In the sweltering summer of 1881, the Washington Jail on 19th Street SE became a hotbed of intrigue as a high-profile inmate, Charles J. Guiteau, languished behind bars. The would-be assassin of President James A. Garfield had been sentenced to hang for his heinous crime, and his stay at the District Jail was anything but serene. Guarded by a detachment of Battery B, 2nd United States Army veterans, Guiteau’s presence seemed to spark unease among even the most hardened soldiers.
It was on September 11, 1881, eight days before Garfield’s lifeless body was carried out of the White House, that a shocking incident shook the very foundations of the Washington Jail. Sergeant John A. Mason, one of the very soldiers tasked with keeping Guiteau in check, attempted to kill the assassin. The reasons behind Mason’s treachery remain shrouded in mystery, but one thing is clear: the events that transpired that fateful day would go down in history as one of the most brazen betrayals in the annals of American penology.
The details of Mason’s failed assassination attempt are still a subject of debate among historians, but it is known that Guiteau had developed a disturbing habit of gazing out of his cell window, much to the chagrin of his keepers. Whether this behavior sparked Mason’s ire or was simply a convenient excuse for his actions remains unclear. What is certain, however, is that the episode marked a turning point in the already-tense relationship between the guards and their infamous prisoner.
As the days ticked by, Guiteau’s fate was all but sealed. He would eventually meet his maker on June 30, 1882, at the gallows, his name etched forever in the annals of American history as the man who brought down a president. Mason, on the other hand, would likely have been castigated for his brazen attempt on Guiteau’s life, had it not been for the fact that his actions were a mere sideshow to the main event.
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Key Facts
- State: National
- Category: Violent Crime
- Era: Historical
- Source: Library of Congress — Chronicling America ↗
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