Hanging of Milton McLean Milton McLean had been convicted of the murder of Thaddeus Pope and sentenced to be hanged. Pope lived long enough to testify that there were no hard feelings between the two men. McLean had been tried, found guilty, had obtained a new trial; and his case had been reviewed by the Supreme Court. On January 7, 1876 a large crowd had gathered in fron of the jail to witness the pomp and ceremony of the occasion and the dignity and bravery of the prisoner. Many also had come out of idle curiosity. The gallows had been erected at teh "hanging grounds" at the foot of Liberty Street one and one-half miles from the courthouse. Clad in a neat black suit, the prisoner walked between Rev. McNair an dDr. Slater to the wagon. He seated himself on his coffin with perfect nonchalance. Mayor King and the sheriff with the entire police force formed a circle around the wagon. Arriving at the grounds, the prisoner mounted the scaffold and said to Sam Brown, who made the scaffold, "I hope that you have done a good job." The carpenter answered, "I have done my best." McLean looked over the audience as coolly as if he were the chief marshal at a picnic. The croud sang, the preacher read the scripture, the sheriff read the sentence, and at the appointed time, the prisoner stepped forward and assisted the sheriff in adjusting the rope around his neck. The black veil was placed over his head and the fatal drop took place. The doctors declared him dead of strangulation in twenty-five minutes. The body was placed in a walnut coffin and turned over to his wife an dfriends to be carried to Hardeman County for burial. Jackson Sun - January 6, 1876
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