CHAPTER VI. (CONT'D)

BURNED TO DEATH.

On the morning of September 18, 1872, a man by the name of Jackson was burned to death in the town calaboose, at Atlantic. He was arrested and locked therein the night before for entering a private residence on Maple street and creating excitement among the ladies of the household by his queer actions. The following morning the jail was discovered to be on fire. As the prisoner had previously threatened to burn the jail if he was not released before nine o'clock, it was undoubtedly set fire by him, as the flames originated from a pile of straw upon which prisoners were in the habit of sleeping. The fire was extinguished as soon as possible and the charred form of the man was rescued from the smoking debris. The arms were burned off at the elbows, and the legs off to the knees. The flesh was all off his head and face, but enough was left on the neck to hold the head to the body. The remains were interred in the Atlantic cemetery. The jail was a small building about 16x20 feet, divided into two roomS, the rooms being connected by a door. It was constructed of broad pine lumber, the boards being piled and spiked together something on the plan of modern grain elevators. Twenty-three kegs of nails were used in its construction and it was very secure and strong. The cost was about $500 and it was the property of the city.

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Transcribed by Deb Lightcap-Wagner, March, 2014 from:"History of Cass County, Together with Sketches of Its Towns, Villages and Townships, Educational, Civil, Military and Political History: Portraits of Prominent Persons, and Biographies of Old Settlers and Representative Citizens", published in 1884, Springfield, Ill: Continental Historical Co., pp. 289-290.