Eli Hacket, a white man living in Indian Territory, had a daughter with a Peoria woman. That daughter was living with the brother of John Valley, a Peoria man. A dispute between the two men arose over money to be paid to Hacket’s daughter.
A few days later, John Valley shot and killed Hacket in front of witnesses.
Years passed before John Valley was indicted on May 9, 1876. He was convicted at trial in Fort Smith on May 20, 1876, and sentenced to death on June 21.
John Valley was hanged at Fort Smith on September 8, 1876.
The Federal Death Penalty Project 