Deputy Sheriff Thomas Smith

Thomas Smith

Deputy Sheriff Thomas Smith was stabbed to death while attempting to arrest a wanted subject near Cleveland in Aroostook County.

The man was a known violent criminal, and Deputy Smith had been searching for him for several weeks. He learned that the man may be hiding in a barn near Long Lake in Aroostook County. He and two assistants located the man hiding beneath a pile of hay in the barn. As Deputy Smith grabbed the man's pistol, the subject pulled out a dirk and stabbed Deputy Smith in the leg several times, severing an artery.

One of Deputy Smith's assistants then shot and wounded the man before taking him into custody. Deputy Smith bled to death within 10 minutes.

The subject was charged with Deputy Smith's murder but died of Typhoid fever in September 1864 while awaiting trial.

Deputy Smith was survived by his wife and two children.