{"chunks_used":1,"query":"The Night Sergeant Douglass Fell","report":"**The Night Sergeant Douglass Fell: A Tragic Episode in the 1900 New Croton Dam Strike**  \n\nOn the evening of April 16, 1900, Sergeant Robert Douglass of the Eleventh Separate Company of the New York National Guard became the first fatality of the Croton Landing strike at the New Croton Dam. According to the *Cortland Evening Standard* (April 17, 1900), Douglass was shot at 9:50 p.m. while relieving a guard post near Little Italy, a hilltop location overlooking the dam site. The article describes the scene as shrouded in darkness, with Douglass collapsing after shouting, \u201cLoad, boys, I\u2019m shot,\u201d before succumbing to his injuries en route to his tent. No witnesses reported seeing the shooter, and the absence of a flash or audible gunshot added to the mystery of the attack.  \n\nThe incident ignited immediate panic among the soldiers and workers. The *Cortland Evening Standard* notes that \u201cthe wildest excitement prevailed throughout the camp,\u201d with soldiers reacting to the \u201ccowardly crime\u201d in a state of \u201cfrantic\u201d distress. The location of the shooting\u2014near a hill that would eventually be submerged by the completed dam\u2014was also significant, as armed strikers had been observed drilling nearby earlier that day. This context suggests tensions between laborers and military personnel were already high, though the article does not clarify whether the strikers were directly involved in Douglass\u2019 death.  \n\nThe lack of a clear suspect or motive left the event unresolved. The article emphasizes the \u201cmysterious\u201d nature of the shooting, as no arrests or investigations were reported in the immediate aftermath. Douglass\u2019 death marked a pivotal moment in the strike, escalating what had been a labor dispute into a violent confrontation with lethal consequences. The tragedy underscored the volatile atmosphere at Croton Landing, where workers\u2019 grievances over wages and working conditions collided with military enforcement efforts.  \n\n**Sources consulted**  \n- *Cortland Evening Standard*, Tuesday, April 17, 1900, \u201cSERGEANT MURDERED. First Bloodshed in Croton Landing Strike.\u201d Transcribed by Jeff Paine at https://jeffpaine.blogspot.com/2022/12/first-bloodshed-during-croton-dam.html.","sources_consulted":["Cortland Evening Standard, Tuesday, April 17, 1900: \"SERGEANT MURDERED. First Bloodshed in Croton Landing Strike. SOLDIER SHOT BY ASSASSIN. Member of Mount Vernon Militia, While Relieving Guard, Suddenly Falls, Pierced With Bullet Fired By Unknown\u2014Excitement Runs Wild Over Affair.\" Public-domain newspaper dispatch from Croton Landing covering the first death at Camp Roosevelt during the 1900 New Croton Dam strike \u2014 Sergeant Robert Douglass of the Eleventh Separate Company, New York National Guard, shot at 9:50 p.m. April 16, 1900. Transcribed verbatim by Jeff Paine at https://jeffpaine.blogspot.com/2022/12/first-bloodshed-during-croton-dam.html"]}