Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-06-25
END OF SAM WOOD.
Shot Down in the Court Room at
Hugoton, Kan
DEED OF A TOUCH NAMED BRENNAN.
The Trouble Due to the County Seat War
Woods Eyentful Career as q Pioneer Of
Kansas and Up to His Untimely
Death.

by the shooting of Col Sam n. Wood
| by James Brennan. Col Wood was in
attendance upon the court which is
sitting here, and got into an alteration
with Brennan over the former troubles
over county seat wars and Brennan de-
hberately shot Wood down, killing him
almost instantly.
The murder of Col. S. n. Wood, took
place in the presence of his wife. Wood
was shot three times, dying in few
moments.
After the shooting Brennan defed
| the officers and said that he would not
be arrested by Sheriff Cam, of this
county, but would allow Sheriff Weir,
of Morton county, to take him, as he is
a citizen of that county.
The arrest was made and Brennan is
now in charge of Sheriff Cam, who re-
ceived him from Weir directly after the
| arrest.
Brennan is recognized as one of the
tough characters of this section and
was one of the principal witnesses in
the famous Cross murder trial which
has recently been returned by the SUI
one of the principal men in Hugoton
and has been prominent in all the
troubles over the county seat removal
questions.
The killing is looked upon as a cold
blooded affair as Wood was exciting no
| trouble and was here attending a case
in court
This is the first bloodshed in this
| county over the seat troubles since July
%, 1sSS, when Sheriff Cross and party,
consisting of Hubbard, Wilcox, Eaton
and Tonney, were shot and the first
| four killed, while the latter was left
| for dead, at what is known as the hay
camp on the public land strip, or No
Mans Land. For this killing six citi-
zens of Hugoton, Kan, were under sem
tence of death, passed by the United
States court at Paris, Tex.
For two years the citizens of the
rival towns of Hugoton and Woodsdale,
in Stevens county, had been opposed in
deadly feud, growing out of county seat
contests and other rivalry.
HIS EYENTFUL CAREER
Col. Sasn Wood was a native of Ohio. He
was born at Mount Gilead, December 30, 1928.
He was the son of David and Esther Mosher
Wood Quakers. From early youth he was
educated to uncomprOmising opposition to
slavery and became an abolitionist of the
most pronounced typo. At the age of 10 he
was made hartman of the liberal party In
his native county and in 1854 he was admit
ted to the bar in Morrow county.
An earnest opposer of the Kansas and Ne
braska law Wood moved to Kansas in 1854 to
m q
Gated near Lawrence, where he resided
during the exciting times of 1855 and 1851.
HIS bravery soon made h i'm prominent in
the anti slavery party and he at once took a
prominent part in the early struggles, the
history of his life being closely interviewer
with that of Kansas as territory. He was
not only an effective stump speaker but a
fighter. and incurred the hatred of the Dor
der ruflilns. He was q candi late for mem
Der of the first territorial legislature, but
met with defeat. At a meeting out of which
grew the ''Waukarusa wdT." he was one of
the principal speakers. He was a Kan sas
delegate to the Pittsburgh convention in
1856 at which the Republican party was first
formed as a national organization and at the
subsequent con ycntiOn which nominated
Fremont for the presidency.
Wood was an extremist in everything he
did. His OutspOken manner on any and all
subjects of consequence often made him
many anu Dltter enemies, VINO COnnlVeu at
his political death But he was irrepressi-
BILE and would bob up serenely at the next
state convention with as much energy as at
the previous one when he had been so I'M
mercifully sat down upon.
The first home of this pioneer on Kansas
soil was a claim taken in 1856 six miles west
of LawT ence. Here he erected a small frame
house for his wife and two children and
lived there for short time only. He both
the free
state party. His contributions to the few
newspapers of the day were numerous,
scarcely an Issue passing of all papers near
his home but they contained one of those
characteristic, rasping, personal articles in
which he so delighted in attacking, an
enemy. He was thoroughly well posted on
the Bible, having read it through more than
twenty five times He had a happy faculty
of quoting cOpiOusly fitting paragraphs in
political arguments
In 1853 Wood established the Kansas Press
at Cottonwood Falls. The same year he was
elected to the territorial legislature and re-
elected in 1860. He was afterward elected to
the senate and In each house was made
chairman of the judiciary committee He
was appointed collector of customs at Paso
del Norte, Tex by President Lincoln, but
resigned at the breaking out of the war.
At the time of the trial of the Cook broth
ers at Paris, Tex, Wood was present and
had the dispatches sent north which told of
the drunkenness of Botkin and the action
taken by the citizens of the town when the
latter was fo:ced to flee to escape their
wrath Returning home he began to work
up the feeling against Botk n. and he sys-
tcmaticaily followed the matter through the
house aad the senate.
Woods reputation was based on the fact
that he was a remarkably quick thinker.
He was quick at repartee and it was Impos-
q m nrran- I, I'm haiti Inst r-nNf ion
could not be given than a recital of his ex-
perence with a constable from Seward
county, who came to Topeka to arrest him
last fall. Wood was in the Office of the To-
peka Capital Mt the time talking with the
city editor about an article which he desired
to have published. 1t was about midnight
when the constable found him and demand
ed his surrender The train on which the
constable must 90 back left the city within
hall hour Wood knew this and demand
ed TO see the warrant for his arrest. 1t was
shown him and he deliberately put it in his
pocket and walked off The constable was
indignant but could do nothing
Wood was one of the most amusing and
entertaining stump speakers in Kansas
and could draw an audience at any time
Physically he was one of the most powerful
men in the state. When freighting across
the plains with an OK team a sheriff under
took to arrest him for some trivial offense4n
the city OF Topeka The sheriff was Knocked
down and he called upon three bystanders
TO assist him Wood drew his coat and
whipped all three men and went on his way
unmOlested
If Kansas gets her Worlds fair fund
and if the state exhibit has a poultry
and if no one else is
appointed Theo. Sternburg will be sup