The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1864-03-10
EXECUTION OF THE MURDERER OF
THE Mccoy FAMILY.
At Medina, February 20, 1894.

Ier U Medlna, Oh rflday last, 10 WIT
ness the execution Of STREETER, who
was convicted Of the murder of the
McCoY family. We cut the following
from his account Of the terrible affair
THE MURDER.
On the morning of the End Of July,
1868, about four o'clock, the citizens of
Medina were reused by the cry Of fire,
which proved TO be the house OF Shubil.
Mccoy, respected citizen and well
known cattle dealer Of that village
No response was made By the inmates
TO the efforts to arouse them, when the
people became intensely excited and
broke in the burning building, and the
most horrible spectacle Imaginable pre-
sented itself There lay the dead bodies
of three victims weltering in their
blood-McCoy, his wife, and little Fer
dinand, their child. The fire was ex-
tinguished before the building was
much damaged, and the bodies remov-
ed. A Coroner's Inquest was held,
who rendered a verdict Of murder, but
by whose hands the deed was commit
ted was at that time unknown and un-
suspected. A reward of $4,000 was
offered for the apprehension Of the
murderer.
Suspicion was first cast upon Fred
erick +. Strecter by his having more
money than was usual with him. He
left the village on the 9th day Of July,
four days after the murder He was
pursued by the Prosecuting Attorney
Of Medina County, S. B. Woodward,
Esq, anddctective james Burlison and
after long chase was captured at Kc-
nosha, Wisconsin, on the 4th of Sep
tember. He was brought back and
lodged in Medina Jail. His trial com
menced at the November term Of the
| Court, 1862, and lasted about six weeks,
which resulted in his conviction and
sentence to be hung on the 26th of Feb
ruary, 1864. He subsequently, escaped
from the Jail, but was recaptured in a
NOV of oats, in the township of Rich
field, on the 18th of January last, by
Messrs. John A. Rettig and William
Q. Saunders, and again lodged in Jail,
where he remained until taken out TO
expiate his great crime upon the scat
fold.
He occupied the last night of his life
in prayer and in writing to his friends
The principal letter was to his wife,
in which he declared his innocence,
and urged her TO go to his sister and
mother, who would convince her of the
fact, as they had the proof.
REMOVAL FROM THE JAIL.
Precisely at twelve o'clock prepara-
tions were made for removing him
from the Jail to the place of execution.
Two companies of the 10th Battalion
State Militia--Company A. Captain
Frissel, of Medina, and Company d,
Captain Bigham, of Guitord-were
called out and were in readiness to
guard the prisoner to the galows.-
They were marched in front of the jail
and formed in a hollow square, the
whole under command of Captain Big
ham. The wagon containing n plain
but neat mahogany coffin, was driven
into the square. Streeter was then
carried from his cell-as he claimed to
be too weak to walll-by the Sheriff 3
assistants, Coroner J, B. Beckwith and
H. J. Walker, Esq, and placed in the
wagon directly ever his coffin. an at
tendant upon each side. The tnse
was now exactly half past twelve,
The crowd around the door Of the
'Ijail, and stretching far down upon each
side ofthe street, was immense 1t was
somewhat noisy and the military had
some difficulty in keeping their lines.
All were eager to see and look at the
doomed man. But when Streeter APP
peared, borne in the arms of his atten,
dants, dressed in the habiliments Of
the erave-a white cap and shroud-
everything was still in moment. Not
loud noise, or even whisper could
be heard. The silence was almost over
powering. When the military band
struck up the "Dead March" " and the
cortege moved slowly toward the scaf-
fold, the scene was awfully solemn and
impressive, All the way to the scene
of execution Steeters countenance
never changed. He looked around at
the vast crowds among which he
could not recognize single friend or
one who did not believe him guilty
with as much unconcern and indifier-
ence as if he had been going to some
trivial party instead of his long and
everlasting home. He freely answered
all questions asked BY his attendants
hut did not pass any remarks or make
any conversation. When the prisoner
reached the lot in which the scaffold
was placed, the soldiers were delayed
some five minutes in clearing the way.
Streoter seemed to evince as much in
tefest as any of the spectators in the
movements, even leaning forward to
got a better view. Everything was
finally arranged and the hollow square
moved forward to.
THE GALLONS.
The law of the State provides that
all executions for capital offences shall
be private, either in the Jail, aii-yard,
or some other private enclosure. The
Jail and Jail yard ofMedina county not
being suitable for the purpose, an en-
closure was built upon the land of.
B. Young, Esq, upon an eminence,
about a onarter of a mile from the iail