The Man They Could Not Hang

This week we explore the history and mystery of ‘The man they could not hang’. Michael “Mickey” or “Smitty” Smith lived in the Johnstown area. After killing a man, he was found guilty and sentenced to hang. Then, he disappeared. Smitty was never heard from again.

Before Incarceration

Michael Smith had several nicknames, his most well-known is “Smitty”. Other sources also listed “Mickey” and “Peg-Leg”. Michael Smith at some point in his life had his right leg amputated below the knee. One source stated he was a married man with seven children. He was well liked by his community. At the time of the murder, Smitty was a constable employed by Cambria Iron Co.

On August 26th, 1883, Smitty was in a local bar known as Halloran’s Saloon. He and John Minahan began one of the usual arguments. Smitty and Minahan had been friends at one time, but a disagreement over who killed a deer led to the dissolution of their friendship. On this night the argument went too far.

Even though he was off duty, Smitty attempted to arrest Minahan. Minahan refused and eventually Smitty drew his service revolver. The bullet fired and hit Minahan in the right eye. He was rushed to the hospital where he died a few days later.

Smitty was arrested. He confessed to killing Minahan but blamed excessive alcohol for his actions. During his Spring trial, Smitty was sentenced to hang at the Old Stone Jail in Ebensburg.

The Escape

Smitty was sentenced to hang in October. On the night of August 30th, 1884, Smitty disappeared. Somehow, he managed to escape his locked cell, large heavy wood and iron locked doors, and a stone wall 22 feet high. Smitty left a letter on his bed for the warden. It is unknown what he wrote in this letter. He was never seen or heard from again.

Clearly, Smitty must have had help. One inmate reported that on the night of August 30th, he saw a man wandering around in the dark. This man periodically tried the doors to the cell block. He also occasionally said the name ‘Bert’. This inmate was sure that the person wondering around was Smitty.

The person referred to as ‘Bert’ could have been Bert Luther a guard and the son of the local sheriff. Another thing noticed by that inmate was the night watchman, James Myers, that should have been on duty wasn’t there.

Smitty’s absence wasn’t noticed until about 5:00AM on August 31st. The sheriff quickly put up a $300 reward. Today that would be equivalent to $9,239. The murder victim’s brother, William Minahan, met with the sheriff at the prison. William was informed that Smitty had somehow gained access to the jail’s cellar and while there he sawed off the locks to three doors. However, the lock on the front door had not been tampered with and was still locked.

No explanation was given for how an individual with a wooden leg could have gotten out of the prison yard without going through the front door. James Myers’ absence was never addressed either.

Theories

Some have suggested that Smitty went over the 22-foot-high stone wall on a ladder left by workmen fixing he roof. It had been noted that there were hoof prints and wagon tracks on the ground outside of the prison wall. A witness reported seeing a horse and buggy speeding past a farm around 1:00AM. Could this be how he escaped?

One former inmate had claimed he had witnessed Smitty’s mother pay Bert Luther a large sum of money. Luther fell under suspicion when a few months later four more inmates escaped during his watch. Locals ignored the fact that these four inmates beat Bert Luther and left him locked in a cell. After this event Luther was forced to resign and his father was voted out as sheriff. There has never been any credible evidence to support Bert Luther helped Smitty escape.

The Myth: The Man They Could Not Hang

An additional $1000 was added to the reward increasing it to $1300. He was then also wanted dead or alive. Today the reward would be $40,039. Many professional and amateur detectives began a manhunt.

Many men with wooden legs were arrested and held until they could prove they were not Smitty. How many people could possibly have right leg amputations? Remember that this is 1884, we are post-Civil War and in a time of steel mills, coke furnaces, rail yards, and mining. Health codes and safety regulations hardly existed. Many people lost limbs to war and work.

Detectives followed Smitty’s mother and wife believing they would find out his hiding place. In May of 1885 Smitty’s three-year-old son died. He never showed up to the funeral. Not a peep was heard from him when his wife remarried in 1887. Smitty failed to show up to his mother’s funeral in 1890.

No one has ever heard from Michael “Smitty” Smith since he escaped certain death. He moved from escaped prisoner to myth becoming “The man they could not hang”.

Local Legend

Smitty has become a sort of folk hero. Having mysteriously escaped and remained free. It is often stated that he escaped the day before his execution. This is part of the legend, adding extra drama. Smitty was mentioned and focused on in Destination Fear and Paranormal Lockdown. Both paranormal investigation crews came to the Ebensburg prison and searched for paranormal evidence.

Recently local musician and the other half of Country Fox, Jason Bolinger, composed a song about “The Man They Could Not Hang”.

Information for the article was pulled from PA Oddities, Post Gazette, Tribune-Democrat , the Cambria County Historical Society and History of Cambria County, Pennsylvania Vol. 1.