October 1865 – Placer County, California: Chinese Man Hanged for Theft Near the Central Pacific Railroad

In October 1865, terse newspaper articles reported the hanging of a “Chinaman” in Placer County along the Central Pacific Railroad line. The Sacrament Bee reprinted a report in the Place Stars and Stripes that noted “A Chinaman was hung for theft… by a store-keeper whom he had robbed” (Sacramento Bee, Oct. 11, 1865). This same news item was repeated in the Gold Hill Daily News (Oct. 17, 1865). The reports contain no indication of arrests, trials, or court proceedings. The hanging was retribution for a property crime. The newspaper coverage of the extralegal hanging of a Chinese man in Placer County is informative for its brevity, the unnamed victim, and the normalization of vigilante justice. Rough justice for Chinese “defendants” was routine.