Justice Or Vengance? The Tragic Hanging Of Amy Spain

Engraving that appeared in the September 30, 1865 edition of
Harper's Weekly depicting the hanging of former slave
Amy Spain by Confederate soldiers and the citizens of
Darlington, South Carolina.

On Friday, March 10, 1865, Confederate soldiers and the citizens of Darlington, South Carolina hanged a young African-American former slave named Amy Spain from a sycamore tree on the courthouse lawn.

The month before, elements of Union Major General William T. Sherman's invading army arrived in Darlington sometime in late February of 1865 following the destruction of the South Carolina State capitol of Columbia earlier in same month. The federal troops burned down the depot, cotton platforms and railroad trestles in 1865. The Union troops also did some foraging (or looting depending on one's definition of the term).

Despite the destruction inflicted on much of the rest of the State, the Union soldiers did not completely destroy Darlington -- this owing to the fact that the commander of the Union forces sent there, a former architect, upon arrival saw a house that he had designed, and ordered that the house and the rest of the town be left standing, destroying only equipment that was of military use.

A large number of Darlington’s white residents had deserted the area as Union forces approached, and many of the African-American slaves in the area believed the arrival of the Yankee soldiers marked the end of bondage.

Amy Spain, then a 17 year old girl described by some as a "mulatto" because of her light skin, had been the property of Major Albertus C. Spain, a veteran of the Mexican–American War who had been a member of the South Carolina Secession Convention.

According to some sources, upon seeing the blue-coated soldiers arriving, Spain is reported to have exclaimed in jubilation, "Oh bless the Lord, the Yankees have come!"

In their foraging and looting of the now empty homes, the Union soldiers did nothing to prevent the newly liberated slaves from taking whatever belongings that had been left behind by their now former owners.

Spain and her brother Willie dragged some mahogany furniture from an abandoned warehouse, and later took "linens, sheets, pillow cases, flour, sugar, lard, and some furniture" from the home of their now former master -- compensation for the years of work done without being paid as a slave.

Soon the Union forces moved on north from Darlington towards the small town of Cheraw and then on to North Carolina. Many of the town's white residents returned, thankful that most of their homes were still standing, but also angry to find nearly all of them looted while many of the local slave owners found that "their people" had deserted with the victorious Yankees.

A short time later Confederate troops led by General Joseph "Fighting Joe" Wheeler re-occupied the town.

Some of those residents who had stayed behind during the Union occupation, including a few of the slaves themselves, reported that Spain had been the "ringleader" of the looting, and accused her specifically of guiding Union troops to places where valuables had been hidden.

Unfortunately for the young woman, Spain was captured and later charged by a Confederate military tribunal -- which was little more than a drumhead trial -- on the charges of looting, insurrection, and treason (the latter specifically stated as "conduct unbecoming of a slave"). The retired Major Spain reportedly acted as her defense counsel in spite of her actions, though he was unable to sway the Confederate officers in finding her guilty on all charges.

As were the case in most military tribunals like this, the convictions and punishments were both swift, and any appeals were denied.

Spain was sentenced to death and hanged from a sycamore tree in the Darlington town square on Friday, March 10, 1865. The location of her final resting place is unknown.

After the war, the town was again occupied by federal troops during the Reconstruction Era which were not withdrawn again until 1871.

Should Amy Spain have been found guilty of the charges?

As a slave she was not legally a citizen of the State. No matter her legal status as a slave, or otherwise, she was not one of Sherman's Bummers, nor a member of the military. As a civilian should she have been tried under military tribunal?

This later point can be argued from both sides of the legal arguments about the role of the military during a state of emergency -- which was certainly what Sherman's march through the Carolinas could be called. Under 19th century military law, civilians can be punished and sentenced to death for looting during a state of emergency when a state, or territory, is under military occupation and active civilian authority is unavailable.

Yet, despite the fact Spain was not the only former slave captured after the looting of Darlington, she was the one singled out to take the punishment of the actions of many others. This seems more like the Confederate military were trying to make her an example as no other recaptured slave was tried, or sentenced to death. If so, then the actions of Wheeler's men could be considered a war crime.

Was her punishment justified, or a petty act of vengeance? Justice, or racism? Maybe a bit of both with one act used in justifying the other?

Now matter how one sees the incident, the hanging of Amy Spain is another tragic footnote in the much larger story of the suffering inflicted on the peoples of South Carolina during the War Between The States -- all of them are stories that deserves to be remembered.

This blogger would like to thank the South Carolina Department of Archives and History for their help in contributing to the information in this article.