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{{Short description|American mass murderer}}
{{Short description|American mass murderer}}
{{Infobox mass murderer
{{Infobox mass murderer
| name = Will Reynolds
| name = Will Reynolds
| image =
| image =
| image_size =
| image_size =
| caption =
| caption =
| birth_name = William Reynolds
| birth_name = William Reynolds
| occupation = [[Brakeman]]
| occupation = [[Brakeman]]
| birth_date = ca. 1867
| birth_date = ca. 1867
| birth_place =
| birth_place =
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1902|04|06|1867}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1902|04|06|1867}}
| death_place = [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States
| death_place = [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States
| cause = Shot dead
| cause = Killed in [[shootout]] by local posse
| date = April 6, 1902
| date = April 6, 1902
| time =
| time =
| targets =
| targets =
| locations = [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States
| locations = [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States
| fatalities = 7
| fatalities = 7
| injuries = 2
| injuries = 2
| weapons = .45-caliber sixteen-shot [[Winchester rifle]]
| weapons = .45-caliber sixteen-shot [[Winchester rifle]]
| motive =
| motive =
}}
}}


'''William "Will,Willy" Reynolds''' was an American [[mass murder]]er who shot nine people, seven of them fatally, in [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States on April 6, 1902, before being shot dead himself.<ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D03E1D8103BE733A25754C0A9629C946397D6CF Desperado kills three], ''[[The New York Times]]'' (April 7, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9902E2DA1230E733A2575BC0A9629C946397D6CF&scp=43&sq=desperado+killed&st=p Three died from wounds], ''[[The New York Times]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courant/access/781529052.html?dids=781529052:781529052&FMT=CITE&FMTS=CITE:AI&type=historic&date=Apr+08%2C+1902&author=&pub=Hartford+Courant&desc=Three+of+the+Wounded+Dead&pqatl=google Three of the Wounded Dead], ''[[The Hartford Courant]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>Negro slays white men, ''[[The Racine Journal]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jhYsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ecgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=771%2C5645963 Death of late sheriff's wife spurs memory tragedy that rocked south], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (July 23, 1958)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1842&dat=19710624&id=2xgsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=18gEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1262,4562234 'Colbert's worst tragedy' occurred 70 years ago], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (June 24, 1971)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=93AfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iMgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3890%2C2537373 A job well-done], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (May 17, 1996)</ref>
'''William Reynolds''' was an African American railroad worker. He had no prior conviction before he shot nine members of a police posse, seven of them fatally, in [[Tuscumbia, Alabama]], United States on April 6, 1902, before being shot dead himself.<ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D03E1D8103BE733A25754C0A9629C946397D6CF Desperado kills three], ''[[The New York Times]]'' (April 7, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9902E2DA1230E733A2575BC0A9629C946397D6CF&scp=43&sq=desperado+killed&st=p Three died from wounds], ''[[The New York Times]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://www.proquest.com/docview/555054772 Three of the Wounded Dead], ''[[The Hartford Courant]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>Negro slays white men, ''[[The Racine Journal]]'' (April 8, 1902)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jhYsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ecgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=771%2C5645963 Death of late sheriff's wife spurs memory tragedy that rocked south], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (July 23, 1958)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1842&dat=19710624&id=2xgsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=18gEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1262,4562234 'Colbert's worst tragedy' occurred 70 years ago], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (June 24, 1971)</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=93AfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iMgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3890%2C2537373 A job well-done], ''[[TimesDaily]]'' (May 17, 1996)</ref>


Police arrived at Reynolds' home in Tuscumbia's [[Residential segregation in the United States|black neighborhood]] to arrest him on a charge of obtaining property under [[false pretenses]]. According to the ''[[Richmond Planet]]'', Reynolds opened fire immediately on the sheriff and deputy who came to the door, killing both. He barricaded himself in the house and a [[Posse comitatus|posse]] was assembled. In the ensuing gun battle, Reynolds killed five more white men, totaling seven.<ref name="richmond">{{cite news |title=Attack on William Reynolds by Tuscumbia sheriff burns two houses |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/18021972/attack-on-william-reynolds-by-tuscumbia/ |access-date=7 January 2023 |work=[[Richmond Planet]] |date=12 April 1902 |pages=1}}</ref> After four hours, the posse set fire to the house in which he was barricaded and, in attempting to escape, Reynolds was shot to death. The posse threw Reynolds remains in the fire.<ref name="desperado">{{cite news |title=Desperado Kills Five |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42807781/reynolds-2/ |access-date=7 January 2023 |work=[[The Montgomery Advertiser]] |date=8 April 1902 |pages=1}}</ref> A total of three houses were burned down.<ref name="richmond" />
⚫
With the sheriff and five deputies of the [[Colbert County, Alabama|Colbert County]] Sheriff's Department among those killed this was the deadliest incident in Alabama law enforcement history.<ref>[http://www.nleomf.org/facts/enforcement/deadliest.html Deadliest Days in Law Enforcement History], ''[[National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund]]''</ref>

⚫
With the sheriff and five deputies of the [[Colbert County, Alabama|Colbert County]] Sheriff's Department among those killed, this was the deadliest incident in Alabama law enforcement history.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20190104075409/http://www.nleomf.org/facts/enforcement/deadliest.html Deadliest Days in Law Enforcement History], ''[[National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund]]''</ref>

Racial tensions were high after the incident and, the following day in nearby [[Florence, Alabama]], a prominent white butcher was arrested for killing and butchering a black patron who praised Reynolds.<ref name="richmond" /><ref name="desperado" />


==Victims==
==Victims==
*Sheriff Charles Gassaway, {{age|1868|06|08|1902|04|07}}<ref name=ODMP>[http://www.odmp.org/officer/5327-sheriff-charles-gassaway?printview=1 Sheriff Charles Gassaway] at ''[[The Officer Down Memorial Page]]''</ref>
*Sheriff Charles Gassaway, {{age|1868|06|08|1902|04|07}}
*Deputy William Gassaway, brother of Charles Gassaway
*Deputy William Gassaway, brother of Charles Gassaway
*Deputy Jesse Davis
*Deputy Jesse Davis
Line 38: Line 42:


==See also==
==See also==
* [[List of rampage killers (Americas)]]
*[[List of rampage killers in the United States]]
*[[List of shootings in Alabama]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://murderpedia.org/male.R/r/reynolds-will.htm Murderpedia]


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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{{US-crime-bio-stub}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynolds, Will}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynolds, Will}}
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[[Category:1860s births]]
[[Category:1902 deaths]]
[[Category:1902 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Tuscumbia, Alabama]]
[[Category:1902 in Alabama]]
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[[Category:1902 murders in the United States]]
[[Category:20th-century American criminals]]
[[Category:African Americans shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States]]
[[Category:American mass murderers]]
[[Category:American mass murderers]]
[[Category:Deaths by firearm in Alabama]]
[[Category:Deaths by firearm in Alabama]]
[[Category:1902 in Alabama]]
[[Category:Law enforcement in Alabama]]
[[Category:Mass shootings in the United States]]
[[Category:Murder in Alabama]]
[[Category:Murder in Alabama]]
[[Category:Mass shootings in the United States]]
[[Category:People from Tuscumbia, Alabama]]
[[Category:Law enforcement in Alabama]]
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[[Category:1860s births]]
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[[Category:People shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing]]


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{{US-crime-bio-stub}}

Latest revision as of 17:39, 7 November 2024

Will Reynolds
Born
William Reynolds

ca. 1867
DiedApril 6, 1902(1902-04-06) (aged 34–35)
Tuscumbia, Alabama, United States
Cause of deathKilled in shootout by local posse
OccupationBrakeman
Details
DateApril 6, 1902
Location(s)Tuscumbia, Alabama, United States
Killed7
Injured2
Weapons.45-caliber sixteen-shot Winchester rifle

William Reynolds was an African American railroad worker. He had no prior conviction before he shot nine members of a police posse, seven of them fatally, in Tuscumbia, Alabama, United States on April 6, 1902, before being shot dead himself.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]

Police arrived at Reynolds' home in Tuscumbia's black neighborhood to arrest him on a charge of obtaining property under false pretenses. According to the Richmond Planet, Reynolds opened fire immediately on the sheriff and deputy who came to the door, killing both. He barricaded himself in the house and a posse was assembled. In the ensuing gun battle, Reynolds killed five more white men, totaling seven.[8] After four hours, the posse set fire to the house in which he was barricaded and, in attempting to escape, Reynolds was shot to death. The posse threw Reynolds remains in the fire.[9] A total of three houses were burned down.[8]

With the sheriff and five deputies of the Colbert County Sheriff's Department among those killed, this was the deadliest incident in Alabama law enforcement history.[10]

Racial tensions were high after the incident and, the following day in nearby Florence, Alabama, a prominent white butcher was arrested for killing and butchering a black patron who praised Reynolds.[8][9]

Victims

[edit]
  • Sheriff Charles Gassaway, 33
  • Deputy William Gassaway, brother of Charles Gassaway
  • Deputy Jesse Davis
  • Deputy James Payne
  • Deputy Pat A. Prout
  • Deputy Bob Wallace
  • Hugh Jones

Those wounded were: James Finney and Bob Patterson.[11]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Desperado kills three, The New York Times (April 7, 1902)
  2. ^ Three died from wounds, The New York Times (April 8, 1902)
  3. ^ Three of the Wounded Dead, The Hartford Courant (April 8, 1902)
  4. ^ Negro slays white men, The Racine Journal (April 8, 1902)
  5. ^ Death of late sheriff's wife spurs memory tragedy that rocked south, TimesDaily (July 23, 1958)
  6. ^ 'Colbert's worst tragedy' occurred 70 years ago, TimesDaily (June 24, 1971)
  7. ^ A job well-done, TimesDaily (May 17, 1996)
  8. ^ a b c "Attack on William Reynolds by Tuscumbia sheriff burns two houses". Richmond Planet. 12 April 1902. p. 1. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Desperado Kills Five". The Montgomery Advertiser. 8 April 1902. p. 1. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  10. ^ Deadliest Days in Law Enforcement History, National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
  11. ^ Five dead and two dying, The Indianapolis Journal (April 8, 1902)


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