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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 Boy | infant Boy | October 29, 1894 | at [?] Coleman, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said infant didid from natural cause or by the hand god |
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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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| William Autry | March 16, 1896 | at E. W. Gulledge's place, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: that the said Wm Autry came to his death from natural causes |
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| Unknown Infant | Unknown Infant | April 26, 1888 | at Margret Bouer, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: That the said Infant Child came to her death by being accidently Smothered and that it dide on the 26th day of A D 1888 |
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| Dinah | slave | January 25, 1859 | at the late residence of John Gregory deseast, Union County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that she died of [?] of the heart which has been protracted[?] for the last ten or twelve months |
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| Ed Caldwell | at Jas. McFir's[?] place, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their Oaths do say that the deceased Ed Caldwell came to his death from heart dissease at his home[.] |
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| Sallie McDowell | August 12, 1882 | Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that ... Sallie McDowell died of indigestion |
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| John Campbell | September 26, 1883 | at Chesterfield C. H., Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say That the said John Campbell came to his death by some natural caus or causes unknown to the jurors |
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| Vance Melton | January 18, 1930 | at Cheraw, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: that he came to his death from natural causes |
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| John Williams | February 9, 1879 | at the house of Newton Perry [?] on the plantation of Thomas Cox, Anderson County, SC |
do say, that deceased [John Williams] came to his death by dropsical affiction. |
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| Learma Butler | November 7, 1890 | at W.H. Folks plantation, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that she came to her death from rheumatism of the Heart ... by natural causes |
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| Auguiste Campbell | October 30, 1868 | at Auguiste Campbell's, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oaths aforesaid do say that the Decd. Auguiste Campbell came to his death, from the continual use of peach brandy, he the decd. Being advanced in years to old age & feeble constitution & that the use of sd. Intoxicating brandy, drank from Monday morning the 26th Inst. to the time of his death was the cause of sd. death. |
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| Emanuel Thomas | at Winnsboro, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their Oaths do say that the deceased came to his death from natural causes[.] |
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| infant | September 30, 1884 | at the residence of W. A. Reed, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said infant came to its death resulting from scarlett fever or whatever the disease might have been |
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| John Jones | December 16, 1817 | at John Jones's, Spartanburg County, SC |
do say upon their oaths. . .that the said John Jones did die a natural death |
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| Janice Parsons | October 8, 1899 | [no location given], Chesterfield County, SC |
[No official declaration] |
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| Unknown Infant | Unknown Infant | June 4, 1868 | at FW Gaylords, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oaths do say, that the said child was still born. . . |
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| Levy | negro man slave | January 9, 1849 | at Austin Wilson's, Union County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that Levy Came to his death by natural Cause and that was an Act of God |
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| Chaney | negro woman | December 11, 1855 | at the dwelling house of Mrs Randall in the Town of Hamburg, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say, that Chaney, the woman now lying dead before them came to her death by the Visitation of God |
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| Nash Ferguson | May 23, 1883 | at Laurens court house, Laurens County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the aforesaid Nash Ferguson came to his death on the 23d day of May AD 1883 in Laurens County from general condition of the brain and blood clots on the brain |
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| Hardy | January 17, 1848 | at the house of I.B. McCall, Fairfield County, SC |
upon their oath, do say that the said negro man came to his death by a dispensation of Providence |
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| Joseph Smith | freeman | July 25, 1866 | at Benjamin Vaughn's, Greenville County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that he came to his death . . .by some means unknown to the jurors |
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| Sallie Busch | August 21, 1892 | at Lewis Beans plantation, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say That she came to her death from heart failure |
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| Caswell Waldrop | April 18, 1882 | at the residence of Caswell Waldrop, Greenville County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that . . . the said Caswell Waldrop . . . came to his death from the effect of an epileptic fit. |
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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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| Nelly Grazier | July 8, 1888 | at Enora, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that thy are the believe that the said Nellie Grazier came to her death by the hand of providence |
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| Sallie Manigo | at Mrs. E.M. Turner's place, Fairfield County, SC |
upon there oaths do say. That the said Sallie Manigo came to her death from some natural cause unknown to the Jury. |
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| Simon West | March 25, 1857 | near the house of dec'd, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that it is by the visitation of God |
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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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| 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 Brownlee | June 7, 1863 | at Williamston, Anderson County, SC |
do say that the deceased came to his death, not from any violence but by the visitation of God to the best of our knowledge and belief. |
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| Negro child | Negro child | September 29, 1835 | at Robt Beety[?], Union County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that The said child . . .died by the visitation of God in a natural way |
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| Bob | negro | September 23, 1864 | in the District, Edgefield County, SC |
upon there oaths do say and dclare that the said Bob came to his death by the Visitation of God |
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| Tower | December 27, 1809 | at Benjamin Strange's, Laurens County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that they believe his death came by the act of god |
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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[.] |
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| Bluford Abney | November 14, 1894 | at M.A. Colemans plantation, Edgefield County, SC |
the said Bluford Abney came to his death by natural causes or colic |
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| John McDonald | April 15, 1839 | at Daniel McDonalds, Kershaw County, SC |
do say upon their oaths that they believe the said John McDonald ... being a youth in the district aforesaid there & then died of the visitation of God |
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| Blair Massey | Alias: Isaac Funderburk | May 16, 1896 | at Phillip Arrant, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say that the deceased came to his death by natural causes |
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| unnamed infant | unnamed infant | September 8, 1855 | at the Plantation of the late William Montgomery, Horry County, SC |
upon their Oaths do say That upon a Post-morten examination, that from the decomposed state of the Child, having been dead 8 days and buried 7 days, that we can not see any sign of violence or Poesen,--but from the emty state of the Childs Stomach and Bowels, believe that the death of the Child was caused by withholding the necessary nurishment, from its Mothers breast, or otherwise |
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| Emaline | slave | April 4, 1862 | at R. G. H. Faws[?], Union County, SC |
upon their oaths do say . . .that the deseast came to her death by the visitation of god or some unknown cause |
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| Daniel Johnson | May 19, 1871 | at John T. Johnsons, Horry County, SC |
upon their Oaths do Say that the said Daniel Johnson infant came to his death by the hand of God |
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| D. Searey | November 17, 1882 | near Martinsville, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that ... the said D. Seary died from Epileptic fit or other causes to which mortal man is heir |
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| E. A. Teal | September 1, 1883 | near and on the north side of the Public Road leading from Chesterfield C. H. to Abrahams Creek and the middle prong of said Creek, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that the said E.A. Teal, came to her death from natural causes there neing no marks of violence upon her body |
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| Mandy Richerson | February 18, 1929 | on Jule Campbell's Place, Chesterfield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say: Mandy Richerson came to her Death from natural causes |
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| Charity Bozeman | June 11, 1880 | at the house of Aby McAlister, Anderson County, SC |
do say that Charity Bozeman came to her death by Harte Deaseas [sic] |
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| infant child | infant child | September 9, 1891 | at Wards, Edgefield County, SC |
upon their oaths, do say that the said infant male Child came to it death by premature birth |
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| David Jeans | March 5, 1870 | Laurens County, SC |
We the undersigned Jurors do say that we believe the said david Jeans freedman came to his death by the Visitation of God. |
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| Charles Aiken | at the Bell place, Fairfield County, SC |
upo their Oaths do say that the deceased Charles Aiken, came to his death form Rupture of a blood vesel at Narthers Church[.] |
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| Alex Black | October 27, 1884 | at Philadelphia in Spartanburg County, Spartanburg County, SC |
upon their oaths do say that he came to his death from disease of the brain in his field some two hundred yards from his house |
