Regional Studies
The Southwest

The Southwest

The Southwest has carried out 1,335 Pre-Furman executions.

The first execution in the Southwest was that of Ship Captain George Brown who was hanged for Piracy in Galveston Texas in November of 1819.

Texas also claims the honor of executing the first woman. Jane Elkins, a female slave, , was hanged for murder sometime in 1854. The crime took place in Dallas County.

The last Pre-Furman execution in the Southwest was that of 30-year-old convict James French who died in the Oklahoma's electric chair on August 10, 1966 for Murder in Pittsburg County.

The last Pre-Furman execution of a female in the Southwest was that of a 49-year-old Eva Dugan She was the victim of a gruesome hanging on February 21, 1930 for a Murder-Robbery in Pima County, Arizona.

There are a known 1,103 known Pre-Furman executions in the Southwest. 526 (47.7%) were Black and 346 (31.4%) were White. 7 of them were females, and of the females, 3 (42.9%) were Black.

In the 147 years from George Brown to James French there was an average of 7.5 executions per year.

The following is a racial breakdown of these executions.

There were 549 Hangings, 450 Electrocutions, 36 Gas Chambers, 28 Shootings and 1Others.

Note: All executions cited below are Pre-Furman, occurring before 1968.
Counties mentioned may not have been in existence at the time of the crime.

Arizona Executions

The State was admitted in to the Union on February 14, 1912.

Arizona has executed 104 people between 1865 and 1963.

42 of these execution were prior to Statehood, 62 since.

Delores Moore was the first executed as well as the first female. She was hanged for murder sometime in 1865 for a crime committed in Pima County.

Arizona's last female executed was Eva Dugan on February 21, 1930. While legally it was a hanging, realistically it was a beheading as she was too heavy and/or the drop was too long, resulting in the severing of her head from her body. The Murder-Robbery was committed in Pima County. These were the only 2 women executed in the State.

Manuel Silva, a Hispanic bartender, was the last man executed. On March 14, 1963 he died in the gas chamber for a murder committed in Pinal County.

Hanging was the only method used until July 6, 1934 when Fred Hernandez and Manuel Hernandez met their fate in the gas chamber for a murder in Pinal County.

The 104 executions average 1.1 executions a year.

There were 69 Hangings and 35 Gas Chambers.

New Mexico Executions

The State was admitted in to the Union on January 6, 1912.

New Mexico has executed 73 people between 1850 and 1960.

47 of these execution were prior to Statehood, 26 since.

4 Teamsters, Marcus Butler, William Craig, John Wade and Alexander Young, were hanged for murder on February 12, 1850. They were the first executed in the State for a crime committed in Socorro County.

Paula Angel, a Hispanic woman, was the only female executed in the State. She was hanged for murder on April 26, 1861 in San Miguel County. 

David Nelson died in the gas chamber on January 8, 1960 for a Murder-Robbery in Valencia County. His was the last execution in the State and the only time the gas chamber was used.

Hanging was the only method of execution used until Thomas Johnson, a Black garage attendant, was electrocuted on July 21, 1933 for a Murder-Rape in Bernalillo County.

New Mexico's most infamous execution was the hanging of Thomas "Black Jack" Ketchum on April 25, 1901. "Black Jack" made a living robbing trains and stage coaches, killing a few people along the way. Occasionally he rode with Butch Cassidy's Hole in the Wall Gang. He was tried for murder and convicted in Clayton, Union County. It is said his last words were "I'll be in hell before you start breakfast, boys! Let her rip!" which, unfortunately, is just what happened. The rope was too long and Black Jack had put on weight while in jail. When Ketchum reached the end of the rope, the force was enough to tear his head from his body. It was a quick but gruesome death.

Postcard showing the results of the botched execution. Click on Thumbnail. 

WARNING! Picture is Extremely Graphic, showing the decapitated body.

The 73 executions represents an average of 1 execution every 1.5 years.

There were 65 Hangings, 7 Electrocutions and 1 Gas Chamber.

Oklahoma Executions

The State was admitted in to the Union on November 16, 1907.

Oklahoma has executed 132 people between 1841 and 1966.

42 of these execution were prior to Statehood, 90 since.

Archilla Smith, a Native American, was Oklahoma's first execution. He was probably Shot to Death (might have been hanged) on January 1, 1841.

Dora Wright, a Black domestic servant, was the only female executed in Oklahoma. She was hanged for murder on July 17, 1903 in Pittsburg County.

James French was the last man executed in Oklahoma. He died in the electric chair on August 10, 1966 for a murder in Pittsburg County.

The majority of the early executions in Oklahoma were Native Americans who were shot to death for murder. The rest were hangings until Henry Bookman, a 28-year-old Black man, was electrocuted for murder on December 10, 1915. The crime occurred in McIntosh County.

The 132 executions represents an average of 1.1 executions a year.

There were 25 Hangings, 82 Electrocutions, 24 Shootings and 1Unknown.

Texas Executions

The State was admitted in to the Union on December 29, 1845.

Texas has executed 755 people between 1819 and 1964.

8 of these execution were prior to Statehood, 747 since.

Ship Captain George Brown was the first person executed in Texas. He was hanged for Piracy in November, 1819 in Galveston.

Jane Elkins, a female slave, was the first woman executed in Texas. She was hanged for murder sometime in 1854 in Dallas County.

Chipita Rodrigues, a Hispanic female innkeeper was the last woman executed in Texas. She was hanged for Murder-Robbery on November 13, 1863 in San Patricio County.

The only other woman executed was Lucy, a slave owned by Dougherty, who was hanged for murder on March 5, 1858 in Galveston.

Joseph Johnson Jr., a Black parolee, was the last executed. He died in the electric chair on July 30, 1964 for a murder in Harris County.

Hanging was the primary method of execution until the electric chair took the lives of 5 Black murderers on February 8, 1924. They were Charles Reynolds (Red River County), Ewell Morris and Melvin Johnson (Liberty County), George Washington (Newton County) and Mack Mathews (Tyler County).

The 755 executions represents an average of 5.2 executions a year.

There were 390 Hangings, 361 Electrocutions and 4 Shootings.

Note: All executions cited below are Pre-Furman, occurring before 1968.
Counties mentioned may not have been in existence at the time of the crime.