Natural Causes
The “hand of God” is an active presence in CSI:D files. To be sure, the Almighty took no part in the suicides and homicides; those were the work of men “not having God Before [their] Eyes But moved by the instigation of the Devil.” Deaths that could be traced to what we would call ‘natural causes,’ however, were typically deemed an ‘act of God,’ a ‘visitation by God,’ or the ‘dispensation of Providence.’
Such cases expand on the point made in the introduction that coroners’ inquests paint a very particular portrait of death in the nineteenth-century South. The stock and trade of the coroner’s office were sudden deaths, especially those that intruded upon the public view. An old man succumbing to slow cancer in his own home was unsuspicious and unlikely to be investigated. This explains why heart attacks and strokes (which they called apoplexy) figure more prominently than fever among the ‘hand of God’ cases in these files. It also explains the relative frequency of deaths that occurred out-of-doors. Daniel Brown died in his cotton field; Jane Laniere died “in the woods near the public road”; Hartwell Roper “fell dead ... at his plow.”
The words ‘Hand of God’ were also used in cases where the deceased had been struck by lightning. (In perhaps the strangest case, Broderick Mason and his enslaved girl, Cinthy, were killed by the same lightning bolt, a sure sign that God does not play favorites.) Despite the similarity in terminology, however, lightning deaths have been filed as accidents because, like cave ins and train crashes, they are cases of people simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time and however ‘natural’ they might seem they are not a ‘natural death.’
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Natural Causes Inquests
| Name | Deceased Description | Date | Inquest Location |
Death Method |
Inquest Finding |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bettie Willis | March 24, 1892 | at the Croker place the home of Miss Bettie Willis, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do Say that the Said Miss Bettie Willis Came to her death. . .by the Act of God. From Heart Failure or disease accompied with Dropsie |
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| Chanya | slave | December 31, 1849 | at A.G.W. Gordon's, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that she came to her death by infirmity and old age |
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| Betsey Wingo | June 9, 1886 | Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths aforesaid do say that the said Betsey Wingo came to her death by the rupture of an aneurism in the right subclavian artery |
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| infant | January 13, 1868 | at Anderson Court House, Anderson County, SC |
do say that the infant was a premature birth and born dead |
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| Catherine Smith | September 4, 1893 | at D. A. Smith's, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said Catherine Smith came to her death from some Providential cause unknown to the Jury |
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| John Wallcot | at Winnsboro, Fairfield County, SC |
do say upon their Oaths that the deceased came to his death in Winnsboro SC the 7 of Jan 1889 from heart diseas. |
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| Peter | negro man | May 5, 1835 | On the plantation of Jim[?] Rochester, Union County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that the said Peter . . .died by the visitation of God in a natural way |
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| Richard Lewis | January 4, 1910 | at Cheraw, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say That he came to his death from natural causes |
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| Kizziah[?] | slave, servant | March 11, 1860 | at the residence of Mr M Lanham, Edgefield County, SC |
upon there oaths do say that the said Kisziah came to her death. . .from the Visitation of God in a natural way |
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| James Knight | September 9, 1905 | [no location given], Chesterfield County, SC |
I have examined the body of James Knight Decease and I find . . . [the] cause to his Death from natural causes. |
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| Austin King | October 27, 1890 | at Laurens CH., Laurens County, SC |
by their oaths do say that the said Austin King came to his death "From heart disease." |
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| Jenny | slave | April 28, 1836 | Kershaw County, SC |
do on their oath say that they believe she died of an apoplectic fit, the visitation of God |
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| Infant of Dissie Adams | Infant of Dissie Adams | May 5, 1912 | at W. C. Adams place, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: He came to his death from natural cause in feble condition after birth |
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| E. P. Brown | January 1, 1879 | at Mrs. E.P. Browns, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the Deceased came to to her death at her Residence Dec. the 31st A.D. 1878 from enlargement of the heart[.] |
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| infant male child | infant male child | January 3, 1894 | in Edgefield County, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say, that. . .the said infant came to his death, by heart failure produced from congestion of the lungs |
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| Betsy Pilgram | July 2, 1882 | at Woodruff, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the deceased ... came to her death by disease of the heart |
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| Benjamin Bishop | November 26, 1840 | taken one mile and a half south of the [?] on the main road leading to Jones' ford on Enoree[?] river, Union County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that the said Benjamin Bishop. . . at a place in the woods near the main road. . . died by the visitation of God in a natural way |
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| Jane Laniere | August 13, 1880 | at the residence of G. B. Whiton, Anderson County, SC |
do say that the said Jane Lanier died in the woods near the public road leading from Pendleton to Williamston at the 4 mile post . . .by no foul means but by a disease of the heart |
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| Isabelle Huggins | February 5, 1896 | at Jm S. Haggan place, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: Deceased Isabelle Huggins came to her death from Heart failure |
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| Madison Materson | at Blythewood, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their oath do say that the above decest came to its Death by natural causes on June 20-1895[.] |
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| Infred Padgett | July 12, 1848 | at the Joal of Edgefield, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that Decd came to his death by the act of God |
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| Mrs. Joe Landon | October 11, 1929 | [no location given], Chesterfield County, SC |
according to evidence that an inquest is not necessary |
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| Joe Elam | February 16, 1882 | at Nicholson premises, Edgefield County, SC |
upon there Oaths do say that Joe Elam Came to his death from Natural Causes |
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| Amanda Ellerbe | July 31, 1881 | at the residence of John Ellerbe, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said Amanda Ellerbe came to her death by natural causes or the visitation of God |
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| Borough | August 21, 1853 | on the high Road near Marengo, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that he had no marks of violence upon him and that he died by the visitation of God & not otherwise. |
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| Thomas C. Reaves | May 25, 1899 | Kershaw County, SC | |||
| Sarah Martin | July 14, 1844 | at residence of Mrs. Sarah Martin, Anderson County, SC |
do say that the above named Sarah Martin came to her death by the hand of God. |
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| Wade Chappell | at William Steele's, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their Oaths do say that the deceased Wade, Chappell, came to his death from an affection of the heart[.] |
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| James Johnson | October 13, 1852 | at James Johnson's farm, Union County, SC |
he came to his death by some caus unknown to us |
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| Tench Henson | June 8, 1868 | at Josepth Moor's, Greenville County, SC |
upon there oaths do say that it was the act of Providence |
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| Dinah | Woman Slave | May 22, 1849 | at Allen Griffith, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say, that the said Dinah came to her death by miscarriage and inflamation of the womb at the plantation of Master Michael Long |
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| Alex White | September 26, 1899 | at M. C. Rays SC, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon thare oath do Say that Alx White deceast came to his death By some unknown causes |
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| Georgiana Williams Moore | July 26, 1882 | at TS Langston's plantation, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oathes do say that the said Georgiana William Moore came to her death by a visitation of God and died of Embolism of the heart. |
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| Maria Seawright | grandma | January 11, 1882 | at the farm of A. W. McDavids, Greenville County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said Maria Seawright came to her death from a natural cause by an act of Providence |
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| James Blackie | August 17, 1836 | in the house of Ezekiel Hoy, Fairfield County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that they believe James Blackie died on the 16th of August & and that his death was caused by a 'severe acute disease aggravated & hurried to a fatal termination by previous organic affection of all the viscera of the systems |
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| Polly Vines | April 20, 1892 | at the house of Ben. Holt, Edgefield County, SC |
we find that the decesed Came to her death. . .from the [?] of age and Probealy as Stated by the Dr from Heart Failure |
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| Peter C. Oclan | January 7, 1850 | at C. Burch's, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the sd. P.C. Oclan came to his death by the act of God |
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| T. G. Cooper | June 5, 1886 | at the late residence of T. G. Cooper, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said T. G. Cooper came to his death in his own house we suppose by heart disease |
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| Polly Evins | August 18, 1886 | at Joe Waters, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the deceased came to her death from natural causes |
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| Elias Smith | August 24, 1869 | in the county of Anderson, Anderson County, SC |
do say that while from the evidence before the jury there was serious grounds for suspicion that the said Elias Smith had come to his death by some in-proper means, the evidence of the dissecting physician relieves the jury of the disagreeable necessity of prosecuting the investigation further, and so the jurors aforesaid, upon their oaths do say that the aforesaid Elias Smith came to his death by apopsy of the chest and diseased liver |
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| D. L. Campbell | October 21, 1894 | at the residence of D. L. Campbell, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that D L Campbell deceased come to his death from hart trouble |
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| Rachell Smith | at the McDowell place, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their Oaths do say that the deceased came to her death from dissease of the heart. |
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| Joseph Prince | April 13, 1842 | Union County, SC |
came to his death by the visitation of God |
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| S. D. Lawton | July 19, 1911 | at Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Chesterfield County, SC |
S. D. Lawton suddenly, without any bad natural causes, as far as deponent knows or believes, dropped dead |
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| John G. Riddle | July 3, 1860 | at the residence of Mr Richard Burton, Edgefield County, SC |
upon there oaths do say that John G Riddle died a natural death caused by infirmitys of old age |
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| Nancy Johnson | June 11, 1906 | at Whitfield Johnson, Chesterfield County, SC |
AND so the said Jurors aforesaid, upon their oaths aforesaid, do say that the aforesaid Nancy Johnson came to her death from natural causes |
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| Ned Dial | December 25, 1890 | at Powers, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oaths do say That Ned Dial came to his death from natural causes. |
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| Charlotte | slave | August 6, 1837 | in Camden, Kershaw County, SC |
do say that she came to her death by affliction[?] of the heart |
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| Unknown Infant | Unknown Infant | July 1, 1925 | at Cheraw, Chesterfield County, SC |
My opinion is that its death was from natural cause and has been dead for about four days |
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| Charles Jones | February 11, 1879 | at R.J. Gladney's, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the aforesaid Charles Jones came to his death by disease unknown to the Jury[.] |
