The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-03-30
FIRST CONFLICT OF THE CIVIL WAR.

The first conflict of the Civil War
was not John Browns raid at Har-
per's Ferry, the border warfare in
Kansas, the attack on Fort Sumter,
or the onslaught on the Massachu-
sets regiment on Pratt street in this
city while marching from President
Street to Camden Station. The first
encounter took place at Christiana,
Lancaster county, Pa, in which Ed
ward Gorsuch, of Hereford, Balti-
more county, was killed and his son,
Dickinson Gorsuch, was severely
wounded. The date of thiseneoupter
was September nth, 1851, and the
cause was the enforcement of the then
recently enacted Fugitive Slave Law.
The death Of Edward Gorsuch Gre
ated great agitation in the North.
Gorsuch and his son, his nephew,
DIR. Pearce; Joshua Gorsuch, Nathan
Nelson, Nicholas Hutchins and
United States Deputy Marshal Kline
formed what might be called the at
tacking party. They concealed them
selves near the home of William Par
ker, colored, who was supposed to be
concealing slave belonging to the
elder Gorsuch.
The constable and his party entered
the house of Parker, but the inmates
had retreated to the upper floor, from
the windows of which they sounded
the alarm by blowing horn. This
was responded to by two shots fired
by the assailants without effect. Mr..
Gorsuch then came forward and de-
manded his slaves, which he claimed
were hidden in the house. He was
answered with the positive assurance
that the colored people would never
be taken alive as slaves. A large
number of the colored men from the
neighborhood, summoned by the horn,
focked to the scene of trouble, and all
of them were armed with guns or
clubs. They remained in the woods
nearby awaiting the necessity for ac-
ton, and again Gorsuch and his party
were warned to leave and assured
that it would be a battle unto death
if an attempt was made to capture
them. For several hours the parley
was continued until the blacks were
increased to so or more, and there
was imminent danger of bloody
conflict.
Castner Hanway, a Quaker, who
lived in the neighborhood, hearing
the sound of the horn and noting the
gathering of the blacks, rode up to
the Parker house, where he was
joined by Elijah Lewis, another
Quaker, both men of the highest
character in their community and de-
voted to peace. They came solely
for the purpose of avoiding a conflict
and sought to persuade Gorsuch and
his party from provoking collision
that must result in the death of many.
AS soon as these Quakers appeared
upon the scene Constable Kline, then
acting in the capacity of deputy mar
shal, Immediately ordered them to
aid in the capture of the fugitive
slaves, which they refused to obey,
and they earnestly appealed to Kline
and the Gorsuch party to cease the
hopeless effort to less than half a
score of men capturing fugitive slaves
from so to 60 armed colored men who
had resolved to die rather than be
captured or permit any of their mum
ber to be taken.
Hanway and Lewis also exerted
their influence to prevent violence or
the part of the colored people. Cor.
such's son appealed to his father te
give up the contest, but the father re-
fused. Finding that they could ac
complish nothing, Hanway and Levi:
started away after again earnestly
urging the Gorsuch party to give ur
the contest. Soon after they left one
of the negroes attempted to come ou'
of the house and he was at once COW
cred by Gorsuch's revolver. The
negro urged him to go away if ne die
not want to get hurt. and pushing
Gorsuch by, he passed out. Gorsuct
at once opened fire on the negro ant
his son and nephew joined him, bu