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Champ Ferguson, The Man Who Used The Civil War As An Excuse To Be A Serial Killer
The Confederacy sympathizer authored the deaths of dozens of people, serving as their judge, jury and executioner
The American Civil War was an incredibly bloody affair, as the United States were formally split for four years as they fought for the supremacy of their ideals and the future of the Union. It remains the deadliest American war in terms of the number of fatalities. Not all of those deaths occurred on the battlefield. For example, one Confederacy sympthizer named Champ Ferguson refused to serve in an army but took the opportunity to kill as many people as he could — resulting in being hung for his murderous actions.
Born in 1821 in Kentucky, on the Tennessee border, Samuel “Champ” Ferguson was the oldest of 10 siblings. Like many of his neighbors, he was from an agricultural family, and became a farmer himself in adulthood.
Violence apparently came easy to Ferguson. In 1858, his family was in a feud with the Evans family. They caught the farmer on their land and moved to enact punishment. Instead, Ferguson lashed out with a knife, killing one and severely injuring a second man — escaping in the aftermath.
