James King of William was a crusading San Francisco, California, newspaper editor whose assassination by James P. Casey, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1856 resulted in the establishment of the second San Francisco Vigilance Committee and changed the politics of the city. King was among the first newspapermen to be honored by the California Journalism Hall of Fame.
Depiction of shooting by Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, July 19, 1856
Smiley, Yerkes & Company building in San Francisco adorned with the banner, "The Great Man Has Fallen" to eulogize King
James Casey and Charles Cora were hanged by the Committee of Vigilance on the same day that King of William was buried.
San Francisco Committee of Vigilance
The San Francisco Committee of Vigilance was a vigilante group formed in 1851. The catalyst for its formation was the criminality of the Sydney Ducks gang. It was revived in 1856 in response to rampant crime and corruption in the municipal government of San Francisco, California. The explosive population growth following the discovery of gold in 1848 was cited as the source of the alleged need for the revival of the committee. The small town of about 900 individuals grew to a booming city of over 20,000 very rapidly. Founders alleged that the growth in population overwhelmed the previously established law enforcement, and led to the organization of vigilante militia groups.
Charles Cora and James Casey are hanged by the Committee of Vigilance, San Francisco, 1856.
Hanging of Samuel Whittaker and Robert McKenzie, August 24, 1851
1856 Committee of Vigilance medallion inscribed: "Organized 9th June 1851. Reorganized 14th May 1856. Be Just and Fear Not." The eye symbol was borrowed from Freemasonry, but in its 1856 vigilante context conveyed surveillance as a means of social discipline, not the Masonic meaning of scientific and aesthetic knowledge. Note that Lady Justice is not blindfolded.
The hanging of Cora and Casey
