Shirley, Mary Ann: 1852

Blair County had its first execution in 1853.  The victim’s name was Mary Ann McCoy Shirley.  Her killer was her husband, James Shirley.  Little is recorded about the Shirley; in fact, it is difficult to find Mary Ann’s name in the records of the time.  It is only through the work of genealogists that it has come to light.
James and Mary Ann Shirley lived near Leamersville, in Juniata Township.  This small settlement was about a mile and a half from Newry.  James Shirley had been married previously; he had three children by that marriage; William, John, and Eliza. Also in the home was a young girl, a domestic who helped the family.   Mary Ann was James’ second wife, and they had been married about two years.  He was a farmer, and a man of some property, but addicted to strong drink; reports of the time state that the two had been married in a ‘drunken frolic.’  The marriage was not a happy one.
On the night of November 19, 1852, he attacked his wife.  She was physically unable to defend herself; being only a week away from a full-term pregnancy, and had no chance to escape his rage.  The Altoona Tribune described the crime as having been committed in “a most cruel and revolting manner.”  Shirley beat her with a hammer and club, striking her in the face and on the head.  He kicked her, and continued to pound her defenseless head against the walls, furniture and floor until she died.  He covered the body with a quilt.
At two in the morning, Shirley went upstairs and reportedly woke the children.  He told them to go to Newry, which was about a mile and a half away.   The unnamed servant girl had left her shoes in the room below, and attempted to retrieve them prior to setting out.  Shirley stopped her from doing so, but not before she looked in the partly open door and saw blood on the floor.
Two of the couple’s children, and the young girl who worked for them as a domestic, ran for help to Newry.  Several people arrived in the morning; they discovered Mary Ann’s lifeless body, and James Shirley lying in bed.  He had attempted to kill himself with an overdose of laudanum, and they were unable to rouse him or get him to speak.  Shirley was bound and taken into custody.  His own brother was a member of the posse.  Although Shirley refused at first to speak or eat, within a few days he was taking nourishment.
The trial of James Shirley was held the following April; the District Attorney, Joseph Kemp, deputized George A. Coffey to be the prosecuting attorney for the Commonwealth.  Evidence was given that Shirley had been jealous of his wife and had threatened to kill her previously.  Convinced of the premeditation of the crime and horrified at the brutality of it, the jury deliberated a very short time before rendering the verdict of guilty on April 2, 1853.  On the fifth, Shirley was sentenced to death by hanging.  Governor Bigler issued the warrant, and on August 12, Sherriff Williams carried out the sentence.  The remains of the killer were buried under a pear tree not far from the scene of the crime.
What of the Shirley children, who were home that terrible night?  William served in the Civil War and died in 1916; John died in 1870; and Eliza died in childhood.
The first execution was issued by James Murty vs. John Dougherty to obtain $23.75 and costs. The sheriff does not seem to have ever returned his writ.
Sources: The New York Times, November 23, 1853.  A History of Blair County, by Charles Clark, 1896