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Ah Sam Was Strung Up Repeatedly After a Theft Accusation

Date:July 8, 1890
Location:Fort Logan, Colorado
Event Type:Lynching
Victim Names:Ah Sam
Victim Gender:Male
No. of Victims:1
Accusation:Larceny
Killing Method:Hanging (by soldiers)
Occupation:Cook
Compiled By:Kevin Hegg

Narrative

In July 1890, eight white men led by William Curran abducted Ah Sam and two other Chinese men from the Fort Logan reservation after a diamond ring went missing. Beaver Valley Tribune reported that the men “strung them up to a limb of a tree three times,” leaving Ah Sam unconscious and thought to be dead, while the other two were seriously injured. Army officers later arrested Curran and sought the other attackers, making this a rare anti-Chinese lynching case in which military authorities attempted to intervene. This project has found no evidence that any of Ah Sam's killers received meaningful punishment.

Related Newspaper Article(s)

Chinaman Lynched

The North Bend Argus (Los Angeles, California)

July 17, 1890 (Page 1)

In Denver, William Curran and seven friends accuse three laundrymen—Ah Sam, Ah Coon, Ah Sin—of theft, abduct them off Fort Logan and hang each three times to extort confessions; soldiers later arrest Curran.

Chinaman Lynched

The Cuba Daylight (Cuba, Kansas)

July 18, 1890 (Page 2)

The same Denver incident is reported in Kansas: eight men led by William Curran repeatedly hang three Chinese laundrymen to extort a confession about a missing $300 diamond ring; military authorities intervene and seek the perpetrators.

Chinaman Lynched

Beaver Valley Tribune (Beaver City, Nebraska)

July 24, 1890 (Page 7)

At Fort Logan near Denver, William Curran and seven companions abduct laundromen Ah Sam, Ah Coon and Ah Sin, string them up three times in an attempt to recover a stolen diamond ring; soldiers later arrest Curran and issue warrants for the others.