George Maledon. Judge Parker's Hangman

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George Maledon.

George Maledon (June 10, 1830 – June 5, 1911) was an American hangman nicknamed "The Prince of Hangmen", who served in the federal court of Judge Isaac Parker.

Early life ~

Maledon was born on June 10, 1830, in Germany. His family migrated to Detroit, Michigan while he was still a child. He moved to Fort Smith, Arkansas soon after his 18th birthday, and began working as a police officer. He held this position for many years. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he enlisted in the Arkansas Light Artillery, serving in the 1st Battalion.

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Blog Created: 11-26-2023

Last Updated: 11-28-2023

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Career ~

After the war's end, Maledon returned to Fort Smith, where he began working as a night guard in the Federal jail. Records indicate that Maledon supervised executions from the mid-1880s until 1891, and then again in 1894. Maledon carried dual revolvers around and who ever tried to escape was killed by his gun. Maledon was not the only jailer who participated in the executions. Contemporary newspaper accounts mention other jailers as well.

In popular culture ~

Remembered today as the "prince of Hangmen," George Maledon's actual work at Fort Smith is much more difficult to document. He stopped working for the federal court in 1894, and began traveling the area with a tent display showing gallows relics, including nooses and photographs of the men who died on the gallows. The 1899 publication of "Hell on the Border" documented Maledon's ties to the executions of the Federal Court, and first bestowed the title of "prince of hangmen."

Death ~

In 1905, in failing health, Maledon entered an "Old Soldiers Home" in Humboldt, Tennessee. Maledon died in 1911, just shy of his 81st birthday, of natural causes. He is buried in the Johnson City Cemetery.

George Maledon – Prince of Hangmen

From: Legends of America

By Kathy Alexander, Legends of America, updated November 2022.

George Maledon earned the moniker of the Prince of Hangmen while serving as Judge Isaac Parker’s chief executioner during the lawless days when Parker served as judge of the Federal Court for the Western District of Arkansas.

Born in Germany on June 10, 1830, Maledon migrated with his parents to Detroit, Michigan, when he was still a child. When he grew up, he headed westward, where he worked as a Fort Smith, Arkansas, police officer. When the Civil War broke out, he enlisted in the Arkansas Light Artillery, serving in its 1st Battalion.

Maledon, a diminutive man standing at just about five and a half feet, was described as a “whispy” little fellow with dark eyes and hair, a fair complexion, and a long beard. Quiet in nature, he rarely smiled and was almost always dressed in black, an “appearance” that would soon seem appropriate to his new profession.

After the war, Maledon returned to Fort Smith, where he worked as a deputy sheriff before being hired as a turnkey at the federal jail in May 1871. The next year, he was appointed as a “special deputy” in charge of executing the condemned prisoners.

For the next 22 years, he would execute more than 60 criminals and be forced to shoot five prisoners during escape attempts, two of which were killed. In no time, he was given the title of the “Prince of the Hangmen” by the local newspaper – the Fort Smith Elevator, which was only too happy to publish every morbid detail of Maledon’s handiwork for the “entertainment” of its readers.

For three years, between 1873 and 1876, these executions upon the gallows were made public, drawing thousands of people from the surrounding areas and sometimes from across the nation. During this time, a total of 22 men were hanged in seven different public displays. As the morbid gawkers gathered around the 20-foot wide scaffold, where as many a twelve men could be hanged at one time, the question was not “who was going to be hanged first,” but rather, “would they be executed at the same time?”

On September 3, 1875, the largest group ever to be executed at once occurred when Maledon hanged six men. The scheduled event had been widely publicized in the media, and a week before the execution was to occur, the city began to fill up with strangers from all over the country. Reporters from Little Rock, St. Louis, and Kansas City flocked to Fort Smith, as well as newspapermen who traveled far from eastern and northern cities to catch the “scoop.” By the time the event was to take place, more than 5,000 people watched as the six men were marched from the jail to the gallows.

Of the six felons, three were white, two were Native American, and one was black. Seated along the back of the gallows, their death warrants were read to them, and each was asked if they had any last words. When the preliminaries were over, the six were lined up on the scaffold while executioner George Maledon adjusted the nooses around their necks. The trap was sprung and all six died at once at the end of the ropes.

The Fort Smith Independent was the first newspaper to report the event on September 3, 1875, with the large column heading reading: “Execution Day!!”

Other newspapers around the country reported the event a day later. These press reports shocked people throughout the nation. “Cool Destruction of Six Human Lives by Legal Process” screamed the headlines.

This event earned Judge Isaac Parker the nickname “The Hanging Judge” and called his court the “Court of the Damned.”

Ironically, though the public flocked to watch these gruesome displays, Maledon was shunned by the community, as the townsfolk were afraid to associate with the “Prince of Hangmen.”

However, one man was morbidly attracted to Maledon’s occupation – Heck Thomas. On one occasion, while Thomas was at Fort Smith, he asked Maledon for all the particulars when the executioner proudly displayed a collection of leg irons, straps, and ropes that were actually utilized in some of the hangings.

When showing Thomas one rope that had been used in eleven hangings, Maledon commented: “It is made of the finest hemp fiber, hand made in St. Louis and treated to keep it from slipping.”

When Thomas questioned him about the type of knot that Maledon used for the executions, George, seemingly pleased to show off his expertise, said:

“You see, a big knot is necessary to have a humane hanging. If it doesn’t break the man’s neck when he drops, he strangles. That isn’t a pretty sight. He just kicks and twists a lot.”

But for the curious onlookers, these public events would be short-lived. In 1878, a 16-foot tall fence was built around the gallows, and the executions became “private affairs,” usually having less than 50 spectators.

The only execution that Maledon refused to carry out was that of Sheppard Busby, a U.S. Deputy Marshal, who had been convicted of killing another marshal by the name of Barney Conneley, when Busby tried to arrest Conneley for adultery. Maledon, who had had many associations with Busby in the past, refused to carry out his duty in this one instance, and Deputy G. S. White performed the execution.

After more than two decades carrying out these gruesome tasks, Maledon retired from the federal court in 1894 and opened a grocery business in Fort Smith. But he was yet to face one of his most difficult life situations when the next year, his 18-year-old daughter, Annie, was murdered by Frank Carver. Annie met Carver in Fort Smith while he was in Fort Smith being tried on whiskey charges. The two soon began a short love affair which led to her following him to Muskogee, Oklahoma, where the young girl was surprised to find that Carver was already married to an Indian woman. When the two entered into a heated argument on March 25, 1885, a drunken Carver shot the girl. She was seriously wounded and taken back to Fort Smith, where she died three weeks later, on May 17.

Finding himself before Judge Isaac Parker, Carver was found guilty of murder and sentenced to hang. However, Carver hired a fancy lawyer, who soon appealed the case to the Supreme Court, and the sentence was changed to life in prison.

George Maledon was so disgusted by the decision that he left Fort Smith and took a “show” on the road where he displayed relics from hangings, including ropes, pieces of the gallows’ beam, and photographs of some of the nation’s most notorious outlaws. Setting up a tent in various cities, hundreds of people flocked to the show to hear Maledon speak and view the gruesome displays.

Just before he left Fort Smith, Maledon was asked if his conscience ever bothered him about the hangings or if he feared the spirits of the departed. To this, he replied, “No, I have never hanged a man who came back to have the job done over.”

By 1905, Maledon’s health was seriously failing, and he entered an old soldier home in Humboldt, Tennessee, where he spent the remainder of his days. Though some sources say he died June 5, 1911, just shy of his 81st birthday, according to government records and other reliable sources, Maledon died on May 6, 1911, and was buried at the Johnson City Cemetery.

Maledon has the dubious honor of executing more men than any other executioner in U.S. history.

The final execution in Fort Smith occurred on July 30, 1896. Eleven and a half months later, the original gallows were demolished, and the debris completely burned. However, a new gallows was reconstructed at the original site in 1981 as part of the Fort Smith National Historic Site. The site also includes the barracks, courthouse, commissary, jail building, and a visitor’s center that focuses both on Fort Smith’s military history and the years it served as the federal court.

George Maledon's .44 revolver. Sold at auction. Winning bid amount unknown.

George Maledon's .44 revolver.

George wearing the .44.

Double Action Revolver.

Double action revolver (From icollector.com)

Colt Double Action Revolver- .45- 7.5" Barrel- Marked " To George Maledon Deputy US Marshall For The Pride You Take In Your Work- Judge Parker"- "The Hanging Judge"- #3 On Bottom Of Grips Frame- Fair Condition- #279 On Frame Under Grips- #748 On Rear Of Cylinder.

Sold at auction for $3,000.

Inscribed to Maledon from Judge Parker.

George wearing the gun.

Another revolver owned by Maldeon. An 1860s Navy issue .36 caliber with it's holster.

Colt Model 1851 Navy Revolver Inscribed to George Maledon, Deputy Sheriff, Fort Smith, Arkansas

Firearms and Militaria: Live Salesroom Auction

36 caliber, 7.5" octagonal barrel length, S/N 114206, matching. Marking on top of barrel "Address Col Saml Colt New-York U.S. America." Left side of frame is marked "Colts Patent." Inscription on the back of the backstrap "George Maledon" over "Deputy Sheriff Fort Smith Ark." Six-shot cylinder with attached loading lever. Case color frame, hammer and lever. Blue barrel with brass triggerguard and backstrap. One-piece walnut grips. Comes with leather "Slim Jim" style holster. A documented history also comes with this lot. "The Prince of Hangmen," George Maledon was the official hangman for the United States Court at Fort Smith, Arkansas from 1872 to 1894. Over the course of 22 years as the official hangman, George Maledon executed over 60 men at the gallows in the gaol yards at Fort Smith. He also shot 3 other men for trying to escape from jail. George was born on June 10, 1830 in Bavaria. In, 1831 George was brought to the United States with his family and settled in Detroit, Michigan. He was later trained as a machinist. Years later, in 1856, George moved to Fort Smith, Arkansas where he eventually was trained as an officer on the police force. On March 4, 1863, George enlisted in the 1st Battery, Arkansas Light Artillery as a Private. At the conclusion of the Civil War he returned to Fort Smith, Arkansas and was appointed to Deputy Sheriff. From 1870 to 1871 the United States Court was transferred from Van Buren to Fort Smith, Arkansas. George was later appointed as Deputy US Marshall. In 1872, a request was approved allowing him to become the special executioner for Judge Isaac C. Parker of the Federal Court for the Western District of Arkansas at Fort Smith. From 1872 to 1894, a 22-year career as an executioner, George hanged 60 men at Fort Smith. In 1894, he resigned as the executioner. After a brief time in the private sector, George toured the South-West as "The Prince of Hangmen" showing off his collection of nooses and other relics from his days as an executioner. In his later years, George was admitted to the Mountain Home, a home for Volunteer Soldiers. With his health declining, he died on May 6, 1911 of natural causes and was laid to rest at the Mountain Home National Cemetery in Tennessee. Condition: The barrel has a gray patina with minor salt and pepper pitting. The markings on the barrel are sharp and crisp. The frame, cylinder loading lever, hammer and trigger have a gray patina with minor salt and pepper pitting. The trigger guard and backstrap have a mustard patina with some wear. The inscription on the back is very sharp and crisp. Grips have normal nicks and dings from use. On the right side of grips is a period repair. Bore is pitted in the grooves. Strong rifling. Leather holster is good with wear at the top from pulling revolver in and out. Some cracking near the edges.

AUCTION:

4/29/15 - Firearms and Militaria: Live Salesroom Auction. DATUM: 29.04.2015. AUKTIONSHAUS: Cowan's Auctions, Inc., Este Ave 6270, Cincinnati OH 45232. Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika.4/29 - Firearms and Militaria: Live Salesroom Auction 29.04.2015. Winning bid: $6,600.

On of George Maledon's rope nooses on display.

Cherokee Bill. Outlaw.

Rufus Buck gang.

Rufus Buck wrote this letter to his family the night before his hanging on Maledon's gallows.

Known as the Three Guardsmen.

Judge Isaac Parker as a young man.

Judge Isaac Parker in his elder years.

Lawmen who worked with Parker.

Lawmen of Ft. Smith.

Oath of office card that were issued from Judge Parker and had to be signed by each lawman who worked for his court. Maledon would have signed one of these.