The Gruesome Murder of Colonel Solomon P. Sharp
Colonel Solomon P. Sharp had served two terms in the Kentucky Legislature and two in the lower house of the United States Congress, and was Attorney General of the State when he ran for Congress. Colonel Sharp was elected by a small majority. The Legislature was to convene on Monday morning, November 6, 1825. On Sunday evening, Col. Sharp went to the Weiseger House, where he met several members of the Legislature. He later went to the Mansion House where he remained until about twelve o'clock, after which he went to his home on Madison Street. About two hours later he was called to his door and assassinated!
The killing created the wildest excitement in the city. The Legislature convened that day, and authorized the Governor to offer a reward of three thousand dollars for the apprehension and conviction of the assassin.
After some days, suspicion rested on Jeroboam O. Beauchamp, a young attorney located in Glasgow, Kentucky. A warrant was sworn out and Beauchamp was arrested and tried before an examining court and released from custody. At that time Beauchamp asserted his innocence and volunteered to stay in Frankfort for ten days, in order to give the Commonwealth ample opportunity to investigate the case.
In the meantime John U. Waring and Patrick H. Darby had come under suspicion. Mrs. Sharp stated that the voice of the assassin had sounded to her like that of Waring, a warrant was issued for him and sent to Woodford County, and from there to Fayette County, but an investigation revealed the fact that Waring had been shot through both hips, on the Saturday preceding the Sharp tragedy.
Beauchamp became very active in helping to manufacture sentiment against Patrick H. Darby, and Darby having heard that he was suspected of the murder, undertook to investigate the facts in the case. It was through Darby's efforts that Beauchamp was again arrested, and afterward convicted.
The indictment, still on file in the Franklin Circuit Court clerk's office, charged that: Jeroboam O. Beauchamp, attorney at law, on the 6th day of November, 1825, in the night of the same day, at Frankfort, Franklin County, Kentucky, with a certain dirk, which he held in his right hand, stab bed upon the front side of the body of Solomon P. Sharp, and two inches below the breast bone of the said Sharp, a mortal wound of the breadth of one inch, and of the depth of six inches, from which he instantly died, etc.
Mr. Darby was one of the chief witnesses against Beauchamp, and in the fall of 1824, Beauchamp had applied to him to bring a suit against Colonel Sharp, for certain claims which were not specified in the record on file in the clerk's office. In this conversation, Beauchamp stated that he had married Miss Cook and spoke of Colonel Sharp's bad treatment of her and he swore that if he ever saw him he would kill him, and said if he could not see him in any other way he would ride to Frankfort and shoot him down on the street. Darby went to Simpson County, the home of Beauchamp, and while there he found a man by the name of Capt. John F. Lowe, who had received a letter from Beauchamp, in which there were some very damaging admissions against himself. (Letter was put on file in Franklin Circuit Court clerk's office.) Lowe stated that Beauchamp gave him a detailed account of the assassination, and in conclusion said:
"Don't speak of this before Ann, you know what a talk has been about Sharp and her, none of the people about here talk to us about him, they all think he was the cause of her leaving society."
A large number of witnesses were introduced giving in detail the circumstances connected with the killing, the measurement of tracks, the presence of Beauchamp in the city at that time, and his suspicious conduct and statements. This circumstantial evidence convicted him of the crime.
On Monday, May 15, 1826, the evidence was completed and on Tuesday, and the argument for the Commonwealth were presented. One of the witnesses, John Pope was so personal against Darby, that Darby attempted to assault him with his cane. The incident caused great excitement and resulted in a stampede from the courtroom!
After an hours of consultation, the jury brought in a verdict of guilty and fixed Beauchamp's punishment at death. On Saturday Mrs. Beauchamp was taken before the justices on a charge of being accessory to the murder, but she was discharged.
On May 22, Judge Davidge overruled the motion for a new trial and pronounced the sentence upon the accused; he fixed the time for execution on Friday, June 16. The defendant asked to have the time extended to give him time to write up the facts in the case and the time of execution was extended until July 7.
There was a doubt in the minds of some as to whether or not the alleged confession of Beauchamp was made by him; but it is perfectly evident from the facts disclosed in the damage suit of P. H. Darby v. Jeroboam Beauchamp, uncle of the assassin, that he made the confession, which was given to the public at that time. Darby not only sued Col. Beauchamp but he also brought suits for libel against Dr. Leander Sharp, Mrs. Eliza T. Sharp, and Amos Kendall, editor of the Patriot. The three cases were tried in the Woodford Circuit Court on a change of venue. The confession of Beauchamp, is in substance as follows:
Beauchamp was the second son of a man who owned a small farm and a few slaves, his father gave him a good English education. Beauchamp tried merchandising and afterward school teaching, and at the age of eighteen studied law at Glasgow, Ky., where he became acquainted with Col. Sharp. While he was at Glasgow, Miss Ann Cook purchased a small farm in Simpson County about a mile from the home of Beauchamp's father. After his return to his home, he persisted in calling on her, and in a short time, he was desperately in love with her. She, at first, refused to marry him, but she afterward agreed, upon the condition that he would kill Col. Sharp. He agreed to her proposition and during the fall of 1821, he came to Frankfort for that purpose. But his plans failed and he did not get a chance to do the killing at that time.
The Eerie Confession.
“I put an old wool hat on a stick, took the hat, and split the end of the stick—left a silver dollar in place of the hat. "I put on a mask of blue silk which gave me the appearance of a negro. I put on two pairs of yarn socks to preserve my feet in running and to avoid being pursued by the direction I might be heard running in the dark if I had worn my shoes. Besides, in this manner, my tracks could not possibly be identified anywhere. But I took my shoes, my coat, and my hat and hid them down near the river where I could run and get them after the deed should be done. I had learned from a source, which the offer of life would scarcely wring from me, where Col. Sharp's house was. It was the nearest house to the Statehouse, for it stands only the width of the street from the (then) Statehouse, and almost right across the street from it. I put on my mask with this design: if a candle should be lit before Col. Sharp approached me, I would keep it on and as he approached I would knock the candle out with one hand and stab him with the other, but if he approached me without a light, I intended to draw down my mask as he approached, from over my face, for it was so constructed and fastened on as to be easily drawn away from the face or placed over it again. There was no moonlight but the stars gave light enough, wherewithal to discern the face of an acquaintance on coming near him, and closely noticing his face."
"I put on my mask, drew my dagger, and proceeded to the door, I knocked loudly three times and Col. Sharp said,
“Who is there?”
“Covington,” I replied; quickly Col. Sharp's foot was heard upon the floor. I saw under the door, he approached without a light, I drew the mask from my face, and immediately Col. Sharp opened the door, I advanced into the room, and with my left hand I grasped his right wrist, the violence of the grasp made him spring back, and trying to disengage his wrist, he said, ' What Covington is this? ' I replied,
' John A. Covington;
' I don't know you,' says Col, Sharp,
" I know John W. Covington." Mrs. Sharp appeared at the partition door and then disappeared. Seeing her disappear, I said, in a persuasive tone of voice, come to the light Colonel, and you will know me, and pulled him by the arm, he came readily to the door, and still holding his wrist with my left hand, I stripped my hat and handkerchief from over my forehead, and looked into Col. Sharp's face. He knew me, the more readily I imagine, by my long bushy curly suit of hair. He sprang back and exclaimed in a tone of horror and despair,
"Great God it is him!" and as he said that he fell on his knees. I let go of his wrist, grasped him by the throat, dashing him against the facing of the door, and muttered in his face, ' Die you villain;' as I said that I plunged the dagger to his heart."
Some days before the execution, Mrs. Beauchamp had secured a vial of laudanum which was divided between them, each of them took a dose, but it failed to have the desired effect. She then secured a case knife and about ten o'clock in the morning on the day of the execution, upon the urgent request of Mrs. Beauchamp, the guard went up the ladder and turned the trap door. When Beauchamp called to him, he immediately returned, Beauchamp said to him, " We have killed ourselves." The guard then saw that Mrs. Beauchamp had a knife in her hand which was bloody halfway up.
It was found that Mrs. Beauchamp had a stab right of the center of the abdomen, which had been laid bare for that purpose. She did not sigh, groan, or show any symptoms of pain. The guard asked Beauchamp if he was stabbed, he said "yes, " and raised his shirt which had fallen over the wound. He was stabbed about the center of the body, just below the pit of the stomach, but his wound was not so wide as that of his wife. Beauchamp said that he had stabbed himself first and that his wife had taken the knife from him and plunged it into herself.
Beauchamp was in a dying condition when he was taken to the gallows, too weak to stand. While the rope was being adjusted he was held up by two negro men. The Patriot of July 17th said: "It was now half past twelve o'clock." The military was drawn up along Lewis Street and the alley in continuation, which passes by the jailor's house, surrounded by an immense crowd, all of whom were listening with intense interest to every rumor from the dying pair.
As Beauchamp was too weak to sit on his coffin, in a cart, a covered dearborn had been provided for his convenience to the gallows. He was now brought out in a blanket and laid in it. At his particular request Mr. Mcintosh (the jailor), took a seat by his side. Some of the ministers of the gospel had taken leave of him. Just as they were ready to start he said in a severe tone, "I want to see Darby." He was asked why he wished to see Darby, he said, "I want to acquit him."
Darby soon made his appearance beside the dearborn, and Beauchamp, smiling, held out his hand; but Darby declined to take it.
Mr. Darby," said Beauchamp, "I felt as if I wanted to acquit you to your face, before I die. You are certainly innocent of any participation in the murder of Col. Sharp; but you were guilty of base perjury on my trial. I do not believe you would take a bribe, but certain it is, you were guilty of a vile perjury and I can not conceive your motive. "Beauchamp," said Darby, " You have endeavored to do me all the injury you could; I was prepared to prove the falsehood of your charge that I participated in the murder of Col. Sharp, but this charge I cannot disprove, because no person was present at our conversation—it is the last injury you could do me."
"Mr. Darby," said Beauchamp, " You never saw me at Duncan's well nor any other person, I presume, who told you he had married Miss Cook, nor did you ever see me, anywhere, until you saw me a prisoner at Jackson's in Frankfort."
Darby was beginning to reply, hoping that he would retract this new charge before he reached the gallows, when Beauchamp waived his hand to him, indicating that he wanted to hear no more, and said, "Drive on."
The crowd moved from Clinton Street to Ann Street, to the sound of beating drums, and along Ann Street to Montgomery (now Main) Street to Weisinger's Tavern, and up Montgomery Street to the place of execution.
Beauchamp was publicly hanged on Friday, July 7, 1826, before a large crowd of people from all sections of the country.
Mrs. Beauchamp remained with him until his removal to the scaffold. Beauchamp and his wife died the same hour and were buried in the same grave at Bloomfield, Ky. A marble slab has been placed over them.
Genealogy Tips: Court cases are an avenue that most genealogists and historians ignore. Yet, the researcher can find anything from a contested estate or will, to a murder. The names of relatives appeared in the case cited herein. The results are published, and the books occupy just about every attorney's law office. The Library of Congress is where to search. The Guide to Law Online is an annotated collection of links to free online legal materials and pertinent resources in the Library of Congress catalog, organized by jurisdiction and covers all relevant research areas.
Source: Famous Kentucky Tragedies and Trials: A collection of important and interesting tragedies and criminal trials that have taken place in Kentucky by L. F. Johnson of the Frankfort, Kentucky Bar.
Barren County, Kentucky Records
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