This Day in History: Mary, a five-ton cow elephant was hanged by the neck from a railcar-mounted industrial crane on this day in 1916.
Mary, also known as "Murderous Mary", was a five-ton Asian elephant who performed in the Sparks World Famous Shows circus. After killing circus employee Walter “Red” Eldridge on his second day as her handler in September 1916, in Kingsport, Tennessee, she was hanged in nearby Erwin.
"Mary’s story is as sad as it is bizarre. While time has clouded the exact details of her life, a few things remain certain: the female circus elephant killed the man who beat her with a hook, and a small town in Tennessee formed a mob, lynching her in a public execution as grisly as it is unbelievable." Source
"Big Mary was buried in a big pit in front of the railroad shop doors. Erwin, which has had time to reflect on this, does not want the grave marked. It would rather not be known as The Town That Hanged The Elephant, and the Chamber of Commerce is very particular about assigning blame. 'We killed the elephant, we do not deny it,' they told us. 'But it was not our fault.'
On Highway 23, the Unicoi County Heritage Museum displays newspaper clippings from the period and sells a book that tells the Big Mary story: The Day They Hung the Elephant by Charles Edwin Price. 'It is true. It did occur,' said the curator. 'But, quite frankly, the town is not real proud of it.'" Source
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