The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1903-08-21
THOS.- MORGAN KILLED
former Res dent of Blue Earth County
Shot Dead at Oshkosh.
intoxicated ard FFenz;ed Empl0ye of
Lumber Company, murderer.
The Victim Was at the Head Of Sew.
eraI Large Concerns.
HampeI, Who Fired the Ball, Takes
Own Life BY Hanging.

Morgan, president of the Morgan COM
pany, one of the largest sash, door and
blind plants in the United States, was
shot in the back three times by Frederick
Hampel, a discharged and intoxicated
employe, and died at ten o'clock yester-
lay morning.
The wounded man was placed in an
but died while the team was
rushing for the hospital. Mr.. Morgan
is widely known in sash, door and blind
circles throughout the United States,
and only a few weeks ago he was in at
at the national cash, door and
blind meeting in Chicago, when BAN
luet was rendered them at the Auditor
lum, by the jobbers and he responded to
a toast.
He was heavily interested in several
companies.
Mr.. Morgan went to his office in the
as usual, and about ten o'clock
was about the grounds. Hampel was not
noticed by the manufacturer, but had
been seen in the vicinity of the factory.
At noon it was discovered that Hamp-
ell, the assassin, had hanged himself in
his cell at the police station.
The shooting was witnessed by several
people. John Rowlands, slasher in the
employ of the Morgan company, who was
with Morgan at the time, said to
reporter:
Il had just returned from the Camp
bell-Cameron mill and was walking down
Fifth street along the railroad track in
the yards when l met Morgan. He and
stopped to talk a minute or two about
some lumber when Hampel came up
where we were. He seemed to be fren-
zied with liquor, Judging from his appear
ance. He said nothing, but looked at us
steadily. Morgan knew that he had been
away from work and was drunk, and
without waiting for Hampel to speak he
said to him:
"sFred, / have no time to talk to you
this morning.
''He turned toward Sixth street and
Hampel replied: Well, I will talk to
you later
"Then the first thing l knew there was
a shot which seemed to be right in my
ear Just at that moment Morgan cried
out with pain. | could not realize that
he was wounded, but he stumbled and I
turned around and there was Hampel
blazing away.
II cannot say just how close he was
to me, but I grappled with him, my left
hand grasping his hand with the gun and
my right at his throat
II think there were two more shots
fired that went wild, but whether they
we're before or after I took hold of him
[ cannot say. While we were graphing
we fell and [ was under. [ released my
hold on his throat and with both hands
grabbed his hand with the gun. Then
John Morgan, another employee, came up
md rolled Hampel off me. | had hold of
The gun and jerked it away from Hampel.
GIN the meantime Morgan, though NOR
ALLY wounded, had run to the office sew
,ral hundred feet away. Then others
,ame to our assistance, and Officer
Meyer came up and placed Hampel under
arrest. l am sure that at least three
shots were fired, and whether there was
another while we were wrestling or not
[ cannot say. I took the gun to the Of
ice and turned it over to E. S. Richmond
IL some one else there, and it was locked
up in the safe.
''There was no occasion for the shoot
ing so far as l know. Hampel is one of
the employees of the company and had
not been discharged. So far as know he
never had any words with Morgan before
then, and L cannot say what caused him
to do such a thing
Fred Hampel, the murderer, committed
suicide in his cell at the city lookup by
hanging. The job was done in manner
which indicated that he was deliberate
in his actions and instead of a broken
neck his death was caused by slow stran-
gulation. 1t was about ten minutes to
twelve when his body was discovered
and although three doctors worked over
him for over half an hour there was no
help for him.
The murderer when arrested was garb-
ed in overalls, and it was with the sus-
penders of these that he did way with
himself. He removed the suspenders
from the overalls and fastening them
about the bars of the door of his triple
lock cell he turned his back to the door,
let his feet slide out from under him
and hung there with the cloth cutting in
to his neck until life was extinct.
The body was discovered by Officers
Fitzpatrick and McCusker. Only a few
minutes before that time Officer Fitz-
patrick and District Attorney Carl d..
Jackson had gone into the Jail to talk
with the man. At that time he was IN
the same position and they thought he
was sitting on the floor with his back
to the door. Mr.. Jackson spoke to the
man, but when he did not answer
thought he was asleep. There was an
other man in the jail at the time and he
said that he had heard Hampel making
a peculiar noise, but did not think of
what was going on. However, he had
called to the officers for water without
being heard, and had they come he
should have told them about the other
man. When he was cut down HampePs
body was limp and warm but ifeless.
Mr.. Morgan was a brother of Mrs.
David Price, wife of the postmaster, and
Mrs. Margaret Williams of Lake Crystal.
He was known by number of older resi-
dents of Lake Crystal and Judson. His
father, Thomas Morgan, owned large
farm near Lake Crystal, and the son
spent part of his boyhood days on the
farm. His stepmother, Mrs. Elizabeti.
Morgan, died few years ago.