Throwback Thursday: Murder at the saloon

Main Street, ca.1890s-1900s. Photo: Park City Museum//Bob Graham Collection.

PARK CITY, Utah. — On the evening of Monday, August 6, 1887, a squabble had ensued at the old Cupit & Brennan’s saloon. Once the altercation was taken outside, it quickly escalated, resulting in the murder of George Joe Hughes.

According to accounts from the Park Record, several men, including George Joe Hughes, Ed A. Shear, and James Moffat, were having a cordial conversation inside the Cupit & Brennan’s saloon when a man by the name of Neal Mulloy entered and accused Hughes of being a participant in the lynching of “Black Jack Murphy” in August of 1883.

After denying Mulloy’s claim, Mulloy called Hughes a liar and invited him to take the matter outside. While hoping to refrain from any violence, Hughes agreed to step outside and began making his way down the stairs. As he descended, the altercation intensified, and Mulloy began flashing his pistol. Once on the second stair, Hughes partially turned towards Mulloy, who pulled the trigger and delivered the fatal bullet, killing Hughes in cold blood. He then overpowered Shear and Moffat and escaped to the street.

Once he was arrested, Mulloy was sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in the penitentiary.

For more historical information, individuals can visit the Park City Museum website.