It was the spring of 1754. Two white men killed a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee band. The victim, named Waumpaumcorse, was described as “an Indian man of this town” killed “in the woods of Stockbridge.” Stockbridge was a mere 15 years old, and this was the first recorded murder in the village. The details were unearthed thanks to the exceptional research abilities of Lion Miles.
The murderers of Waumpaumcorse were caught and put on trial. However, one of the murderers was acquitted and the other was found guilty of the lesser offense of manslaughter. The Stockbridge-Munsee community was angry at what they considered an injustice.
Apparently, this provoked a number of the Stockbridge-Munsee community to seek revenge. A contemporaneous report read, “The Negro Servant of one of the Neighbors made known a secret plot.”¹
The report identified a young member of the Stockbridge-Munsee community who told the servant the following, “Now there are a Number of them who were come to a Determination to be revenged for the murder of Waumpaumcors and that several of them had already been abroad to bring in some Strangers to their Assistance, that their purpose was to kill as many of the English in Stockbridge as they could.”
In fact, what the community did was petition the General Court in Boston. The court awarded the family of Waumpaumcorse six pounds. However, even that small amount did not arrive. There was a delay in sending the money, and that delay threatened to reignite the desire for revenge.
At the urging of town officials Joseph Dwight and Timothy Woodbridge, the General Court increased the amount to 20 pounds and sent it off immediately to the near relatives of Waumpaumcorse “to Satisfy & Quiet the Indians at Stockbridge.”
Here endeth the tale of the very first murder…
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Addison F Kreamer Jr.