A fugitive slave from Virginia named Charles Nalle who had been living in Troy, New York for eighteen months was betrayed, arrested, and turned over to the local commissioner for return to his owner.  A multi-racial crowd gathered at the commissioner's office and, despite a writ of habeas corpus from a sympathetic New York judge, forcibly freed Nalle.  He was recaptured and then freed once again before being spirited out of the town.  (By John Osborne)

At 10 p.m., the steamboat  A.C. Lacey with a full cargo and seventy-five passengers was cruising on the Mississippi River near Island Sixteen below St. Louis when hay on the deck caught fire.  Within minutes the entire vessel was aflame and passengers and crew were forced to swim for the shore.  Ten passengers and six crewmen died.  Samuel Clemens had served for a time as pilot aboard the A.C. Lacey the previous year.  (By John Osborne)

In the evening in north west Pennsylvania, an angry mob of disappointed gamblers ransacked the offices of the Scranton Morning Herald and beat up the editor and staff.  The mob, mostly from the neighboring town of Dunmore, had been enraged when a letter to the editor had exposed a clandestine gambling house which had immediately been shut down and wanted to know who had revealed their secret. (By John Osborne)

A prizefight was held on Ryker's Island in the morning hours between Harry Gribbin and Edward Wilson.  As such bouts were illegal, every effort had been made to avoid police interference and spectators had traveled through the night on hired ferries to reach ringside.  The fight lasted sixty-one rounds fought over several hours without a clear winner and the bout was declared a draw. (By John Osborne) 

In Wisconsin, the city of Kenosha suffered an intense and fast-moving fire that burned much of the business district. South of the City Hall, all the buildings on the main street of the town were burned to the ground.  The total damage was estimated at the time at $100,000.  No injuries were reported.  (By John Osborne)

John Ritchie, a prominent citizen of Topeka, Kansas and a Free-Soil veteran of the Kansas fighting, shot and killed Deputy U.S. Marshal Leonard Arms, who had come to his home to arrest him on an old charge of robbing a post office during the troubles.  Ritchie turned himself in and was released by a court and a judge in Topeka who saw neither justification nor legality in the attempted arrest.  (By John Osborne)

Heading the anti-liquor movement in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Congregationalist pastor Henry M. Nichols had on Sunday preached a fiery sermon against the "Rumsellers."  On Tuesday, the women of his congregation had harassed local saloon-owners.  Wednesday night Nichols' church burned down mysteriously.  A mass meeting was called in the city the next day and a "Vigilance Committee" was appointed.  (By John Osborne) 

In Washington D.C., former governor of the Kansas Territory Robert J. Walker challenged Jeremiah S. Black, the Attorney General of the United States, to a duel over allegations that had arisen over Walker's conduct while territorial governor.  Walker had recently appeared before the Covode Committee investigating corruption in the Buchanan Administration.  The Attorney General turned down the invitation.  (By John Osborne)

The New York Republican Convention met at the Corinthian Hall in Syracuse. Elias Leavenworth of Onondaga was elected as chairman and delegates for the National Convention in Chicago were chosen.  The convention then voted unanimously and enthusiastically that William H. Seward would be the choice of New York for nomination as President in Chicago.  (By John Osborne)

 

In the state capitol at Sacramento, California, John C. Bell, a thirty-five year old Democratic assemblyman from El Dorado, had been shot and stabbed in the Assembly chamber four days before and died of his wounds.  His assailant was a lobbyist named Dr. W.H. Stone, a native of Kentucky who was critical of Bell for holding up the creation of a new county. They had argued and Stone had shot Bell once and then stabbed him five times.  (By John Osborne)