The Minister of Eternity
This Minister doesn't show up.
He does write a letter to Colonel George Washington admitting he had promised to appear.
He had promised to talk to the condemned about eternity.
But something caused a change in this promised plan.
For that something? To divine that reason? This minister refers GW to talk to another man who knows why.
But let us detour to another matter.
A matter of proof.
Three Proofs of the Hangings?
The letter quoted below is the only one of 3 proofs acknowledging there was to be an execution at Fort Loudoun.
Those hangings took place 29 July 1757.
The main proof? This proof is simply betting that Colonel George Washington would not tell Lt Gov Dinwiddie a lie.
Would GW risk Dinwiddie, finding out?
The letter Colonel George Washington writes to Lt Gov Dinwiddie 3 August 1757 states there were 2 men hanged at Fort Loudoun.
Colonel George Washington writes:
I send Your Honor a copy of the proceedings of a General Court martial.
Two of those condemned, namely, Ignatious Edwards, and Wm Smith, were hanged on thursday last [29 July 1757] just before the companies marched for their respective posts.
Your Honor will, I hope excuse my hanging, instead of shooting them:
It conveyed much more terror to others; and it was for example sake, we did it.
They were proper objects to suffer: Edwards had deserted twice before, and Smith was accounted one of the greatest villains upon the continent.
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There is one other proof those hangings happened.
An inquiry on 15 August 1757 after the hangings, questioned the hanging of one of the men.
That inquiry alleged that one of the hanged men had legitimately paid a man to take his place in the Virginia Regiment. So that too is proof an execution at Fort Loudoun occurred.
So let us get on to another issue.
Meet the Minister who prepares the condemned to face Eternity:
The Minister is William Meldrum.
He was to meet with the 2 condemned men but begged out of doing so.
He mysteriously withholds giving his reason.
He refers Colonel George Washington to meet with another man to find the reason.
That man who knows the reason for the Minister not showing up is unavailable for comment.
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The picture of Christ Episcopal Church on Boscawen and Washington Streets in Winchester VA is the modern incarnation of the original Anglican Church in which our Minister, William Meldrum was appointed by the Bishop in London.
The Letter from the Minister of Eternity:
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Sir,
When I did myself the pleasure to wait on you this morning, I proposed being in Town sometime to morrow afternoon, with a view to assist all in my power, those unhappy wretches under Sentence, in prepareing for Eternity.1
Something has happened Since that obliges me to absent myself, and not to attend agreeable to my then resolutions.
If you are desirous to know the motives that have induced me to such a sudden (and seeminly unconsistent) change, shall referr You to Mr Thomson,2 who, I flatter myself, will conceal no part of what I have already told him.
I am wt. unfeigned regard Sir Your most affect. & most obedt Humble Sert
Will: Meldrum
[Winchester] 26th July 1757
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Founders Online Footnotes:
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The Reverend William Meldrum was ordained in 1756 by the bishop of London and for a time served as the rector of Frederick Parish in Frederick County, the site of Fort Loudoun.
1. The General Court-Martial of 25–26 July at Fort Loudoun gave fourteen men accused of deserting the sentence of death by hanging or shooting.
2. Mr. Thomson may be Lt. Nathaniel Thompson of the Virginia Regiment, about whom Edmond Atkin complained to GW so bitterly on 19 June 1757.
Source:
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Sources on William Meldrum:
The Lost "Clergy List" of 1758
C. G. Chamberlayne
The William and Mary Quarterly Vol. 17, No. 1 (Jan., 1937), pp. 39-44 (6 pages)
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See references to William Meldrum in here:
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Source:
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Ctrl F to find Meldrum:
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Stories on the Hangings at Fort Loudoun
The 2 Hangings
The Trial
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Compiled and authored by Jim Moyer 8/14/2021, using research done in 2013
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