THE INQUEST OF DANIEL E. HASTINGS, 1867
Sutterville, California
His son George indicated Daniel was the brother of Lansford [Warren]
Hastings.
Quoted from an old newspaper clipping.
Coroner's Inquest.--Coroner Coubole held an inquest yesterday at
Sutterville over the body of Daniel E. Hastings. A jury numbering six
men, consisting of H. Sherburne, C.H. Bishop, Martin Arentz, R. H.
Byers, S.M. Lincoln, and A. G. Silva was impaneled and the following
testimony was adduced[?]:
Frank Davis sworn--I keep a saloon at the ferry at Sutterville;
recognize the body before the jury as that of Daniel E. Hastings, a
native of Ohio, aged 38 years; was present when he was accidentaly shot
this afternoon; about one o'clock this afternoon Hastings was passing by
my saloon and was called in to take a drink by Alexander McGowan, who
was rather drunk at the time; Hastings came in and took a drink; Tilden
then came in, and McGowan insisted on his drinking; he did so; Tilden
and Hastings then sat down together and were talking about something;
McGowan asked them two or three times to drink; they refused; McGowan
then went to Hastings and took hold of him to pull him to the bar, the
same as a drunken man will do sometimes; just as McGowan took hold of
Hastings and pulled him forward from the seat on which he was sitting,
the gun went off, shooting him in the neck; he fell forward on the
floor, dead; suppose the hammer of the gun caught under the edge of his
chair and when Hastings went forward the hammer was pulled back a little
and then fell with force enough to explode the cap.
J. W. Tilden sworn-- I reside in Sutterville, opposite to Davis' saloon;
I was in Davis' saloon this afternoon about one o'clock; Hastings, Davis
(who keeps the saloon), McGowan (who was drunk) and myself were in the
saloon; I was sitting beside Hastings, talking to him on some matter of
business, when McGowan took hold of Hastings to bring him up forcibly to
the bar to drink, when Hastings' gun went off, he was holding the gun
between his knees, with the butt resting on the floor, one hand holding
the barrel; McGowan pulled Hastings forward; the gun went off at the
same moment, the shot taking effect in his neck, under the right side of
the chin, ranging upward, taking away a large portion of the neck,
breaking the lower jaw, and tearing out several teeth, the whole charge
lodging in his head; Hastings fell forward on the floor and never moved
afterward; I was quite stunned by the explosion and it was some seconds
before I could realize what had happened; I then ran out to get a
messenger to go for a doctor; when I came in again I saw that the man
was dead, so I did not send for the doctor, but sent for the Coroner;
McGowan asked us to drink several times, which we refused to do; he then
came to Hastings to pull him up by force; while doing so, the gun
exploded; McGowan did not seem to realize the occurrance of the
accident; he went out soon after and laid down beside of the house and
went to sleep.
The jury rendered a verdict that the deceased was a native of Ohio, aged
thirty-eight years, and that he died in this county the 1st day of
September, 1867; his death was caused by being accidently shot by a
shotgun held in his own hand, he being seated in the saloon of Frank
Davis, of Sutterville; Alexander McGowan pulled him forward from his
chair, the gun exploding at the same moment, killing him instantly, in a
manner most unfortunate, but entirely accidental.
[Note: My research shows that Daniel Hastings was not the brother of Lansford Warren Hastings; but, in fact, was his nephew, probably a son of Ephraim Hastings of Parkertown, OH.]
From a Sandusky, OH newspaper clipping which was saved by Mrs. Lionel Hastings of Maple Rapids, MI [James Hannum Hastings was Lionel's uncle]
BORN UNDER A
BAD LUCK STAR
MANY MEMBERS OF HASTINGS
FAMILY MEET DEATH BY
VIOLENCE
(Special To The News.)
CHARLOTTE [Michigan]
, April 18.[Year unknown] – The slay-
ing of Mrs. Charles Hastings, Jr., by
her husband and his subsequent sui-
cide in Eaton township Tuesday, re-
calls the fact that the Hastings family
for a number of years has been pur-
sued by a "jinx."
Older residents remember how,
some 30 years ago, Nathan Hastings,
the young man’s grandfather, a well-
known and respected farmer, through
a fit of anger, lost his life by the shot-
gun route.
Charles Hastings, Sr., father of the
boy now awaiting burial at Eaton
Rapids, started out hunting early one
morning with a muzzle-loaded shot-
gun. He had hardly left the house
when his father, provoked by the
actions of his son, rushed out, grabbed
the weapon from his hands and
smashed the stock across a log.
The gun was discharged as he did
so, the lead making a frightful wound
in the groin of Nathan Hastings, who
bled to death before medical assist-
ance could be secured.
It is also related that Waite Hast-
ings, an uncle of the deceased boy,
and a son of old Nathan Hastings, a
few years later and in the same sec-
tion of the township, took his own life
in a fit of despondency.
Note: The Waite Hastings that committed suicide was actually the brother of Nathan Hastings. He had escaped from a Southern prisoner of war camp, but his physical & mental health were damaged by his ordeal.
SLAYS HIS WIFE
AND KILLS SELF
Young Farmer Ends It All With
Fowling Piece
HE WAS PROBABLY INSANE
Couple Had Been Married But Few
Months and Wife Was Mere Girl –
Employer Discovers Bodies
(Special to the News.)
CHARLOTTE [Michigan]
, April 16 [Year unknown] – Charles
Hastings, Jr., 21 years old, Eaton
Township farmer, murdered his wife
and killed himself Tuesday. The
young couple, who were married last
fall, moved in with Harvey Hotchkin
about two weeks ago, and the bodies
were discovered by Hotchkin when he
returned from his work after dusk
last night.
The wife, a mere girl barely past
18 [?], was lying on the floor with a gun-
shot wound at the back of the head.
Hastings, after removing the dis-
charged shell from the shotgun he
used, placed the same weapon under
his chin and, in both cases, death was
instantaneous, according to the state-
ment of Dr. J. B. Bradley of Eaton
Rapids, who accompanied Under
Sheriff Hall to the scene of the double
tragedy.
Had Acted Strangely.
Neighbors say young Hastings had
been acting strangely; in fact, a
farmer for whom he worked last sum-
mer, said he did not want him around
because he had been acting so queerly.
The girl and her father were both
married here last fall, the father and
his bride being on his farm between
Eaton Rapids and Dimondale where
young Hastings and his wife lived
until they moved in with Hotchkin.
Sheriff Stotts [?] and Dr. Knight hur-
ried to the scene, but the Eaton Rap-
ids officers had already arrived, and
Justice Collar impanelled a jury. The
bodies were removed to Eaton Rapids.
Information regarding the Michigan deaths obtained from G. Edward Schafer geschaf@worldnet.att.net
The article about Daniel Hastings of California was obtained from Carl Wilson.
Updated August 8, 2001
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