SHREWSBURY — Questions persist about an infamous murder that occurred in what is now West Long Branch in 1863. Peter Slocum, descendant of a prominent Monmouth County family, was found guilty of the murder of his wife and was hanged, but debate about his guilt continues today.
On Monday, March 8, the Shrewsbury Towne-Monmouth Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) will host the “Slocum Murder Trial Presentation.” The meeting is open to the public and will begin at 7 p.m. at the Shrewsbury Historical Society building in the Shrewsbury Municipal Complex, at the corner of Route 35 and Sycamore Avenue.
The Slocum killing took place in Mechanicsville on Tuesday, July 14, 1863. Peter Slocum, whose family’s roots dated back to the Monmouth Patent of 1665, was tried and executed for murdering his wife, Abigail, with a shotgun. But there are still many questions that have gone unanswered, including whether an innocent man was hanged.
Come hear the tale told by local historian Arthur T. Green II and draw your own conclusions.