SUBMITTED BY: Wayne Haynie (edited and vetted by Cheri Todd Molter)
William Haney [Brooks] and my 3rd-Great-Grandfather, Charles Haney, were brothers. Their father was James Haney (1794 – 1866). William was born in McDowell County, North Carolina, in 1844. I’ve shared some things I’ve found while researching him. I’ve attached William Haney’s likeness, two company muster rolls from his time serving in the Union Army, his pension record, and an article that was published in the Tri-Weekly Era (Raleigh, N.C.).
The following was published on Sept. 24, 1872 in Raleigh’s Tri-Weekly Era: “We learn from a gentleman just from Yancey county that one day last week the prisoners in the jail at Burnsville, two in number, made their escape by cutting a hole through the wall large enough to admit their exit. One of the fugitives is William Haney, convicted of the murder of his cousin, James Haney, whom he killed in 1865. Haney was tried for this offense at the Spring term of Yancey Court, and pleaded the Amnesty act of Legislature of 1865-’66, granting all soldiers of both armies full pardon for crimes committed prior to January 1, 1866. The Judge ruled that this act applied only to enemies—that is, to crimes perpetrated by the soldiers of one army upon the soldiers of the other, and vice versa—and not to those contending for or espousing the same cause. From this decision Haney’s counsel appealed to the Supreme Court, and that tribunal confirmed the decision. Haney was to have been sentenced at the Fall term of Court, which occurs next month, but in all probability, he has spared the Judge this unpleasant duty and saved his neck from justly merited elongation. We did not learn the name of the man who escaped with Haney but are informed that he was charged with stealing hogs.”
(Publisher’s note: Below are 2 company muster rolls, his pension record, and the article from the Tri-Weekly Era, Sept 24, 1872. Click images to enlarge.)
