Sumner Henry Needham Explained

Sumner Henry Needham (born March 2, 1828 - died April 27, 1861) was identified in an 1888 book on the history of Essex County, Massachusetts as the first Union combat casualty of the American Civil War, although he was killed by civilians of the United States in the Baltimore riot of 1861 as the troops passed through that city.^[1] Needham was shot on April 19, 1861 but lingered for eight days before dying of his wounds.^[2]

Modern historian David Detzer states that Luther C. Ladd was the first Union soldier to die in the Baltimore riot.^[3] On June 1, 1861 in a report dated May 16, 1861, Harper's Weekly identified Ladd as the "first victim of the war" on April 19, 1861.^[4]

References

1. Web site: Hurd . Duane Hamilton Jr. . History of Essex County, Massachusetts, Volume 1 . 1888 . Philadelphia: J.W. Lewis & Company, 1888 . 24 November 2018 . 2.
2. Detzer, David. Dissonance: The Turbulent Days Between Fort Sumter and Bull Run. New York: Harcourt, 2006. . p. 119: "Corporal Needham, a plasterer from Lawrence...was shot in the neck, then smashed by the crowd and kicked to a pulp. He lingered in Baltimore for eight days before dying of his wounds."
3. Detzer, David. Dissonance: The Turbulent Days Between Fort Sumter and Bull Run. New York: Harcourt, 2006. . p. 119: "The first to die was Private Luther C. Ladd, born in New Hampshire on his father's farm."
4. News: Kimball . Charles A. . "Luther C. Ladd...The First Victim of the War" . Harpers Weekly. 341 . June 1, 1861 . June 13, 2017 . The article in this edition of Harper's Weekly is dated May 16, 1861.