| “ | [I went] into the room where Mr. Mallory, his wife and one grand child lay asleep. First I smote him with my might once or twice on his head; upon this Mrs. Mallory awaking attempted to rise up; I turned and struck her one or two blows. Mr. Mallory then sprung up; I struck immediately at him; but he partly warded off the blow with his arm, and then struck the candle out of my hand; I then pushed him back, and down upon the bed, belabouring him with the club. | „ |
| ~ Davenport recounting how he killed Caleb and Jane Mallory. |
Barnett Davenport (1760 - 1780) was a teenage drifter from Connecticut responsible for the state's first mass murder. His crime has been attributed to PTSD from his experiences in the American Revolutionary War.
Killings of the Mallory family
On 3 February 1779, Davenport went to the house of his employers, the Mallory family, and entered the bedroom where Caleb and Jane Mallory slept with their eldest grandchild Charlotte. He then violently bludgeoned them with a club until all three were dead. He then left the house and set it on fire, killing the other grandchildren, John and Sherman Mallory. Davenport ran away, but was found hiding in a cave six days later and arrested. He was convicted of the murders and sentenced to be flogged and then hanged. The sentence was carried out on 8 May 1780.