easily identified, which also
went to Ely.
