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The shooting of Jesse Wharton

Index


This is my best current attempt to put together the pieces of information I have. Many of the claims are unproven; check the notes to see how much evidence I have!

Wharton's early life

Jesse Barnes Wharton(1a) was born two miles northeast of Clear Spring, Washington County, Maryland, about 1834, to John O Wharton and Elizabeth Ann Armistead Thompson Mason.(1b) According to the 1850 census, John was born in Tennessee, and Elizabeth was born in Washington DC, but according to the 1860 census, he was born in Bavaria and she was born in Maryland. They were married on 9 April 1829, in Washington County, Maryland.(1c) They apparently had these children:(1d)

In 1850 the family was living in Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland. Jesse was not living with them; instead, he was a student in Washington County, Maryland.(2a)

Jesse was a classmate of John Wilkes Booth, at St Timothy's Academy, in Catonsville, and visited Booth's home.(2b) He took part in a student "rebellion" at St Timothy's in 1853, when the students were all punished because a few boys killed chickens, allowed them to spoil, and paraded them around the school, leaving them at the housekeeper's window. Students camped in Reed's Woods, with guns from the school armory, for several days. Wharton's father was one of the people sent to talk to the boys, and Jessie Wharton replied to him.(19)

Elizabeth (Jesse's mother) died on 30 January 1857.(3c)

By 1860 the family had moved to Prince George County, because John Wharton was employed at the Maryland Agricultural College, which eventually became the University of Maryland at College Park--he was one of the founders (p.137), the first employee (the registrar (p.141)), and a faculty member (p.163).(3a) Only Elizabeth, Sarah, and William were still living with their father.(3b)

Wharton's army service

Jesse Wharton joined the United States Army on 30 June 1855, as a second lieutenant in the 7th infantry.(4a) Curt Allen, who has researched the Utah Expedition extensively, kindly sent me a summary of his service, on which my summary of his service is primarily based.(4b)

Wharton was part of the second expedition to Utah, in 1858, serving as Second Lieutenant in company K of the 7th Infantry. The Regimental Returns for June through November record him as "In Arrest."(4b) On 28 June 1858, he was drunk while on duty with his company at dress parade. On 20 July 1858, near Fort Kearney, Nebraska Territory, he was again drunk while on duty, this time as officer of the day.(4d)

On 19 September 1858, while the regiment was moving from Fort Bridger to Camp Floyd, Utah Territory (changing from White Clay Creek to Weber River), Wharton and his company were assigned to Pioneer duty. Major Whiting ordered him to remain with the leading detachment, provided with axes, to supervise their cutting, because the men had not done it properly the day before since an officer was absent. They cut through willow trees, and then were digging on a hill, making the road the Fifth Column of the Utah Forces was to travel on. Wharton then rode up to Lieutenant Plummer, who had general control of the working parties. Plummer apparently said something Wharton took as permission to go ahead. He went to the next hill, which was the last hill before Weber River, apparently intending to determine where the road should cross the hill. While he was under a tree talking with two men (including Wagonmaster Rawlings), Major Whiting saw him, and sent Lieutenant Chapin to order him to rejoin the working party, and to stay with it.(4e)

Several hours later, Lieutenant Chapin found Wharton drunk and lying near the road. Major Whiting also noticed that he was not with the working party. As Wharton was catching up to Major Whiting, he sent Lieutenant Chapin to order him to rejoin his Battalion and to report to his commander, Captain McLaws, that he was in close arrest. When Chapin had done that, Wharton rode off, and reported to Captain McLaws. He apparently thought that the Battalion was already camped, but in fact they were only resting, and marched several miles further on before they camped. He laid down under a tree, and when he realized that the Battalion had moved on, he went to rejoin them. However, Captain McLaws had noticed that he was absent from the Column, and when the tents had been pitched found thatWharton was not in his tent. He therefore reported Wharton for breach of arrest.(4e)

Wharton was tried on 9-13 October 1858. He was tried on these three charges:(4f)

CHARGE I: Drunkenness on duty.

Specification 1. "In this: That he, Second Lieut. Jesse B. Wharton, of the Seventh Regiment of Infantry, was drunk when on duty with his company at dress parade. This at the camp of part of the Fifth Column, Utah forces, on Big Blue River, Kans., on or about June 28, 1858."

Specification 2. "In this: That he, Second Lieut. Jesse B. Wharton, of the Seventh Regiment of Infantry, was drunk when on duty as officer of the day at the camp of the Fifth Column, Utah forces, near Fort Kearney, Nebr., on or about July 20, 1858."

CHARGE II: Conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline.

Specification. "In this: That Second Lieut. Jesse B. Wharton, Seventh Infantry, United States Army, on or about the 19th September, 1858, while on duty with his company as pioneers, being part of the Fifth Column, Utah forces, working the new road between Fort Bridger and Camp Floyd, Utah, did absent himself from his party after having been specially ordered to remain with it by Bvt. Maj. D. P. Whiting, Seventh Infantry, commanding the column, and was found in a state of intoxication by the side of the road, after the passage of the troops. This near Weber River, Utah."

CHARGE III: Breach of arrest.

Specification. "In this: That Second Lieut. Jesse B. Wharton, Seventh Infantry, United States Army, on or about the 19th September, 1858, near Weber River, Utah, after having been placed in arrest and ordered to join the battalion to which he belonged by his commanding officer, Brevet Major Whiting, Seventh Infantry, commanding Fifth Column, Utah forces, did, after complying with said order, absent himself from his battalion until after it had been for some hours encamped."

He pled guilty to the first charge (and its specifications), and innocent to the others. His defence focused on two claims. First, he claimed that Lieutenant Plummer had ordered him to go ahead, leaving the working party. Second, he claimed that he had wrongly (but reasonably) assumed that the regiment was camped where he reported to Captain McLaws.(4e)

As my summary above presupposes, Lieutenant Plummer did admit that he had said something Wharton could reasonably have taken as permission to go ahead. However, Lieutenant Plummer claimed he did not know that Major Whiting had ordered Lieutenant Wharton to remain with the working party, and did not admit he had ordered Wharton to go ahead. I do not see how the Lieutenant's permission to go ahead could trump the Major's order to remain with the working party. Wharton also seems not to have explained why he was separated from the working party after that, and none of the witnesses contradicted Lieutenant Chapin's claim that he was lying beside the road, drunk. As far as I can see, therefore, the evidence clearly established that he was guilty of the Second Charge and Specification.

Wharton's explanation of his confusion about the location of the camp is more plausible. Although Lieutenant Chapin insisted that no one could have understood him as suggesting that the camp was where the Battalion was then resting, I can understand someone who was upset at being arrested misunderstanding him in the way Wharton suggests, particularly if Wharton was (or was recovering from being) drunk. I might have found him innocent of the Third Charge and Specification, though Lieutenant Chapin's testimony would support finding him guilty.

The court found him guilty of all charges and specifications, and sentenced him to be cashiered. However, the Secretary of War ordered that the sentence be "mitigated to suspension from rank and pay for twelve months", because of Wharton's youth "and other circumstances in his favor, which have been brought to the attention of the Department".(4f).

Wharton's troubles did not end then. Curt Allen has found a letter to Wharton from the commander dated 16 February 1859, which reminds him that he was subject to military orders even while he was suspended, and orders him to remain in his regimental area. Further, a special order dated 8 July 1859 extended the time for Wharton's court-martial, which had been scheduled for 11 April 1859.(4c)

During that period, he was involved in a brawl with Second Lieutenant Charles J Lynde, which took place between midnight and 2 AM on 4 July 1859, in the Mormon town of Fairfield, Utah Territory. Lynde was apparently the aggresor, since he was court-martialed for the brawl, found guilty, and dismissed.(4g)

Finally, on 31 August 1859, Wharton resigned from the army.(4c)

After the army

He next spent two years in the Nevada Territory, mining.(5a) He returned home toward the end of October 1861, after his mother died (in 1857!?), to help settle her estate, and to raise money to return in the spring to Nevada.(5b)

He was married, to Susan Whiting.(5c) He was related by marriage to ex-Senator Mason.(5d)

Wharton's arrest

In December 1861, while Stonewall Jackson was training troops for what would be the famous Valley Campaign of 1862, he decided to damage the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, which was the main link between Washington and the West, since the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad had been destroyed at Harper's Ferry. He led a small detachment to a feeder dam (Dam 5), where they spent several days (17-21 December) working on breaking it. They finally succeeded, but the dam was repaired almost immediately.(6b)

Meanwhile, Wharton was living at Clearspring, Maryland.(6d) He was arrested by Colonel Leonard, on 22 December 1861, near the Four Locks, about two miles from dam number 5, in Maryland, as an armed spy, and was charged with taking up arms and aiding the rebels.(6a) After his arrest, Wharton was taken to Williamsport, and then to Frederick (on 30 December), and finally arrived in Washington DC on 31 December, where he was held at the Old Capitol Prison.(6c)

According to the Provost Marshal of Williamsport, Maryland, Wharton belonged to a group formed to aid the Confederates.(7a) The Confederates attacked Dam 5 on the day and night of his arrest. Wharton was arrested trying to bribe a picket to let him cross the Potomac River for twenty dollars. He and his group intended to attempt to convince the Confederates to cross the Potomac River, and to join them in rebellion if they did. After he was arrested, he destroyed a piece of paper, which may have been intended for the Confederates.(7b) (A contemporary newspaper account claims he offered the guard $25 to carry a dispatch across.(7c))

Wharton's account, unsurprisingly, is different.(8a) He claims he overheard some soldiers talking, while he was near the Two Locks. They said that Captain Russell's Company of Home Guards, from Washington County, Maryland, had crossed into Virginia at Hancock. Wharton knew one member of the company, Lieutenant Nesbitt, very well. He therefore jokingly offered twenty dollars to send a message to Nesbitt. Wharton denied belonging to any group to aid the Confederates, ever offering aid to anyone rebelling against the US, attempting to cross the river, giving information to anyone about the movement of US troops, or destroying a paper after his arrest. He did, however, refuse to answer, when asked whether he was "in the habit of visiting and holding communication with those who are known to be secessionists".

Old Capitol Prison

The Old Capitol, built about 1800 as a tavern or boarding house, failed shortly before the war of 1812. After the British burned the capitol, Congress leased this building (on 8 December 1815), and met in it until the capitol was rebuilt in 1825. It was then a boarding house, a school, etc., until the Civil War.(9a) Because the Old Capitol Prison was not separated from the city, and citizens had access to the surrounding streets, which windows in the prison rooms overlooked, messages could conceivably be passed between prisoners and passers-by. The guards, therefore, questioned and sometimes arrested passers-by who acknowledged the prisoners in any way (for example, by bowing or waving), and prisoners were not allowed to react to passers-by:

Room No. 16 faces the east front of the Capitol, and by standing or sitting back a short distance from the window we can look out and see the passers-by. No persons, however, are allowed to show any signs of recognition. If a person is seen loitering in passing the prison, or walking at a pace not considered satisfactory by the guard, he soon receives a peremptory command to "pass on," or, "Hurry up, there," and if this warning is not heeded the offending person, whether male or female, is arrested and detained. [Williamson, pp.26-27](9b)

Doster records one amusing incident. One day, he released D M Dietz, who had been arrested for waving her handkerchief to an acquaintance as she passed the Old Capitol. Later that day, he learned that she was a southern courier, whom they had been attempting to arrest when she picked up her mail around 13th Street and New York Avenue! She escaped then, but was arrested in Washington later. (pp.95-97)

The shooting

According to a newspaper report, on 19 April 1862, the 91st and other troops assigned to defend Washington were involved in a surprise exercise to test their readiness. The alarm was sounded when the "troops were all closely tented", on a stormy night. The 91st, which was encamped behind Capitol Hill, arrived at the Long Bridge (about 1.5 miles away) in thirty minutes. An inspection report gives a different picture. It claims that the Secretary of War gave the order, which General Wadsworth wasn't able to convince him to revoke. General Wadsworth issued his orders at 4 PM, and the forces (including the 91st) were assembled by 9.30 PM. The 91st arrived at 7.30, with 560 men, armed with muskets, and with sufficient ammunition (unlike some of the other troops).(16)

In any event, according to one newspaper report, the prisoners in the Old Capitol Prison believed that the Confederate Army was on the other side of the Potomac River, and that they would soon be rescued. This story claims that "they became very insolent to the guards, and could scarcely be kept in subjection", with one female prisoner being "far worse than her male companions".(17)

One rule intended to stop communication prohibited prisoners from standing near the windows (or perhaps from putting their body or head out of the window). On 20 April 1862, while company C of the 91st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was guarding Old Capitol Prison, Jesse Wharton apparently was violating the rule against standing near the windows, and uttering a tirade against the government.(7) Ambrose Baker, who was the guard(14), warned him to stop, and he and Wharton had "a wordy altercation".(13) After the warning, Wharton resumed the tirade.(9) Baker called the corporal of the guard, who ordered him to shoot Wharton if Wharton again violated the rule.(15) At some point (either before or after initially withdrawing from the window), Wharton bared his breast and said something about the sentry's being too cowardly to shoot.(18) Wharton, apparently not believing that he would be shot, again broke the rule, and Baker shot him (either the arm and chest or in the head).

Wharton apparently survived until about 3 AM of the next day, with his wife and sisters present when he died.(10)

He was buried in St John's Episcopal graveyard in Hagerstown, Maryland.(8)

The aftermath

The sentry, and the corporal who had ordered him to shoot, were themselves arrested, and held in the Central Guard House.(11) Weeks later, Major Todd, of the 91st, carried a petition to Abraham Lincoln. They were freed on the same day.(12)

Perhaps Captain Lentz was ordered on 4 May 1862 to report to the Old Capitol Prison with company E, four days cooked rations, and all their camp equippage, because of the shooting.

At least two books opposed to Lincoln and published during the war mention Wharton's shooting (unsurprisingly calling it a "murder"), and several books published after the war repeat this description.

bibliography

about the shooting

'Melancholy affair at the Old Capitol Prison', The Sun (Baltimore MD), 22 April 1862, page [4].

[Report from Washington] North American and United States Gazette (Philadelphia PA), 21 April 1862

'By magnetic telegraph'. North American and United States Gazette (Philadelphia PA), 22 April 1862

'Rebel prisoner shot'. The Daily Cleveland Herald (Cleveland OH), 23 April 1862

'Shocking transaction'. Daily National Intelligencer (Washington DC) 23 April 1862

'The homicide at the Capitol Prison'. Daily National Intelligencer (Washington DC), 29 April 1862

Central Guard House, prisoner list, National Archives, Record Group 393, entry 2086, volume 313, page 294

'List of prisoners confined in the Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D. C., March 17, 1862', in Official Records series 2 volume 2 page 271.

'List of prisoners received at the Old Capitol Prison other than prisoners of war since the 1st of March, 1861', in Official Records series 2 volume 2 page 237.

'List of prisoners examined by the commission relating to political prisoners and how disposed of', in Official records series 2 volume 2 page 277.

Greenhow, Rose O'Neal. My imprisonment and the first year of abolition rule at Washington. London: Richard Bentley, 1863. Page 286.

Keller, S. Roger. Events of the Civil War in Washington County, Maryland. Shippensburg, PA: Burd Street Press, 1995. Page 64. (Unfortunately, two of the three sources cited in footnote 43 don't mention Wharton ["The Diary of James B Smith" p.24, in Emily Leatherman, Hancock, and Herbert H Harwood, Impossible Challenge--The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in Maryland, p.78). The third source is the Washington County Cemetery Records (vol.7 p.453), which I have not yet examined.)

Mahony, D A. The prisoner of state. New York: Carleton, Publisher, 1863. Pages 301-303.

Marshall, John A. American Bastile. Philadelphia: Thomas W Hartley, 1869. [This seems to be derivative of Mahony's account.]

Walter, Thomas. 'Personal recollections and experiences of an obscure soldier'. Grand Army Scout and Soldiers' Mail v.3 #35 p.2.

Watson, P H (Assistant Secretary of War). Letter, 23 April 1862, to Representative Charles B Calvert, in Official records series 2 volume 3 page 271.

Williamson, James J. Prison life in the old capitol, and reminiscences of the Civil War. West Orange, NJ: [?], 1911. Pages 35-36 describe the shooting (at second-hand), and page 131 mentions it.

about Jesse Wharton

"Mason family genealogy", http://gunstonhall.org, searched 5 June 2003.

"My Virginia, D.C., Pennsylvania, New Jersey Genealogies", a gedcom, on www.rootsweb.com, from pifox@shentel.net, searched 5 June 2003.

Callcott, George H. A history of the University of Maryland. Baltimore, MD: Maryland Historical Society, 1966. [mentions John O Wharton on pages 137, 139, 141, 149, 150, and 163]

Clarke, Asia Booth. John Wilkes Booth: A sister's memoir. Edited by Terry Alford. Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 1996. [mentions Jesse Wharton on pp.55-56]

Heitman, Francis B. Historical register and dictionary of the United States Army, from its organization, September 29, 1789, to March 2, 1903. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1903. [mentions Jesse B Wharton on page 1022]

"Maryland marriages 1777-1899". Searched on <www.ancestry.com>, 21 February 2001. [Includes John O Wharton, but not Jesse]

1840 US census, Maryland, Washington County, Clear Sp, page 173 (John O Wharton).

1850 US census, Maryland, Washington County, Hagerstown, pages 140 line 39 to 141 line 8 (John O Wharton).

1850 US census, Maryland, Montgomery County, Cracklin County, p.319 line 9 (Jesse B Wharton) (household extends from page 318 line 30 to page 319 line 11).

1860 US census, Maryland, Prince George County, Beltsville District, page 371, line 32, to page 372, line 5 (John O Wharton)

[The published indexes to the 1860 Maryland (excluding Baltimore) and Washington DC censuses do not have a Jesse B Wharton. The closest matches I have found are J B Waran (DC, 3rd ward, p.751), and J Whartone (Cecil Cty MD, 2 Dist, p.175). However, his statement indicates he was in the Nevada Territory; I will check the 1860 Utah Territory census.]

National Archives. State Department Records. Civil War papers. from entries 962 [Proceedings of the commission relating to state prisoners. 1862] and 963 [Correspondence regarding prisoners of war. 1861-62]. Includes a statement by Lieut John G Hovey (Provost Marshall, Williamsport MD) summarizing the evidence against Wharton, a statement by Wharton, 4 January 1862, two lists of prisoners, including Jesse Wharton, and material relating to the Commission on state prisoners.

'Military affairs at Williamsport'. Baltimore American and Commercial Advertiser, 24 December 1861.

court-martial record. National Archives, Record Group 153 (Records of the Judge Advocate General (Army)), Entry 15 A (Court-martial files), entry 15A

'Army Intelligence' [re the court-martial of Charles J Lynde], The New York Herald, 12 September 1859, page 8

'John Wilkes Booth: his school-day dreams and constant study--his thoughts of greatness' [mentions an incident involving Wharton]. Georgia Weekly Telegraph, Journal & Messenger (Macon, GA), 31 March 1882

about Old Capitol Prison

Doster, William E. Lincoln and episodes of the civil war. New York: G P Putnam's Sons, 1915. Chapter 3: 'Old Capitol and Carrol Prisons' (pages 74-111). (He refers to the Old Capitol Prison on other pages, too.) Hartford Conn: Hartford Publishing Co., 1867.

Ellis, John B. The sights and secrets of the national capital: a work descriptive of Washington city in all its various phases. New York: United States Publishing Co., 1869. (Pages 59, 438-441) (available in the Making of America).

Williamson, James J. Prison life in the Old Capitol and reminiscences of the Civil War. Illustrations by B F Williamson. West Orange, NJ: [no publisher], 1911.

Sources not yet checked

The David Rankin Barbee Papers at the Lauinger Library, Georgetown University, include a folder of transcribed material about the shooting of Jesse Wharton (Box 5 Folder 257), which I have not yet seen, and which can't be photocopied because of its fragility.

Thomas John Chew Williams. A history of Washington County, Maryland, from the earliest settlements to the present time: including a history of Hagerstown; to this is added a biographical record of representative families prepared from data obtained from original sources of investigation. Hagerstown: [no name], 1906. Reprinted Baltimore: Regional Pub. Co., 1968. 2 vols. [available from the Family History Library, film 1036572]

Maryland. Orphan's Court (Washington County). Probate records (1777-1918); wills index (1777-1850) [available from the Family History Library, various films, including Wills Liber E-F, 1850-74 (1299263)]

Coral Gordon, compiler, and Samuel Webster Piper. Washington County Maryland cemetery records. [available from the Family History Library, film 1035746 items 5-7]

Dale Walton Morrow and Deborah Sue Jensen. Wills of Washington County Maryland, an index 1776-1890. [available from the Family History Library fiche 6088498]

[various church and cemetery records are also available from the Family History Library]

Endnotes

1a. The only references to his middle name I have are from "Descendents of George Mason" and "Our Virginia ... genealogies". He signed his name "JB Wharton" (statement, 4 Jan 1862). Most other sources have Jesse B Wharton, including Heitman's Historical register, three prisoner lists (February 1862, March 1862, and prisoners examined by the commission), and the 1850 Maryland census. Second-hand accounts by two later prisoners (Williamson, Mahony) give his name as Jesse W Wharton.

1b. He mentions his place of birth in his 4 January 1862 statement. The evidence for Jesse's parents is indirect. According to Williamson, Wharton was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old when he was shot in 1862, and his father was "Professor Wharton, of Prince George County," Maryland. Mahony adds that Professor Wharton was a professor of Agricultural Chemistry. A history of the University of Maryland identifies John O Wharton as a founder (p.137), the first employee ("registrar", p.141), and a faculty member (p.163) of the Maryland Agricultural College (which eventually became the University of Maryland at College Park). This is presumably the John O Wharton in the 1860 census, in Prince George County, living with Elizabeth (21), Sarah (20), and William (16). He matches the John O Wharton in Hagerstown, Washington County in the 1850 Maryland census. Although no Jesse Wharton is living with them, a Jesse B Wharton, in Montgomery County, 15 years old, a student, living with Elisha J Hall (a teacher), and in John O Wharton's household the Wharton children in John Wharton's household are 20, 17, 13, 11, and 7, which leaves a gap for the fifteen-year-old Jesse. Finally, the 1840 census has an entry for John O Wharton in Washington County, with a male child under 5; none of the children living with John Wharton in the 1850 census match that age range. Note that in 1850 Elizabeth Wharton was 45 years old, but the 1840 census includes no white females 30 and under 40 in John O Wharton's household. Perhaps the 1840 or 1850 census-taker made a mistake or was told the wrong age, or the 1840 and 1850 John O Wharton's are different people. Wharton also claimed he was 27 years old on 4 January 1862 (statement).

1c. Database of Maryland marriages 1777-1899 at <www.ancestry.com>. Elizabeth's full name comes from two GEDCOMs on <www.rootsweb.com> (searched 7 November 2001). One was submitted by Bernadine Smith, last updated 1 November 2001, at http://worldconnect.rootsweb.c om/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:1634092. The second was submitted by Lynn Bloomfield, last updated 25 August 2001, at http://worldconnect.rootsweb.co m/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:491827.

1d. The names and ages come from the 1850 census; the only children living with John and Elizabeth in the 1860 census are Sarah and William. John Wharton's household in the 1840 census is consistent with this. According to the 1850 census, Mary was born in Tennessee, about 1830; the other children were born in Maryland. This may suggest they moved from Tennessee to Maryland between 1832 and 1836. However, census records are notoriously unreliable. According to "Descendents of George Mason" and "Our Virginia ... genealogies", their children were John, Jesse Barnes, Elizabeth, Sarah, William Fitzhugh, and Mary Armistead Wharton (b. 1830).

2a. In 1850, Jesse B Wharton was living in Montgomery County, 15 years old, a student, with Elisha J Hall (a teacher).

2b. E-mail, Terry Alford to Harry Ide. Asia Booth Clarke, John Wilkes Booth: A sister's memoir, edited by Terry Alford (Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 1996), pp.55-56 (Wharton). She describes him there as a "schoolmate from Catonsville" (p.55), without mentioning the school, but on p.44 says that Booth went to St Timothy's Academy, Catonsville, and mentions no other school at Catonsville that Booth went to. See Jesse Wharton--school stories. For more on St Timothy's, see Michael W Kauffman, American Brutus (New York: Random House, 2004), pages 90-91. (He cites Erick F Davis, "Saint Timothy's Hall", History Trails (Baltimore County Historical Society newsletter) 11, no.3 (Spring 1977): 14.)

3a. A history of the University of Maryland mentions John O Wharton as a founder (p.137), the first employee ("registrar", p.141), and a faculty member (p.163) of the Maryland Agricultural College (which eventually became the University of Maryland at College Park).
'The homicide at the Capitol Prison'

3b. 1860 census. See also 'The homicide at the Capitol Prison'.

3c. 'Descendants of George Mason', and 'Our Virginia ... genealogies'. Wharton later claimed that he returned to Maryland in 1861 because of her death; perhaps he hadn't heard of it before then.

4a. Heitman. Also, the New York Daily Times reprinted War Department, Adjutant General's Office, General Orders No. 10, 19 July 1855 (printed 30 July 1855, page 6): "SEVENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY.-- ... Jesse B. Wharton, of Maryland, to be Second Lieutenant, June 30, 1855. ..." And the New York Times: "Among the recent appointments to the Army from civil life, are the following: ... Second Lieutenants-- ... Jesse B. Wharton, Maryland: ..." (in "Latest Intelligence", 27 July 1855, page 4).

4b. E-mail, from Curtis R Allen, to Harry A Ide, 28 January 2001. His e-mail address is Pres1947@aol.com.

4c. Heitman. Mahony mentions his service, and claims he resigned when the war broke out.

4d. court martial record, Jesse B Wharton. He was charged with being drunk while on duty these two times, and pled guilty to the charges.

4e. court martial record, Jesse B Wharton.

4f. court martial record, Jesse B Wharton. See also Court-martial. Letter from the Secretary of War, in response to resolution of the House of Representatives of January 9, 1884. February 26, 1884--ordered to be printed. Serial Set volume 2206, session volume 26, 48th Congress, 1st session, House Executive Document number 104, pages 3, 13-14.

4g. 'Army Intelligence' [re the court-martial of Charles J Lynde], The New York Herald, 12 September 1859, page 8

5a. Statement, JB Wharton, 4 January 1862.

5b. Statement, JB Wharton, 4 January 1862.

5c. Statement, JB Wharton, 4 January 1862. Mahony (who says that his wife was young). His wife's name: 'Descendants of George Mason', and 'Our Virginia ... genealogies'.

5d. 'Military affairs at Williamsport'.

6a. Two records reprinted in the Official records give this as the date and cause of his arrest ('List of prisoners confined in the Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D. C., March 17, 1862', Official Records series 2 volume 2 page 271; 'List of prisoners examined by the commission relating to political prisoners and how disposed of', Official records series 2 volume 2 page 277). His statement gives 22 December as the date of his arrest.
According to an earlier list, which accompanies a letter dated 19 February 1862, he was arrested on 1 January 1862 (Official Records series 2 volume 2 page 237). According to Mahony, he was arrested to prevent his going south after he had resigned a commission in the federal army. According to Keller p.64, he was arrested 'as a "traitor"' and held "until he took the oath to the Federal government, which he refused". 'Military affairs at Williamsport' reports the arresting Colonel's name.

6b. See various reports of the operations. The Canal Company had recently replaced the brush and rubble Dam 5 with a masonry dam, because low water had repeatedly suspended traffic. (Almost immediately after contracts were let, in January 1857, four floods did serious damage. The first took out 500 feet of Dam 5.) [Walter S Sanderlin, 'The Great National Project: A history of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal'. The John Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science volume 64 (1946) 1-332. Pages 210-211 briefly describe the reconstruction and flood damage to dams 4 and 5, and pages 212-220 describe the damage done to the Canal Company during the Civil War.]

6c. statement, 4 January 1862, JB Wharton. See also the prisoners lists mentioned in note 6a.

6d. 'Military affairs at Williamsport'.

7a. [summary of evidence against Jesse Wharton], by Lieutenant John G Hovey.

7b. At least five other people were sent to Old Capitol Prison by General Banks on 1 January 1862 [prisoner list]. Examining the reasons for their arrest might be interesting.

7c. 'Military affairs at Williamsport'.

8a. statement, by JB Wharton, 4 January 1862.

9a. Ellis summarizes the history.

9b. Williamson describes 8 incidents in which guards reacted to passers-by (2 incidents on p.27, another two on pp.32-33, one each on pages 38, 68, 76, and 78). He also reports that a prisoner was taken to the guard house for singing at a window (page 78), that they were ordered to stay away from the window (p.35), and that all the prisoners in room 15 were confined to their room and put on a bread and water diet because one of them threw a piece of bread out the window (page 69). Another is mentioned in Vanity Fair, page 279, 7 June 1862 (available on The Making of America).

7. The evidence for the date is inconsistent:

8. Personal communication, Terry L. Alford <talford@nv.cc.va.us>. Keller p.64. [unnamed article], Village Record [Waynesboro PA] 25 April 1862, p.2.

9. According to Walter, Wharton cursed and dared the guard to fire on him, and after being warned that he would be shot, began a second tirade against the government. Greenhow claims Wharton was simply singing. Williamson and Mahony don't refer to Wharton's saying anything. All three accounts agree that Wharton was shot after he had been warned, but Williamson and Mahony emphasize that Wharton was not breaking any prison rules, and therefore believed he would not be shot. See also 'Melancholy affair at the Old Capitol Prison' (The Sun (Baltimore MD), 22 April 1862, page [4]).

10. Walter claims that he died within a few minutes. According to an untitled article in the Waynesboro PA Village Record, he died about 3 PM. According to Williamson and Mahony, he survived for seven or eight hours. Mahony claims that his wife and two sisters were with him when he died. See also 'Melancholy affair at the Old Capitol Prison' (The Sun (Baltimore MD), 22 April 1862, page [4]).

11. Walter claims that they were arrested a few days later. Ambrose Baker was imprisoned on 13 May 1862, three weeks after the latest possible date for the shooting (Central Guard House records). An [unnamed article] in the Waynesboro PA Village Record claims Baker was immediately arrested.

12. Walter's description is the only report I have yet found of this.

13. 'Melancholy affair at the Old Capitol Prison' (The Sun (Baltimore MD), 22 April 1862, page [4]).

14. Ambrose Baker was the guard according to 'Melancholy affair at the Old Capitol Prison' (The Sun (Baltimore MD), 22 April 1862, page [4]). According to one account by a later prisoner (Mahony), the soldier who shot Wharton was "Harrison Baker"; the modern discussion in Keller p.64 also cites Ambrose Baker as the guard. Mahony also reports that Baker was later promoted; Walter's account reports that the sentry was in Company C. (Ambrose Baker served in Company C, who was later promoted, and no Harrison Baker served in the 91st.) This seems to be confirmed by the fact that a register of prisoners at the Central Guard House lists Ambrose Baker as imprisoned on 13 May 1862.

15. According to Mahony (a later prisoner), the officer in charge of the guard, who ordered Wharton shot, was "Lieutenant Mulligan". Perhaps this was Lieutenant William R Milligan, of Company K. However, according to Walter, a corporal of company A was in charge of the guard. According to an article in the Waynesoboro PA Village Record, Wharton accused Lieutenant Milligan, but Baker said that the corporal of the guard had ordered him to shoot Wharton.

16. [Report from Washington] North American and United States Gazette (Philadelphia PA), 21 April 1862. [inspection report], in Official Records series 1 volume 15 pave 225-226 (from the Records of the McDowell Court of Inquiry, 45th day).

17. [Report from Washington] North American and United States Gazette (Philadelphia PA), 21 April 1862. This report connects these problems to Wharton's death.

18. bared breast just before being shot: 'Rebel prisoner shot'. The Daily Cleveland Herald (Cleveland OH), 23 April 1862, and 'Shocking transaction'. Daily National Intelligencer (Washington DC) 23 April 1862.
bared breast before withdrawing from the window: 'The homicide at the Capitol Prison'. Daily National Intelligencer (Washington DC), 29 April 1862

19. 'John Wilkes Booth: his school-day dreams and constant study--his thoughts of greatness'.

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