Nathan Brewer (Execution of)

Nathan Brewer was hanged at Paragould (Greene County) on July 9, 1904, after being convicted of first-degree murder in the ambush slaying of a farmer in Clay County.

Nathan Brewer, age thirty, was a farmer who lived in Greene County’s Hurricane Township with his wife, Hariett, age twenty-two. Bud (sometimes referred to as Bill or Augustus) Dortch was “an old and inoffensive man, living alone on his farm, and without an enemy in the world” near Boydsville (Clay County).

On August 20, 1903, Dortch was discovered dead in his field, and “when found there were sixteen buckshot in his body.” Evidence led to Brewer’s arrest three days later, and, according to the Arkansas Democrat, he “confessed, but claims that he was forced by two masked men at the muzzle of shotguns to do the killing. His story is not credited.”

Indicted for first-degree murder, Brewer won a change of venue to Greene County. Evidence in his trial revealed that he had been seen in the victim’s neighborhood, though he lived several miles away, and “was known to have inquired if Dortch did not carry his money.” A brush blind was found near Dortch’s field “inside of which the assassin concealed himself while lying in wait for his aged victim.” Contradicting Brewer’s claim that two men forced him to kill Dortch, “all the tracks in the blind, and leading to and from it, were made by one man, not three, and that man wore Nathan Brewer’s shoes.” He was found guilty on September 5, 1903.

Brewer appealed his conviction to the Arkansas Supreme Court, which affirmed the verdict. He was sentenced to hang on July 9, 1904.

A petition, saying that Brewer “bore a good reputation…for sobriety, honesty and truthfulness,” was distributed, asking Governor Jeff Davis to commute the sentence from death to twenty-one years in prison. The Reverend J. N. Robinson brought the petition to Davis in mid-June, but the governor declined to intervene.

The Arkansas Gazette reported that “Brewer’s wife kissed him good-bye Friday morning. Their parting was heart-rending.” The night before the hanging, Brewer again confessed and “said the sole reason he took Dortch’s life was that Dortch had insulted or talked in a scandalous manner about his wife.”

On Saturday, July 9, 1904, Brewer enjoyed a hearty breakfast and lunch. Around 3,000 people gathered around the jail, and “hundreds of callers went in to see the doomed man in his cell.” In the afternoon, he was led to the gallows where the same scaffold and rope that had been used to hang murderer Mart Vowell one month earlier awaited. The condemned man said, “I have a home up yonder and have nothing to fear.” Methodist minister A. G. Griffin prayed and sang hymns “until after the drop and then wept bitterly.”

The trap door opened at 3:50 p.m., and “his neck was broken and Brewer died without a show of weakness.” He was declared dead sixteen minutes later, and his body was taken down to be buried near Marmaduke (Greene County).

For additional information:
“Brewer Game to the Last.” Arkansas Democrat, July 12, 1904, p. 3.

“Brewer Will Be Hanged.” Arkansas Democrat, July 10, 1904, p. 8.

“Brewer Will Hang July 9.” Arkansas Democrat, Jul 5, 1904, p. 6.

“Nate Brewer’s Doom Seems to be Sealed.” Arkansas Democrat, June 22, 1904, p. 1.

“Nathan Brewer Pays Penalty.” Arkansas Gazette, July 10, 1904, p. 1, 2.

“Nathan Brewer to Hang.” Arkansas Gazette, September 6, 1903, p. 2.

“Nathaniel H. ‘Nathan’ Brewer.” Find a Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/237255443/nathaniel-h-brewer (accessed March 18, 2025).

“No Pardon for Brewer.” Arkansas Gazette, July 5, 1904, p. 3.

“State News.” Arkansas Democrat, August 25, 1903, p. 5.

“Trying to Save Brewer’s Life.” Arkansas Democrat, May 29, 1904, p. 1.

Mark K. Christ
Little Rock, Arkansas