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September 1854 – Shasta County, California: Chinese Miner Hanged After a Dubious Assault Accusation

Date:September 1854
Location:Shasta County, California
Event Type:Lynching
Victim Names:Unnamed
Victim Gender:Male
No. of Victims:1
Accusation:Molestation charge
Killing Method:Hanging
Occupation:Miner
Compiled By:Ken Gonzales-Day; Jean Pfaelzer

Narrative

In September 1854, a Chinese miner in Shasta County was hanged by vigilantes after being accused of assaulting a white girl. Contemporary reports treated the charge as doubtful or false, yet the mob carried out the killing without trial. The case is one of the earliest confirmed anti-Chinese lynchings in California, in which a sexual accusation was used to justify extralegal hanging.