Preview
Identifier
KF 223 .B5 1871
Creation Date
1871
Description
Trial of Harry Crawford Black for the Killing of Col. W.W. McKaig, Jr. Washington, D.C.: Chronicle Print, 1871.
William McKaig Jr., a successful businessman from Cumberland, Maryland, began a relationship with a young woman named Myra Black. McKaig married a “more suitable” woman yet continued the affair with Myra. In 1870 Myra became pregnant and named McKaig as the father, which he denied, trying to diminish Myra's reputation by calling her a prostitute. Myra's father, Harrison Black, confronted McKaig and shot him in the arm with a pistol. Harrison's son Harry learned of the incident and McKaig’s actions with Myra. He tracked down McKaig and shot and killed him in front of many witnesses. Harry's subsequent trial was sensationalized, with public sentiment strongly in his favor. It was argued that Harry was a good man driven to an extreme reaction by McKaig, and after just over an hour of deliberation, the jury found Harry not guilty.